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| Photo Credit: Scott Finkelstein |
Here it is, the grand finale. I hope you enjoyed the list and found some new matches to check out in addition to the stuff you already watched!
Tim Donst (c) vs. ACH, AIW Absolute Championship, AIW Point Break, 9/23
What can I write about ACH that I haven’t written before? Well, I guess I’m going to have to attempt to do more here, because he and Donst helped salvage a show that was mired in the depths of a shakily done invasion/uprising angle. These two had rushed to the ring to help chase off Nixon, and as apparent allies, you’d think they would have done a straight clean, technical match. Both are capable of it, but man, they got downright chippy at some points of the match. Then again, it’s for the title. Donst didn’t wanna lose it on his first defense. ACH almost had his one-on-one opportunity stolen from him.
I had one slight problem with the match though. ACH at one point told the ref to start counting when Donst was on the outside. Titles don’t change hands on countouts, which is a mistake ACH rectified within the 4 count. But the rest of the match was good enough to make up for that mental mistake. Donst broke out his vast array of submissions, and ACH countered with his charismatic athleticism, at one point bursting from his back right into a counter rana. I mean, you can’t teach that kind of hops, or even more importantly, the kind of timing needed to make it look like a counter and not something Shelton Benjamin does to make people go “OOH! AAH!” Donst got the tap out victory with From Dusk til’ Donst, but both guys came out looking like winner here.
Sheamus vs. CM Punk, Main Event, 10/3 (airdate)
The first match in the new WWE show's history was a fine one. Punk and Sheamus put on a PPV-caliber match that went back and forth and had several big-time moves and counters. For example, Punk slipping out of the chest clubs and then booting Sheamus in the head was slickly done. The finish was great too, with Punk using tried and true heel tactics of the exposed turnbuckle and pulling the tights.
Mark Angelosetti (c) vs. Green Ant, Young Lions Cup Match, Chikara Deep Freeze, 10/6
For as much as this was Angelosetti’s first defense of his Cup, it was also his first real test in a main event scenario as well. I doubt that it’ll be his last, and he got a good dance partner, even if Green Ant’s main event chops had been limited to tags at that point. A lot of this match was carried by Touchdown’s underhanded tactics, thanks to his cheerleader-manager Veronica Ticklefeather, but there was a lot of good lucha libre action going on between the cheating as well, including Angelosetti countering a triangle armbar with the Backlund short arm scissors in a near deadlift. He packs a lot of strength in that short frame, he does. Of course, Green Ant came at him with everything in his tank. The strong submission game was a given, and in addition to the triangle, he busted out his patented cloverleaf as well. The finish of the match was seamless, wrestling theater, well done on all four parts, Angelosetti, Greenie, Veronica, and Bryce Remsburg. Angelosetti didn’t keep his first title defense clean, but passing the baton off on Greenie and his form on his helmet shot made it feel so smooth.
Mark Angel vs. Jessicka Havok, Beyond Wrestling/WSU Secret Card, 10/13
Watch it here!
Shhhh, this is a secret card and a secret match. Angel and Havok at the time were the nominal heads of their companies, so of course any interpromotional card would have to have them facing off. Angel kicked off the match by farting in Havok’s gas mask, which made me laugh a lot harder than it should have. Of course, he who dealt it had to smelt it in this case. You know Havok wasn’t going to let that go, right? The match settled into a hard-hitting groove, as one might expect. The levity wasn’t finished with the beginning of the affair though. As Angel had Havok in the corner chopping her, he moved down towards her chest, pulling away in pain when he did. Havok revealed she was wearing a spiked bra. Classic. Havok put Angel away with the Air Raid Crash to cap a fine contest.
Leva Bates vs. Kalamity, WSU Full Steam Ahead, 10/13
Originally published in my review for Full Steam Ahead
Antonio Cesaro vs. Justin Gabriel, RAW, 10/15
Excepting the fact that the dumbshit crowd chanted USA in this match, it was maybe the perfect reason why the move to three hours is wholly justified. It started out as a display for Cesaro to hoss it up, which he's quite good at if you haven't figured out yet. I was a huge fan of Claudio Castagnoli in the indies, but as good as he was there, he was MADE to be in a WWE ring. Gabriel was the perfect canvas for him to do things like big lariats and Goomba stomps. Seriously, the sell on the lariat was perfect. The 450 to end the match almost felt like a slip-up, but both wrestlers and Jim Ross covered for it well. Then, that European uppercut. Lord, so good.
Daniel Bryan vs. Dolph Ziggler, RAW, 10/22
Oh my God. Was the best part of this match Daniel Bryan getting a chance to show his submission prowess? Was it him taking that bump on the suplex to the outside from Dolph Ziggler? Was it Ziggler going jaw first into the top of the ring post on the flip over the turnbuckle? How about Bryan going into Ziggler with a plancha? The top rope X-Factor? Bryan being distracted by Kane into a Zig Zag for the finish? The answer is obviously YES! YES! YES!
