cactus

Unpopular take: this is nowhere near as bad as everyone makes this out to be. Andre is way passed it and very drunk, not a winning combination by any means. This is the Hulk Hogan show. He carries the giant to a serviceable match by selling his lumbering attacks like death. They milk everything can out of the staredowns and restholds to make up for time. They stare off at each other as the match starts, with Hogan immediately failing to slam Andre and nearly lose the match after he's crushed by Andre. This all sets up for that famous conclusion to this match perfectly. Andre works a bearhug on Hogan and it goes on for way too long, but it doesn't take the crowd out of the match. The reaction they get when Andre takes his first bump after getting knocked down by the clothesline is momentous. Hogan slams Andre and the rest is history. It's hard to neglect the brilliant build-up and the historical significance of this match. The crowd eat up everything they see and that, along with Hogan working his ass off, makes this an easily digestible offering of 80s WWF. ★★¾

So this was meant to be for the Tag Team titles, but Dynamite Kid's injury prevented this. It was then made a six man tag match to cover up his limitations and it does so well. Danny Davis is fantastic as a chicken shit heel non-wrestler. He tags in when an opponent is down and he takes a shot and tag himself back out. This riles up the crowd and they can't wait to see Davis get taken down. Santana gets the hot tag and isolates Davis and beats him down, much to the roaring approval of the audience. Davey Boy Smith tags in and delivers an absolutely viscous Tombstone Piledriver before Davis sneaks away with a cheap win. Who would of thought a match with all this talent and Danny Davis is the MVP? ★★★

Much like the JYD/Race match, this has phenomenal bumping. Adonis throws himself around the ring in an almost slapstick like fashion. The spots where Jimmy Hart gets involved are even more marvelous. Roddy Piper is super over and the crowd even believes this is his final match. Piper's offense may look weak, but Adonis sells it so well it's forgivable. A total Adonis carry job. ★★★

Just a three minute match showcasing how over JYD was and how excellent Harley Race was, even in his advancing years. The stipulation of this match is that the loser must bow to the winner. Harley bumps like crazy for JYD here. He misses a nasty falling headbutt of the apron and you can see why he regrets inventing that move. I'm not sure why a non-finish was needed here. Surely JYD could of done with the win, especially considering he's the man standing tall in the aftermath of this segment. ★★¾

While this was lacking the blood of their last two encounters, this was still certainly worth a watch. Clocking in at a mere 9 minutes, they get straight into it as both guys throw their biggest bombs at each other. They're never going to capture the magic of their 2015 match, but it's always fun seeing these guys face off, even with the poorly executed cop out finish. ★★★¼

A Greek Death match is just a no holds barred submission match. Spiros Arion wishes he possesses an inch of charisma his manager Freddie Blassie has. Guy looks dull as dishwasher water standing next to the Fashion Plate. This is mostly brawling with a few holds here and there. Bruno tries to put Sprios away with a bearhug and a camel clutch (which Vince McMahon calls it as a version of a Boston Crab). Bruno gets the win after Spiros misses a top rope knee drop and Bruno submits him in a half crab. A serviceable brawl with a hot crowd, as to be expected with any Bruno MSG match. ★★¾

This is very short, only just two minutes long. Waldo Von Erich attacks the arm of Bruno with a foreign object. Bruno milks the injury in the corner. The crowd throws trash in the ring. Bruno manages to deliver a one-armed beating on the evil Nazi, looking like a total badass in the process. Bruno wins with a knee lift. The crowd explodes with joy. This was fine for what it was. It may be short, and the initial beating looked hokey, but the pop Bruno gets when he fires back and gets the pin makes it all worth it. ★★½

I'm watching this on the WWE Network and we are joined in progress and miss about the first ten minutes of this 24 minute match. Bruno tries to cut down the big guy with some leg stops and Kowalski sells them well, staggering all over the ring. Bruno hits a strong leg kick and sends Kowalski falling flat on his arse, must to the crowd's delight. The crowd eating up everything these guys are dishing out makes this worth watching. When Kowalski climbs up the top rope, you can feel the worry that their beloved Bruno might be seconds away from losing. When a bloodied up Bruno finally unleashes his rage after being beaten down for the past few minutes, the reaction is huge. Just the way Bruno paces around the ring, you can see why he was a huge star. Most of the action here is very primitive. There's nothing overly technical, there's a lot of down time and and a lot of brawling. But when this match shines, it's excellent and a good example of showing how popular Bruno Sammartino was at the time. RIP. ★★★½

Bruno seemed like one of those guys that would be around forever. Truly an end of an era.

