Loss

If it's worked, it's definitely worked in a different way from what I am used to seeing from them. There's more hesitation to lock up than usual. That said, I really enjoyed this, whatever it was. If it was a work, it was a brilliant work. Dave used to talk about matches where they would work the finish but shoot until then. Is it possible that's what they did here? I don't know what to do with this when ranking everything for the year because I don't want to compare worked matches to shoots, so let me know what you guys think. This is one that would do very well.

That was the only reason. We didn't include the full match.

Nash and Syxx do their famous "road full of potholes" promo shooting on Flair and Piper to hype Slamboree. Syxx points out that Flair stole his entire gimmick from Buddy Rogers. Nash cuts the best promo of his career, although considering his future career trajectory he might as well have been talking about himself. Still, this is the Nash we needed to get all the time.

Hogan on a movie set. HOLY SHIT, IT'S GRACE JONES! I have no recollection of this.

Terrific match. These two work very well together. Some probably hated it, but I also really liked Hall and/or Nash accompanying Syxx to ringside for cruiserweight title matches and helping him retain. It was something different for the division, and the involvement of the big boys in protecting the title made it seem like a big deal. JJ Dillon is out immediately and tells Syxx to break the hold while security surrounds Nash. Rey is stretchered out, which may have been a little much, but their three matches on this set all tell an overarching story that leads to Rey vs Nash on June 30.

Nick Patrick comes out in a WCW shirt and cuts a MOTHERFUCKING PROMO, explaining why he joined the NWO in the first place, and how the NWO has become the very thing they were formed to fight. I love this guy. Nick Patrick cuts what is probably the best babyface promo so far this year in WCW.

This was hyped up like crazy forever, and honestly, I can see how Bischoff's idea to do a martial arts division with a Mortal Kombat look and feel didn't seem like the worst idea in the world on paper. I do think it could have been something, but they never really invested in it. Mortis should have been Kanyon's career gimmick. Here, we get Mortis attacking Glacier from behind and the debut of Wrath as his tag team partner. Eric Bischoff, for whatever else we can say about him, was willing to try some pretty ballsy things during this time. I mean, he tried to build a martial arts division around Ray Lloyd, Kanyon and Adam Bomb. Not everything worked, and ultimately, this particular idea didn't. But he was willing to give it a shot.

Austin is back at the end of the show, and the cheers seem to get louder for him with every segment. His rise to the top was really one of the more organic things to ever happen in wrestling. You can tell based on Austin's interactions with Vince and the fans that he learned from the mistakes of laying on Shawn's push too thick and is determined not to let the same thing happen to him. Owen and Davey Boy hit the ring and attack Austin, and Vince even takes a bump trying to break it up. Shawn returns with a chair and chases them off again, and Austin comes to his feet without any help. They are really getting this push so right. Just when he does, Brian Pillman comes out of nowhere and attacks Austin to end a pretty epic television show. Shawn makes a third save with the chair? Cool to see two guys who worked hard in WCW and were kept from hitting the next level for years be the center of things in the WWF.

This is really more angle than match, but it's a great one. I think what makes this the best rivalry the WWF has ever had is not just that the matches were great, but also that they were able to tell a story through action in the ring. Sure, there were some great promos to piece things together, but it was really the in-ring action that was the driver of this whole feud. This is most likely the best episode of RAW of all time based on the in-ring street fight and the post-match antics with Austin attacking Bret in the ambulance. I remember completely losing my shit watching this when it happened.

Vader acted like an idiot, but I always felt sympathetic for him protecting the business as he was likely taught, and the promotion he works for making fun of him on the air for doing so. It was funny that they even mentioned the "Is wrestling fake?" question on the air. Shamrock is with them and is ready for Vader at the PPV, and also throws a challenge to Mike Tyson. I'm sure there's a story here, but can someone explain? Was the deal with the WWF supposed to happen sooner? The course of WWE history would probably be different had that taken place.

Austin is getting a title shot at the Undertaker at the next pay-per-view. But Austin would rather not get into that. He wants Bret right now. Bret finally agrees via Titantron to a street fight later in the show. Austin tries busting the Hart Foundation locker room door down to no avail. Great segment.

I don't know enough about Kevin Quinn to make Kevin Quinn jokes. Fill me in.

What a great match! More unsung than Survivor Series and Wrestlemania probably because it's not as critical to the storyline, but I thought this was fantastic with all the focus on Austin's knee and the way Austin kept selling and making his comebacks so effectively. I wish Austin's body hadn't broken down so much in 1997 so we could have gotten matches like this in 1998-1999. Being a heel really suits Bret's in-ring style so much better in my opinion, even though he obviously was a great babyface too. At this point, Austin isn't beating Bret, but Bret isn't beating Austin either. Really excellent showcase for both guys, and very much a worthy match in the feud.

Last few minutes. Undertaker rips off Mankind's mask, and Foley takes a crazy bump through a ringside table after being hit with the steps by Undertaker. "Revenge of the Taker" seems like the appropriate tagline, as this is all about Undertaker getting even. The post-match is why this is here, as the fireball won't light. The planned spot was supposed to be Mankind accidentally lighting up Bearer. Undertaker tried to call an audible and do it himself and couldn't, but finally does it, but doesn't even make an effort to hide the flash paper. The angle still gets to the end result, but has to take a detour.