Sami Callihan vs. Davey Richards, PWG Failure to Communicate, 10/27
When a guy has a reputation, it can skew the analysis and enjoyment of his matches. Maybe it’s a matter of overrating it when he doesn’t pull out the bad tropes. Maybe it’s a matter of groaning when they do make an appearance in a match when they actually work. I’m not sure if this is going to be a “correct” rating, but I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Davey Richards had a really good, even great, singles match, and it was against Sami Callihan. So maybe it wasn’t so much of a skewed reaction? I don’t know.
What I do know was that this was a tense, stiff thriller that included a lot of neat submissions and submission counters. Richards took a couple of really huge bumps, especially taking a scoop sweep while on the apron, and he dished a couple out himself, most notably him dropping a kick on a seated Callihan. The submission work was really excellent though. That’s what made the match for me, the guys going from hold to hold, or even Richards trying like hell to go from different holds to put Callihan out. There was a sequence where Callihan had Richards in the Trailer Hitch, but Richards grabbed onto his free ankle and went into the ankle lock. Callihan wiggled out of it, put Richards in the beginning of the Hitch again before just slamming his knee to the canvas. It was a beautiful exchange that was actually foreshadowing to the finish of the match, where Richards was in the Stretch Muffler and reaching for the ankle again before tapping out.
The thing about this match is that Richards started settling into some of his bad habits at the end, but he limited to the end. When Richards kicked out of the lariat at one and popped up to deliver a flurry, it was a moment of sheer adrenaline. It punctuated how silly his past habits and the habits he’s influenced on guys even on that card (watch Michael Elgin vs. Eddie Edwards if you wanna get pissed off at excessive no-selling and finisher-type spam). But ignoring the context and trying to watch Richards like you were doing it for the first time, and in this match, it worked. Of course, it helped that Callihan is just amazing, but that’s besides the point. Or is it?
Kenny Omega and El Generico vs. Matt and Nick Jackson, PWG Failure to Communicate, 10/27
The Young Bucks are so good at being asshole pricks that it’s hard not to like them in spite of their intentions in a given match. They played guitar with Omega’s arm, stole his hat, brutalized Generico when he tried for a tag, blatantly going for low blows. My favorite piece of evidence towards their dickish likability happened when Matt Jackson and Omega were on the mat reenacting Over the Top. Omega appeared to have the upper hand, but then Nick Jackson came flying from the top to break up the match. Utter ruthless assholery, and I loved it. Of course, the Bucks got what was coming to them in the end, which involved taking a BRAINBUSTAAAAHHHH! and an Avalanche Croyt’s Wrath, the latter a move I’m still trying to process. All in all, it was a fantastic display of everything Omega, Generico, and especially The Young Bucks can do in a wrestling ring.
Mike Posey (c) vs. Kyle Matthews, RPW Television Championship Match, RPW Doctoberfest, 10/28
Watch it here!
Man, did Posey shit in Matthews’ coffee or something, because this is at least the second time Matthews beat him for one of his titles. As with the first match, it was a well-contested thriller, but unlike that poorly-shot fan-cam from the Pro South Arena, this had the benefit of real TV cameras catching the action at Johnny G’s Fun Zone. Under the bright lights, the two were able to put in work visible to everyone. Matthews toyed with him with his submissions, but Posey had answers for a lot of his high-flying moves. I especially dug the exchange at the end, where Matthews had Posey up for a superplex, but Posey slipped out and tripped Matthews into the Tree of Woe. He went for a big dropkick, but Matthews pulled himself up and made Posey eat the ring post. The finish was very well-done and well-sold by the announcers. Posey went to the top to try and cheap his way to a win by delivering a guillotine leg drop with the TV Title belt draped across his butt. He missed, and Matthews capitalized. It was a great finish to an outstanding match.
Randy Orton, Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara vs. Alberto del Rio, Darren Young and Titus O'Neil, Main Event, 10/31 (airdate)
WWE indulging in some hot trios action is always a good thing. If tag team matches can hide weaknesses, then trios matches further dilute weaknesses and mix the strengths of six wrestlers into something potentially special. The guy on display in this match was Young, who did all the little things that turned a formula WWE match into something that felt fresh. Stuff like slapping Mysterio's head derisively or knocking him off the apron in hurried, frantic fashion did not go unnoticed. Everyone got their shots in, and the result was a fine six-man tag on what is becoming WWE's best show.
Kahagas (c) vs. Damien Wayne, NWA World Championship Match, NWA Houston Show, 11/9
Watch it here!
