Less thoughts this week, more a post to indicate that I did watch the show. Obviously, we're building towards the ECW match at Wrestlemania, which will feature Christian, Swagger and possibly Finlay. I guess a fourway with Henry isn't out of the question. I'd accept that - I prefer four way matches, with two seperate conflicts going on at one time, rather than the contrived three way spots that such matches involve.
Ignoring the Boogeyman match because that's basically a sideshow at this point, the Morrison vs. Dreamer match carries forward that feud with a couple more minutes of TV time. Morrison is great here - he's incredibly watchable with his athletically impressive offence and his natural charisma. Miz is fun at ringside as well. Want to see longer matches with both guys. Also want to see where the Dreamer angle is actually going, so that speaks to good booking. It's also simple booking - Dreamer gives a strong face promo, heel opponents mock him, they have a couple of matches. Tyson Kidd has another squash. Kick in the face was less disgusting than last week, unfortunately.
Main event was a tag with the top four guys. This was a perfectly fine formula tag match, with Christian making the hot tag. I liked the little spot where Christian went to tag Finlay who wasn't there at the time - Christian stops dead when he see's his partner is down on the floor, but Finlay gives him nothing in the way of an apology. A much more subtle and a lot less contrived play on the natural tensions between two crowd-favourite title contenders than "one guy accidentally costs the other a match/accidentally punches the other guy in the face" that's rammed down the audience's throat. Finish sets up next week's title match, which is fine. Swagger need's a win though - he's nowhere near established enough to lose every week and keep his standing. How they do that without cutting into Christian's returning momentum is another question. Your move, ECW.
Saturday, 21 February 2009
Wednesday, 18 February 2009
DRAGON GATE - Infinity 113 + 114!
CATCHIN' UP TIME~!
Two more Infinity's to look at in order to wrap up King Of Gate, and we'll start with 113 which sees the 4 second round matchups.
113
King of Gate - Round 2: Magnitude Kishiwada vs. Madoka
Madoka tried and tried but when you're up against the BEHEMOTH that is Killer Kish that's not gonna get the job done maaan. So yeah, fun big man vs. little man match (odd choice of words since Kish is significantly shorter) with a killer finish that makes Magnitude look strong heading into the semis.
King of Gate - Round 1: Masaaki Mochizuki vs. Taku Iwasa
The series of Mochi beating lessons into young Taku continues. Iwasa was all uppity and getting in the vets face, challenging him to a war.... and a war was what he got. Match was filled with heavy duty strikes from both guys, real intense stuff. Iwasa came close a few times to getting a HUGE win, but he just wasn't quite able to break that threshold and eventually he was overwhelmed and found himself hanging onto life support as Mochi started mounting the pressure. The finish was a sick sick SICK series of high kicks that made one Mirko Cro Cop squirm. Very enjoyable match.
King of Gate - Round 1: Don Fujii vs. Naoki Tanisaki
Oh poor Naoki, poor young naive Naoki..... The big Don was too smart for him here. One of the funniest finishes I've seen in a while, as during a brawl on the outside, Don took Tanisaki outside the arena, gave him a slam, and shut the door, running back to the ring. Naoki couldn't make it back and Fujii makes it through to the semis in EPIC fashion.
King of Gate - Round 1: BxB Hulk vs. Naruki Doi
This all World-1 battle was definitely the showcase match of the tournament up to this point, and boy did it live up to it. A really awesome match in which BxB seemed to have a death wish. He took some completely insane bumps in this and it's a miracle he was walking afterwards. This was definitely the most near-fall laden match of the KOG so far, as both guys dropped bigtime bombs down the stretch getting the old 2.999999!!! on numerous occasions. The sickest of BxB's bumps came for the finish as he was KILLED deader than dead by a neck crunching Muscular Bomb (a move that needs to stop being done to anyone over 5'6), sending Doi into the semi finals to meet Don Fujii.
Another better than average show this time out. Two very good competitive matches, and two matches that were entertaining for other reasons.
INFINITY #112 - 8/10
114
And we move to the semi finals. Naruki Doi takes on Don Fujii and Masaaki Mochizuki takes on KILLER KISH. The winners meet in the final in the main event.
King Of Gate - Semi Final: Masaaki Mochizuki vs. Magnitude Kishiwada
Short, all action match here. Kish had some BAAAAA RUTAL offence in this including his awesome Superfly splash which squished Mochi, a face destroying lariat on a chair holding Mochizuki and legit one of the coolest brainbuster I've ever seen. It wasn't enough though, as Mochi's technique won out in the end, catching an arm submission out of nowhere for the win.I enjoyed the heck out of this match. Great way to start the show.
King Of Gate - Semi Final: Don Fujii vs. Naruki Doi
The story of this was Don trying all his cheap tactics to win without getting any damage. He tried the countout move he did to Tanisaki, by placing Doi in an ABDOMINAL STRETCH up in the cheap seats and then running down to the ring. Didn't work as Doi made it back at 19 and a half. Other tactics came up short too and eventually he realised Doi would have to be fully beaten if he wanted to go through. Unfortunately for Fujii, he wasn't able to do that as in a very surprising finish which mirrored the opener, Naruki Doi caught a KIMURA from the guard to advance. Fun match.
King Of Gate - Final: Masaaki Mochizuki vs. Naruki Doi
The two men who have been the most dominant in the tournament, rightfully meet in the final. They put together a heck of a match, which probably only trailed Doi's match with Hulk for match of the tournament honours. Real awesome back and forth action, especially down the stretch. They teased a couple of submission finishes, playing off the semi finals nicely. The crowd were really buying one of Mochi's ankle lock attempts in particular. Eventually though, it was the move which won Doi his 1st and 2nd round matches - the Muscular Bomb - which got the duke. Awesome match to finish a kick ass tournament.
After Doi's post match celebration we get highlights of Tozawa asking Shingo and Iwasa to form a unit. They seem to accept.
Excellent show to finish KOG.
INFINITY #114 - 8/10
Two more Infinity's to look at in order to wrap up King Of Gate, and we'll start with 113 which sees the 4 second round matchups.
113
King of Gate - Round 2: Magnitude Kishiwada vs. Madoka
Madoka tried and tried but when you're up against the BEHEMOTH that is Killer Kish that's not gonna get the job done maaan. So yeah, fun big man vs. little man match (odd choice of words since Kish is significantly shorter) with a killer finish that makes Magnitude look strong heading into the semis.
King of Gate - Round 1: Masaaki Mochizuki vs. Taku Iwasa
The series of Mochi beating lessons into young Taku continues. Iwasa was all uppity and getting in the vets face, challenging him to a war.... and a war was what he got. Match was filled with heavy duty strikes from both guys, real intense stuff. Iwasa came close a few times to getting a HUGE win, but he just wasn't quite able to break that threshold and eventually he was overwhelmed and found himself hanging onto life support as Mochi started mounting the pressure. The finish was a sick sick SICK series of high kicks that made one Mirko Cro Cop squirm. Very enjoyable match.
King of Gate - Round 1: Don Fujii vs. Naoki Tanisaki
Oh poor Naoki, poor young naive Naoki..... The big Don was too smart for him here. One of the funniest finishes I've seen in a while, as during a brawl on the outside, Don took Tanisaki outside the arena, gave him a slam, and shut the door, running back to the ring. Naoki couldn't make it back and Fujii makes it through to the semis in EPIC fashion.
King of Gate - Round 1: BxB Hulk vs. Naruki Doi
This all World-1 battle was definitely the showcase match of the tournament up to this point, and boy did it live up to it. A really awesome match in which BxB seemed to have a death wish. He took some completely insane bumps in this and it's a miracle he was walking afterwards. This was definitely the most near-fall laden match of the KOG so far, as both guys dropped bigtime bombs down the stretch getting the old 2.999999!!! on numerous occasions. The sickest of BxB's bumps came for the finish as he was KILLED deader than dead by a neck crunching Muscular Bomb (a move that needs to stop being done to anyone over 5'6), sending Doi into the semi finals to meet Don Fujii.
