What are you feelin' lately?

[Lord of The Curry 0]

Far be it for not to bring the content. Despite my bitchings I do in fact like wrestling.

 

The question is simple: What WWE matches have you been digging in the past while?

 

MY PICKS

 

The Dudley Boyz vs Lance Storm and Val Venis, Heat, March 7th/04

 

This match is farkin' great. The stips were that the winners got to go on to Mania for the 4 Way so both teams were really fired up. The Canadians turn heel slowly throughout the match, which starts with Storm enziguriing Bubba while he's on the top rope. Delicious. Val works over D'Vons arm well using a cool leg-scissor takedown. Bubba hits a FUCKING BEATIFUL GERMAN on Val that's a .9 Vader. That's right. Coach and Snow are so much better then Ross and Lawler. Bubba makes a good FIP.

 

Hot tag to D'Von who is nice and quick cleaning house with running elbows. Good false finish on miscomminication between Val and Storm that the crowd totally buys. The psychyology of the match involving the Canucks going heel comes full circle when the Dudleyz CTW, dumping Val over the top rope on the Hart Attack attempt and 3D Storm for the deuce.

 

Damn fine lil match. ***1/2. This is the first time in a while that I've actually liked the Dudleyz, as I usually (and currently) think they're stale as fuck. Good carry-job by Storm and Venis, who were quite the good tag time during their painfully short lived pairing.

 

WHAT ABOUT YOU?

[USC Wuz Robbed! 0]

I'm feeling a little bit gassy lately.... OH which matches did I dig?

 

 

I'm definitely digging the Evolution stuff, especially when paired against Benoit.

 

Chris Benoit/Edge vs Orton/Batista for example. Raw's a high point right now and it seems they at least put out solid matches if not fantastic.

[Guest Choken One]

I really liked Orton/Venis on Heat a few weeks ago...

 

 

It's a shame they didn'tt give these guys 10-15 minutes on Raw...

 

I think orton REALLY needs to get in a "fighting champion" mode if they are ever going to do the full turn with him.

[tekcop 0]

The Dudley Boyz vs Lance Storm and Val Venis, Heat, March 7th/04

I've been trying to pimp this match for a while now, but no one seems to want to pay attention to me. Awesome match.

 

Both Venis vs Orton Heat matches were really great. I wish I hadn't missed Venis/Batista last week.

 

Anyways, at the moment I'm enjoying Benoit, Orton, Batista, Venis, and Haas. They seem to be the only people who are getting time to work and are actually doing something good with it. When they're allowed the time; Jordan, Rey, Chavo, Noble, London, & Eddie usually have good matches.

[Guest wrestlingbs]

Evolution has really hit their groove. What until SS when the group turns on HHH, then things will really get goin. Trust me, it will happen.

[Lord of The Curry 0]

Benoit vs Cena from the SD in late December when Benoit faced Lesnar is criminally underrated. The story of it works well with Benoit working ways out of Cena's "pound n'ground" skillz. Benoit doing the "You Can't See Me" is still fucking hilarious to this day. The crowd for the most part bought the fake FU finish, but that's where it got good.

 

This is when Benoit just absolutely MURDERS Cena. Left to right, back to front. Cena gets a few good comebacks but it's all Benoit. The psych here is shibby because Benoit almost got caught the first time and he's not fucking around. He kills Cena's shoulder with the Hammerlock Northern Lights which I marked out hardcore for. Shoulderbreakers and chops to the shoulder weaken Cena. Cena hits a desperation FU but then Big Show comes down and distracts Cena allowing Benoit to sink in the muthafuckin crossface and make Cena tap.

 

Benoit ruled it all over in this match and made Cena look like a champ, but the star of the match by far was Microphone Fiend. His selling was standout, particularly when he was put in the sharpshooter, his arm was hurt so he could only push himself towards the ropes with one arm. That's great stuff. The brawling at the begging with Benoit looked solid and heavy which I dug. Cena should just sit down on the FU, it would be so much of a better move. Either way, only another person besides Benoit has made it look this good and that's Eddy.

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

I liked Orton/Foley and the WM XX three-way. Sorry to go with the easy ones, but honestly, Smackdown! has been shitty, with more focus on getting over boring/unproven "contenders" instead of putting on good matches, and Raw has been doing some pretty good tag matches, but nothing that really stands out as "memorable".

 

This year I really liked:

 

- Rumble Match

- Eddie / Brock

- WM XX three-way

- Backlash: Orton/Foley

- Shelton Vs. Triple H (the first one, the upset)

 

And I dug when Tajiri beat Kane by countout on the "Shelton's upset" episode of Raw cause I thought Tajiri would win and won 5 bucks.

[griffinmills 0]

I got no taste so don't say I didn't warn you...

I've been loving Eugene and Rico matches as of late.

I enjoy the Eugene matches for all the oddball "references" and the simplistic stuff he has been pulling off to "frustrate" his opponents. Plus I dig his Macho Man hair.

