WingedEagle

Baker has quickly become one of my favorite promos in the company along with Cody.

McIntyre really shouldn't speak. He doesn't come across as anything resembling a top of the card act.

Or should Giannis have spoken up at some point and made it clear he needed to get Kemba out of there? Lowry absolutely had to be on the floor. Dude was taking bumps to earn charges in the ASG!

Can't wait for the DIY reunion in 2025 with glowsticks and a feud with Hunter and Shawn. Too much even for this NXT fanboy.

Are they actually redoing the Gargano/Cole finish from Takeover NY?

Yeah it looked absolutely brutal live, but on replay it didn't look nearly as dangerous.

Yes she was.

We sure about that?

Charlotte didn't even try to get a hold of Ripley on that Natural Selection. Poor form even.

Definitely flat.

Definitely haven't ruled this one out given Charlotte's NXT TV appearance.

I've got no doubt Ripley is retaining, but definitely think the finish is in question. I originally expected Charlotte showing up for the finish, but that seems less likely now given Nox/Kai.

Is it?

That wasn't bad. It was good. But it sure wasn't great and was definitely too long.

I would've agreed had I seen this post in real time, but Gargano/Balor seems very underwhelming thus far. Its early but certainly looks like Balor might be the guy to bring down Gargano's Takeover rep.

Even with a cold finish due to Gonzalez showing up as an unknown, I absolutely loved that match. It felt urgent and violent throughout with some really organic spots and never really dragged. This show is absolutely over-delivering through 2 matches.

Love the hot start. Really well put together. Hopefully they don't fall into the trope of relying on weapons after that.

Lee/Dijakovic was out of this world through the Spirit Bomb near fall. I thought their prior encounters here and in other promotions always delivered even if they weren't great. This was GREAT. It waned a bit after that big spot but had a good finish while still protecting Dijakovic. Loved it! ****1/4 in my book.

Loving the updates to this thread. Really fun to see fresh takes on all of these matches, a few of which I haven't yet seen due to still not finishing all of the yearbooks.

I'm certainly not the target casual fan (if such a thing exists these days), but in what world and under what circumstances is Cena/Elias appealing to anyone? I say that as a Cena fan. At this stage of his career if he's working Mania it should be treated like one of Rock's appearances from 2011-13. He's obviously not that level of a star but why not try to make it special? Cena/Elias is a cue to leave the room for a drink or bathroom break.

AZM and Naoya Nomura are my favorite names out of the younger crew, even if Nomura is a senior citizen relative to AZM. I'd also be surprised if Opsreay and Okada weren't right at the top at that time either.

I don't doubt his drive, but not shitting the bed isn't exactly a very high bar. I can't say I recall a match of his that was that poor, but on the other hand I can't recall any of his matches. At all. They are not memorable and have not stood out in the slightest. That's not to say his work going forward won't deliver but I've yet to see anything suggesting big things from him between the bells. I wouldn't even go so far as to say it would shock me if he puts together some great matches because he clearly cares and seems to hit every other note outside of matches. But I might be pleasantly surprised.

I went out of my way to note that his work doesn't come off as physically imposing or threatening at all. There are a ton of smaller wrestlers who because of their style, offense and presence come off as dangerous threats that make you believe they're capable of hurting their opponent. Just look at the Bucks. I don't see that in MJF. At all. You can use whatever term you want to characterize it but the way he physically carries himself -- from his movement in and around the ring during matches or segments to his bumping and offense -- none of it conveys any sense of physicality. It doesn't resonate as in any way believable, violent or threatening. An absolute heat magnet who has a place in pro wrestling. But I've yet to see anything suggesting that that place is in the ring as one of or quarter of a marquee match.

Its amazing to see Cody become one of the best performers and overall characters in the business. Its rare that a match or segment with him misses and in hindsight his work building the program and match with Spears were miraculous. MJF has managed to generate legitimate heel heat at at time when few strive for it and fewer succeed, much less to this level. Here's my problem. MJF comes across as an absolutely incredible manager or mouthpiece. I don't see him as any kind of physical threat to anyone on the roster. He doesn't have imposing size, or a presence that conveys any kind of danger or threat to anyone at all. He's beyond obnoxious but once he's done talking what's left? Sure, I'd love to see him get destroyed. But I don't yet buy any other outcome to a match with him. Not sure how they get over that hump for me.

Yeah. No way to enjoy the show now.