Another better than average show this time out. Two very good competitive matches, and two matches that were entertaining for other reasons.
INFINITY #112 - 8/10
114
And we move to the semi finals. Naruki Doi takes on Don Fujii and Masaaki Mochizuki takes on KILLER KISH. The winners meet in the final in the main event.
King Of Gate - Semi Final: Masaaki Mochizuki vs. Magnitude Kishiwada
Short, all action match here. Kish had some BAAAAA RUTAL offence in this including his awesome Superfly splash which squished Mochi, a face destroying lariat on a chair holding Mochizuki and legit one of the coolest brainbuster I've ever seen. It wasn't enough though, as Mochi's technique won out in the end, catching an arm submission out of nowhere for the win.I enjoyed the heck out of this match. Great way to start the show.
King Of Gate - Semi Final: Don Fujii vs. Naruki Doi
The story of this was Don trying all his cheap tactics to win without getting any damage. He tried the countout move he did to Tanisaki, by placing Doi in an ABDOMINAL STRETCH up in the cheap seats and then running down to the ring. Didn't work as Doi made it back at 19 and a half. Other tactics came up short too and eventually he realised Doi would have to be fully beaten if he wanted to go through. Unfortunately for Fujii, he wasn't able to do that as in a very surprising finish which mirrored the opener, Naruki Doi caught a KIMURA from the guard to advance. Fun match.
King Of Gate - Final: Masaaki Mochizuki vs. Naruki Doi
The two men who have been the most dominant in the tournament, rightfully meet in the final. They put together a heck of a match, which probably only trailed Doi's match with Hulk for match of the tournament honours. Real awesome back and forth action, especially down the stretch. They teased a couple of submission finishes, playing off the semi finals nicely. The crowd were really buying one of Mochi's ankle lock attempts in particular. Eventually though, it was the move which won Doi his 1st and 2nd round matches - the Muscular Bomb - which got the duke. Awesome match to finish a kick ass tournament.
After Doi's post match celebration we get highlights of Tozawa asking Shingo and Iwasa to form a unit. They seem to accept.
Excellent show to finish KOG.
INFINITY #114 - 8/10
Monday, 16 February 2009
WWE: No Way Out 2009
So we open with the WWE title Elimination chamber, which surprises me. I mean, I thought it would be a good idea for them the spread out the chamber matches across the show, but given the line ups, I was convinced they'd finish with this one. When did Triple H, Edge and Taker last curtain-jerk a PPV? (Yes, I know the answer). Thank God they only booked five matches - fifteen minutes in, and we still haven't had the first bell.
So Edge's early elimination is a slightly surprising booking twist. The first twenty minutes is fairly slow - not bad, just not particularly interesting. The Kozlov-Show oneupmanship is nicely done - Show in particular sells the fact he can't take his eyes of the other big guy, even when they are both targeting Hardy. The pace picks up after Taker enters, and the eliminations follow in exactly the way you'd expect - Kozlov first (he's basically Umaga at this point), then Show, who as ever requires everyone to work together to beat him, then Hardy, who I assume is moving on to properly feud with his brother. The final stretch after Show's elimination is very heated, but does start to go on too long - I just don't see a drawn out Trips-Taker final battle with all the finisher kickout trimmings is necessary at this point, when a singles match between the two can't be too far away. Anyway, a solid effort all around.
By the way, I'm really not that much of a fan of elimination chambers. Firstly, I find them far too gimmicky. Firstly, why the pods? Why the gameshow "randomised" entry? For all that metal, I don't think the structure is anymore deadly than a normal cage. Plus, the the announcers feel the need to overhype how brutal the match is, which is never matched by what's happening in the ring. JR calls it "Satan's vacation home in Hell". This raises a number of issues, not least of which is why is Satan holidaying in Hell?
OK, Orton vs. McMahon, no DQ. What are the odds at this point of Stephanie turning on her family and siding with Legacy? This is your expected WWE sport-entertainment McMahon brawl - heavy on spots, bumps, blood, weapons and run-ins. They really have done everything to make Shane look like a threat rather than a, you know, non-wrestler. Randy takes an unprotected shot with the monitor that was pretty sick. Shane takes out both of Simply Priceless, and kicks out of more stuff than most people would. I can't decide whether I like this. On one level, it's a bit of an ego thing for Shane. However, if Randy, next world champion, is going to have a reasonably long match, you want to believe that his opponent is actually on the same level. Either way, no complaints about Randy's performance here - looks killer on offense, sells like a king.
Finlay and Swagger have, unusually for this card, a professional wrestling match, so obviously the crowd don't care. In fairness this wasn't a patch on the first two on Sci-Fi, but they were hindered by less time and some angle involving Hornswaggle accidentally distracting Finlay (but actually not). Would it really hurt to take ten minutes off the first match, and give these guys a chance, especially when you are building up a new guy? Here's a reason for loving Finlay - with an injured arm, he puts his knee in Swagger's face when going for pin instead. Wonderful attention to detail.
The Michaels-JBL match was going along fine. I figured it would be more violent, but it wasn't a major problem. JBL is perfectly reasonable dominating the middle part of this match. I'm assuming there are two Shawn Michaels - the one who goes out there to take a beating, and a second one who participates in the finish. Otherwise, that would make the entire match pointless for the sake of popping the crowd for twenty seconds. That wouldn't be good wrestling at all. And if that were the case, well, it would almost be like Shawn Michaels wasn't good at wrestling any more. Imagine.
The main event was the best match on the card. Plenty of people have pointed out how great Rey is here, and they aren't wrong. He works for six men, bumping, leaping, constantly moving or doing something. It didn't feel like the same Rey who has been coasting along these past two years. He makes Kane and Knox look interesting. Jericho is fine here - I enjoyed him spending a lot of time out the outskirts while Rey does all the work, then sneaking in and hitting about a hundred Codebreakers during the whole match.
Oh, and Edge was in this thing. Cena's elimination was actually shocking, because I'm an idiot and can't work out then when Edge turns up somewhere he's not expected, it's normally because he's going to sneak a title victory. Whatever you say about Cena beating everyone prior to his 2007 injury, he has put over everyone since coming back. The final stretch was properly exciting, as Rey sold all of Edge's pretty weak offense, and almost everyone believes (or wants to believe) that Rey might win. The final pod bump looked amazing, as did the spear. OK, so I liked this, much more than the first one. It's mainly Rey's effort, but it also felt better booked. The final two finisher stretch was better because it's a crowd favourite vs a hated heel. The high spots are better. Even the slower middle part was more interesting, with Rey working working with two guys who has recently feuded with, and making their short exchanges mean something. Everything prior to this was pointing towards an average show, but due to the main event, it ended on a very positive note.
So Edge's early elimination is a slightly surprising booking twist. The first twenty minutes is fairly slow - not bad, just not particularly interesting. The Kozlov-Show oneupmanship is nicely done - Show in particular sells the fact he can't take his eyes of the other big guy, even when they are both targeting Hardy. The pace picks up after Taker enters, and the eliminations follow in exactly the way you'd expect - Kozlov first (he's basically Umaga at this point), then Show, who as ever requires everyone to work together to beat him, then Hardy, who I assume is moving on to properly feud with his brother. The final stretch after Show's elimination is very heated, but does start to go on too long - I just don't see a drawn out Trips-Taker final battle with all the finisher kickout trimmings is necessary at this point, when a singles match between the two can't be too far away. Anyway, a solid effort all around.
By the way, I'm really not that much of a fan of elimination chambers. Firstly, I find them far too gimmicky. Firstly, why the pods? Why the gameshow "randomised" entry? For all that metal, I don't think the structure is anymore deadly than a normal cage. Plus, the the announcers feel the need to overhype how brutal the match is, which is never matched by what's happening in the ring. JR calls it "Satan's vacation home in Hell". This raises a number of issues, not least of which is why is Satan holidaying in Hell?
