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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 8, 2019 10:59:02 GMT -5
51. Charlotte vs. Ronda Rousey – WWE Survivor Series 11/18/18
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| I originally expected this to be the Mania main event. It was surprising that it didn’t even main event this show. Anyone who knows me knows that Charlotte ranks among my least favorite wrestlers in the world. But make no mistake, I know she’s good. Her week to week stuff lacks, but for big matches, she delivers. This was one of them. There was a level of intensity to this that was unmatched on the show. You’d think these two had a long rivalry. It felt like a fight and not just two people throwing out a collection of moves at one another. I saw some people complain about a few spots being sloppy late but I actually liked that. The match felt like a true struggle and when athletes get worn down, things aren’t going to be super crisp. It gave the match a more realistic feeling. At 14:10, from out of nowhere, Charlotte pulled out a kendo stick and hit Ronda for the DQ. A furious battle that was the best singles match of Ronda’s career to this point. Charlotte brought out her best for a big match. The post-match angle only helped add to make this special. [****¼] |
2017 Match #51: PROGRESS World Championship: Travis Banks [c] vs. Matt Riddle – PROGRESS Chapter 58: Live Your Best Life 11/26/17 2016 Match #51: Six to Survive: Fenix vs. Ivelisse vs. Johnny Mundo vs. King Cuerno vs. Pentagon Jr. vs. Taya – Lucha Underground 6/15/16 2015 Match #51: Kazuchika Okada vs. Roderick Strong – ROH Field of Honor 8/22/15
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 8, 2019 12:39:06 GMT -5
50. British Strong Style vs. The Undisputed Era – WWE United Kingdom Tournament 6/25/18
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| To be honest, WWE could’ve just put these two stables in a match with no build and it would’ve been great. Instead, they chose to give it some actual hype. That was especially true for Pete Dunne and Roderick Strong, since Strong turned on Dunne earlier in the month. That rivalry played a role early, with Strong doing everything in his power to avoid Dunne. It was to no avail as Dunne kicked his ass several times. Trent Seven took the heat segment, but even that featured a lot of action. The best moment was probably Tyler Bate hitting an airplane spin and giant swing on two UE members at the same time. He’s an incredibly STRONG BOI. This only went 12:21, but had enough action to fill half an hour. It just never slowed down. Bate capped a tremendous match by pinning Kyle O’Reilly following a springboard clothesline/dragon suplex combo. This had a ton of nonstop action, furthered some existing storylines, and gave us some awesome exchanges between six of the best guys going today. Arguably the two best stables in wrestling coming together for one of the better six man tags you’ll find anywhere. [****¼] |
*This is the final match from the UK Tournament.
2017 Match #50: IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Kazuchika Okada [c] vs. Kenny Omega – NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 11 1/4/17 2016 Match #50: CWF Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship: Trevor Lee (c) vs. Cedric Alexander – CWF Worldwide 5/18/16 2015 Match #50: NEVER Openweight Championship: Tomohiro Ishii (c) vs. Tomoaki Honma – NJPW Power Struggle 11/7/15
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 8, 2019 14:51:46 GMT -5
49. IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Kazuchika Okada [c] vs. Zack Sabre Jr. – NJPW Sakura Genesis 4/1/18
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| One thing that has remained true in NJPW is that Kazuchika Okada (and Kenny Omega for that matter) is at his best when taken out of his comfort zone. Think the G1 match with Omega or the Shibata title defense last year. Zack Sabre Jr. was here to do just that. Sabre dominated the New Japan Cup and won by submission in every match. He was out to bring submission wrestling back to the forefront. A staple of Okada defenses is that he was obsessed with beating guys at their own game. He tried hard, but was no match for Zack on the mat. When he realized that was going nowhere, he tried going to his reliable arsenal. Didn’t matter. I loved how Zack simply caught his signature dropkick into a submission. He had stuff ready for Okada’s elbow and even for the Rainmaker pose. A guy like Okada does the same thing in every match, so a smart wrestler would logically have him scouted. Okada had to dig deep and be the resilient babyface. He was more aggressive than usual in his comeback and it worked. Still, Sabre had some close calls on his pinning combinations and even on the Shinsuke Nakamura armbar, which called back to the only time Okada tapped in his career. Okada went into Rainmaker mode late and retained with three of them after 34:58. One of Okada’s best defenses thanks to going away from the usual formula. They told a stellar story and made me believe Sabre might steal it. [****¼] |
*This is the final match from Sakura Genesis.
