*Official* Pro-Wrestling Thread II

[Niall]

WM 30 is definitely a great one. Struggling to think of one since.

Its a good question, went down a very boring rabbit hole and not many jumped out.

However the Mania the following year seems to pop up a bit and from my memory its probably 7/10 PPV.

Rollins v Orton was very good, I think the ladder match was ok although memory a little fuzzy. The main event was solid with the greatest cash in and Rusev was in a truck. I don't recall Taker v Wyatt although am worried somewhat as Wyatt is/was S.H.IT.E.

WrestleMania 31 - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Athlai]

Was the Cena vs Styles PPV great? Or just that match.... New Day vs Usos hell in a Cell?

 

[Aritro]

I've not got a list as I've not watched full shows for years, but some I remember being good are:

-Royal Rumble '00
-Wrestlemania 17
-No Mercy 02
-Wrestlemania 19
-Royal Rumble '07
-Money in the Bank 2011
-Extreme Rules 2012
-Summerslam 2013

Pretty much all the NXT Takeovers from late 2014 to early 2018 were good.

Thanks brother. Out of that lot, I've watched Wrestlemania 17 and Money in the Bank '11. X-7 was good, but a touch overrated I thought given the legend around it. I enjoyed 30 a lot more even though it had a fair few wrestlers I'm not that familiar with. Money in the Bank was an absolute banger, and the Cena v Punk main event has one of the best storyline build-ups I've ever seen, as well as one of the ATG finishes. I normally don't like ladder matches as I don't like the awkward "nearly reached it, oh **** too late" type spots, and the dangerous high spots make me fear for their bones but the Smackdown ladder match was fantastic.

I'm keen to check out Summerslam 2013 and Wrestlemania 19 next.

Also, I think Alberto Del Rio is a fantastic worker and a brilliantly executed character. I'm surprised he doesn't get more love.

New Japan from 2014/15-2018 was gold. Wrestle Kingdom 9-12, Dominion every year, G1 every year, really any big show from that time period was a must-watch. Cagematch is a good resource to check out for that sort of stuff.

Thanks, I'll check them out. I've had a look at one of the G1s but it was hard to get into as I didn't know any of the ROH guys. I'm a bit more familiar with them now so it'll be worth another crack.

I discovered Cagematch the other day and it's a great resource but it tells you all the results which rather ruins the suspense.

All AEW PPVs so far have been very good, a few have been great. They only do 4 a year so like NXTs golden era the quality is typically very high.

I've watched a few. There was one last year, possibly All Out, which was the best show I've ever seen.

WM 30 is definitely a great one. Struggling to think of one since.

Yeah this was fantastic.

 

[Niall]

Was the Cena vs Styles PPV great? Or just that match.... New Day vs Usos hell in a Cell?

All the Cena Styles stuff is great but the Royal Rumble match in 2017 is an absolute classic. That Rumble itself on reflection was pretty cool not many obvious skips.

I know the Rumble itself got criticised for dragging, but unlike the one this year it wasn't full of nerds who the crowd did not know.

I think that might be a PPV worth revisiting for sure.

 

[Mike5181]

Thanks, I'll check them out. I've had a look at one of the G1s but it was hard to get into as I didn't know any of the ROH guys. I'm a bit more familiar with them now so it'll be worth another crack.

I discovered Cagematch the other day and it's a great resource but it tells you all the results which rather ruins the suspense.

If you click on "card with guide" before you scroll down it'll give you the card + matchguide rating. Like with Wrestle Kingdom 9 here.

 

[sledger]

The reason Del Rio doesn't get more love is because he's a rotten piece of ****

 

[Aritro]

The reason Del Rio doesn't get more love is because he's a rotten piece of ****

What's the deal?

 

[Aritro]

Oh dear just read his wiki. That's not very good at all.

 

[sledger]

Oh dear just read his wiki. That's not very good at all.

haha yes, to put it mildly

edit: despite all the massive direness, he is a great worker imo

but such is his direness in general it's impossible for me to dtsinguish Del Rio the worker from Del Rio the man who imprisons and beats up women

bloke seems to have some serious anger management issues (and many other issues) - the kind of person who will end up killing someone one day

 

[Athlai]

In all ways he's a throwback

 

[Red_Ink_Squid]

2. Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns, Wrestlemania 31

I've expressed my love for this match a couple of times before in this thread. Niall a few posts above described it as 'solid' but I'd go a fair bit further. Lesnar was in his first title reign since his 2012 return and his star was at its peak; he had ended Taker's 'mania streak the previous year, squashed Cena at Summerslam and booked as near-unstoppable. Reigns had shone brightly as part of The Shield but hadn't done much as a singles star yet. The crowds (and RIS) wanted Daniel Bryan in the main event vs Lesnar and resented the new Company golden boy being pushed too quickly at the expense of their favourite.

Then the match itself somehow caught lightning in a bottle. It was so compelling and Reigns so unexpectedly (for that time) charismatic that you can sense the initially apathetic crowd getting more and more drawn in until suddenly they're all in behind Reigns. Then there's a crazy ending and everyone goes home buzzing.

Structurally this was super simple: huge beatdown by Brock, brief, fiery comeback by Reigns, then a swerve~! and a sprint to the finish. But Brock's aura and intensity on offense matched with Reigns' career performance as the tenacious underdog make it one of my favourite matches ever.

