20 Most Essential Matches (1982-2001)

[Kardo 0]

Midnight Express vs. Southern Boys (GAB '90). Personally I think it is a better match than Eddy-Rey. I'm going to watch both again right now and detail my reasons later.

Edited November 5, 2003 by kane3212321

[Tim Cooke 0]

GAB 90 actually.

 

And yes, I would definetly be open to debating that against Eddy/Rey.

 

Tim

[Downhome 0]

Oh wow, what I wouldn't give to see that match again sometime.

[Kardo 0]

Okay. The Southern Boys vs. The Midnight Express is a geniune ****3/4 match. I'm yet to rewatch Rey/Eddy. But the GAB 90 match is very hard to beat.

 

The Karate segment stands out so much in my mind and the match just has so much energy that it's infectious. There's a good double team segment where the Southern Boys keep going for pins, just incredible match. Even Cornette's interference doesn't seem to detract since he fits in the Southern atmosphere of the match. The heat section is full of energy and everyone seems to perfectly know their place in the match. Probably the best US mens match ever.

 

You see Quick Tags + Lots of cool double teams (Instead of Abdominal Stretch kick/punch that the Angle/Benoit team had mastered) + Non-Stop action = Good Match

[Coffin Surfer 0]

The Flair/Steamboat series is nothing more than a faster paced version of 6/11/76 Jumbo vs Funk.

 

That is of course if you were thinking Flair/Steamboat.

Minus tons of intensity and emotion. The way Funk and Jumbo battled over every single hold like their lives depended on it is something you just don't get out of Flair/Steamboat.

 

The way Jumbo displayed his overwhelming determination as he wills his way out of the Surfboard or as he hangs on to the wristlock while Steamboat was always cold and calm while working the holds. And Flair never showed the desperation that Funk did as the match progressed and he was becoming increasingly closer to being overwhelmed.

[KTID 0]

Thread bumped for those interested in the article.

[Betty Houle 0]

* There is a blown spot in the middle that Eddy hides fairly well. Go back and watch, Mysterio tries his cartwheel rana but he is 2 feet off to the side so Guerrero just catches him and suplexes him down.

Even if this is a blown spot (and I'm not convinced that it is), there is nothing about it that looks like a blown spot so it doesn't detract from this great match at all. It looks like Mysterio goes for his move and Eddie catches him and back suplexes him.

[KTID 0]

*yet another bump*

[Guest Velouria]

Why would anyone be interested in re-reading a factually inaccurate list of matches, many of which aren't as good as billed, from 3 years ago?

 

Strike that, actually -- I did get a good laugh out of it.

[Special K 0]

Whenever I make a list, I make sure to include the caveat "I haven't seen much Joshi or Lucha." Obviously this guy hasn't seen much Joshi or Lucha.

 

And even without any sense of context, watching Thunderqueen I can tell you it's better than several matches on this list.

 

Austin/Rock? It's not influential. It's not even, IMO, one of the 20 best US matches in the last 20 years.

 

EDIT: I mean, I really like the match, but there have been a shitload of matches I've really liked that occurred over the past 20 years.

 

Feh.

[slabinskia 0]

When I made my top 100 lists for wwf and wcw I made sure to include that it was all my opinion.I think it lowers the arguing that way.

[World's Worst Man 0]

It should go without saying that "best matches" lists are all opinion, as you can't factually prove that one is better than the other. So there's no point in debating "right and wrong", but people can certainly argue the merits of the matches.

[Special K 0]

Of course it's all opinion, but you should make the criteria specific.

 

Plus, as I said, if you don't know much about a certain style, just say so up front. I've seen about 2 lucha matches I like, and I'll freely admit that up front.

 

I mean, I'd say my favorite match is probably Owen/Bret WMX, by dint of it being the first great match I ever saw. I can certainly say I've seen better matches, but it's still my fave.

 

P.S: One match I've never really got the hype for is Steamboat/Savage. I mean, it's good and all, but I didn't see it and go 'wow'. It's probably the same thing I described above, the first really good match a lot of fans remember.

 

Plus I never saw the buildup, so I don't get the emotional connection I get with the great Bret/Owen storyline.