2017 Match #49: Tomohiro Ishii vs. Yuji Nagata – NJPW G1 Climax 8/1/17 2016 Match #49: WWE World Heavyweight Championship: Dean Ambrose (c) vs. Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins – WWE Battleground 7/24/16 2015 Match #49: Open the Twin Gate Championship: Verserk (c) vs. Monster Express – Dragon Gate The Gate of Destiny 11/1/15
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 8, 2019 18:58:03 GMT -5
48. NXT Tag Team Championship: The Undisputed Era [c] vs. Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan – NXT TakeOver: Chicago 6/16/18
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| During the entrances, I had concerns about this match. The Undisputed Era were insanely popular, but when the challengers walked out, you could almost hear a pin drop. That could have made for an awkward atmosphere. Early on, it kind of did. The champs controlled the majority of the match and the comeback sequence by the challengers led to some boos. Luckily, Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan brought their best stuff to win over the Chicago crowd. They succeeded. It all began with a huge Oney dive onto the champs. From there, the crowd was split and was just rooting for the fantastic stuff happening. Oney was a wild man, taking an insane back bump on the apron and hitting a huge double Blockbuster to the outside. This was a man willing to put his body on the line to win the titles. They had the match won until Adam Cole pulled Kyle O’Reilly to safety and got himself ejected. It set up a wild closing stretch with all sorts of twists and turns. Total Elimination, a favorite move of mine, ended a strike exchange and the match as Undisputed Era retained in 16:02. There’s a reason the Undisputed Era is the best tag team in wrestling. It’s matches like this. [****¼] |
*This is the final appearance of both Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan.
2017 Match #48: Cueto Cup Finals: Pentagon Dark vs. Prince Puma – Lucha Underground 8/23/17 2016 Match #48: World of Stardom Championship: Io Shirai (c) vs. Mayu Iwatani – Stardom Gold 5/15/16 2015 Match #48: Kazuchika Okada vs. Yuji Nagata – NJPW G1 Climax 8/12/15
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Allie Kitsune
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Always Feelin' Foxy.
Celestial Princess in Exile.
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Post by Allie Kitsune on Jan 8, 2019 19:38:40 GMT -5
48. NXT Tag Team Championship: The Undisputed Era [c] vs. Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan – NXT TakeOver: Chicago 6/16/18
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| During the entrances, I had concerns about this match. The Undisputed Era were insanely popular, but when the challengers walked out, you could almost hear a pin drop. That could have made for an awkward atmosphere. Early on, it kind of did. The champs controlled the majority of the match and the comeback sequence by the challengers led to some boos. Luckily, Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan brought their best stuff to win over the Chicago crowd. They succeeded. It all began with a huge Oney dive onto the champs. From there, the crowd was split and was just rooting for the fantastic stuff happening. Oney was a wild man, taking an insane back bump on the apron and hitting a huge double Blockbuster to the outside. This was a man willing to put his body on the line to win the titles. They had the match won until Adam Cole pulled Kyle O’Reilly to safety and got himself ejected. It set up a wild closing stretch with all sorts of twists and turns. Total Elimination, a favorite move of mine, ended a strike exchange and the match as Undisputed Era retained in 16:02. There’s a reason the Undisputed Era is the best tag team in wrestling. It’s matches like this. [****¼] |
*This is the final appearance of both Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan.