Sadly the legacy of the match wasn't good. No one ever got the rub of beating Brock clean when he was at his peak. Rollins never got his comeuppance for his role in the finish. And WWE booking completely squandered Roman's momentum before pushing him to the moon again later when his act was much colder. And Reigns vs Lesnar is about to headline Wrestlemania for the third time, in the hope that lightning might somehow strike again, 7 years apart. Don't expect to see a match as good as this one.

Spoiler: The list so far

20. Bret Hart vs Shawn Michaels, Survivor Series 1997
19. The Rock vs Stone Cold Steve Austin, Wrestlemania 17
18. 123 Kid & Razor Ramon vs HBK & Diesel, Action Zone
17. Brock Lesnar vs Eddie Guerrero, No Way Out '04
16. The Revival vs DIY, NXT Takeover: Toronto
15. HBK vs The Undertaker, Bad Blood '97
14. Daniel Bryan vs Kofi Kingston, Wrestlemania 35
13. Bayley vs Sasha Banks, NXT Takeover: Respect
12. HBK vs The Undertaker, Wrestlemania 25
11. Eddie Guerrero vs JBL, Judgement Day '04
10. Eddie Guerrero vs Rey Mysterio, Smackdown!
9. Sgt Slaughter vs The Iron Sheikh, Boot Camp
8. Edge vs Matt Hardy, Unforgiven'05
7. Stone Cold Steve Austin vs Kurt Angle, Summerslam '01
6. John Cena vs Brock Lesnar, Extreme Rules 2012
5. Roddy Piper vs Bret Hart, Wrestlemania 8
4. Shawn Michaels vs Mankind, Mind Games 1996
3. The Shield vs The Wyatt Family, Elimination Chamber 2014
2. Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns, Wrestlemania 31

 

[sledger]

Wouldn't have expected this match to place so highly, but you're not wrong about it being great - easily the best Reigns/Lesnar match they've done so far

 

[Athlai]

Rollins swinging the belt after is an ATG moment

 

[Athlai]

MJF is a helluva promo

 

[Red_Ink_Squid]

1. Bret Hart vs Owen Hart, Wrestlemania 10

Brother vs brother. Lots of little stories are packed into this match under that overarching theme. Bret is the babyface and has a title match later on the same show so wants to get this over and done with as quickly as possible while hurting his little brother as little as possible. Owen, recently turned heel, is obnoxious and insecure and desperate to show up his brother.

The story twists and evolves as the match progresses and the action escalates too. Bret begins with lots of roll ups looking for the quick win but by the end his fraternal cares are shelved and his high impact moves are brought out as he's not prepared to let his kid brother derail his dream of main eventing Wrestlemania. Owen is initially happy to congratulate himself any time he so much as wins a lock up, but when Bret picks up an injury he smells blood and attacks it ruthlessly.

The technical ability of both is excellent and the moves on display are ahead of their time for 1994 WWF. They play their characters perfectly and everything they do adds to the story being told. This is two top tier workers who obviously know each other very well putting on a masterclass.

Spoiler: Final list

20. Bret Hart vs Shawn Michaels, Survivor Series 1997
19. The Rock vs Stone Cold Steve Austin, Wrestlemania 17
18. 123 Kid & Razor Ramon vs HBK & Diesel, Action Zone
17. Brock Lesnar vs Eddie Guerrero, No Way Out '04
16. The Revival vs DIY, NXT Takeover: Toronto
15. HBK vs The Undertaker, Bad Blood '97
14. Daniel Bryan vs Kofi Kingston, Wrestlemania 35
13. Bayley vs Sasha Banks, NXT Takeover: Respect
12. HBK vs The Undertaker, Wrestlemania 25
11. Eddie Guerrero vs JBL, Judgement Day '04
10. Eddie Guerrero vs Rey Mysterio, Smackdown!
9. Sgt Slaughter vs The Iron Sheikh, Boot Camp
8. Edge vs Matt Hardy, Unforgiven '05
7. Stone Cold Steve Austin vs Kurt Angle, Summerslam '01
6. John Cena vs Brock Lesnar, Extreme Rules 2012
5. Roddy Piper vs Bret Hart, Wrestlemania 8
4. Shawn Michaels vs Mankind, Mind Games 1996
3. The Shield vs The Wyatt Family, Elimination Chamber 2014
2. Brock Lesnar vs Roman Reigns, Wrestlemania 31
1. Bret Hart vs Owen Hart, Wrestlemania 10

 

[sledger]

Thanks for putting all that together RIS. Enjoyed reading it all, and learned of a few matches I had not seen before.

 

[Red_Ink_Squid]

Thanks! Was fun to put together. These days I rarely see my irl friends that I used to watch and talk wrestling with so it's nice to have an outlet to share about it.

 

[sledger]

Haha yeah I am the same tbh - often these days when I see something noteworthy/interesting/funny in wrestling my first reaction is to think about how it would be fun to talk about/share it with friends, before I then realise that the only people I know who are interested in wrestling at all these days are CW folk

 

[Jarquis]

When does the non-wwe list start?

 

[Red_Ink_Squid]

When does the non-wwe list start?

Haha I've got the list ready but haven't written up any of the matches yet so I can start soon but will probably be a slower countdown.