So what is a finisher anymore?

[Kevin Hamilton]

As decent a Mania as it was, one thing irked me a lil. EVERY match, every one, had someone kicking out of a finisher. They had commentators mention it early on as "everyone's digging a little deeper for Wrestlemania"; but frankly that excuse is a little hollow when apparently all of em can do it.

Now don't get me wrong, in a huge title match or a blood feud, the finisher kick out can add an "OH!" factor that ups the drama, but when everyone does it? It just gets a lil over the top, especially when there are multiple kickouts per match. It becomes less a big moment, and just a really lazy way to add "drama". The entire storytelling suffers, and instead it just looks more like a video game.

I get that the genie's outta the bottle on this one, but you'd hope they'd dial it down a bit and use it sparingly. Because, well there doesn't seem to be any real FINISHER anymore.

Is there a move that no one's kicked out of several times over by now?

Am I the only old fogie annoyed by this?

[Citizen Snips]

I think Sheamus is the only one to kick out of Big Show's "LMRE" punch.

[Old Jack Burton]

Tonight, more than usual WWE felt like a video game. Especially the main event with the men using their "super moves" over and over.

[01010010 01101001 01100011]

Bryan's knee has only been kicked out of by Reigns I believe.

I actually like how Brock's moves are more ultra powerful to help break people rather than a one and done though.

[Old Jack Burton]

Mar 30, 2015 5:41:55 GMT -5 Citizen Snips said:

I think Sheamus is the only one to kick out of Big Show's "LMRE" punch.

Isn't it called the WMD?

Cena did it with a 30 second interval between the punch and the cover. It was when he faced Laurenitis. I want to say someone else did it one time recently as well.

[Deleted]

Serious question, what's the last major WWE match that didn't have someone kicking out of a finisher? Not counting things that can't have pinfalls like ladder matches or battle royals of course. It's to the point where the end of every big match falls flat to me because I always expect a kickout. A guy doesn't kick out and I think to myself "oh, huh, guess that's finally the one that ended of the match". It doesn't help that Michael Cole can be really awful at telegraphing a false finish.

[Ben Wyatt]

It's a leftover from the Attitue Era. How many Rock/Austin matches became Stunner/Rock bottom-fests?

[Hanzo]

Have it your way.

[Deleted]

A miserable little pile of secrets but enough talk, have at you!

[Deleted]

Mar 30, 2015 7:11:39 GMT -5 Hanzo said:

Have it your way.

I aged five years watching that gif.

[Deleted]

At wrestlemania everyone has bigger health bars so it takes more finishers to beat them.

[Fundertaker]

I'm guessing they're trying to estabilish that today's competitors can take more damage than before, thus you need either a different strategy or to hit the finisher multiple times to put them down. Which they've been oing for the past 2 decades.

[Dang!]

Yesterday it was really like a video game. Lesnar even started the f***ing match with the F5, which is only okay since we had the slight possibility of a total squash/burial of Roman in mind. IF WWE really wants to go that way they should go full puroresu and have matches end with random big moves that are not considered finishers or just abandon the idea of "finishers" and just give people an arsenal of special moves that can be extended at any time.

[Pooh Carlson]

Mar 30, 2015 6:03:42 GMT -5 @noggy said:

Serious question, what's the last major WWE match that didn't have someone kicking out of a finisher? Not counting things that can't have pinfalls like ladder matches or battle royals of course. It's to the point where the end of every big match falls flat to me because I always expect a kickout. A guy doesn't kick out and I think to myself "oh, huh, guess that's finally the one that ended of the match". It doesn't help that Michael Cole can be really awful at telegraphing a false finish.

Unless I'm mistaken, I think Cena only hit one AA last night... sure they did a few accolades and stf's but I think the first AA did the job.

[kingofthings]

There are so many kick outs now from finishing moves, the massive shock actually comes with the three count. You can see it now just looking at the crowd, someone kicks out of the finisher and it's not a big deal, when the ref's hand actually hits the mat for the third time everyone jumps up like "OH WHAT?!"

Which feels weird.

[tms]

Is the general consensus that Michaels vs Taker at WM25 was the main catalyst for this trend?

["Gizzark" Mike Wronglevenay]

Mar 30, 2015 9:01:26 GMT -5 tms said:

Is the general consensus that Michaels vs Taker at WM25 was the main catalyst for this trend?

It seems to be, which is nonsense, because this shit started in the Attitude Era with guys like Austin, Rock and Angle.

[Main Eventer]

Mar 30, 2015 5:44:06 GMT -5 01010010 01101001 01100011 said:

Bryan's knee has only been kicked out of by Reigns I believe.

I actually like how Brock's moves are more ultra powerful to help break people rather than a one and done though.

Orton kicked out of the knee at Wrestlemania 30.

[Deleted]

Nobody has ever kicked out of Brock's Shooting Star Press Headbutt.

[saintpat]

I know.

It is so unrealistic that every professional wrestler doesn't have a single move that guarantees victory for him ... every single time, against any opponent ... if he hits it.

And that that move works only for him, so if someone else hits the exact same move ... even on an opponent who has already taken it from the guy who uses it as a finisher, and lost to it ... that move doesn't work for anyone but the guy who uses it as "my finisher."

Because there absolutely must be 80 to 100 different moves that would work for just one guy like that.