OK, Orton vs. McMahon, no DQ. What are the odds at this point of Stephanie turning on her family and siding with Legacy? This is your expected WWE sport-entertainment McMahon brawl - heavy on spots, bumps, blood, weapons and run-ins. They really have done everything to make Shane look like a threat rather than a, you know, non-wrestler. Randy takes an unprotected shot with the monitor that was pretty sick. Shane takes out both of Simply Priceless, and kicks out of more stuff than most people would. I can't decide whether I like this. On one level, it's a bit of an ego thing for Shane. However, if Randy, next world champion, is going to have a reasonably long match, you want to believe that his opponent is actually on the same level. Either way, no complaints about Randy's performance here - looks killer on offense, sells like a king.
Finlay and Swagger have, unusually for this card, a professional wrestling match, so obviously the crowd don't care. In fairness this wasn't a patch on the first two on Sci-Fi, but they were hindered by less time and some angle involving Hornswaggle accidentally distracting Finlay (but actually not). Would it really hurt to take ten minutes off the first match, and give these guys a chance, especially when you are building up a new guy? Here's a reason for loving Finlay - with an injured arm, he puts his knee in Swagger's face when going for pin instead. Wonderful attention to detail.
The Michaels-JBL match was going along fine. I figured it would be more violent, but it wasn't a major problem. JBL is perfectly reasonable dominating the middle part of this match. I'm assuming there are two Shawn Michaels - the one who goes out there to take a beating, and a second one who participates in the finish. Otherwise, that would make the entire match pointless for the sake of popping the crowd for twenty seconds. That wouldn't be good wrestling at all. And if that were the case, well, it would almost be like Shawn Michaels wasn't good at wrestling any more. Imagine.
The main event was the best match on the card. Plenty of people have pointed out how great Rey is here, and they aren't wrong. He works for six men, bumping, leaping, constantly moving or doing something. It didn't feel like the same Rey who has been coasting along these past two years. He makes Kane and Knox look interesting. Jericho is fine here - I enjoyed him spending a lot of time out the outskirts while Rey does all the work, then sneaking in and hitting about a hundred Codebreakers during the whole match.
Oh, and Edge was in this thing. Cena's elimination was actually shocking, because I'm an idiot and can't work out then when Edge turns up somewhere he's not expected, it's normally because he's going to sneak a title victory. Whatever you say about Cena beating everyone prior to his 2007 injury, he has put over everyone since coming back. The final stretch was properly exciting, as Rey sold all of Edge's pretty weak offense, and almost everyone believes (or wants to believe) that Rey might win. The final pod bump looked amazing, as did the spear. OK, so I liked this, much more than the first one. It's mainly Rey's effort, but it also felt better booked. The final two finisher stretch was better because it's a crowd favourite vs a hated heel. The high spots are better. Even the slower middle part was more interesting, with Rey working working with two guys who has recently feuded with, and making their short exchanges mean something. Everything prior to this was pointing towards an average show, but due to the main event, it ended on a very positive note.
Sunday, 15 February 2009
ECW: 10th February 2009
The Christian return episode. If you didn't want to know that Christian returned in this episode (maybe, for instance, you haven't yet watched this episode, featuring the return of Christian) then please avoid this paragraph and move on to the next.
The show opens with the return of Christian, interrupting Jack Swagger and challenging him for the ECW title. Matt Striker taunts TNA with the line "this moment has become instantly classic", which is funny on a number of levels, especially if you consider the copyright battles the WWE instigated when Christian moved to TNA over the use of the trademarked "Captain Charisma". He does some mocking of Swagger's lisp, which is, you know, the pinnacle of comedy, and knocks him down with the mic.
There's a quick match between Miz and Dreamer, following on from last week, which was exactly to the point. Then there was an even shorter match between the debuting Tyson Kidd (who is also TJ Wilson) and a local jobber. The best part of this match is Striker on commentary, hyping Kidd by talking about his Hart Dungeon past. And the jumping kick to the job guy's face. That was some quality jumping kick to the job guy's face. I'm excited about Tyson Kidd because I love high flying junior versus striking and ground based juniors matches, and I imagine there is at least one good Kidd versus Bourne match when the other returns. Or a series of matches.
Main event is Christian vs. Swagger. I thought this was a notch or two below the other Swagger singles matches from this year. Christian is a fun guy to watch, but his singles matches, especially as a face, are usually good rather than great. He certainly doesn't do as good a job as Finlay at selling the ribs. There's a three minute stretch near the end when they find a grooves of nearfalls are reversals, which makes me think there is a much better match between these two in the future. The momentum is gone by the finish, though once again they allow Swagger to lose without him looking weak after a run-in attack by Finlay. Finlay, best wrestler in WWE he might be, brings nothing to the commentary. You've got to play to your strengths.
OK show this week. Looking forward to Finlay/Swagger part three at the PPV.
The show opens with the return of Christian, interrupting Jack Swagger and challenging him for the ECW title. Matt Striker taunts TNA with the line "this moment has become instantly classic", which is funny on a number of levels, especially if you consider the copyright battles the WWE instigated when Christian moved to TNA over the use of the trademarked "Captain Charisma". He does some mocking of Swagger's lisp, which is, you know, the pinnacle of comedy, and knocks him down with the mic.
There's a quick match between Miz and Dreamer, following on from last week, which was exactly to the point. Then there was an even shorter match between the debuting Tyson Kidd (who is also TJ Wilson) and a local jobber. The best part of this match is Striker on commentary, hyping Kidd by talking about his Hart Dungeon past. And the jumping kick to the job guy's face. That was some quality jumping kick to the job guy's face. I'm excited about Tyson Kidd because I love high flying junior versus striking and ground based juniors matches, and I imagine there is at least one good Kidd versus Bourne match when the other returns. Or a series of matches.
Main event is Christian vs. Swagger. I thought this was a notch or two below the other Swagger singles matches from this year. Christian is a fun guy to watch, but his singles matches, especially as a face, are usually good rather than great. He certainly doesn't do as good a job as Finlay at selling the ribs. There's a three minute stretch near the end when they find a grooves of nearfalls are reversals, which makes me think there is a much better match between these two in the future. The momentum is gone by the finish, though once again they allow Swagger to lose without him looking weak after a run-in attack by Finlay. Finlay, best wrestler in WWE he might be, brings nothing to the commentary. You've got to play to your strengths.
OK show this week. Looking forward to Finlay/Swagger part three at the PPV.
Friday, 13 February 2009
A Trio of Trios: Los Oficiales
Happened to have three trios from IWRG all featuring Los Oficiales (911, AK47 and Fierro) on my computer, so I thought I'd write them up together.
The first one is from 18th September this year, and is, slightly unusually, a rudos contra rudos title match against Black Terry, Cerebro Negro and Doctor Cerebro. The latter team sort of kind of take the technicos role, dominating the first fall, being beaten down in the second and coming back in the third before the finish. There's certainly enough "Terry" chants (not from me) to imply the crowd were siding one particular way.
The match is notable for being pretty stiff by lucha standards, which may have resulted from the all-rudos setup. Cerebro Negro in particular landed some hard right hands, as well as a couple of nasty-looking headbutts. There was plenty dropkicks to the face and punting the other team out of the ring. Terry is once again the star here - he led 911 through some nice matwork on a couple of occasions, is a great brawler when needed, and his facial reactions and little selling touches add some much. There's one point when all three Oficiales were controlling the ring at the start of the third fall, and Terry was looking for a way in, with a face drenched in concern, and his eyes darting around, looking for the safest way in.