[World's Worst Man 0]

P.S: One match I've never really got the hype for is Steamboat/Savage. I mean, it's good and all, but I didn't see it and go 'wow'. It's probably the same thing I described above, the first really good match a lot of fans remember.

 

The Steamboat-Savage match is now regarded by many as being overrated. People generally still think it's an excellent match, but the idea that it was some incredible MOTDC (or even MOTYC) seems to be shared by few and far between these days.

[TheInsane 0]

It's called 20 Most Essential Matches. That basically means 20 best.

 

 

You think? I dont think "the most essential" and "the best" is the same thing. Essential is more of a big match with a big impact on the business to me. That way Hogan vs Andre (WM III) would be a essential match. It did suck from a wrestling standpoint but it was really important. In contrast there are loads of great matches which never really meant a whole lot beside maybe being the blow off for a minor feud or something. Even though the wrestling is just as good or better than another match doesnt make it more essential.

[Special K 0]

Either way it's RIDICULOUS!

 

We spent hours of pouring over footage my ass.

 

As I said. I really like WMXVII Austin/Rock

 

I really, really like that match.

 

But if you judge it AGAINST 20 fucking YEARS of wrestling: it doesn't compare. As I said, at LEAST 20 US matches are better, in the last 10 years.

 

If you're talking just BIG MATCHES. What's Flair/Funk doing there (a match that I LOVE)?

 

Why isn't Sting/Hogan there? It was such a BIG match.

 

It's certainly not a bad list of matches. But when you bloviate about your research... shit I' may be more knowledgable than him, and I've just got some Schneider Comps.

 

Hell, I'd pay $50 in a heartbeat for a compilation of those matches, even though I have two thirds of them.

 

I just think, don't try to pass yourself off as an expert. And don't fucking make excuses for it either.

 

Man, I've seen quite a few better matches than were on that list, and I don't think I've watched a wrestling match in a year.

 

 

 

 

 

EDIT: IT'S TO WHIT, not to wit TO WIT!

[Guest wildpegasus]

A lot of hardcores think Austin vs Rock is the best WWF/E match ever. I don't agree but I can see where they're coming from.

 

And Hogan vs Andre is not only a great spectacle but it's a really good match too. So underrated.

[slabinskia 0]

Shouldn't Hogan/Shiek be on there.It is the start of the Hogan era.

[Special K 0]

A lot of hardcores think Austin vs Rock is the best WWF/E match ever. I don't agree but I can see where they're coming from.

 

I've never seen this opnion expressed, ever. And I can't see where they're coming from. I don't want to be an ass, but I can probably think of at least 10 better WWF/e matches off the top of my head.

 

And, just to rereiterate, I really like the match. It's a terrific fucking match.

[World's Worst Man 0]

There is a faction of critics that trumpets that match as being great, and even Austin circa 2001 as being a great in-ring wrestler. All I can say about that view point is that it doesn't seem take the physical side of wrestling into account at all. I believe that ideology came about from the earlier days of wrestling analysis, when "workrate" was cherished above all else, with little regard to story and character of a match. So now, there are some who maybe saw that and disagreed with it, and now take the opposite approach, where workrate or execution is completely meaningless and story and character is everything. I personally think both extremes are disagreeable, but I suppose I have no problem with it as long as the those holding those view points are consistent with them.

[Guest wildpegasus]

A lot of hardcores think Austin vs Rock is the best WWF/E match ever. I don't agree but I can see where they're coming from.

 

I've never seen this opnion expressed, ever. And I can't see where they're coming from. I don't want to be an ass, but I can probably think of at least 10 better WWF/e matches off the top of my head.

 

And, just to rereiterate, I really like the match. It's a terrific fucking match.

 

You'll find fans of the match at smarkschoice.com -- the old board specifically and the new board probably echos some of those same sentiments. It's one of the most hardcore wrestling fan sites on the net. It's not quite as popular as it used to be however perhaps due to everyone being wiped out from arguing and discussing stuff.

 

Clipped as it is, I think Benoit vs Austin was better and perhaps the Austin vs Angle first PPV match from 2001. I haven't seen the Angle/Austin match since I saw it live on PPV so I don't know for sure if it's better.