This was really good. I wasn't sure what to expect from Manny this late, but he still has a lot to offer. Sadly, "This is not the 80s", "Make him work" and "Stay retired" chants show that wrestling just didn't have much of a place for guys like him anymore, because wrestling fans had turned into idiots. This isn't worked or paced like an indy match at all. Thompson is green, but he's being led by Manny and looks good. The commentary in this amuses me, trying to hoodwink people into thinking Sabu, Rob Van Dam, Rey Misterio and Rick Rude may be heading to APW, and crediting Paul Jones getting ahead of Manny years ago and putting him on a bad path for his attitude. I enjoyed this match. If this is a sign of what to expect from APW, I can't wait for more.

Taz reflects on Barely Legal and has words for Sabu, RVD and Alfonso. Getting Alfonso away from Taz is a good touch. Another strong promo.

Funk gives a touching speech about winning the ECW title, with his family present.

Kawada targets Kobashi's arm, which was injured in the Misawa match. Pretty much everything I said about Misawa/Kobashi would also apply here. But I do think it worked a little better here, simply because the crowd saw the injury happen in an earlier match and it's playing out on the same card. I'm conflicted on this. It's a great match, but it could have been so much better if all of that solid arm work Kawada did meant anything in All Japan. Compared to other matches these two have had, it's just not all that memorable, but almost any other two wrestlers would look back on this as the best match of their careers.

If you could, please start posting these in the Publications and Podcasts folder. Moving this there.

See the point about matwork in All Japan in the previous thread. They do try working some holds here, and none of them really has much heat. It drags this match down, because they haven't really done much to condition fans that holds are important. So while the work they did was technically excellent, just as you'd expect, this match loses something for me because it was worked in a way where they were just tossing stuff out. You usually hear that phrase and think spotfest, but in this case, it was holds that hadn't been properly built up to mean anything first. Who would have thought the longer January match would be much leaner than the shorter Carnival one? There's plenty to like here so I don't want to be too critical. I like that Misawa gave Kobashi most of this match, and because of how much Misawa sold for him there is still plenty of intrigue and milage left in the rivalry. This is a good match -- a very good one in fact. It's hard to be disappointed by a match involving these two, but I expect more than laying around in unestablished holds before headdropping for nearfalls from these two. This was almost the All Japan equivalent of the kickout specials at recent Wrestlemanias. Too dumbed down, even if that was one hell of a closing stretch. ----- Then we get to Misawa vs Kawada. This is short but I am intrigued by how Kawada will approach a short match with a wounded Misawa. The answer is sort of obvious (prey!), but it's no less fun to watch play out for six minutes or so. Misawa still has some fight in him and puts up a strong effort, but Kawada secures the win, just as he should. Still, the booking made him look ... something. I don't know what. But it says a lot that Misawa is the one getting the name chants when it's over.

There appears to be some minor clipping throughout this. Not sure if there's a completely unedited version out there somewhere or not. Yet another great match in the month of April, as Kudo is the master of this style and Ozaki is a great brawler who can carry the performance with her charisma and facial expressions. These two are pretty fearless, as Kudo I think has found an opponent that's even going to push her to do a little more than usual in this environment. But even the nutty spots are built up well and sold properly. And that's the genius of Megumi Kudo (and maybe you could say the same thing about Ozaki) as a worker -- she gives meaning and weight to every crazy thing she does by selling it properly, timing it properly within a match and building to those big moments as something special. I'd call her the Mick Foley of Joshi in that some people are just going to write her off as an unnecessary risk taker, but there's something smarter going on than that in the performance. 1997 has been really good to her, and it's unfortunate that this is the last full match we're getting from her. Luckily, Ozaki isn't quite done with us yet.

If not Dave, then who?

What an adrenaline rush this match is. 45+ minutes of some of the top stars in lucha libre doing their thing and going all out. Negro Casas has had some great performances in his time, and this one ranks near the top. The Santo/Casas brawl and rivalry furthering is the highlight of this. Performances from Felino and Silver King are big standouts as well. I'm not really sure of Felino's standing in the promotion before this match, but this has to have been a huge moment for him. I feel like I should say more, but the explanation of what made this match work is ultimately pretty simple.

What a super match. Neither guy wants to give an inch, so each guy has to work hard to earn every hold. Want to land a strike? Prepare to go into overdrive. At first headbutts are the great equalizer when all else fails. Then the match becomes more of a boxing slugfest. Then Ikeda starts biting Ishikawa's foot to angle him into an anklelock position. This doesn't last long, so Ikeda gets desperate, stalling for time by rolling outside the ring. I love how well these two know each other, as when Ishikawa takes Ikeda to the mat, he instinctively puts his forearms up to cover his face. This isn't just about brutality, it's also about familiarity. The guy who can pull off the most unexpected attack is the one who will win, and that's a tall order for two long-term rivals. How do you beat someone who knows you so well? Even basic spots from Ishikawa like (rather snug) side headlocks and figure fours reach their logical counter in very quick fashion. Ikeda is weakened, but he's fighting on instinct, and his familiarity with Ishikawa's attack is the only thing really keeping him in this. And as we know, familiarity breeds contempt, so we get lots of stiff shots and fire, even in spite of the sportsmanship at the end. That the match lasted as long as it did fits the match story perfectly. They are both especially stubborn and know what to expect from the other guy so much that it's going to take something big to secure a win. So it naturally takes a while to get to that point. The story of the match is so rich that it's almost easy to overlook the "cool" moments like Ishikawa's surprise rana and the stiffness of Ishikawa's high knees. This is worked in a way where Ikeda seems completely outmatched, bloody mouth and all, but his resilience makes every bit the lasting impression as Ishikawa's aggression. This feels like the peak of where a pro wrestling rivalry can go, yet it's just barely getting started. Seriously, I'm not sure how they can top this, and I'm not sure they will. But I look forward to seeing them try. This is as good as almost any match from the decade, and is one of the best matches I've ever seen.