2017 Match #48: Cueto Cup Finals: Pentagon Dark vs. Prince Puma – Lucha Underground 8/23/17 2016 Match #48: World of Stardom Championship: Io Shirai (c) vs. Mayu Iwatani – Stardom Gold 5/15/16 2015 Match #48: Kazuchika Okada vs. Yuji Nagata – NJPW G1 Climax 8/12/15
Oney is so damned underrated.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 8, 2019 22:02:56 GMT -5
47. WWE Cruiserweight Championship Tournament Semi-Finals: Cedric Alexander vs. Roderick Strong – WWE 205 Live 3/13/18
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| If you weren’t watching 205 Live this year, you missed out on a TON of great wrestling. This tournament was a huge step in the right direction for the brand. Cedric Alexander came into the tourney as a favorite, while Roderick Strong was the Cinderella story as he was an NXT guy who wasn’t a regular part of the roster. Both men worked as babyfaces, meaning this was built as a match between two guys who had respect for one another, but progressed into one between two desperate men. Strong is the more polished technician, while Alexander has the athletic upper hand. It made sense for Roddy to ground Cedric and wear down his back with a barrage of backbreakers. The biggest saw Cedric viciously dropped onto the top turnbuckle. That helped add to the sense of urgency this match had. Strong was willing to do something brutal and take a countout win because all that mattered was the Cruiserweight Title and a spot on WrestleMania. Both men only survived the finisher of the other because they got a foot on the ropes. As they went into more aggressive strikes, Cedric managed to cradle him into a surprise pin to advance to Mania after a fantastic 14:54. One of the most underrated matches of the year. Two great wrestlers having an urgent match where you could feel how much it mattered. [****¼] |
*This is the final appearance of both Cedric Alexander.
2017 Match #47: Best of the Super Juniors Finals: KUSHIDA vs. Will Ospreay – NJPW Best of the Super Juniors 6/3/17 2016 Match #47: NEVER Openweight Championship: Katsuyori Shibata (c) vs. Kyle O’Reilly – NJPW King of Pro Wrestling 10/10/16 2015 Match #47: IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Hirooki Goto (c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura – NJPW Destruction in Kobe 9/27/15
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 9, 2019 9:13:25 GMT -5
46. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Minoru Suzuki – NJPW G1 Climax 7/14/18
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| I’ve watched every G1 Climax since 2013. This year marked the first time that an entire block nearly got shut out of my year end list. That’s right, the A Block had only one match crack the four star barrier and it should come as no surprise that it was these two to do it. In February, Minoru Suzuki took the Intercontinental Title from Hiroshi Tanahashi and destroyed his knee in the process. Playing off that, Suzuki came in looking to hurt Tanahashi again. He ripped, wrenched, and twisted his leg in ways it was never meant to bend. Suzuki is the master and that hasn’t changed now that he’s 50 years old. It reached a point where commentary believed the referee would stop the match. Tanahashi was getting dominated. Anything Tanahashi did was out of sheer desperation. When he missed a move, it felt like a big deal because we believed there was no way he could come back. Finally, he busted out an inverted dragon screw. It looked brutal and Minoru screamed in agony like we have never heard before. Tanahashi used that to set up High Fly Flow and pull out the miracle win in 13:59. They packed a ton of story into this one as Tanahashi got obliterated by the vicious Suzuki, yet found a way to pull it out. [****¼] |
2017 Match #46: WWE Smackdown Tag Team Championship: The New Day [c] vs. The Usos – WWE SummerSlam 8/20/17 2016 Match #46: Marty Scurll and Zack Sabre Jr. vs. SANADA and Tetsuya Naito – RPW Global Wars UK 11/11/16 2015 Match #46: Chris Hero vs. Zack Sabre Jr. – Evolve 48 8/16/15
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 9, 2019 10:57:08 GMT -5
45. NXT Championship vs. Career Match: Andrade Almas [c] vs. Johnny Gargano – NXT 2/21/18
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| Following an incredible, all-time great match at TakeOver: Philadelphia, Andrade Almas and Johnny Gargano raised the stakes for their rematch. Gargano put his career on the line, providing us with another highly emotional battle. They were actually coming in three for three in great matches. This made four. Early on, Candice LeRae took Zelina Vega to the back, ensuring this was one on one for the time. Of course, their exchanges were crisp as they've built some phenomenal chemistry over the course of their rivalry. Everything felt so natural in this match. Often, when you do a career match, the result seems obvious. Here, it wasn’t. It seemed like Johnny could win or lose at any point. That’s hard to do. The drama just built and built until the referee got knocked out. Johnny slapped on the Gargano Escape and had the match won. Tommaso Ciampa showed up and broke his crutch over Johnny’s head. Almas hit the Hammerlock DDT and retained after 15:14. Nowhere near the insane level of their TakeOver match, but a fitting final chapter for them. A dramatic match featuring great action and plenty of emotion. The silent crowd as Almas celebrated told the story it needed to. [****¼] |