Los Oficiales were clearly the most coherent unit here, as evidenced by much more than their uniforms. When they get in control, they have plenty of triple team moves to stay in control. There's a feeling sometimes of watching a violent gang mugging at times, too - they seem at times to move together, whereas the other tea, while in control, are a series of individuals, almost taking turns to beat down the other guy. Fierro seems to be more obviously athletically gifted, while 911 is the least elegant. The stereo topes showed this quite well.
Such discussion may actually be pointless, though, because I think I read someone talking about how they swap costumes for different matches. I enjoyed this match, especially the Black Terry parts, though Cerebro Negro was also up for the fight. I probably would rate it lower than a number of other trios from this year (especially the October 3rd one). The next two matches have Oficiales in a more traditional role as bases to some high flying technicos.
First one is from 9th October, and the opponents are Freelance, Rey Cometta and Pegasso Extremo. Primera caida is a decent Oficiales beatdown rudo fall - lots of triple teams (including a back body drop where Freelance hits an insane height), plenty of stomping, point gets made. The segunda starts the same way, until the technicos make their come back. All three hit over the top rope tope con giro. Freelance gets incredible height and distance on his, doesn't touch the top rope and flies straight into the crowd (and an Oficial) at an insane speed. Amazing stuff. The fall finishes with two 450 splashes from Rey and Pegasso, and a spectacular pinning hurricanrana from Freelance - he leaps up to stand on 911's shoulders, before dropping down and revolving with speed.
All of which sets up the third fall, which starts with both teams in their corners. Tne fall starts off with lots of exchanges with the rudos bumping around the techichos armdrags and headscissors. Los Oficiales strike me as being pretty great at this as well. Freelance lands and balances on the top rope before leaping off with for another armdrag, and then follows up with a dragonrana from the ring to one of the Oficiales on the outside, who is flung into the front row. The finish features a magnificent top rope quebrada from Freelance, a bunch of dives from Pegasso and Rey - one of them lands badly (and on head-fully) after undershooting their spinning pescado. Freelance takes the win with a sunset flip powerbomb, further the feud and leading towards a title match at some point in the future.
And here's the title match, recorded on 17th October - same team's as the previous week. Los Oficiales saluting each other before the match is grand. They are also wearing different masks to the previous match. Are they title-defending masks? My gut says they are. Both non-Freelance technico are here and not dead after that botched dive, which is pleasing. This match is a little shorter than the first one, has a lot less rudo beatdown, and a lot more crazy diving.
Primera caida has a bunch of nice exchanges, the most spectacular of which is Freelance one-upping himself from the previous week, again landing on the top rope, but this time jumping backwards into a hurricanrana. Fierro hits a wild tope, sending Freelance crashing back-first into barrier. The rudos take the second fall again dominated by the technicos, until Oficiales take control with some triple teams. The final fall is full of crazy dives from all three technicos - Freelance's springboard somersault plancha makes me jump in my seat. It comes down to capitan vs. capitan again, with 911 taking the victory this time, after kicking out of some stuff that Freelance had won with before.
I mention Freelance a lot, at the expense of noting all the fun stuff Pegasso and Rey do, because he's in a couple of steps above them, as well as most other technicos. His flying is pretty amazing, but he couples that with being pretty spectacular in between dives as well. He is fast between the ropes, and has about a hundred different armdrag and headscissor variations. He should be more well noticed.
Overall, the Oficiales come off as a really great unit - they bumped huge in that titles match, which I guess I liked better than the first match. AK-47 takes a couple of face first slides out of the ring that looked rough. They work as great bases for all the flying and armdrags and headscissors and takedowns, which is probably the most important quality in a rudo team, and they also look really dominant when in control. IWRG is the place to be.
The first one is from 18th September this year, and is, slightly unusually, a rudos contra rudos title match against Black Terry, Cerebro Negro and Doctor Cerebro. The latter team sort of kind of take the technicos role, dominating the first fall, being beaten down in the second and coming back in the third before the finish. There's certainly enough "Terry" chants (not from me) to imply the crowd were siding one particular way.
The match is notable for being pretty stiff by lucha standards, which may have resulted from the all-rudos setup. Cerebro Negro in particular landed some hard right hands, as well as a couple of nasty-looking headbutts. There was plenty dropkicks to the face and punting the other team out of the ring. Terry is once again the star here - he led 911 through some nice matwork on a couple of occasions, is a great brawler when needed, and his facial reactions and little selling touches add some much. There's one point when all three Oficiales were controlling the ring at the start of the third fall, and Terry was looking for a way in, with a face drenched in concern, and his eyes darting around, looking for the safest way in.
Los Oficiales were clearly the most coherent unit here, as evidenced by much more than their uniforms. When they get in control, they have plenty of triple team moves to stay in control. There's a feeling sometimes of watching a violent gang mugging at times, too - they seem at times to move together, whereas the other tea, while in control, are a series of individuals, almost taking turns to beat down the other guy. Fierro seems to be more obviously athletically gifted, while 911 is the least elegant. The stereo topes showed this quite well.
Such discussion may actually be pointless, though, because I think I read someone talking about how they swap costumes for different matches. I enjoyed this match, especially the Black Terry parts, though Cerebro Negro was also up for the fight. I probably would rate it lower than a number of other trios from this year (especially the October 3rd one). The next two matches have Oficiales in a more traditional role as bases to some high flying technicos.
First one is from 9th October, and the opponents are Freelance, Rey Cometta and Pegasso Extremo. Primera caida is a decent Oficiales beatdown rudo fall - lots of triple teams (including a back body drop where Freelance hits an insane height), plenty of stomping, point gets made. The segunda starts the same way, until the technicos make their come back. All three hit over the top rope tope con giro. Freelance gets incredible height and distance on his, doesn't touch the top rope and flies straight into the crowd (and an Oficial) at an insane speed. Amazing stuff. The fall finishes with two 450 splashes from Rey and Pegasso, and a spectacular pinning hurricanrana from Freelance - he leaps up to stand on 911's shoulders, before dropping down and revolving with speed.
All of which sets up the third fall, which starts with both teams in their corners. Tne fall starts off with lots of exchanges with the rudos bumping around the techichos armdrags and headscissors. Los Oficiales strike me as being pretty great at this as well. Freelance lands and balances on the top rope before leaping off with for another armdrag, and then follows up with a dragonrana from the ring to one of the Oficiales on the outside, who is flung into the front row. The finish features a magnificent top rope quebrada from Freelance, a bunch of dives from Pegasso and Rey - one of them lands badly (and on head-fully) after undershooting their spinning pescado. Freelance takes the win with a sunset flip powerbomb, further the feud and leading towards a title match at some point in the future.
And here's the title match, recorded on 17th October - same team's as the previous week. Los Oficiales saluting each other before the match is grand. They are also wearing different masks to the previous match. Are they title-defending masks? My gut says they are. Both non-Freelance technico are here and not dead after that botched dive, which is pleasing. This match is a little shorter than the first one, has a lot less rudo beatdown, and a lot more crazy diving.
Primera caida has a bunch of nice exchanges, the most spectacular of which is Freelance one-upping himself from the previous week, again landing on the top rope, but this time jumping backwards into a hurricanrana. Fierro hits a wild tope, sending Freelance crashing back-first into barrier. The rudos take the second fall again dominated by the technicos, until Oficiales take control with some triple teams. The final fall is full of crazy dives from all three technicos - Freelance's springboard somersault plancha makes me jump in my seat. It comes down to capitan vs. capitan again, with 911 taking the victory this time, after kicking out of some stuff that Freelance had won with before.
I mention Freelance a lot, at the expense of noting all the fun stuff Pegasso and Rey do, because he's in a couple of steps above them, as well as most other technicos. His flying is pretty amazing, but he couples that with being pretty spectacular in between dives as well. He is fast between the ropes, and has about a hundred different armdrag and headscissor variations. He should be more well noticed.