There's quite a few for me. Richards/Elgin is one that I don't even think is a solid match, it's downright bad. I wasn't a fan of The Golden Lovers/Young Bucks match, but I can see why people like it. Amazing on tape as well. That match was a big gateway drug for me in terms of deepening my exploration of both the indies and Japan. Is it one of those time and place things in terms of the 5 stars? Probably, but I will always feel great affection for it. I can see that being a big reason why it got the 5 star treatment. It was one of the first matches I saw when I got into puro and I agree on the gateway drug comment. Does anyone know if Meltzer was in the crowd for it?

Good documentary. I didn't learn all that much new stuff from it, but told Andre's story in a humanizing light. This tugged at my heartstrings a handful of times.

This was a great TV match, but that come as no surprise to anyone. These guys click so well together and it's hard to believe it's been over a decade since they last fought each other as they have such natural chemistry . The way the countered each others spot felt so slick. Every time Bryan sold a body part, I got worried although that could because I still feel like the guy could end up retired again with one wrong move and not necessarily great selling. Nakamura ending this prematurely was a great way for him to generate some heat for himself. Bryan and AJ are going to tear the roof off the building once they square off again for a longer PPV match. ★★★¾

Okay, where to start on this? No where near the heights of their 31 classic. The excessive F5s didn't make Roman look like a star and made everyone who lost to single one the past 12 months look weak as James Ellsworth. They could achieved what they wanted to do with 3 and not burn out the crowd either. Brock's elbow barrage gave Reigns one of the nastiest gashes I've seen in a long time. It was so brutal that I questioned where it was legit blood as their was no way WWE would allow their ace to piss out blood like that. This match was a total spectacle and it gave me a reason to tune into Raw tonight. ★★★¼

A feel good moment and thoroughly satisfying match. When Bryan made his entrance, I got a touch emotional. No-one deserves a comeback match more than that beautiful bastard. Shane McMahon can get lost though. His punches are still awful and I feel sorry for anyone who has to sell for them. Anything involving him was mediocre and he didn't even get any of his big spots minus an admittedly great Van Terminator. He's not in this for long though, and as soon as Bryan gets back in, the match is back on track. Bryan hasn't lost a step and seeing him mix it up with Zayn and Owens makes you realize how well the indy wrestlers have taken over the WWE in the past decade. Bryan got all his spots in and it was a breezy watch. ★★★½

This is a match where I REALLY want to love it to high heaven for everything it pulls off so exceptionally, but I can't as there's one glaring fault that dampened the entire segment for me. I'm talking about non-wrestler Stephanie McMahon holding her own and defending multiple armbars from former UFC champion Ronda Rousey. Never have I been so taken out of the moment. Kurt Angle didn't need to be here either. The guy's a lumbering mess and even finisher spamming TNA Angle is a distant memory. Angle could of been replaced by Cena, Rollins or even Big Show and it would of improved the opening segments with Triple H. Okay, on to the good. This match had many high points. Rousey was fantastic. An utter beast and she looked like a huge star, putting my worries of her bombing to bed as quick as she did to Alexis Davis at UFC 175. The spot where she had Triple H on her shoulders was awesome. Triple H also excelled during the moments that mattered. I can even compliment Stephanie's performance despite that spot. Mostly a great match and undeniably memorable moment, so my complaints don't really amount to jack. ★★★¾

We finally got Cena vs Undertaker at Wrestlemania. It's just a damn shame we got it at least 5 years too late. For an angle, this was fine for what it was worth. That big boot was hilariously bad. All the build up leading up this on the show was delightful as Cena is a man who can still sell me any storyline. This was fun filler on a show that was already too long to begin with. I can't say I'm a fan of them undoing everything they achieved with Undertaker's perfect send-off last year.

A few of the exchanges look a touch awkward as if their timings were ever so slightly off. Shayna Baszler came off as someone you wouldn't want to mess with. The arm stomping spot looked devastating and it played into the finish very well. Baszler having to adjust her submission because the damage done to her arm was a great touch. The weakest match on this exceptional card is still very much worth your time, even if their previous Takeover match was much better. ★★★¼

