World's Worst Man

That is a good show if it's the one I remember. That's the one with the Captain's Fall match with KENTA, Marufuji, Suzuki & Ricky Marvin vs. Sugiura, Kanemaru, Hashi & SUWA, no? If I recall that also had Misawa & Mohammed Yone vs Kobashi & Go Shiosaki. That was their April 17 show. April 18 was DiColosseo, taped April 2 and 3. The April 3rd show is available in complete form, which included Akiyama vs. Hashi and Mitsuharu Misawa/Yoshinobu Kanemaru/Takashi Sugiura vs. Kenta Kobashi/KENTA/Ricky Marvin (both of which are on April 18 DiColosseo) and Minoru Suzuki & Naomichi Marufuji vs. Akira Taue & SUWA (which isn't on that DiColosseo). The stuff taped on April 2 was Mitsuharu Misawa/Kenta Kobashi/Jun Akiyama vs. Naomichi Marufuji/KENTA/Makoto Hashi and Tiger Emperor vs. Ricky Marvin (Mask vs. Hair). Yea, Marufuji/KENTA vs. Hidaka/Fujita (the finals).

Truth be told, no. Gibson-Aries was very good, but their Stalemate match was much better. Danielson vs. Homicide was just above average. Very disappointing end to the feud. Nothing else on the show was really worth talking about.

Oh no. I'm sad

If you want recent stuff.. NOAH DiColosseo April 18 2005 - Excellent 6 man, and 3 other good matches. NOAH April 17 2005 - Couple of very good matches. NOAH May 8 2005 - Has far and away the best match of the year, plus a really good opener. NOAH July 18 2005 - This really wasn't a blow away show, as nothing was really over ****. But it basically had 4 really good matches, and another decent match. New Japan on Samurai TV April 23 2005. Couple good-very good matches. New Japan SXW May 23 2005 - Super Juniors time. 3 good matches, 2 decent matches. New Japan SXW June 13 2005 - 2 good matches, 1 very good match, 2 decent matches. Best NJ show of the year so far.

Nakamura has that star quality, he just has no one to "take the ball" from. Tenzan and Nagata aren't over nearly enough for that. Fujita would have to be given a long, dominant title reign to have the pro-wrestling credibility to fill that role. Basically, with Muto and Hashimoto leaving, NJPW was left with no one to pass the torch. Chono was a distant 3rd in popularity among the 3 musketeers, and he hasn't been a serious threat for a couple of years. NJPW's only hope now is that Brock gets over huge, because then they can put Nakamura or Tanahashi over him, which would in turn, make them huge. Then Nakamura and Tanahashi can start a long-running feud against against each other, and there you go. If Brock doesn't get over, then their only hope is that Nakamura wins a big MMA fight against a top opponent. Otherwise he might never get over enough to be a huge draw.

Benoit's had a handful of good matches this year. Joe's had a handful of very good-great matches. Benoit producing 80-100 passable matches is irrelevant, as passable matches are a dime a dozen. If a large quantity of passable matches did matter, then a lot of NJPW guys should get consideration too. Since they produce so much TV, there are bound to be guys who are up there. Talking about how many good matches a guy is in is misleading anyway. It's all about how they perform. One wrestler can look better in a *** match than another does in a **** match. Even the same wrestler. For example, Kurt Angle looked better in a **1/2 match (vs. Flair) than he did in a **3/4 match (HBK Vengeance). Another thing is that "potential" shouldn't matter when discussing wrestler of the year. Benoit has the potential to put on great matches. But that's irrelevant, because he hasn't done it lately. Same with Liger, same with a lot of guys. Even Samoa Joe has the potential to do more than he has this year. The only thing that should matter is what they've actually done.