Overall, the Oficiales come off as a really great unit - they bumped huge in that titles match, which I guess I liked better than the first match. AK-47 takes a couple of face first slides out of the ring that looked rough. They work as great bases for all the flying and armdrags and headscissors and takedowns, which is probably the most important quality in a rudo team, and they also look really dominant when in control. IWRG is the place to be.
Thursday, 12 February 2009
ECW: 3rd February 2009
I'm going to try hard to regularly watch more WWE programming this year, as I lost interest in the second half of 2008. There's plenty worth watching, and ECW is often where a lot of this is hidden away - Finlay, Miz, Morrison and Bourne are all excellent, and Swagger has got my interest. I assume Matt has now moved.
Opening match was Paul Burchill versus Tommy Dreamer, which served the dual purpose of aimlessly putting Burchill over for a push that will never come, and continuing Dreamer's current (and final?) storyline about trying to prove he still has what it takes. Match was short, and led into a great segment where Miz and Morrison berate Tommy until he snaps. I have this concern that they will eventually split Miz and Morrison up, turning one (the one who will inevitably get the big push) face. It basically happens with all the teams at some point. They should resist that urge, because both are such naturally good heels, and promos like this show it.
Skipping swiftly past the Boogeyman-Noble match, we have the main event, which is Finlay against Jack Swagger. These Jack Swagger title matches all open with some nice matwork, but this was all Finlay schooling his younger opponent. Swagger uses his amateur skills almost to show off a little. Finlay, here, is deliberate and methodical, flowing easily from one hold to the next and demonstrating his dominance.
I liked how this frustrated the less experienced Swagger, who tried brawling instead, which Finlay also used against him, and I really liked the desperate hurling of Finlay into the second buckle to finally turn the tide. Finlay did a great job selling his rib injuries, and Swagger is certainly someone who is comfortable controlling the middle of the match with some meaningful body part work. It was the arm with Matt Hardy in both matches, and here he shows he has a good range of holds to work over another body part. The finish kept Swagger looking strong, while allowing for some crowd pleasing revenge from Hornswaggle, and it all means we get a PPV match, which works for me. A one match show, but it's a good match in any circumstances, and a really good TV match.
Opening match was Paul Burchill versus Tommy Dreamer, which served the dual purpose of aimlessly putting Burchill over for a push that will never come, and continuing Dreamer's current (and final?) storyline about trying to prove he still has what it takes. Match was short, and led into a great segment where Miz and Morrison berate Tommy until he snaps. I have this concern that they will eventually split Miz and Morrison up, turning one (the one who will inevitably get the big push) face. It basically happens with all the teams at some point. They should resist that urge, because both are such naturally good heels, and promos like this show it.
Skipping swiftly past the Boogeyman-Noble match, we have the main event, which is Finlay against Jack Swagger. These Jack Swagger title matches all open with some nice matwork, but this was all Finlay schooling his younger opponent. Swagger uses his amateur skills almost to show off a little. Finlay, here, is deliberate and methodical, flowing easily from one hold to the next and demonstrating his dominance.
I liked how this frustrated the less experienced Swagger, who tried brawling instead, which Finlay also used against him, and I really liked the desperate hurling of Finlay into the second buckle to finally turn the tide. Finlay did a great job selling his rib injuries, and Swagger is certainly someone who is comfortable controlling the middle of the match with some meaningful body part work. It was the arm with Matt Hardy in both matches, and here he shows he has a good range of holds to work over another body part. The finish kept Swagger looking strong, while allowing for some crowd pleasing revenge from Hornswaggle, and it all means we get a PPV match, which works for me. A one match show, but it's a good match in any circumstances, and a really good TV match.
Sunday, 8 February 2009
Kaientai Dojo: 9th August 2008
You know what's better than a show? A super big show. And here's one. Watched this show months ago, and didn't do a write up. Here are a couple of abridged thoughts - the DVD is from WrestlingDVD.net. The recording focuses mainly on the four title matches. Actually, with the time contraints of a GAORA show, even the featured matches are a bit clipped.
The UWA Middleweight Title match between MEN's Teioh and Makoto Oishi (cut down to seven minutes) was a fun little sprint - MEN's doing his veteran schooling the young boys schtick, before the near falls run which was a little one-sided as MEN's killed Oishi dead at the end with about five backdrop drivers and a Miracle Ecstasy. I look forward to the December rematch, especially if its shown near full.
The Independent Jr title match between Madoka and Iibushi was exactly what you expect - lots of kicking, highspots, and little substance. They do loads of avoiding each other's signature stuff (at least early on), playing off how they know each other well, but predictably all that same stuff is hit later on, which just shows how little either guy is interested in doing anything meaningful. Case in point: Iibushi drops Madoka on his head on the apron with a deadlife German. Thirty seconds later, this doesn't matter at all, as Madoka is running around as if nothing happened. A spot like that should mean something.
The STRONGEST-K tag titles match had TAKA Michinoku and JOE against. KAZMA and MIYAWAKI. The clipping left basically a energetic finisher stretch. It turns out this match was voted K-Dojo match of the year by its fans. No clear idea why from what was shown - its fun, back and forth stuff, but not much more than a well executed running through of all four guys main spots and big moves.
The main event is the rematch between Hino and Mashimo. I wasn't overly keen on the first match - I don't think they have worked out how to work together, given their respective strengths. This match was, if anything, less than the first. I think the match was missing about 10 minutes. The match is lost for me when they do that annoying indie thing where they decide to ignore previos body work (Hino's arm, Mashimo's leg) and battle through the pain to hit each other with their best strikes (Hino's lariat, Mashimo's roundhouses). Again and again and again. I don't care how much you dress it up with selling after each strike (and that doesn't even last until the end), if body part work is going to mean anything, it has to impact on a wrestler's moveset or options. They are also not adverse to some fairly dubious non-selling of each others big finishers, though thankfully not with the 1-count kickout (or, as I like to refer to it, the Sekimoto).
I enjoy both guys (Hino is basically my favourite heel in Japan, and I think Mashimo can be fantastic) so I've got to believe there is a better match between them - there is glimpses occassionally, but not enough. I may go back a couple of years and see what they were doing before they were given the top spots - I've heard good things about 2005 Strongest-K final.
Not the best show from the promotion, but four title changes makes this noteworthy at least, and its all good fun throughout, if not deeply satisfying.
The UWA Middleweight Title match between MEN's Teioh and Makoto Oishi (cut down to seven minutes) was a fun little sprint - MEN's doing his veteran schooling the young boys schtick, before the near falls run which was a little one-sided as MEN's killed Oishi dead at the end with about five backdrop drivers and a Miracle Ecstasy. I look forward to the December rematch, especially if its shown near full.
The Independent Jr title match between Madoka and Iibushi was exactly what you expect - lots of kicking, highspots, and little substance. They do loads of avoiding each other's signature stuff (at least early on), playing off how they know each other well, but predictably all that same stuff is hit later on, which just shows how little either guy is interested in doing anything meaningful. Case in point: Iibushi drops Madoka on his head on the apron with a deadlife German. Thirty seconds later, this doesn't matter at all, as Madoka is running around as if nothing happened. A spot like that should mean something.
The STRONGEST-K tag titles match had TAKA Michinoku and JOE against. KAZMA and MIYAWAKI. The clipping left basically a energetic finisher stretch. It turns out this match was voted K-Dojo match of the year by its fans. No clear idea why from what was shown - its fun, back and forth stuff, but not much more than a well executed running through of all four guys main spots and big moves.
The main event is the rematch between Hino and Mashimo. I wasn't overly keen on the first match - I don't think they have worked out how to work together, given their respective strengths. This match was, if anything, less than the first. I think the match was missing about 10 minutes. The match is lost for me when they do that annoying indie thing where they decide to ignore previos body work (Hino's arm, Mashimo's leg) and battle through the pain to hit each other with their best strikes (Hino's lariat, Mashimo's roundhouses). Again and again and again. I don't care how much you dress it up with selling after each strike (and that doesn't even last until the end), if body part work is going to mean anything, it has to impact on a wrestler's moveset or options. They are also not adverse to some fairly dubious non-selling of each others big finishers, though thankfully not with the 1-count kickout (or, as I like to refer to it, the Sekimoto).