Rico seems to be having a lot of fun in his matches and not just because he is playing the flamboyant role but genuinely happy. He throws some oddball, non-standard WWE offence in to break up the monotony of neckbreakers and punches. Although I've seen a lot of Rico hate undercurrent around here so I'm probably going to get reamed for liking him. :-)

One other guy that I love, non-WWE if I may, is Brazo de Plata (Super Porky) from CMLL. He is probably the "Hardest working to most Fat" wrestler I've ever seen. Plus his "Taint scrubbing sexy dance" intro with Azul Azul's "Bomba" playing in the background gets me every time.

The real La Parka (CMLL again) has been kicking ass lately too.

[Art Sandusky 0]

I'm watching Invasion-era tapes, and Jeff Hardy rocked it back then. I really dug RVD/Kidman versus Jeff Hardy/X-Pac.

[Guest Loss]

In preparation for my new TSM column, I've been reviewing all the 'heralded' matches from 2001. A lot of them disappointed me with time, but a lot of them have held up and been even better than I remembered.

 

The feud itself was a mess but the Austin/Angle feud had some bright spots. Rock/Jericho is probably the best feud, both in terms of mic work and building from one match to the next, that happened in WWE in many, many years.

[Guest DeathBecomesYou]

I don't know if this counts, but i'm really digging OVW matches where some of the WWE guys fight the local OVW wrestlers. Nova vs Eddie Guerrero from Oct '02 and Danny "Damaja" Basham vs Kurt Angle later that month are both great matches, but arguably the best WWE vs OVW match i've seen recently was Johnny Jeter vs Chris Jericho from July '03. The whole story of the underdog Jeter trying desperately to earn the respect of his hero Jericho is great, as Jericho brilliantly plays the overconfident prick who realises to his horror, that he's underestimated his opponent. The false finishes are great, leading to Jericho getting the submission win and Jericho putting Jeter over on the mic after the match (saying Jeter has the potential to be the next Chris Jericho) pretty much made Jeter the biggest babyface in the company. It's a shame that at 6' 210lbs, Jeter is probably considered too small by WWE management, as he has more talent than just about all the roid monsters that have gotten the call up put together.

[Spaceman Spiff 0]

When they're allowed the time; Jordan, Rey, Chavo, Noble, London, & Eddie usually have good matches

OK, everyone else I can understand, but Orlando Jordan? Maybe it's my hate of him for beating WCW buy-out guys (esp. Kanyon) while jobbing to everyone else, but I find him incredible boring & generic in the ring. I don't get the Jordan love.

[Guest krazykat72]

From the 80'

 

Savage/Santana and their MSG Series from mid '86, that morphs into Savage & Adonis vs. Sammartino and Santana was a really good unique feud that let Santana get a blowoff win (the tag cage match) and let Savage keep the title.

Savage/Steamboat from Boston on 11/1/86 is probably just as good as 'Mania, except for the crappy countout finish.

 

There is a *really* good Michaels/Ramon match from 8/94 on RAW that goes about 15 minutes and Shawn is a total bumping machine, while pulling out moves like the piledriver.

Shawn/123-Kid from 2/96 is also really good with Shawn changing his style up a bit and busting out some power moves (press slam in particular)

Benoit had some really good TV matches when he first entered, particularly with Jericho and Rock (around May 2000ish)

As for this year. The 'Mania 3-Way and both Benoit/HBK matches have been my favorite so far, as well and the excellent Noble/London match. I personally felt Guerrero/Lesnar was somewhat overrated (very good, but not a classic), but the Guerrero/Mysterio Smackdown ME was very good.

 

-Paul Jacobi-

[Guest Real F'n Show]

London/Kidman vs. Tajiri/Yang from Velocity a few months ago...

 

Kickass match that featured some cool spots. London and Kidman hit a nice sideslam/slingshot legdrop combo and Tajiri and Yang bust out some swank submissions. There's a part where Yang throws London over the top rope and Tajiri kicks him right in the face from the apron. Yang hits his awesome Tiger Mask backflip kick and London nails a dropsault on Tajiri and lands on Yang with a moonsault all in one motion. London pins Yang with a beautiful 450 to end a great match. ***1/4.

 

Also Noble/Mysterio from the first episode of Velocity since the time change was awesome. It went like 15 mintues and had some sweet submissions from Noble and a flying headscissors into a fujiwara armbar from Rey. There's also this spot where Rey just starts kicking the shit out of Noble and a cool move from Noble where he twists Rey's arm and dropkicks it, kinda hard to explain. Rey wins with a springboard legdrop in another great match. ***3/4

[Guest wildpegasus]

Benoit vs Michaels. My MOTY so far. I also dug the Smackdown handicap tag with Benoit and Cena against Show, Lesnar, Rhyno and Morgan.

[Guest Loss]

Benoit vs Michaels. My MOTY so far.

The first match or the second one?