2017 Match #45: Chris Hero vs. Zack Sabre Jr. – Evolve 77 1/28/17 2016 Match #45: Hiroyoshi Tenzan vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW G1 Climax 7/18/16 2015 Match #45: WWE Championship: Brock Lesnar (c) vs. Roman Reigns – WWE WrestleMania 3/29/15
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 9, 2019 12:14:05 GMT -5
44. Moustache Mountain and Ricochet vs. The Undisputed Era – NXT 6/27/18
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| Moustache Mountain, fresh off winning the NXT Tag Team Titles, were scheduled for a match against some local jobbers. It was going to be nothing special. The Undisputed Era jumped those scrubs and looked to put a hurting on the champions. Ricochet, gunning for a shot at Adam Cole’s North American Title, hit the ring and a six man tag spawned. We had recently been treated to basically the same match, but with Pete Dunne instead of Ricochet. Somehow, Ricochet came in and improved things. He played perfectly off his teammates by joining them in their signature spots and adding a flair to them. Tyler Bate was isolated for a good chunk of the match. Once he made the hot tag, this kicked into next gear. The match just throws a ton of great stuff at you for the remainder of the 13:31 runtime. Ricochet does some stuff here that is honestly jaw dropping. The spot where he avoided Total Elimination with a backflip will never not be impressive. He nearly won it with a 630 splash, but Kyle O’Reilly pulled Cole to break up the pin. Ricochet went after him, but got taken out by Roderick Strong and Cole pinned him to win one of the best TV matches in years. [****¼] |
2017 Match #44: WWN Championship: Matt Riddle [c] vs. Kyle O’Reilly – Evolve 84 5/20/17 2016 Match #44: WWE World Heavyweight Championship Extreme Rules Match: Roman Reigns (c) vs. AJ Styles – WWE Extreme Rules 5/22/16 2015 Match #44: AJ Styles vs. Tetsuya Naito – NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 9 1/4/15
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 9, 2019 13:21:45 GMT -5
43. Kenny Omega vs. Zack Sabre Jr. – NJPW G1 Climax 8/1/18
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| Far too often, Kenny Omega does things in his matches that take me out of them. The machine part of the “Best Bout Machine” nickname works because he can feel mechanical at times and more like a guy who does moves rather than an actual person. However, like the previous IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Kazuchika Okada, Omega is at his best when he’s taken out of his comfort zone. Instead of being his usual self, he had to play Zack Sabre Jr.’s game and it was glorious. Sabre was the perfect guy to force him to reel it in. Sabre cut off everything Kenny had, especially in terms of speed and power. He had him scouted and outclassed him as a wrestler. When Omega had to make his comeback, it didn’t feel like he was throwing big moves for the sake of earning extra stars. It was sympathetic and realistic. We need more of that from him. Sabre countering the One Winged Angel into the European Clutch was incredible, while the way he caught the V-Trigger into a submission ruled. The desperate champion used a rollup to steal the match in 15:16. Omega got dominated and yet, it was arguably his finest performance all year. He’s a real boy, ladies and gentlemen. Sabre was his fantastic self. Together, they made magic. [****¼] |
2017 Match #43: IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship: Hiromu Takahashi [c] vs. Ricochet – NJPW Wrestling Toyonokuni 4/29/17 2016 Match #43: Katsuyori Shibata vs. Tetsuya Naito – NJPW G1 Climax 7/30/16 2015 Match #43: ROH World and Television Championships: Jay Briscoe (c) vs. Jay Lethal (c) – ROH Best in the World 6/19/15
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 9, 2019 18:09:29 GMT -5
42. WWE Raw Tag Team Championship: Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre [c] vs. Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins – WWE Hell in a Cell 9/16/18
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| Last fall, Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins put on bangers for the Raw Tag Team Titles against The Bar. With Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre as their new opponents, the hits just kept on coming. Dolph and Seth had a string of solid but unspectacular matches over the summer for the Intercontinental Title. Injecting Drew and Dean into their battles is just what they needed. Both teams played their roles perfectly and gave us an exciting match from bell to bell. The fans were completely engaged for the entire 22:57. The champions did all the classic tag tactics so well. They cut the ring off at every turn, isolating Seth. Dean’s hot tag was filled with fire and it was great to see him back in a high profile match after almost a year. The final third of this match is downright ridiculous. So many great exchanges and close calls by both sides. There were several moments where I legitimately believed the finish had come. When it arrived, it was awesome. Seth was in the middle of his superplex/falcon arrow combo, when Drew snuck in and hit him with the Claymore. Dolph draped his arm over Seth to retain the titles. This ruled. [****¼] |
*This is the last match from Hell in a Cell. *It is the final appearance for Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler. *There are no other Raw Tag Team Title matches.