I enjoy both guys (Hino is basically my favourite heel in Japan, and I think Mashimo can be fantastic) so I've got to believe there is a better match between them - there is glimpses occassionally, but not enough. I may go back a couple of years and see what they were doing before they were given the top spots - I've heard good things about 2005 Strongest-K final.
Not the best show from the promotion, but four title changes makes this noteworthy at least, and its all good fun throughout, if not deeply satisfying.
Friday, 6 February 2009
IWRG: October 3rd 2008
As mentioned in the Rumble post, I've been watching all sorts of things this last month, trying to decide my ballot for the WKO 100. Black Terry and Negro Navarro are two guys who until December I had never watched (to my shame, seeing as Negro Navarro came to London last summer). I have begun to realise that they are possibly the best two guys in Mexico at the moment, and they stack up pretty well against the best in the world in America and Japan too.
The most incredible thing about them is that they both in their fifties. Of course, while Japan older workers are still highly regarded because they make being older part of the psychology of the match, and in America older workers begin to rely more and more on their well known spots, in Mexico age never seems to mean anything. (Santo was as graceful in 2005 as he was in 1987). Black Terry and Negro Navarro are both guys who are as good on the mat as you will ever see - frequently mesmerising and awe-inspiring. And the opening trios from this IWRG show is as good an example of that as you will find. Plus, throw in three high flying technicos on the other side, especially Freelance, and you have the set up to a great lucha trios. Here we go.
The first caida is all on the mat. Freelance and Black Terry do a section of evenly matched and flawless holds and counter holds and reversals, before Navarro and Fenix tag in. Navarro then puts on a masterclass of matwork, burst out all his complicated submission holds, and an incredibly slick counter to a surfboard submission. Fenix is just there as someone for Navarro to wrestle around and stretch. Seriously, Navarro's movement between holds is spell-binding. The fall finishes with a Pendulo somersault tope, and a tidy little sequence where Fenix and Freelance avoid colliding, and Fenix sends Freelance over his head to land on Navarro with a pinning hurricanrana.
Segunda caida is a shorter affair, with Freelance armdragging everyone in every possible way, Pierroth and Fenix have a quick exchange, before Terry stops his momentum and take the fall with back cracker while Navarro rolls into a smooth indian deathlock. This just leads to the third fall, which is based around a series of convoluted submission holds being broken up by a member of the other team. Finally Terry and Freelance get chance to tie up again, finishing in a spectacular quebrada by Freelance, Fenix misses a moonsault, and Navarro and Pierroth finish him and Pendulo off with various lucha-y submissions.
I love this match - from the amazing Navarro mat work at the beginning, the glimpses of what a Freelance-Black Terry singles match may look like, the armdrag sequence, Pierroth clubbing Fenix, the pacing, and the one-upping of submissions and submissions and submissions at the end, leading to a satisfying series of dives and finishers that was exactly the right length. As a match to judge who is better between Terry and Navarro, it's a toss-up. Navarro's clinic in the first fall is unequalable. But Terry is more rounded - he bumps harder, moves faster, and is a better brawler. He's also noticeably more engaging as a performer - Navarro is all about competition through wrestling. Terry on points? Maybe.
The most incredible thing about them is that they both in their fifties. Of course, while Japan older workers are still highly regarded because they make being older part of the psychology of the match, and in America older workers begin to rely more and more on their well known spots, in Mexico age never seems to mean anything. (Santo was as graceful in 2005 as he was in 1987). Black Terry and Negro Navarro are both guys who are as good on the mat as you will ever see - frequently mesmerising and awe-inspiring. And the opening trios from this IWRG show is as good an example of that as you will find. Plus, throw in three high flying technicos on the other side, especially Freelance, and you have the set up to a great lucha trios. Here we go.
The first caida is all on the mat. Freelance and Black Terry do a section of evenly matched and flawless holds and counter holds and reversals, before Navarro and Fenix tag in. Navarro then puts on a masterclass of matwork, burst out all his complicated submission holds, and an incredibly slick counter to a surfboard submission. Fenix is just there as someone for Navarro to wrestle around and stretch. Seriously, Navarro's movement between holds is spell-binding. The fall finishes with a Pendulo somersault tope, and a tidy little sequence where Fenix and Freelance avoid colliding, and Fenix sends Freelance over his head to land on Navarro with a pinning hurricanrana.
Segunda caida is a shorter affair, with Freelance armdragging everyone in every possible way, Pierroth and Fenix have a quick exchange, before Terry stops his momentum and take the fall with back cracker while Navarro rolls into a smooth indian deathlock. This just leads to the third fall, which is based around a series of convoluted submission holds being broken up by a member of the other team. Finally Terry and Freelance get chance to tie up again, finishing in a spectacular quebrada by Freelance, Fenix misses a moonsault, and Navarro and Pierroth finish him and Pendulo off with various lucha-y submissions.
I love this match - from the amazing Navarro mat work at the beginning, the glimpses of what a Freelance-Black Terry singles match may look like, the armdrag sequence, Pierroth clubbing Fenix, the pacing, and the one-upping of submissions and submissions and submissions at the end, leading to a satisfying series of dives and finishers that was exactly the right length. As a match to judge who is better between Terry and Navarro, it's a toss-up. Navarro's clinic in the first fall is unequalable. But Terry is more rounded - he bumps harder, moves faster, and is a better brawler. He's also noticeably more engaging as a performer - Navarro is all about competition through wrestling. Terry on points? Maybe.
WWE: Royal Rumble 2009
No posts for a long time, as I've spent most of the last month writing and putting on a show here in Oxford, and the rest of the time promoting that fact on supposedly wrestling-related blogs. I have been watching some wrestling in that time, mainly lucha, as I catch up with everything 2008 before firstly the DVDVR end of year puro ballot, and the WKO 100 ballot. However, I've been watching odd things here and there, and its not been coherent enough to document.
Couple of nights ago, however, I sat and watched this year's Royal Rumble event. I came out of the show feeling reasonably positive, which on reflection is interesting because breaking the show down match-by-match made me realise there is very little great wrestling on this show.
The ECW title opener was pretty good - maybe just a shade below the title change. Matt Hardy is great in the babyface taking a beating role, as he sells great and knows exactly when to time comebacks. His punches here were really great too, especially the few at the beginning that sounded brutal. The arm work is maintained throughout (because Matt Hardy sells great, as mentioned a number of minutes ago) and Swagger took a pretty clean win. That's another thing about Hardy - he doesn't need to be booked to look strong every match to remain over with the crowd, because his in-ring work is so strong and he connects with the fans. Thus, he can elevate other guys over and over again, but remain credible. Probably the best match on the show, though the least significant.
The Women's title match has some cool stuff in it, but Melina was pretty sloppy here. The spot where Beth made Melina kick herself in the back of the head is a new one to me (though I assume it's been stolen from somewhere else) and was impressive. Points for effort, definitely, but they have a better match in there that isn't as rough around the edges.
The two title matches were not good. Cena and JBL were going along fine, without being astounding, but the whole thing was booked around the Michaels angle. The World title match did little for me - I don't really care for anything that either Edge or Jeff do in the ring. Edge is a great character, but that doesn't translate into great matches. I've never bought into Jeff as anything other than an indy spot guy, and a fairly inelegant one at that. I don't see that he's developed much since 2000. On the plus side, he did rock up with something close to Abbath-from-Immortal corpsepaint. (Pedantic point number 1: after they did the announce table spot, JR said "Jeff has literally levelled the playing field". Jeff had literally levelled the announce desk. He had metaphorically levelled the playing field.)