[Dark Age 0]

The Rhyno/Stevie matches from Heat have been pretty enjoyable, as was the Rhyno/Val match.

 

The Booker vs Matt Hardy match from Heat earlier this year was really good.

 

The Evolution vs Team Benoit matches have kicked all kinds of ass.

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

Couldn't possibly be the second one.

[Black Lushus 0]

Bret Hart/Steve Austin-had you convinced these guys really hated each other...i don't recall there being a blowoff to this one either, am i wrong?

 

HBK/Bret Hart-these guys really DID hate each other but were civil enough in the ring to pull out great and contraversial matches...

 

best.

fueds.

ever.

 

well for the WWE anyway...96/97 was a good year, IMO simply because of those two fueds...i get all giddy and joyful when i pop in those tapes...

[Lil' Bitch 0]

Bret Hart/Steve Austin-had you convinced these guys really hated each other...i don't recall there being a blowoff to this one either, am i wrong?

 

Well, WM 13 was supposed to be the blow-off, but the feud ended up continuing into Revenge of the Undertaker since Austin was substituted against Hart for Psycho Sid when he couldn't make it to the show for whatever reason. I supposed Canadian Stampede would be the blow-off since Austin transitioned from feuding with Bret to Owen right after that.

 

My picks:

 

- Rumble Match

- Eddie / Brock

- Benoit / Michaels (1st time)

- Eddie / Kurt (IMO)

- WM XX three-way

- Rico / Noble

- Backlash: Orton/Foley

- Shelton Vs. Triple H (the first one, the upset)

- Edge / Shelton / Tajiri Vs. Evolution minus Flair

[humongous2002 0]

All the RVD matches from 2001.

[Guest wildpegasus]

Benoit vs Michaels. My MOTY so far.

The first match or the second one?

The second one.

[Dark Age 0]

Well, WM 13 was supposed to be the blow-off, but the feud ended up continuing into Revenge of the Undertaker since Austin was substituted against Hart for Psycho Sid when he couldn't make it to the show for whatever reason. I supposed Canadian Stampede would be the blow-off since Austin transitioned from feuding with Bret to Owen right after that.

Actually, I believe the blowoff was supposed to be WM14 with Austin beating Bret to end the feud. I could be wrong?

[Tawren 0]

Paul London vs Jamie Noble, Velocity Feb/March (can't be arsed to look it up) is, aside from Eddy/Brock, the match of the year for the WWE. Absolutely great match, with both men bringing some very fluid and unordinary offense. The finish is great and works perfectly with the match. I'd kill to see a re-match as I have no doubt they could top it. ***1/2

[Guest Brian]

Well, WM 13 was supposed to be the blow-off, but the feud ended up continuing into Revenge of the Undertaker since Austin was substituted against Hart for Psycho Sid when he couldn't make it to the show for whatever reason.  I supposed Canadian Stampede would be the blow-off since Austin transitioned from feuding with Bret to Owen right after that.

Actually, I believe the blowoff was supposed to be WM14 with Austin beating Bret to end the feud. I could be wrong?

They were going to repay the job.

[MillenniumMan831 0]

From the 80'

 

Savage/Santana and their MSG Series from mid '86, that morphs into Savage & Adonis vs. Sammartino and Santana was a really good unique feud that let Santana get a blowoff win (the tag cage match) and let Savage keep the title.

Totally agree there.

 

Funny since the 2 Boston matches available on video had most of the crowd pulling for Savage However, in NYC, it was a 180 degree turn in terms of fan support. The matches were rabid hot and had to end w/ Santana getting the triumphant win after the series was over. Both guys worked and bumped their asses off that spring of 86.

[tekcop 0]

When they're allowed the time; Jordan, Rey, Chavo, Noble, London, & Eddie usually have good matches

OK, everyone else I can understand, but Orlando Jordan? Maybe it's my hate of him for beating WCW buy-out guys (esp. Kanyon) while jobbing to everyone else, but I find him incredible boring & generic in the ring. I don't get the Jordan love.

His series with Kanyon was really, really good. Would have been nice if Kanyon had actually won a match, but still... He has really fun transitions, offense, and sells better than anyone on the roster other than London. He's definately better than the rest of the vanilla OWV guys (Cade, Jindrak, Dupree, Cena).

[Tawren 0]

and sells better than anyone on the roster other than London.

Uh, what? Benoit, Noble, heck even HHH when he wants?

 

He's definately better than the rest of the vanilla OWV guys (Cade, Jindrak, Dupree, Cena).

 

*avoids racist joke in fear of getting fired from CNBC*

[Spaceman Spiff 0]

Eh, to me, Jordan = white bread

[tekcop 0]

and sells better than anyone on the roster other than London.

Uh, what? Benoit, Noble, heck even HHH when he wants?

Yeah... don't ask me where I was going with that. I think I meant vanilla-ites only. But, yeah, I'd say his selling's arouind the league of Orton or Venis, maybe a little better.