[Hunter's Torn Quad 0]

There is a faction of critics that trumpets that match as being great, and even Austin circa 2001 as being a great in-ring wrestler.

I think a lot of that mindset, that Austin was great in 2001, comes from Austin working as hard as he did. Austin was coming off of a very serious neck injury and I think that because he worked as hard as he did, where a lot of people would have played it safe and coasted by, it caused a lot pf people to overrate how good Austin really was. Austin worked incredibly hard in 2001, but he wasn't great, and I think people got the two confused.

 

As for his match with Rock at WM X-7, at the time I thought it was excellent stuff and I had at ****1/2-***** range, but watching it last year it was clear that, like with a lot of matches touted as great, that it loses something as time goes by. Austin and Rock work hard, they don't blow anything badly, if at all, and the crowd are going pretty crazy, but without that emotion of watching the match after the weeks of build, the match doesn't come off as great as it once did. I think their WM X5 match, while not as good, ages better.

[World's Worst Man 0]

I think a lot of it is the spectacle too. Certain mediocre (to me) Tokyo Dome main events get tons of praise too, along with horrible wrestling matches like Hogan vs. Andre. The crowd heat, the setting, the angles preceding the match I guess. What that has to do with the quality of the match itself, I do not know.

[Guest wildpegasus]

I think a lot of the love comes from his ability to structure a bout so you get sucked into it. Really good at anticipation. Plus, he was a step above most with his ability to convey emotions through his mannerisms. Great facials (which I totally agree with) and there are your reasons why people liked him so much in the ring.

[Guest wildpegasus]

I think a lot of it is the spectacle too. Certain mediocre (to me) Tokyo Dome main events get tons of praise too, along with horrible wrestling matches like Hogan vs. Andre. The crowd heat, the setting, the angles preceding the match I guess. What that has to do with the quality of the match itself, I do not know.

 

How is Hogan vs Andre a horrible match? It's actually a pretty good match.

[Hunter's Torn Quad 0]

I don't think Hulk vs. Andre is quite as bad as some have said, but it's way too much of a stretch to call it pretty good.

[World's Worst Man 0]

Hogan vs. Andre was absolutely atrocious from a purely physical point of view. The offense was terrible, the pace was terrible, and Andre could hardly do anything. It was alright from a story sense, as they built to the bodyslam rather well, but the rest was typical Hogan bullshit. It certainly wasn't -**** bad (that's what Meltzer apparently gave it, I only go to DUD though), but I definitely wouldn't give it more than *.

[Guest wildpegasus]

I didn't think the offence was bad at all. In fact, most of the offence is fine and the offence that counts is perhaps the most memoarable moment in all of wrestling. The mythical bodyslam of Andre the Giant.

 

I don't have a problem with the pacing either. In fact, the slow pace allowed us as fans to suck in every single moment of the bout.

 

Everything means so much in this. From Hogan failing to bodyslam Andre to the subsequent hurt back by Hogan to Hogan bodyslaming and knocking down Andre. Wrestling is about taking advantage of the situations given to you or making your own situations. Here, Andre and Hogan had a lot going for them. Hogan was the superhero going up against all odds and Andre was the invincible big guy. The charactors and what they stand for are very strong. Now this is what's important -- They play to those facts in the match itself. Not only do they play to them but they're very clearly illustrated for the fans. There's a lot of emotional content when we see Hogan fail to slam Andre, when we see Hogan laying on the mat with an injured back, when we see Hogan knock down Andre and when we see Hogan finally slam Andre. It's emotional and dramatic. This is what wrestling's all about and why people can always watch this match over and over again. Better than a lot of the matches being produced today.

[Special K 0]

I just wanted to say, i LOVE Maeda/Fujinami.

 

As for Hogan/Andre? It's fun to watch. Twice. I have no desire to watch that match again, heat or no. It's NOT a great wrestling match. Just because the crowd marks the fuck out for Andre OR Baba, it doesn't make their matches good.