Inoki lost his mind and wanted to turn New Japan into what it used to be when he was in his prime and he was on top taking on various shooters from different disciplines. The trouble was that when it was Inoki versus Shooter in his day, the guys were bought and paid for to lose to Inoki, where the New Japan guys today were put into real shoots and got killed almost every time. In Inoki's defence, he almost certainly thinks he really did beat those guys back then, but each win was bought and paid for. Inoki refused to stop his mindless quest, even when New Japan business was freefalling into the basement, but he was determined to prove the unprovable. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Not to mention the ridiculously moronic logic in sending an MMA novice in Nagata to be slaughtered by one of the top 3 heavyweights in the world. Then 2 years later, sending him to fight perhaps the best fighter of all time. Nagata was a guy who had little or no MMA training, all he had was his amateur wrestling. Smart move. Oh well, at least Nakamura didn't get murdered.

I forgot the most obvious one. http://www.puroresu.com/history/

It's a bad thing, but it'll be a positive thing as far as the future is concerned. Without running the dome 3 times a year, they're bound to lose less money than they have been. Which is definitely somewhere they needed help. Truth be told, it should have been done before last January's show. It also means they can use their next dome show (whenever that is) for a really special occasion, like Brock and Nakamura's first match after Brock is built up to be an unstoppable champ. Assuming they don't give it away at Korakuen or something. It's a sad move, but it was for the best really.

I = ***3/4 II = ****3/4 III I gave ***** to, but I didn't really put the screws to it. I wouldn't feel comfortable calling it a ***** match if it came up in a debate, and I really need to watch it again. Kobashi vs. Joe didn't have the story/build nor the kind of "epic" feel that a ***** match needs in my opinion. I pretty much compared it to the Differ Cup finals, which I gave ****3/4 to, and I didn't think Kobashi vs. Joe was quite as good.

Depends what the criteria are. Is it the best worker? Or a combo of drawing, success and ability? If we're talking the latter, I'd take Kojima. Kojima put on some good performances and he was the first guy to hold the IWGP and Triple Crown titles at the same time. If we're talking strictly wrestling ability, I guess you can't argue with Joe. No one else has really been lighting it up this year. Maybe KENTA, as he was involved in my MOTY, as well as some other good-very good matches, plus a supposedly excellent match I haven't seen yet (vs. SUWA in September). And I suppose Kobashi could get the nod, not so much for a ton of high-end stuff, but he's racked up a ton of good-very good matches tagging with Shiozaki. I'll have to catch up on my ROH watching and watch the last ~4 months of NOAH stuff to make a good decision.

He worked for Zero-One, but he's also affiliated with NJPW USA and the LA dojo, which is why it's perplexing that they never even gave him a shot.

I don't think the casual fans care how a guy looks. As long as he rolls out the spots, or is "cool" he'll be over. And Joe's a legitimately great worker, that's why he's over with the critics. He'll never get a good run with the WWE, unless things drastically and fundamentally change with that organization. Which just isn't going to happen. The real problem is that he hasn't been brought in by New Japan or NOAH yet, both of which are desperate for foreign talent (NJ not so much at the moment).

http://www.puroresufan.com has some pieces on New Japan, nothing all encompassing though. http://dragongate.puroresufan.com/ has a lot of historial overview of Toryumon/Dragon Gate if you're interested in that promotion.

This is actually one of NOAH's few, but glaring problems. Beyond the old All Japan guard, they don't have anything in the future to build. They tried with Rikio, but it didn't take. You can't fault them for trying, but they still need to figure it out. If Kawada plays ball, he can run with it for half a year or so, since I figure he'll never be a regular and if they are going to put the title on any outsider, it had better be him since he is the biggest outsider draw except Sasaki. Another scenario they could build for a July Dome show is Kawada vs Akiyama, but I'm not sure if the NOAH fans want to see Akiyama in the top position. If they can heat Akiyama up, perhaps they go with Akiyama vs Kawada instead, but I think there is also big money in Kawada vs Kobashi, which would probrably sell out the Dome no matter what else is on the show. Perhaps they go with Akiyama vs Taue/whoever is GHC champ with Kawada vs Kobashi dream match this July. Still, there are a lot of good big show possibilities here, but they all revolve around Kawada. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Akiyama is an interesting option. He's over, regardless of what anyone says. The problem is, he's not over to where he can be the man. He'd be an acceptable transitional champ, but that's it. Not unlike Taue. And I definitely don't see an Akiyama-Kawada match drawing over a Kobashi-Kawada match, even though the latter has been done a few times already. I think Kawada taking the title, leading up to a Kobashi-Kawada Dome main event is the best option. After Kobashi wins the title back, he then drops to Morishima. If Morishima bombs as champ, NOAH is fucked until Go is ready for the title. And despite Go being incredibly over already, he's still 18 months - 2 years away from being ready for the title.