2017 Match #42: Donovan Dijak vs. Keith Lee – Evolve 81 3/31/17 2016 Match #42: ROH World Championship: Jay Lethal (c) vs. Lio Rush – ROH Supercard of Honor 4/1/16 2015 Match #42: Katsuyori Shibata vs. Kazushi Sakuraba – NJPW Dominion 7/5/15
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 9, 2019 19:50:52 GMT -5
41. Ricochet vs. The Velveteen Dream – NXT TakeOver: Chicago 6/16/18
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| For this match, Velveteen Dream came out dressed like Hulk Hogan but with Prince Puma style pants. Yes, Prince Puma. Ricochet’s Lucha Underground character. Because The Velveteen Dream is amazing. I will admit that redoing the Rock/Hogan WrestleMania X8 faceoff was a bit heavy handed. The match also felt like it may have gone a bit long, clocking in at 22:10. With that out of the way, we can focus on the good, because there was a ton of that. NXT offers the best storytelling in wrestling and it’s honestly not even close. This match was built around the idea of “Anything you can do, the Dream can do better.” Dream isn’t known for his aerial ability, but with a point to prove, he added several to his arsenal here. He busted out some of Ricochet’s signature offense to show he could do it. It caught Ricochet off guard and he had to go the extra mile in his high flying stuff to truly remind everyone that he’s the king in that area. Trying to one up each other is what ultimately cost Dream the match. They each tried to hit a top rope move from a further distance. With Ricochet across the ring, Dream tried the Purple Rainmaker and missed. That put him in perfect position for Ricochet to nail the 630 splash and win. [****¼] |
2017 Match #41: Kazuchika Okada vs. Satoshi Kojima – NJPW G1 Climax 7/27/17 2016 Match #41: Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn – WWE Payback 5/1/16 2015 Match #41: Daniel Bryan vs. Roman Reigns – WWE Fastlane 2/22/15
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 10, 2019 9:22:49 GMT -5
40. Kurt Angle and Ronda Rousey vs. Stephanie McMahon and Triple H – WWE WrestleMania 34 4/6/18
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| The definition of a spectacle. As soon as Triple H and Stephanie McMahon came out on motorcycles and did dual water spit spots, I was hooked. Everyone has praised Ronda Rousey for her debut performance here and it’s certainly granted. She was fantastic. But more love needs to go to Stephanie. She was perfect in this. Right at the start, she slapped Ronda and got in several cheap shots before bailing. She was an expert heel, causing fans to salivate at the chance to see Ronda destroy her. They made everyone wait, but once we got it, Ronda delivered. Not only did she get her hands on Stephanie, but the fans erupted when she squared up to Triple H. It was nuts. Angle and HHH were more in there to play ring generals and kind of lead this thing, but it was all about the women. They did go a bit overboard in having Stephanie be able to counter and avoid the armbar, as that felt super unrealistic. Other than that, this was brilliant storytelling. Ronda was tough, but got outsmarted by her wrestling savvy opponents. She shined against excellent heels. Seeing her beat up HHH and then hoist him onto her shoulder was wild. She finally got Stephanie in the armbar to win after 20:37. Probably the smartest worked match of 2018. [****¼] |
*This is the final appearance of Kurt Angle, Ronda Rousey, Triple H, and Stephanie McMahon.