Hey, do you like batshit insane brawls? Do you like grizzled dudes beating the shit out of each other? Do you like apron spots and guys getting slammed into walls? Do you like pie? Well, if you like the first three things I mentioned, this match will be right up your alley. Not one week with the NWA World Championship, and Kahagas was already embroiled in a blood feud with Wayne, who felt wronged by the decision. So they brawled in the ring and out of it. They slammed each other into tables. Well, that was the tamest thing they did. Kahagas at one point threw a garbage can at Wayne, who answered by slamming the Champ into a cinder block wall. Later on, Kahagas planted Wayne headfirst onto a table with a DDT, which Wayne eventually followed up by draping the Champ hanging off the apron and then hitting him with a leg drop from the top rope. Eventually, they made it to the outside AGAIN, and Wayne smashed Kahagas’ head with a beer bottle after the Champ spat a drink in his face. Unable to keep up with the antics on the outside, the ref DQed them both, which was kind of a dick move, but then again, with insane fisticuffs like that, does there need to be a finish? Okay, maybe there does, but the body of this match was so good that I could overlook it.
Jaka vs. Gran Akuma, Wrestling Is Fun! Bananaversary, 11/17
Originally published in my review for Bananaversary
Randy Orton, The Miz, Daniel Bryan, Kane, and Kofi Kingston vs. Dolph Ziggler, Alberto del Rio, Wade Barrett, Damien Sandow, and David Otunga, Survivor Series, 11/18
Originally published in my review for Survivor Series
This match encapsulated the dichotomy between wrestler and producer in WWE like none other. The meat of this match was outstanding, like what we've all come to expect from both men with one twist. It wasn't Ziggler who took the big bump here, but it was Cena, going HARD into the ring steps. In fact, Ziggler was allowed to look like an offensive juggernaut most of the match, breaking out moves that have been rarely or never seen from him in his WWE career so far, like that sidewinder jawbreaker and the leaping sitout DDT. Where the match almost lost me though was at the end, where they made it a point to bring out EVERY SINGLE ONE of WWE's tried and true angle-lengthening tropes. Ziggler tried to take the turnbuckle pad off. Cena "aggravated" his knee "injury." AJ Lee and Vickie Guerrero came out to distract the ref enough for Ziggler to get in a potential briefcase shot. All of that, and John Cena still went all Superman all over everyone's asses (and I say everyone because the fans got got as much as Ziggler did there). Be that as it may, I couldn't hate on this match. I enjoyed it way too much before the shit at the end went down.
John Cena vs. Damien Sandow, Main Event, 11/28 (airdate)
I think the best way you can tell WWE likes a guy, they put him in there "before he's ready" against John Cena. I remember in the last few years that Jack Swagger, CM Punk, and Dolph Ziggler all getting very competitive matches against Cena before they were given the ball. So from this tilt on Main Event, it should be taken as a sign of faith in our intellectual savior. That faith should have been academic, given how great of a year in the ring Sandow had had to this point. Sandow's strengths are his plodding, methodical offense interspersed with taunting. He broke out four cartwheels – FOUR – before Cena finally took advantage of one. Cena treated this match like it was a PPV main event against a post-ascension Punk, which made Sandow look all the more impressive. The finish was really slick with Cena struggling out of the Terminus and segueing into the STF. All in all, another fine centerpiece match for Main Event.
Jigsaw, deviANT, Soldier Ant, and The Shard vs. Mike Quackenbush, Fire Ant, Green Ant and assailANT, Chikara Under the Hood, 12/2
Originally published in my Under the Hood review
Antonio Cesaro (c) vs. R-Truth vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Wade Barrett, United States Championship Fatal Four Way Match, RAW, 12/3
Junk food wrestling isn't bad inasmuch as junk food isn't bad in small doses. Seeing a match with frenzied flying, finishers galore, and guys just busting out spot after spot isn't something I want to see all the time, but when it's at the tail end of a sleepy RAW, it's a welcome change of pace. Everyone was on point, but you'd be fooling yourself if this wasn't a display to make Cesaro look like a goddamn beast. Uppercuts to R-Truth while jumping off the apron and Kingston after he sprinted around the ringside area and springboarded off the ring steps were both amazing. Seriously, his Swiss Death counters are getting more and more epic by the week. Plus, he broke out the Big Swing! And segued it into a single crab! And he did the Waterslide again! AND HE PICKED KINGSTON UP OUT OF A PIN INTO THE NEUTRALIZER! Just give Cesaro all the belts, please.
Daniel Bryan, Kane, and Ryback vs. Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns, and Seth Rollins, TLC Match, WWE TLC, 12/16
Originally published in my review for TLC
Let’s forget that John Cena tried to do a hurricanrana during this match. Block it out of your mind. Forget that Dolph Ziggler bumped as only he could have for that absurd execution of what has become a long-standard wrestling hold. Everything else in this match was golden though. I know that highlighting “high spots” isn’t really chic when it comes to analyzing a match, but in this case, it was the massive feats of strength and insane pratfalls taken by both men that punctuated its memorability. Whether it was Ziggler and Cena falling to the outside of the ring from a ladder after the latter climbed it while the former had a sleeper hold applied or Cena shutting a ladder with Ziggler still on it and trying to toss him out of the ring, these moments made this a proper main event. Of course, Ziggler winning didn’t hurt either, but that’s just my inner bitchy, petulant nerd-fan coming out.