 

I hear Baba had good matches in the early '70's. Sorry. It pains me to see Kawada and Taue selling his weak-ass motherfucking chops. He's the equiva;ent of Hogan. Hogan CANNOT EVEN DROP THE LEG. Retire. Please.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

To write Hogan/Andre off as an "absolutely atrocious" match is to do it a tremendous disservice. It's not a perfect match by any means, but the work done in the match is extraordinary and cannot be measured, evaluated, or represented by a fucking star. How do you convey atmosphere and gravitas in a star? How do you measure the audience reaction with shift>8? How do you represent two guys who are very limited getting complete maximization out of every move? How do you rate two guys managing to get the entire fucking silverdome, 70,000 people, to go NUTS, after a simple clothesline? And then to go MORE nuts for a bodyslam? And then to even go MORE nuts after a leg drop? How do you show that in a star? I am not saying that star ratings are meaningless, but Hogan/Andre is beyond star ratings and whatever "objective analysis" one can come up with to explain those star ratings.

 

This match works. And it works inspite of star ratings. And this match, above every other match, shows how wrestling can't be measured, it can't be objectified, it can't be broken down and categorized and defined and intellectualized and made and limited into an established criteria. You can't go into a match with this rigid view of how wrestling is and should be and -if the match doesn't fit in and doesn't meet those expectations- you dismiss it, even if it worked. If it worked, it worked, that's the only rule for wrestling. This was not a bad match, and if your system of grading matches says that it's a bad match, then it's a bad system. I know, because I tried to critically evaluate this match, I tried to look for this coherent, deep, story and tried to see some sort of workrate or whatever so I could explain that this wasn't a bad match. I tried to make the pieces fit into my criteria and I couldn't do it. But I knew it wasn't a bad match. It couldn't have been a bad match - look how the crowd reacted. Look how I reacted. Something in that match made it good and it wasn't what I had thought made matches good. So I chucked my system. It was completely unreasonable, and put emphasis on the wrong things, and didn't take others into consideration. Hogan and Andre didn't do a lot, but what they did was certainly sufficient, and this match and their work deserves to be appreciated and recognized.

 

+The long walk down, belt around waist, simple and effective, giving the announcers time to set the stage.

 

+Jesse Ventura going over the tale of the tape and in the manner he did (quickly and factually, making it important).

 

+The staredown. It set things in place, it got the crowd ready for a slower paced match.

 

+Joey Morella circling Andre and Hogan during their staredown. It helped show the size of the wrestlers and contrasted the stillness of the two.

 

+Hogan talking to Andre, “Hulking up” as Jesse says, Andre pushes him back and Hogan returns the favour, Andre goes for a punch which Hogan easily blocks and fires back and quickly goes for the slam, which he is unable to do and he falls back and Andre crushes him for a close 2. What I especially liked about this is that it put Hogan almost immediately on the defensive and cut the match basically in half, structurally. It went straight past any formality in regards to putting Andre in control. Normally, in a match between two top guys, a wrestler takes control after a few minutes because both guys are fresh and they need to believably get into the position where one guy is beating the other. This is particularly important because the match couldn’t go long given the two wrestlers involved. Very smart. Also, it builds Hogan “doing the impossible” at the end of the match, as-well-as establishing Hogans desire to finish it quickly (which, again, becomes significant at the end of the match). Joey checking to the outside and Andre checking with Joey helps bring some importance to it, and Andre on his knees looking eye-to-eye with Joey is another great visual (which Joey helps create by slouching over).

 

+Boot to send Hogan down (which looks great given both guys’ faces and Hogan does a nice job concealing the look-back). Andre clubbing Hogan three times. What I like about this is that all three clubs were different – one was when Andre had Hogans bent/head tucked under his arm, another was when Hogan was standing, and another had Andre holding Hogans hair. It doesn’t seem repetitive because he changes it up each time. Hogans selling of all of these were like he got shot. And in between clubs Andre was looking out into the crowd, taunting Hogan and telling him to get up.