The E has already done things to provide the illusion that they're still as profitable as they were in the past. The big talent cuts of the past year were all done in order to prepare for the loss of ad-revenue after the move to USA, as well as to compensate for the fact that business just isn't very good. WWE is falling, but they'll continue to use cost-cutting measures to make it appear like they're still very profitable. Meaning, they'd have a long way to go before they're at WCW-like depths.

1. Do you think AJ Styles is a good worker? No. If he's a good worker, Austin Aries is very good, and Chris Daniels is great. Something I could never legitimize. But just as an example, that's just how those 2 compare to Styles. a. Does he have good psychology? Psychology is a broad term, that covers a lot. Overall, no. His match pacing isn't very good at all. He seems to be able to work in learned spots, which is a positive. Doesn't seem to be able to smartly structure matches/stories. b. Good selling? Overall, no. He doesn't long-term sell very well, nor does he put over body part damage very well. As far as the actual selling of blows and moves, he's alright. c. Do you think he blows a lot of spots? Not from what I've seen. This doesn't really matter, as no competent wrestler should be blowing a lot of spots anyway. Edit - Just to expand on this, if a guy is blowing lots of difficult moves, it's as simple as not using those moves anymore. A guy can be a good worker without using tons of high-risk offense. In AJ's case, his execution for certain moves can be sketchy at times, but not enough to be a big deal in my eyes. He's certainly not at a Kotaro Suzuki level of botchiness (teehee). 2. Do you think AJ Styles is the ideal poster child for TNA, excluding his devotion to the company? a. Is there anyone better? If so, who? Sure why not. Like I said before, he gives the illusion of being a great worker, and a lot of fans (including the group of fans that TNA needs to start drawing) can't tell the difference. He's athletic and good looking as well. That's how TNA needs to differentiate itself from the WWE. TNA wrestlers are "young, athletic guys" who unlike the WWE, are actually allowed to show their athleticism in the ring. So Styles fit in perfectly. 3. Do you think AJ Styles is charismatic? a. In ring charisma, crowd involvement He is charismatic in the ring. It's not unlike Chris Benoit. They both bring intensity that is easily apparent and that gets over with the fans. He also looks like an athlete through and through, which helps out. b. Out of ring charisma, promos. No. 4. What's the best AJ Styles match you've seen, not just limited to TNA? Joe vs. Styles from Sacrifice. I'm sure he's had a couple others that are in the vicinity, I just like this one the most. If Styles is in with someone who can pace things and set the groundwork, it makes for a very good match. If he improves his selling, it would make for great matches. 5. Do you think that AJ Styles has the "tools" to be a top-drawing money maker? No. But not many people do. He has the tools to become a Benoit level player, where he's really over with the crowd, just not enough to ever be THE guy. Granted, he is THE guy in TNA, but TNA is still a niche. If they ever broke out into the mainstream, I don't think AJ could carry the company.

Anyone who can't comprehend the English language loses credibility. Seriously. Here, I'll spell it out for you. JJ at his peak (his best) was decent. He's about 8 years removed from his peak (his best). Daniels is decent overall.

I would imagine your scenario with Kawada winning the strap has a good chance of happening. Other than that, what can they really do with the belt? If they want to build to next year's Dome, it has to be Kawada.