Honorable Mentions:
Tim Donst (c) vs. ACH, AIW Absolute Championship, AIW Point Break, 9/23
What can I write about ACH that I haven’t written before? Well, I guess I’m going to have to attempt to do more here, because he and Donst helped salvage a show that was mired in the depths of a shakily done invasion/uprising angle. These two had rushed to the ring to help chase off Nixon, and as apparent allies, you’d think they would have done a straight clean, technical match. Both are capable of it, but man, they got downright chippy at some points of the match. Then again, it’s for the title. Donst didn’t wanna lose it on his first defense. ACH almost had his one-on-one opportunity stolen from him.
I had one slight problem with the match though. ACH at one point told the ref to start counting when Donst was on the outside. Titles don’t change hands on countouts, which is a mistake ACH rectified within the 4 count. But the rest of the match was good enough to make up for that mental mistake. Donst broke out his vast array of submissions, and ACH countered with his charismatic athleticism, at one point bursting from his back right into a counter rana. I mean, you can’t teach that kind of hops, or even more importantly, the kind of timing needed to make it look like a counter and not something Shelton Benjamin does to make people go “OOH! AAH!” Donst got the tap out victory with From Dusk til’ Donst, but both guys came out looking like winner here.
Sheamus vs. CM Punk, Main Event, 10/3 (airdate)
The first match in the new WWE show's history was a fine one. Punk and Sheamus put on a PPV-caliber match that went back and forth and had several big-time moves and counters. For example, Punk slipping out of the chest clubs and then booting Sheamus in the head was slickly done. The finish was great too, with Punk using tried and true heel tactics of the exposed turnbuckle and pulling the tights.
Mark Angelosetti (c) vs. Green Ant, Young Lions Cup Match, Chikara Deep Freeze, 10/6
For as much as this was Angelosetti’s first defense of his Cup, it was also his first real test in a main event scenario as well. I doubt that it’ll be his last, and he got a good dance partner, even if Green Ant’s main event chops had been limited to tags at that point. A lot of this match was carried by Touchdown’s underhanded tactics, thanks to his cheerleader-manager Veronica Ticklefeather, but there was a lot of good lucha libre action going on between the cheating as well, including Angelosetti countering a triangle armbar with the Backlund short arm scissors in a near deadlift. He packs a lot of strength in that short frame, he does. Of course, Green Ant came at him with everything in his tank. The strong submission game was a given, and in addition to the triangle, he busted out his patented cloverleaf as well. The finish of the match was seamless, wrestling theater, well done on all four parts, Angelosetti, Greenie, Veronica, and Bryce Remsburg. Angelosetti didn’t keep his first title defense clean, but passing the baton off on Greenie and his form on his helmet shot made it feel so smooth.
Mark Angel vs. Jessicka Havok, Beyond Wrestling/WSU Secret Card, 10/13
Watch it here!
Shhhh, this is a secret card and a secret match. Angel and Havok at the time were the nominal heads of their companies, so of course any interpromotional card would have to have them facing off. Angel kicked off the match by farting in Havok’s gas mask, which made me laugh a lot harder than it should have. Of course, he who dealt it had to smelt it in this case. You know Havok wasn’t going to let that go, right? The match settled into a hard-hitting groove, as one might expect. The levity wasn’t finished with the beginning of the affair though. As Angel had Havok in the corner chopping her, he moved down towards her chest, pulling away in pain when he did. Havok revealed she was wearing a spiked bra. Classic. Havok put Angel away with the Air Raid Crash to cap a fine contest.
Leva Bates vs. Kalamity, WSU Full Steam Ahead, 10/13
Originally published in my review for Full Steam Ahead
I have grown to appreciate the art of the opening match kick over the last year. I dunno, it used to be that the opener was for the schlubs who couldn't do anything, but rosters are getting to the point where there's talent everywhere. So, when Leva Bates and Kalamity is opening the show for good reason, then it's more of a statement of how good wrestling has gotten rather than an issue of card layout.
Why did this match work as well as it did? Bates came off here as one of the most expressive wrestlers on the planet. Her facial expressions were top notch, telling a story about how the match was going for her without saying too much. Sure, she talked shit during the match too in her own way. My favorite instance of that was when Kalamity was tapping the canvas in an attempt to alleviate the pressure, and Bates yelled "SHE'S TAPPING! SHE'S TAPPING!" Conversely, Kalamity let her angry feet tell her side of the story. Any chance she got, she was kicking the living daylights out of Bates, going forward like destroying those in her path was the thankless job told in the absolute dourness of her face.
It was an interesting contrast in styles with great pacing, a lot of cool moves (Kalamity broke out the Goku-Raku Gatame!), and more than enough theatrical atmosphere to go around. It was also concise, which for an opener has to be the case. LuFisto/Martinez would be the match that got the lion's share of the time. There's something to be said for economy of time, but when you approach a match the way these two did, then anything's possible.