Okay, we all can agree that Johnny Gargano is the greatest babyface in wrestling right now? Good. Let's now talk about how Tomasso Ciampa is the best heel in the business currently. From the moment he stepped out from the curtain, he was vilified by the smark heavy audience. I did not hear one pro-CIampa chant and rightfully so. He's so good at being a right psychotic bastard. When he's paired with the most loved guy in the industry not called Daniel Bryan, you are guaranteed a great showing at the worst. Was this bloated? Sure. But it's bloated in the way a Kurosawa epic might be. At the end of the match, you felt like you have traveled on an intense journey with the characters. All the big moments deliver in spades and that more than makes up for the slower paced parts of this 37 minute wrestling odyssey. ★★★★½

I didn't give this my full attention, so take my rating with a grain of salt. Almas is good, but the addition of Zelina Vega has perfected his act. She has the crowd fuming whenever she gets involved, right up until that perfectly executed finish where she gets her comeuppances. Almas hits a brilliant corkscrew plancha here. That reaction got when Black kicked out of Alma's finish was magical, I really thought that was it. ★★★★¼

Ricochet predictably shone in this environment. This being his first big WWE match, he hopefully left a lasting impression. That shooting star plancha looked organic and not at all contrived and that's something you rarely see when people attempt big dives to the outside in the 'E nowadays. Adam Cole shown more personality here than any other NXT match I've seen of his. Velveteen Dream has one of the most beautiful elbow drops in all of wrestling right now and I'm thankful we got to see it as many times as we did in this match. The match's 31 minute run time might of been excessive as there was a couple of moments in between the big spots that felt plodding and some of the spots weren't exactly ground-breaking, but the crowd reaction and commentary made the less impressive ladder bumps feel like a huge deal and overall this was just a perfect way to start the show. ★★★¾

Adam Cole is taken out early and he doesn't contribute to the match at all, which is understandably as he did work a ladder match an hour earlier. This match made me realize how much I want a Pete Dunne vs Kyle O'Reilly singles match. They had great chemistry and Dunne's old school leanings helped O'Reilly from slipping into that land of indy wankery which has entered on so many occasions. Even that silly hybrid no-sell/selling thing from that nasty German Suplex didn't detract from the action too much. A tornado tag-esque tag match where everyone's weaknesses are well hidden and their strengths enhanced. This takes the best from that ROH 'epic' formula and strips out the bad stuff and plays it 3x speed. Everyone came in and got their shit in and got out. Nothing too hokey. A great spotfest with a hell of an ending. I won't spoil it, but that swerve was gloriously. I didn't see it coming and the reaction on the audience's faces was golden. ★★★★

Just finished watching it. Yeah, it went on too long. That's why I always just watch it the day after on VLC Media Player on 2x speed. Henry stole the show. Nearly had me bawling when he mention Owen. Dudley's speech was great too. Didn't know D'von could be so funny. I also didn't mind Hillbilly Jim's speech. I was never a fan, but he seemed very humble and an all-around sweet guy.

Everyone gets a chance to shine here. Ikeda is more unrestrained than usual. Out of all the great performances here, Otsuka steals the show with his organic murderous suplexes. Seriously, the guy puts Kurt Angle to shame. I feel like this would serve as a good introduction to BattlARTS. The match isn't overly long, you will get introduced to six great wrestlers and you will get a lavish serving of their gloriously brutal bati-bati action. ★★★¾

I had no idea Kojima made his way down to Mexico last year. It's a utterly bizarre sight seeing him work a small promotion like Lucha Memes. Anyway, there's not too much to talk about. Kojima seems to be having the time of his life heeling it up. Hechicero has cool offense. I liked the spot where he mocks Kojima's chops. A solid outing, but no Kobashi in ROH. ★★½

Man, I love Lucha Memes. Their shows have the aesthetics of a backyard show, which makes it feel all the more weird when you see some brilliant wrestling like I have during the last two matches I've seen. There's a moment in the opening exchanges where Ricky Marvin obviously helps Keyra pull off a hurricanrana. This had me worried that all the fore coming moves would look contrived. Thankfully just seconds later, Keyra hits one of the most natural looking crucifixes I've ever seen and put all my worries to bed. Ricky Marvin is particularly great here. He adds fuel to Keyra's eventual comeback by punishing her like any other male opponent and not relying on being a sleazy scumbag like most guys do when they work as the heel in an intergender match. He's added a lot of weight since I last saw him wrestle years ago yet he's still maintained his athleticism for the most part. He hits a devastating dropkick that has a lot more oomph to it than if it was done by 2011 Ricky Marvin. It seems the golden rule to becoming a great lucha wrestler in Mexico is to get fat and old (see: Black Terry). Anyway, this is a great weapons match sprinkled with some organic lucha spots thrown in. Check it out. ★★★¼