Also, that spot was scary, as the ladder slipped away from Jeff as he jumped. Maybe it was planned, because he didn't undershoot the dive or anything, but why doesn't someone just grab the ladder, even if it's just the referee doing it? The Matt Hardy turn was obvious once he came out, but I'm glad they did it. I'm more interested in seeing Jeff work an upper midcard blood feud with his brother for the rest of the year than having dull matches with HHH and Edge over the belt, and Matt would have been in limbo now he's finished with the ECW belt.
Finally, the Rumble. (Pedantic point number 2: This year's Wrestlemania is not the 25th anniversary of Wrestlemania. It is the 25th Wrestlemania, and its 24th anniversary. Unless there was a Wrestlemania Zero?) In recent years, it has been noticeable that the amount of upper card talent in this event has been greater. In years gone by, there would be a couple of top guys, and lots of enhancement talent. Now, almost everyone coming in bar just a couple are title contender guys, or secondary belt holders. In the last couple of years, the match has been booked well, so that not all of these guys needed to stay for long, using eliminations to further other angles and allowing the ring to not appear cluttered. In this years event, neither of these things happened. There was little in the way of meaningful eliminations, and the ring was full of people, leading to a long periods of dull brawling.
It opened well, with lots of workrate guys getting everything off to a fast energetic start. Carlito even bust out a double jump quebrada. However, around entry seven, it all slowed down. I just had a look at the list of eliminations, and even that was tedious - it seems almost everyone was eliminated by either Triple H, Big Show, Undertaker or Kane. They could have used it to put Kozlov over, or Punk, or Morrison. They seem to think that allowing someone to remain in the match for a long time will increase a performers standing. I think that is incorrect.
Even eventual winner Orton eliminated few, and the three members of Legacy, working for nearly forty minutes, eliminated just Kane together. It strikes me that three guys working together could have dominated this event, give the whole thing more structure and actually elevated a couple of guys like Dibiase and Orton (like Diesel in 1994 or Rikishi in 2000 or, to a lesser extent, Michaels-Taker in 2008).
On the plus side, Orton was completely the right guy to win this, and his victory was probably obvious, given the current storylines. (Incredibly, he is the first heel to win the match since 1999.) However, he is the WWE's most bankable asset at the moment, has developed into the complete all-round performer since around 2007, and needs to be pushed into orbit. He also needs to remain heel, at least nominally, regardless of how many cheers he is capable of attracting. For example, the involuntary cheer I let out when he won. It turns out that no matter how badly thought out, the Rumble in itself is dramatic enough to get me involved in it. Well played, original creators of the Rumble concept. Well played.
Couple of nights ago, however, I sat and watched this year's Royal Rumble event. I came out of the show feeling reasonably positive, which on reflection is interesting because breaking the show down match-by-match made me realise there is very little great wrestling on this show.
The ECW title opener was pretty good - maybe just a shade below the title change. Matt Hardy is great in the babyface taking a beating role, as he sells great and knows exactly when to time comebacks. His punches here were really great too, especially the few at the beginning that sounded brutal. The arm work is maintained throughout (because Matt Hardy sells great, as mentioned a number of minutes ago) and Swagger took a pretty clean win. That's another thing about Hardy - he doesn't need to be booked to look strong every match to remain over with the crowd, because his in-ring work is so strong and he connects with the fans. Thus, he can elevate other guys over and over again, but remain credible. Probably the best match on the show, though the least significant.
The Women's title match has some cool stuff in it, but Melina was pretty sloppy here. The spot where Beth made Melina kick herself in the back of the head is a new one to me (though I assume it's been stolen from somewhere else) and was impressive. Points for effort, definitely, but they have a better match in there that isn't as rough around the edges.
The two title matches were not good. Cena and JBL were going along fine, without being astounding, but the whole thing was booked around the Michaels angle. The World title match did little for me - I don't really care for anything that either Edge or Jeff do in the ring. Edge is a great character, but that doesn't translate into great matches. I've never bought into Jeff as anything other than an indy spot guy, and a fairly inelegant one at that. I don't see that he's developed much since 2000. On the plus side, he did rock up with something close to Abbath-from-Immortal corpsepaint. (Pedantic point number 1: after they did the announce table spot, JR said "Jeff has literally levelled the playing field". Jeff had literally levelled the announce desk. He had metaphorically levelled the playing field.)
Also, that spot was scary, as the ladder slipped away from Jeff as he jumped. Maybe it was planned, because he didn't undershoot the dive or anything, but why doesn't someone just grab the ladder, even if it's just the referee doing it? The Matt Hardy turn was obvious once he came out, but I'm glad they did it. I'm more interested in seeing Jeff work an upper midcard blood feud with his brother for the rest of the year than having dull matches with HHH and Edge over the belt, and Matt would have been in limbo now he's finished with the ECW belt.
Finally, the Rumble. (Pedantic point number 2: This year's Wrestlemania is not the 25th anniversary of Wrestlemania. It is the 25th Wrestlemania, and its 24th anniversary. Unless there was a Wrestlemania Zero?) In recent years, it has been noticeable that the amount of upper card talent in this event has been greater. In years gone by, there would be a couple of top guys, and lots of enhancement talent. Now, almost everyone coming in bar just a couple are title contender guys, or secondary belt holders. In the last couple of years, the match has been booked well, so that not all of these guys needed to stay for long, using eliminations to further other angles and allowing the ring to not appear cluttered. In this years event, neither of these things happened. There was little in the way of meaningful eliminations, and the ring was full of people, leading to a long periods of dull brawling.
It opened well, with lots of workrate guys getting everything off to a fast energetic start. Carlito even bust out a double jump quebrada. However, around entry seven, it all slowed down. I just had a look at the list of eliminations, and even that was tedious - it seems almost everyone was eliminated by either Triple H, Big Show, Undertaker or Kane. They could have used it to put Kozlov over, or Punk, or Morrison. They seem to think that allowing someone to remain in the match for a long time will increase a performers standing. I think that is incorrect.
Even eventual winner Orton eliminated few, and the three members of Legacy, working for nearly forty minutes, eliminated just Kane together. It strikes me that three guys working together could have dominated this event, give the whole thing more structure and actually elevated a couple of guys like Dibiase and Orton (like Diesel in 1994 or Rikishi in 2000 or, to a lesser extent, Michaels-Taker in 2008).
On the plus side, Orton was completely the right guy to win this, and his victory was probably obvious, given the current storylines. (Incredibly, he is the first heel to win the match since 1999.) However, he is the WWE's most bankable asset at the moment, has developed into the complete all-round performer since around 2007, and needs to be pushed into orbit. He also needs to remain heel, at least nominally, regardless of how many cheers he is capable of attracting. For example, the involuntary cheer I let out when he won. It turns out that no matter how badly thought out, the Rumble in itself is dramatic enough to get me involved in it. Well played, original creators of the Rumble concept. Well played.
Friday, 9 January 2009
DRAGON GATE - Infinity 111 + 112!
So you're probably wondering what happened to episodes 108, 109 and 110.
109 was a highlights show so I skipped that. 108 and 110 were Buyudens which I'm not gonna bother reviewing because they are seperate from regular Dragon Gate storylines and I tend to not watch every match on the Buyuden episodes.
So we move onwards and upwards to episodes 111 and 112, where we are firmly entrenched in King Of Gate season. These two episodes featured the first round matches.
111
King of Gate - Round 1: Cyber Kong vs. Madoka
Fun little big man vs. flyer match. Cyber was a beast just mauling Madoka, who picked his spots nicely to fire back with kicks and athletic flying moves. The match provided the backdrop for the simmering Kong vs. Naoki feud, as the latter ran out and de-masked Cyber allowing Madoka to grab the pin.