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| Photo Credit: WWE.com |
Excepting the fact that the dumbshit crowd chanted USA in this match, it was maybe the perfect reason why the move to three hours is wholly justified. It started out as a display for Cesaro to hoss it up, which he's quite good at if you haven't figured out yet. I was a huge fan of Claudio Castagnoli in the indies, but as good as he was there, he was MADE to be in a WWE ring. Gabriel was the perfect canvas for him to do things like big lariats and Goomba stomps. Seriously, the sell on the lariat was perfect. The 450 to end the match almost felt like a slip-up, but both wrestlers and Jim Ross covered for it well. Then, that European uppercut. Lord, so good.
Daniel Bryan vs. Dolph Ziggler, RAW, 10/22
Oh my God. Was the best part of this match Daniel Bryan getting a chance to show his submission prowess? Was it him taking that bump on the suplex to the outside from Dolph Ziggler? Was it Ziggler going jaw first into the top of the ring post on the flip over the turnbuckle? How about Bryan going into Ziggler with a plancha? The top rope X-Factor? Bryan being distracted by Kane into a Zig Zag for the finish? The answer is obviously YES! YES! YES!
Sami Callihan vs. Davey Richards, PWG Failure to Communicate, 10/27
When a guy has a reputation, it can skew the analysis and enjoyment of his matches. Maybe it’s a matter of overrating it when he doesn’t pull out the bad tropes. Maybe it’s a matter of groaning when they do make an appearance in a match when they actually work. I’m not sure if this is going to be a “correct” rating, but I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Davey Richards had a really good, even great, singles match, and it was against Sami Callihan. So maybe it wasn’t so much of a skewed reaction? I don’t know.
What I do know was that this was a tense, stiff thriller that included a lot of neat submissions and submission counters. Richards took a couple of really huge bumps, especially taking a scoop sweep while on the apron, and he dished a couple out himself, most notably him dropping a kick on a seated Callihan. The submission work was really excellent though. That’s what made the match for me, the guys going from hold to hold, or even Richards trying like hell to go from different holds to put Callihan out. There was a sequence where Callihan had Richards in the Trailer Hitch, but Richards grabbed onto his free ankle and went into the ankle lock. Callihan wiggled out of it, put Richards in the beginning of the Hitch again before just slamming his knee to the canvas. It was a beautiful exchange that was actually foreshadowing to the finish of the match, where Richards was in the Stretch Muffler and reaching for the ankle again before tapping out.
The thing about this match is that Richards started settling into some of his bad habits at the end, but he limited to the end. When Richards kicked out of the lariat at one and popped up to deliver a flurry, it was a moment of sheer adrenaline. It punctuated how silly his past habits and the habits he’s influenced on guys even on that card (watch Michael Elgin vs. Eddie Edwards if you wanna get pissed off at excessive no-selling and finisher-type spam). But ignoring the context and trying to watch Richards like you were doing it for the first time, and in this match, it worked. Of course, it helped that Callihan is just amazing, but that’s besides the point. Or is it?
Kenny Omega and El Generico vs. Matt and Nick Jackson, PWG Failure to Communicate, 10/27
The Young Bucks are so good at being asshole pricks that it’s hard not to like them in spite of their intentions in a given match. They played guitar with Omega’s arm, stole his hat, brutalized Generico when he tried for a tag, blatantly going for low blows. My favorite piece of evidence towards their dickish likability happened when Matt Jackson and Omega were on the mat reenacting Over the Top. Omega appeared to have the upper hand, but then Nick Jackson came flying from the top to break up the match. Utter ruthless assholery, and I loved it. Of course, the Bucks got what was coming to them in the end, which involved taking a BRAINBUSTAAAAHHHH! and an Avalanche Croyt’s Wrath, the latter a move I’m still trying to process. All in all, it was a fantastic display of everything Omega, Generico, and especially The Young Bucks can do in a wrestling ring.
Mike Posey (c) vs. Kyle Matthews, RPW Television Championship Match, RPW Doctoberfest, 10/28
Watch it here!
Man, did Posey shit in Matthews’ coffee or something, because this is at least the second time Matthews beat him for one of his titles. As with the first match, it was a well-contested thriller, but unlike that poorly-shot fan-cam from the Pro South Arena, this had the benefit of real TV cameras catching the action at Johnny G’s Fun Zone. Under the bright lights, the two were able to put in work visible to everyone. Matthews toyed with him with his submissions, but Posey had answers for a lot of his high-flying moves. I especially dug the exchange at the end, where Matthews had Posey up for a superplex, but Posey slipped out and tripped Matthews into the Tree of Woe. He went for a big dropkick, but Matthews pulled himself up and made Posey eat the ring post. The finish was very well-done and well-sold by the announcers. Posey went to the top to try and cheap his way to a win by delivering a guillotine leg drop with the TV Title belt draped across his butt. He missed, and Matthews capitalized. It was a great finish to an outstanding match.
