Boss Rock

The Young Lion matches for these Kizuna Road shows have been pretty fun. I wouldn't say you necessarily need to go out of your way to see them, but I would recommend checking out Suzuki-Uemura and Okada-Tsuji if you have the chance. If anything, they've been a nice change of pace from what feels like the same set of matches every week.

Serious question from someone who hasn't really been able to get into shoot style: what separates Tamura from his contemporaries working that style?

Arguably the two most versatile wrestlers ever. Who ya got?

There's still a fair amount of Regal I haven't seen and while his peaks are very good, Bret's are higher. I'm also not sure I've seen Regal carry folks like Bret did.

This is a tough one. I think Toyota destroys Shawn in volume (though she usually had better folks to work with) and probably longevity, but I think Shawn was probably more versatile, at least pre-comeback. I love the Rockers and I think Shawn's absolute top-tier matches are better than Toyota's, but the rest of Toyota's are better than Shawn's. Toyota is better on offense but pre-comeback Shawn is better at selling. My two biggest "I'll rank them, I just have no idea where" wrestlers.

Yeah this isn't just fans being excited about a chant.

Gotta go with Bryan, but it's close as Bryan is a number 1 contender and Flair is a top 10 contender. There are still a ton of 80's Flair matches that I haven't seen, but I think (as of now) Bryan beats him in longevity and volume. I do think Flair's best match (Funk GAB) is better than Bryan's best match (Nigel Unified), but I would put the rest of Bryan's peaks over Flair's. Selling is very close and I would probably give bumping to Flair. This may change the more Flair I watch, but Bryan will still probably have a better chance at the top spot for me.

Both have similar strengths in being incredibly technically sound and being able to carry lesser talent to great matches. But I think Bryan trumps Bret in near every category. Peaks and volume Bryan runs away with it. I know that Bryan has the advantage of working with a ton of great workers, but he also rounds out his resume with legitimately great matches against the likes of Miz, Wyatt, and Triple H. And while Bret has some great matches, Bryan's peaks are higher. When it comes to versatility, Bryan might be better than just about anyone (I'd consider arguments for Funk). Fiery underdog, ruthless heel, pissed off ass-kicker, and even cowardly heel at times. Almost every great Bret match I've seen has him as a babyface or defending champion. Both are terrific offensive wrestlers, but Bryan's ability to wear more hats I think offers more variety than Bret. Selling is really the only area I don't have a strong argument in favor of either.

Two guys heralded as all-time great TV and tag workers. Who ya got?

Both are really strong Random Match contenders. While I don't think it's entirely fair considering Vader's career was much shorter, Rey has significantly more volume. I think I would take him on peaks as well as I've never loved the Vader-Sting series (even if Rey doesn't have the highest ceiling apart from a few matches).

He's my pick to win the G1, but that's still a few months away. A feud with Cobb works.

Shingo Takagi, folks.

I honestly don't want to see Lana in AEW. Miro is perfectly fine solo, he doesn't need a mouthpiece.

I agree that the initial arm work in Ibushi-Omega isn't particularly great, but they did find a way to bring it back in the finishing stretch that I really liked.

Awesome, thanks!

I honestly didn't know he was still an active wrestler. Although I did see a match between him and Dandy a few years ago that I liked. I'll see if I can find the Chicana match.

Excessive stalling. I don't mind when a heel tries to stall for the first minute or so, but anything beyond that I feel like screaming "DO SOMETHING!" The shocked face following a kick-out of a move that has never won a match is also ridiculous. Not so much of an in-ring thing, but the use of insider terms on commentary or in promos.

I don't think I would consider KUSHIDA but I'm glad he has a thread because he really is very good. Great mix of technical and high-flying offense. Was at least a top 10 wrestler in 2016 and 2017.

So did I. Wasn't a fan of the overbooking in Archer-Miro or the three-way, but I think it worked here. For me personally it added a shred of doubt and drama to a match with a forgone conclusion.

He was also responsible for scouting Bianca, Tay, and Jade to WWE.

Awesome! Thought this was the best show of the year so far. A bit too long and not thrilled with the booking of Ogogo-Cody or the three-way, but mostly everything delivered.

Oh you're there live? Awesome.

Good match even though it felt a bit odd to do this after Blood and Guts. Didn't expect IC to win but Sammy getting the pin was cool.

Muto is someone I plan to a deeper dive on because he definitely seems like a controversial pick. From the little I've seen, wrestling as himself he could be great but as Muta he relied too much on the gimmick and charisma. And while I haven't seen any of the matches, his current run as NOAH champ has been super polarizing.