2017 Match #40: Flash Morgan Webster, Jimmy Havoc and Mark Haskins vs. Pete Dunne, Trent Seven and Tyler Bate – PROGRESS Chapter 44: Old Man Yells at Cloud 2/26/17 2016 Match #40: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW G1 Climax 8/3/16 2015 Match #40: Aztec Warfare – Lucha Underground 1/7/15
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Post by This Player Hating Mothman on Jan 10, 2019 9:44:16 GMT -5
*This is the final appearance of both Cedric Alexander. I can't believe there's two Cedric Alexanders and that both of them worked this match. Crazy.
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Allie Kitsune
Crow T. Robot
Always Feelin' Foxy.
Celestial Princess in Exile.
Posts: 46,065
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Post by Allie Kitsune on Jan 10, 2019 9:55:25 GMT -5
*This is the final appearance of both Cedric Alexander. I can't believe there's two Cedric Alexanders and that both of them worked this match. Crazy. They stuck Cedric in the Randy Orton cloning machine.
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Post by This Player Hating Mothman on Jan 10, 2019 9:57:45 GMT -5
I can't believe there's two Cedric Alexanders and that both of them worked this match. Crazy. They stuck Cedric in the Randy Orton cloning machine. When his theme opens with "In the dark I feel at home, time has passed and now I've grown" he's referring to the darkness of the cloning tube that turned him from a small portion of genetic material to a fully developed wrestle man in a matter of months.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 10, 2019 10:55:57 GMT -5
39. Brock Lesnar vs. Daniel Bryan – WWE Survivor Series 11/18/18
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| Daniel Bryan came out with a smug look like he was in complete control. His new character is amazing. When the match started, he hit and moved like he did against Takeshi Morishima back in 2007. Then, Brock went into Brock mode. He dominated for the next eight or so minutes. He hit an F5 and could have won, but pulled Bryan up. It felt like it was just going to be another lazy Brock squash. The crowd hated it. I hated it. Then, the ref bump came. It was a case of a good ref bump, too. It opened the door for Bryan to hit a low blow and the Busaiku Knee. Though Brock survived, Bryan spent the rest of the match using his wits and speed to find brilliant ways to get the upper hand. They swept everyone up in the drama. Brock’s three weaknesses came into play, including the low blow, steel steps, and ring posts. When Bryan put on the Yes Lock, the fans bought Brock possibly doing the unthinkable and tapping. Alas, he got free, powerbombed out of a triangle choke, and won with the F5 in 18:40. The first segment of Brock dominating went on way too long. I get what they were going for, but if you cut that back a bit, the whole match would be tighter. Either way, this was a banger and some of the best stuff Brock’s been a part of. [****¼] |
*This is the final appearance of Brock Lesnar. *It is the last match from Survivor Series.
2017 Match #39: NXT Women’s Championship Last Woman Standing Match: Asuka [c] vs. Nikki Cross – NXT 6/28/17 2016 Match #39: Trios Championship: Ivelisse and Son of Havoc (c) vs. The Crew and Joey Ryan vs. Dragon Azteca Jr., Rey Mysterio Jr. and Prince Puma vs. Fenix, Jack Evans and PJ Black – Lucha Underground 4/27/16 2015 Match #39: Chris Hero vs. Timothy Thatcher – PWG Battle of Los Angeles 8/29/15
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 10, 2019 11:59:50 GMT -5
38. WWE Intercontinental Championship: The Miz [c] vs. Finn Balor vs. Seth Rollins – WWE WrestleMania 4/8/18
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| People didn’t talk about it enough, but these three had one of the best matches in Raw history during 2017. They got to do it again on the biggest stage possible with higher stakes. At WrestleMania with the Intercontinental Title on the line. Each guy had a cool entrance, with Miz getting impressive graphics, Finn Balor having a bunch of fans dressed in pride colors, and Seth Rollins as the Night King from Game of Thrones. They went out and had the third best Mania opener ever. It was filled with bell to bell action and it didn’t fall into the usual tropes of Triple Threat matches. Instead, they made sure all three guys were usually involved and gave us inventive spots while managing to provide callbacks to their history. The spot where Seth teased powerbombing Finn into the guardrail was perfectly done, as was Finn continuing to have a counter for Seth’s superplex/Falcon Arrow combo. Seth wowed us with the RVD like height he got on a frog splash he used to break up a Figure Four. Miz was fantastic at every single thing he does. He’s an all time great. In the end, just as Finn seemed to have the match won, Seth cut him off and won the title with the Curb Stomp on both men at 15:27. A fantastic match between three of the best in the world. [****¼] |
*This is the final match from WrestleMania.