Randy Orton, Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara vs. Alberto del Rio, Darren Young and Titus O'Neil, Main Event, 10/31 (airdate)
WWE indulging in some hot trios action is always a good thing. If tag team matches can hide weaknesses, then trios matches further dilute weaknesses and mix the strengths of six wrestlers into something potentially special. The guy on display in this match was Young, who did all the little things that turned a formula WWE match into something that felt fresh. Stuff like slapping Mysterio's head derisively or knocking him off the apron in hurried, frantic fashion did not go unnoticed. Everyone got their shots in, and the result was a fine six-man tag on what is becoming WWE's best show.
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| Photo Credit: Scott Finkelstein |
Watch it here!
Hey, do you like batshit insane brawls? Do you like grizzled dudes beating the shit out of each other? Do you like apron spots and guys getting slammed into walls? Do you like pie? Well, if you like the first three things I mentioned, this match will be right up your alley. Not one week with the NWA World Championship, and Kahagas was already embroiled in a blood feud with Wayne, who felt wronged by the decision. So they brawled in the ring and out of it. They slammed each other into tables. Well, that was the tamest thing they did. Kahagas at one point threw a garbage can at Wayne, who answered by slamming the Champ into a cinder block wall. Later on, Kahagas planted Wayne headfirst onto a table with a DDT, which Wayne eventually followed up by draping the Champ hanging off the apron and then hitting him with a leg drop from the top rope. Eventually, they made it to the outside AGAIN, and Wayne smashed Kahagas’ head with a beer bottle after the Champ spat a drink in his face. Unable to keep up with the antics on the outside, the ref DQed them both, which was kind of a dick move, but then again, with insane fisticuffs like that, does there need to be a finish? Okay, maybe there does, but the body of this match was so good that I could overlook it.
Jaka vs. Gran Akuma, Wrestling Is Fun! Bananaversary, 11/17
Originally published in my review for Bananaversary
Going into the event, I thought that Jaka/Akuma might be the best match, and it turns out my feeling was validated. It's a good feeling to have when a match lives up to expectation. Then again, when two opponents match up as well as the former Johnny Mangue and the current ronin of the Chikara roster (I refuse to acknowledge Wink's bull-doodie Chikarametrics), it's not hard to see why this match would be so good.
So, why was it destined to be a great match? It was a case where two guys with similar styles got together and meshed well to create an ideal atmosphere. Both are among the hardest hitters on the circuit, they aren't afraid to take the big hit, and they both love submission wrestling. They provided all of that and then some. My personal favorite part of the match was the reeducation on old-timey wrestling tropes, especially the "guys from the jungle have hard heads" one. That might be a bit racist, but at the same time, it's in a Chikara-style promotion, not WWE. Jaka wasn't cast as a dumbass. There was style in his game.
I'd also say that between this and the excellent main event, that WIF! has found a way to provide a gateway for young kids into appreciating what we consider as good wrestling. For that reason alone, this match is not only must-see, it's must-watch with your kids as well. Trust me. I'm a father.
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| Photo Credit: WWE.com |
Originally published in my review for Survivor Series
The formula for a good Survivor Series elimination match is simple. Stock each team with at least four good wrestlers, let each guy cycle through spots, put in something cool for the occasion and then try to tell some kind of story. It's pretty nice if someone who doesn't win all the time gets to win, but that's gravy. Plus, wrestling isn't about wins and losses, remember? I thought they did a tremendous job of setting the stage here and giving everyone a chance to shine.Dolph Ziggler vs. John Cena, RAW, 11/26
Obviously, the loss of Cody Rhodes from the match hurt, because he and Damien Sandow had a story going with the Tag Team Champions. Still, at least Sandow got a heavy dosage of attention in this match, as well he should. He's part of the future of the company. The real standouts in the match for me were Orton, Bryan, and Ziggler though, which is unsurprising, at least for the last two. Orton runs hot and cold for me, but when he's on, he's really on. I really dug his borderline psychosis. Maybe it was his admission of hate to Mick Foley before the match that he hated him that set the mood, but regardless, he really worked for me here, especially at the end, when he allowed vengeance to claim his heart. His face, blood dripping down his lower lip, as he pondered kicking Ziggler in the head, was just priceless.
Ziggler was a spotlight guy for his own reasons, both comical and emotional. There's no reason for him to bump the way he did for Kingston's monkey flip, but it worked. Why? Why does anything in wrestling work? It's a spectacle. Bryan also knew this, and of course he hammed it up, both in the ring as a competitor and in the face of his tag partner and virtual husband, Kane. That wasn't to say everyone else didn't shine. They all had their roles too. Otunga flex-pinning on Bryan so nonchalantly that the ref had to admonish him for not having the shoulders down was just awesome as a visual, even if it wasn't on purpose. It's the little things like that that coalesce and make a match that could be as disparate and ego-driven as possible into one, complete tale with several stories entwined into one strong thread.