King of Gate - Round 1: Magnitude Kishiwada vs. Susumu Yokosuka
If you don't like kickouts, stay faaaar away from this. They had like a billion nearfalls. I enjoyed it but others may hate it. The early part of the match centered around Susumu's injured ribs being further destroyed by Magnitude. Being one of the most sympathetic sellers around, Yokosuka makes you really feel for him during this. The crowd was totally behind him too. Following the aformentioned billion false finishes, Magnitude finally won with a Last Ride.
King of Gate - Round 1: Taku Iwasa vs. Anthony W. Mori
Pretty much a showcase match for the newly single Iwasa. Mori did what Mori does and made him look like a million bucks. Taku debuted this new kick move to lead to the finish which was slick. Fun stuff.
King of Gate - Round 1: Gamma vs. Masaaki Mochizuki
The 2006 winner vs. the 2007 winner. Mochi vowed to avenge the disgrace of GAMMA's win last year, and that he did. This was what you'd expect from GAMMA, lots of brawling and RealHaz interference with the inevitable protein powder spots. Mochi had to work to put him away but he eventually did after around 7 minutes with his "Twister" brainbuster.
We're seemingly on a streak of solid but unspectacular episodes and this was no exception. Everything was decent enough and the storyline of Kong and Tanisaki was advanced nicely. They'll be meeting Hair vs. Mask style in the coming weeks.
INFINITY #111 - 7.5/10
112
King of Gate - Round 1: Genki Horiguchi vs. Naoki Tanisaki
Pretty heavily clipped. Hard to get a read on it, but it's Genki and Naoki so I'm guessing it was pretty slick. Naoki advanced.
King of Gate - Round 1: Don Fujii vs. YAMATO
These two have been having quite the feud in recent months. They've battled in tags, wild Korkuen brawls and even empty arena matches. Much blood, sweat, tears and protein powder has been spilled. They brawled into the crowd early where YAMATO punked out CIMA who was in attendance. The bulk of the match was just fun brawl based stuff with both guy's personalities shining through. Finish came with CIMA hitting the ring to counter RH interference, allowing Don to get a roll up on a protein covered Yammy for the pin.
King of Gate - Round 1: BxB Hulk vs. Ryo Saito
At this time last year, Hulk and Ryo were involved in a hate filled babyface rivalry due to Ryo busting up Hulk's face in a match. They met in the KOG last year and following that match the feud was seemingly done. But no, KOG rolled around again and by the luck of the draw they were paired together once more. They played alot of video packages of last years feud and the two guys didn't waste any time tearing into each other. This match was BattlARTS stiff! They did a cool little angle to finish the match, where Ryo's arm was just DONE FOR and the doctors were looking at him and everything, but he wanted to fight on. Hulk said "fuck that" and put him in a straight armbar for the win. Then things got wild as he snapped, Kenny Shamrock style, and just kept working over Saito's arm. His own stable mates had to control him. Good stuff.
King of Gate - Round 1: Naruki Doi vs. Dragon Kid
Good solid match. What you'd expect from these two. The closing stretch was pretty nuts. Kid busted out a bunch of the sick rana's that put Doi's tag team partner Masato Yoshino on the sideline at the 11.16 PPV. Doi of course came back with his Bakatare Sliding Kicks and Doi555. They had the usual nearfalls that I eat up, before Doi finally put him away.
Best show now in a couple of weeks. The Hulk/Ryo and Doi/Kid matches were real good and Fuji/Yammy was highly entertaining.
2nd Round KOG Brackets:
Doi vs. Hulk
Fuji vs. Naoki
Mochi vs. Iwasa
Magnitude vs. Madoka
INFINITY #112 - 8/10
109 was a highlights show so I skipped that. 108 and 110 were Buyudens which I'm not gonna bother reviewing because they are seperate from regular Dragon Gate storylines and I tend to not watch every match on the Buyuden episodes.
So we move onwards and upwards to episodes 111 and 112, where we are firmly entrenched in King Of Gate season. These two episodes featured the first round matches.
111
King of Gate - Round 1: Cyber Kong vs. Madoka
Fun little big man vs. flyer match. Cyber was a beast just mauling Madoka, who picked his spots nicely to fire back with kicks and athletic flying moves. The match provided the backdrop for the simmering Kong vs. Naoki feud, as the latter ran out and de-masked Cyber allowing Madoka to grab the pin.
King of Gate - Round 1: Magnitude Kishiwada vs. Susumu Yokosuka
If you don't like kickouts, stay faaaar away from this. They had like a billion nearfalls. I enjoyed it but others may hate it. The early part of the match centered around Susumu's injured ribs being further destroyed by Magnitude. Being one of the most sympathetic sellers around, Yokosuka makes you really feel for him during this. The crowd was totally behind him too. Following the aformentioned billion false finishes, Magnitude finally won with a Last Ride.
King of Gate - Round 1: Taku Iwasa vs. Anthony W. Mori
Pretty much a showcase match for the newly single Iwasa. Mori did what Mori does and made him look like a million bucks. Taku debuted this new kick move to lead to the finish which was slick. Fun stuff.
King of Gate - Round 1: Gamma vs. Masaaki Mochizuki
The 2006 winner vs. the 2007 winner. Mochi vowed to avenge the disgrace of GAMMA's win last year, and that he did. This was what you'd expect from GAMMA, lots of brawling and RealHaz interference with the inevitable protein powder spots. Mochi had to work to put him away but he eventually did after around 7 minutes with his "Twister" brainbuster.
We're seemingly on a streak of solid but unspectacular episodes and this was no exception. Everything was decent enough and the storyline of Kong and Tanisaki was advanced nicely. They'll be meeting Hair vs. Mask style in the coming weeks.
INFINITY #111 - 7.5/10
112
King of Gate - Round 1: Genki Horiguchi vs. Naoki Tanisaki
Pretty heavily clipped. Hard to get a read on it, but it's Genki and Naoki so I'm guessing it was pretty slick. Naoki advanced.
King of Gate - Round 1: Don Fujii vs. YAMATO
These two have been having quite the feud in recent months. They've battled in tags, wild Korkuen brawls and even empty arena matches. Much blood, sweat, tears and protein powder has been spilled. They brawled into the crowd early where YAMATO punked out CIMA who was in attendance. The bulk of the match was just fun brawl based stuff with both guy's personalities shining through. Finish came with CIMA hitting the ring to counter RH interference, allowing Don to get a roll up on a protein covered Yammy for the pin.
King of Gate - Round 1: BxB Hulk vs. Ryo Saito
At this time last year, Hulk and Ryo were involved in a hate filled babyface rivalry due to Ryo busting up Hulk's face in a match. They met in the KOG last year and following that match the feud was seemingly done. But no, KOG rolled around again and by the luck of the draw they were paired together once more. They played alot of video packages of last years feud and the two guys didn't waste any time tearing into each other. This match was BattlARTS stiff! They did a cool little angle to finish the match, where Ryo's arm was just DONE FOR and the doctors were looking at him and everything, but he wanted to fight on. Hulk said "fuck that" and put him in a straight armbar for the win. Then things got wild as he snapped, Kenny Shamrock style, and just kept working over Saito's arm. His own stable mates had to control him. Good stuff.
King of Gate - Round 1: Naruki Doi vs. Dragon Kid
Good solid match. What you'd expect from these two. The closing stretch was pretty nuts. Kid busted out a bunch of the sick rana's that put Doi's tag team partner Masato Yoshino on the sideline at the 11.16 PPV. Doi of course came back with his Bakatare Sliding Kicks and Doi555. They had the usual nearfalls that I eat up, before Doi finally put him away.
Best show now in a couple of weeks. The Hulk/Ryo and Doi/Kid matches were real good and Fuji/Yammy was highly entertaining.
2nd Round KOG Brackets:
Doi vs. Hulk
Fuji vs. Naoki
Mochi vs. Iwasa
Magnitude vs. Madoka
INFINITY #112 - 8/10
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