AJ Styles - AJ is a fairly average worker, but due to the nature of his strengths, many fans believe him to be some super worker. The good thing is, psychology can be improved. He has a lot of in-ring charisma, even though he has no mic skills to speak of. His fans often tend to be very defensive too. Alex Shelley - This guy is a decent worker. His strengths are his great mannerisms and selling. The guy just puts over his opponent's offense really well, and plays his character really well. He tends to be good in the early portions of a match, but not so good later. He has a bright future I think. Austin Aries - Like Shelley, Aries has great mannerisms in the ring. He's an explosive worker along the lines of an AJ Styles, but he's stronger overall due to his superior selling. This is another guy who's a few improvements away from being a great worker, and I believe he'll be a future cornerstone of the X-Division. "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels - A lot of charisma. He's also a decent worker. Tends to be a good storyteller in the ring, but occasionally goes overboard with spots later in the match. Daniels is a dynamic peformer due to the fact that he can play his character and cut a promo, to go along with his in-ring ability. James Mitchell - Mitchell's great on the stick, but he's overdoing it lately. His role seems so forced these days. I think he really needs to be a bit more subtle on the mic. Jeff Hardy - He can do some nutty spots, that's about it. It's amazing how many people actually think this guy is good. It goes back to the idea that "spots = good wrestling" that a lot of.."casual".. fans subscribe to. Jeff Jarrett - JJ isn't a terrible worker. At his very best, I'd even call him decent. The problem is the politics, along with the fact he shouldn't be the cornerstone of the promotion. Give him a supplementary role in the main event scene and it's good. Make him the main guy and it's bad. Roderick Strong - Roderick is quickly becoming a very good worker. Unfortunately, he doesn't really bring anything else to the table. (Which is fine by me, but to get really over, he'd need more.) He'll do well in the X-Division, but he'll never be super over. Samoa Joe - Joe is probably the best worker in the US. He can structure a match, has credible, believable offense and is still able to put over his smaller opponents very well. I don't think he'll ever reach huge heights in the US, just because he's lacking the look and the mic skills. I tend to think he could do very well in Japan, if given a push, just because he's so talented. It's going to be interesting to see where Joe's career goes. If TNA goes mainstream, he'll probably stick with them, and be a moderately over main event type guy. If TNA doesn't work out, it's hard to say where he'll end up. New Japan and NOAH don't seem interested, and Zero-One wasn't working for him. Obviously there's ROH, but it would be a shame if that's all he's left with.

The thing I posted was just a spoof I believe. I'm waiting for the people who were spinning the low ratings' news to address the point about UFC and football ratings being up on Monday night.

From Meltzer's Friday update More excuses for Raw's rating on Monday after the "it's Halloween" was blown away by the fact football, UFC and most everything else on TV was up Monday night this week but Raw are: 1) The price of gas; 2) Fans were waiting to see a.m. Raw over the weekend; 3) The rating would have been 3.0 if Jim Ross was still there; 4) The liberal media Pretty funny.

It's like hotel ranking. ***** doesn't mean it's perfect and some ***** hotels are better than others. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> That's true, but I'm not talking about small differences in quality. There are no ***** matches that I'd call "much better" than any others. Sure, there are a some that are slightly better than the rest, but it's not by much. If one match is "much better" than the next, having them both at ***** is illogical.

Yes they did. Jericho-Malenko feud anyone? They didn't personally care for the guys who weren't given any character development/feuds, but people did pop for those six man lucha-esque matches. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Jericho-Malenko would be the exception to the rule... you know I was referring to the Lucha Libre junk. Besides, Jericho wasn't really reknowned as a great worker then, either. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Not great, but he was certainly considered to be good-very good. The faceless lucha matches work for filling time for the show, by providing the audience with something entertaining to watch. They''ll never draw a dime though, unless they develop characters and give the matches some meaning. That's true for any wrestling though. If the matches don't have meaning, they won't draw. So basically I agree that TNA needs to develop characters in order to draw people. Matches devoid of any character can be entertaining, but they won't get people to watch the show.

Yes they did. Jericho-Malenko feud anyone? They didn't personally care for the guys who weren't given any character development/feuds, but people did pop for those six man lucha-esque matches.