This match encapsulated the dichotomy between wrestler and producer in WWE like none other. The meat of this match was outstanding, like what we've all come to expect from both men with one twist. It wasn't Ziggler who took the big bump here, but it was Cena, going HARD into the ring steps. In fact, Ziggler was allowed to look like an offensive juggernaut most of the match, breaking out moves that have been rarely or never seen from him in his WWE career so far, like that sidewinder jawbreaker and the leaping sitout DDT. Where the match almost lost me though was at the end, where they made it a point to bring out EVERY SINGLE ONE of WWE's tried and true angle-lengthening tropes. Ziggler tried to take the turnbuckle pad off. Cena "aggravated" his knee "injury." AJ Lee and Vickie Guerrero came out to distract the ref enough for Ziggler to get in a potential briefcase shot. All of that, and John Cena still went all Superman all over everyone's asses (and I say everyone because the fans got got as much as Ziggler did there). Be that as it may, I couldn't hate on this match. I enjoyed it way too much before the shit at the end went down.
John Cena vs. Damien Sandow, Main Event, 11/28 (airdate)
I think the best way you can tell WWE likes a guy, they put him in there "before he's ready" against John Cena. I remember in the last few years that Jack Swagger, CM Punk, and Dolph Ziggler all getting very competitive matches against Cena before they were given the ball. So from this tilt on Main Event, it should be taken as a sign of faith in our intellectual savior. That faith should have been academic, given how great of a year in the ring Sandow had had to this point. Sandow's strengths are his plodding, methodical offense interspersed with taunting. He broke out four cartwheels – FOUR – before Cena finally took advantage of one. Cena treated this match like it was a PPV main event against a post-ascension Punk, which made Sandow look all the more impressive. The finish was really slick with Cena struggling out of the Terminus and segueing into the STF. All in all, another fine centerpiece match for Main Event.
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| Photo Credit: Scott Finkelstein |
Originally published in my Under the Hood review
If you wanted to give someone a textbook example of storytelling in a professional wrestling match, you should show them this atomico. The Gekido storyline didn't seem to have the kind of juice that people thought it should have early in the season, but here, we saw what it was all about. It was about Jigsaw showing his true colors, not as an uncaring butthole, but as a guy obsessed with winning. He was ruthless, cold... a killer. He was even trolling towards Quack, teasing going for castigo de excesivo with brainbusters on Fire Ant, a callback to Indianapolis when Quack's rage made him do all four Quackendrivers on 17.
It was about Soldier Ant playing the good soldier, pun intended. It was about him standing with his former stablemates for the first time since they were involuntarily split by Wink Vavasseur, actively sabotaging his own team, getting thrown around by Jigsaw when they got too obvious. It was about assailANT playing the polar opposite, accepting his new role, whether through genuine feeling or Stockholm Syndrome, cheering his teammates on from the apron and taking a superkick for Quack. It was about dragging humanity out of Quack himself, holding up from delivering a shotei to Jigsaw at first, thinking there was some good still left in him.
But most of all, it was about everything coming together, all eight men weaving their reeds to create one piece of violent art. This match, like many atomicos that came before it, was the epitome of Chikara's mastery at storytelling.
Antonio Cesaro (c) vs. R-Truth vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Wade Barrett, United States Championship Fatal Four Way Match, RAW, 12/3
Junk food wrestling isn't bad inasmuch as junk food isn't bad in small doses. Seeing a match with frenzied flying, finishers galore, and guys just busting out spot after spot isn't something I want to see all the time, but when it's at the tail end of a sleepy RAW, it's a welcome change of pace. Everyone was on point, but you'd be fooling yourself if this wasn't a display to make Cesaro look like a goddamn beast. Uppercuts to R-Truth while jumping off the apron and Kingston after he sprinted around the ringside area and springboarded off the ring steps were both amazing. Seriously, his Swiss Death counters are getting more and more epic by the week. Plus, he broke out the Big Swing! And segued it into a single crab! And he did the Waterslide again! AND HE PICKED KINGSTON UP OUT OF A PIN INTO THE NEUTRALIZER! Just give Cesaro all the belts, please.
Daniel Bryan, Kane, and Ryback vs. Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns, and Seth Rollins, TLC Match, WWE TLC, 12/16
Originally published in my review for TLC
It's funny, the meme when Seth Rollins was still Tyler Black was that he didn't have good matches unless it was against Bryan Danielson or Nigel McGuinness. His first match in WWE was partially against the rechristened Danielson, and it was not only the best match on TLC, but maybe one of the best matches of the entire year. Of course, there were four other men in the tilt that helped make it such.John Cena vs. Dolph Ziggler, TLC Match for Ziggler’s Money in the Bank Briefcase, WWE TLC, 12/16
At its heart, the match was a huge brawl. Right from jump, as The Shield emerged from the crowd and were pounced upon by the Tag Champs and Ryback, the mood was set. There wouldn't be any order at all. No one was concerned about keeping things neat or organized. Tables and chairs and barricades were all broken. I'm sure body parts might have been too. Everyone ate their fair share of punishment, which was par for the course. Some took it a bit harder than others obviously. The question wasn't whether Ryback would get up from the triple power bomb through the Spanish announce table as to when he'd do it. Kane being put out by the Reigns spear through the barricade was a bit more surprising, but at least they made a debris-strewn prison for him to be encased in.