2017 Match #38: IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship: KUSHIDA [c] vs. Hiromu Takahashi – NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 11 1/4/17 2016 Match #38: Chris Hero vs. Tomohiro Ishii – RPW Global Wars UK 11/10/16 2015 Match #38: KUSHIDA vs. Roderick Strong – ROH War of the Worlds 5/12/15
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 10, 2019 13:30:05 GMT -5
37. Extreme Rules Match: Adam Cole vs. Aleister Black – NXT TakeOver: Philadelphia 1/27/18
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| When Adam Cole was first brought into NXT, I was very negative about it. I thought his work in ROH, PWG, NJPW, and everywhere else was mediocre at best. However, he’s been great in NXT and though he had a strong showing near the end of 2017, it was this match that truly solidified him for me. You wouldn’t expect it, but Cole is fantastic in hardcore matches and this may have been his best. The weapons were brought into play early and often, yet they still managed to gradually use them. It wasn’t just wailing on each other for the sake of it. The spots got bigger as the match progressed, with each man attempting to find a new way to overcome the other. Cole took huge bumps onto a ladder and the tops of two steel chairs, while Aleister Black got superkicked and fell through two tables. Neither man was holding back. The Undisputed Era and SAnitY got involved in a sensible way that added to the match, rather than take away from it. With the odds evened up, Black was able to find the opening he needed to win. All it took was a Black Mass and it was over in 22:03. One of the best Extreme Rules matches in history. [****¼] |
*This is the final Extreme Rules match listed. *It is the last ****1/4 match.
2017 Match #37: Number One Contender’s Match: Finn Balor vs. The Miz vs. Seth Rollins – Raw 5/1/17 2016 Match #37: Team Raw vs. Team Smackdown – WWE Survivor Series 11/20/16 2015 Match #37: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kota Ibushi – NJPW G1 Climax 7/20/15
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Jan 10, 2019 15:18:05 GMT -5
36. Juice Robinson vs. Tetsuya Naito – NJPW G1 Climax 7/21/18
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| In 2017, Juice Robinson pinned Tetsuya Naito in a tag match, but ultimately lost an Intercontinental Title shot at him. That match ruled (****¼) and was one that helped solidify Juice as a star in NJPW. The tables had turned here, though. Juice was now the man holding championship gold and on something of a hot streak even though he dropped his first two G1 matches. He also came in with a heavily bandaged hand that was broken a few weeks prior. Naito honed in on it. He was vicious in attacking it. Naito’s assault went so far, he got booed in Korakuen Hall. This isn’t 2013. Getting the crowd to boo Naito, the most popular star in Japan, is no easy task. The combination of his brutal offense and Juice’s babyface fire made for one hell of an atmosphere. Naito would modify his signature offense to specifically target the hand. It was genius. When Juice fired up and got going, Naito spat at him, hoping to entice him to use the cast as a weapon and get disqualified. Super good guy Juice refused to give in. He came close to pulling out the huge win on several occasions and even survived Destino. However, he couldn’t get up from a second, losing after 16:38 of incredible action. [****½] |
*This is the final appearance of Juice Robinson.
2017 Match #36: PROGRESS Atlas Championship: Matt Riddle [c] vs. WALTER – PROGRESS Chapter 51: Screaming for PROGRESS 7/9/17 2016 Match #36: Lucha Underground Championship: Mil Muertes (c) vs. Pentagon Jr. vs. Prince Puma – Lucha Underground 3/9/16 2015 Match #36: NXT Women’s Championship: Charlotte (c) vs. Bayley vs. Becky Lynch vs. Sasha Banks – NXT TakeOver: Rival 2/11/15
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