 

A knee lift that has Hogan shaking his head afterwards. A bodyslam, which looked fantastic given the camera view as it conveyed the drop and Hogan sorta bouncing back up with his hand outstretched and in pain was a great sell and then him laying on his stomach, face down into the mat, almost sobbing. The camera stays in the same place as Andre walks over and we get this tremendous visual conveying the size of Andre juxtaposed to the fallen Hogan. A long, slow zoom to Andres face helps add to it. “It almost seems like at this point in the bout, it is a mis-match” This sounds like something I’d hear out of Joe Rogan at a UFC event, I love it. Andre slams Hogan again and then steps over Hogan. This was nice and didn’t make the moves seem repetitive because of the quick follow-up.

 

Two irish-whips later and Andre is looking out to the audience and yelling out to them. Two shoulder rams into the corner and a BUTT-smash. A headbutt and Hogan holds his forehead and turns his body into the turnbuckle. Andre goes for another headbutt, but Hogan ducks under and makes comeback of a few punches, and axe-bomber, and some chops in the turnbuckle. Sweat flies off Andre when Hogan chops him. Hogan smashes Andres head into the turnbuckle and the crowd counts along and Hogan is hyped. He runs in and gets booted by Andre and the crowd gets dejected. I like how Hogans comeback contrasted Andres domination. Andres was more slow and methodical (where Hogan sold a lot) while Hogans was a lot quicker (where Andre sold little). I love how they take the crowd and put them on a quick high and when Hogan gets leveled with the boot the crowd comes down hard. This is all in like 30 seconds, if that.

 

Andre does a wicked chop and then puts Hogan in a bear-hug and the crowd starts to rebuild and regroup. Hogan looks to his side and the crowd just responds and supports him. His movements are very animated, he shows his right and which he uses to try and tuck under Andres arm and create space, but Andre squeezes and Hogan, again, throws his arms up. Hogan continually moves around in the bear-hug (throws his arms up, the hand thing I just mentioned, putting both hands on his head and pulling on his own hair, reaching out to the audience, shaking his body) and that movement is important in not only holding the audiences attention, but to contrast when there is little movement from Hogan later-on as the holds wears him down. He gets worn-down, Joey first shakes Hogans arm and then raises it three times and, of course, on the third time Hogan recovers and comes back to life and breaks Andres grip with a series of punches.

 

The punches work so Hogan keeps doing it, Andre tries to hold on to Hogan by keeping a hand on his tights, Andre lets go and Hogan keeps punching and even sells the punching by shaking his hand as if it were hurt. Two shoulder blocks and Hogan is trying to knock Andre down, but on the third Andre hits Hogan with a chop. Andre throws Hogan against the ropes and hits a big boot which sends Hogan to the outside. Andre puts Hogan against the post on the outside and misses a headbutt (which was business exposing in an otherwise tight match, but that doesn’t matter because the crowd bought it) and Hogan moves around on all fours and gets up, removes the padding, and grabs Ahndre by the hair and his (Hogans) face lights up and the crowd reacts. Hogan sets up a piledriver on the floor but Andre flips Hogan over and then puts Hogan back in.

 

Andre throws Hogan against the ropes for another big boot, Hogan ducks under and hits Andre with a clothesline which sends Andre down. This was VERY well built to as all three things were set-up previously in the match. Andre used the big boot successfully twice on Hogan and different points in the match, Hogan successfully ducked under two headbutt attempts, and Hogan had tried to knock Andre down all match with the axebomber and shoulder blocks. The crowd goes wild and a lil kid starts to jump up and down. Hogan is on all fours, looks up to the audience, shakes his head, and more people jump up and down. He hulks up. He picks Andre up and slams him and the crowd goes NUTS. Hogan drops the leg and gets the 1,2,3 and the crowd goes even MORE NUTS.

 

+The pacing was one of the matches strong points. It was a 10 minute match, tops, and they condensed a 20 minute match into it with 3 comeback spots for Hogan and had Andre on offense for most of it.

 

+The moves were another high point as they used many moves and wasn’t repetitive because of the way they used those moves and sold it.

 

+The set-up and pay-offs as shown in my match description/pbp.

 

+The story is simple – Andre is big and slow, uses his size to his advantage, and looks to wear-down Hogan. Hogan tries to finish it quickly and use his speed to his advantage. Hogan tries to knock Andre down and put him on his back, Andre looks to wear out Hogans back. That's basically it, and that's all they needed.