Then there was the sacrifice at the end. Rollins climbed the ladder on the stage ostensibly to splash Ryback, who was laying on the table. Then again, maybe the story was he knew Ryback was going to rise up like he did from the triple bomb on the table. Maybe he knew he had to sacrifice himself so Ambrose and Reigns could finish off Bryan in the ring. When looking at it through that lens, it was a brilliant masterstroke for a match that stole the show and perhaps stole the year. And to think, Rollins didn't even need to play off Bryan directly to do it.
Let’s forget that John Cena tried to do a hurricanrana during this match. Block it out of your mind. Forget that Dolph Ziggler bumped as only he could have for that absurd execution of what has become a long-standard wrestling hold. Everything else in this match was golden though. I know that highlighting “high spots” isn’t really chic when it comes to analyzing a match, but in this case, it was the massive feats of strength and insane pratfalls taken by both men that punctuated its memorability. Whether it was Ziggler and Cena falling to the outside of the ring from a ladder after the latter climbed it while the former had a sleeper hold applied or Cena shutting a ladder with Ziggler still on it and trying to toss him out of the ring, these moments made this a proper main event. Of course, Ziggler winning didn’t hurt either, but that’s just my inner bitchy, petulant nerd-fan coming out.
Honorable Mentions:
- Allysin Kay (c) vs. Crazy Mary Dobson, AIW Women's Championship Match, AIW Point Break, 9/23
- Dave and Jake Crist vs. Kyle O'Reilly and Adam Cole, AIW Point Break, 9/23
- Natalya Neidhart vs. Beth Phoenix, Smackdown, 9/28 (airdate)
- Sheamus vs. Damien Sandow, RAW, 10/1
- Tim Donst and Jakob Hammermeier vs. Fire Ant and assailANT, Chikara Deep Freeze, 10/6
- LuFisto vs. Mercedes Martinez, WSU Full Steam Ahead, 10/13
- Daniel Bryan and Kane vs. Dolph Ziggler and The Big Show, Smackdown, 10/19 (airdate)
- Adam Cole vs. Bandido, Jr., CTWE Born to Battle 3, 10/20
- Ryback vs. Dolph Ziggler, RAW, 10/22
- Alberto del Rio vs. Randy Orton, Hell in a Cell, 10/28
- Daniel Bryan and Kane (c) vs. Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow, WWE Tag Team Championship Match, Hell in a Cell, 10/28
- CM Punk (c) vs. Ryback, WWE Championship Hell in a Cell Match, Hell in a Cell, 10/28
- Sin Cara and Rey Mysterio vs. Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow, RAW, 10/29
- Dolph Ziggler and CM Punk vs. John Cena and Ryback, RAW, 11/5
- Wade Barrett vs. Sheamus, Main Event, 11/7 (airdate)
- Daniel Bryan and Kane (c) vs. Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow, WWE Tag Team Championship Match, Main Event, 11/14 (airdate)
- Mark Angelosetti (c) vs. Mike Quackenbush, WiF! Banana Championship Match, WiF! Bananaversary, 11/17
- The Big Show (c) vs. Sheamus, World Heavyweight Championship Match, Survivor Series, 11/18
- CM Punk (c) vs. John Cena vs. Ryback, WWE Championship Match, Survivor Series, 11/18
- The Miz vs. Dolph Ziggler, Main Event, 11/21 (airdate)
- Jeff Hardy vs. Christian York, Impact, 11/22 (airdate)
- AJ Styles vs. Kazarian, Impact, 11/22 (airdate)
- The Big Show vs. Daniel Bryan and Kane, Smackdown, 11/23 (airdate)
- Daniel Bryan vs. Rey Mysterio, RAW, 11/26
- Sheamus vs. Antonio Cesaro, RAW, 11/26
- Icarus vs. Dasher Hatfield, Chikara Under the Hood, 12/2
- Mark Angelosetti (c) vs. ACH, Chikara Young Lions Cup Championship Match, Chikara Under the Hood, 12/2
- Sin Cara vs. Alberto del Rio, RAW, 12/3
- Dolph Ziggler vs. Sheamus, RAW, 12/10
- Alberto del Rio vs. Zack Ryder, RAW, 12/10
- Alberto del Rio vs. Ryback, Main Event, 12/12 (airdate)
- Heath Slater, Jinder Mahal, and Drew McIntyre vs. Tyson Kidd and Justin Gabriel, Main Event, 12/12 (airdate)
- Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow vs. Sin Cara and Rey Mysterio, Tables Match, TLC, 12/16
