Section A: Why Write This?
This is probably the longest single column in Inside Pulse history, so I’ve split it into four parts. This is Part 2, with the write-ups of Matches 74-50. Come back Monday for 49-25 and Tuesday for the top of the list. The whole list runs over 20,000 words, so my recommendation is to print it out for bathroom reading this holiday season. It should keep you company while you avoid your relatives.
If you just want the list, skip to Section B. Section C is a countdown including a review of every match. Most of these thoughts were written months apart as I watched the individual shows, edited at multiple periods throughout the year. Writing all this in one weekend would probably kill me, but taking a few minutes to write about a great match is a wonderful way to reflect on our collective hobby, especially in this period when so many people have mistaken “criticism†to mean “stuff I hated.†It’s a response to those Top Fives and Top Tens that seem so sad, as with seven hours of wrestling on TV in the U.S. per week and numerous indies, if you only saw five matches you want to celebrate you really need a new hobby. This is something we love. Each match in both Section B and C list the wrestlers, the date, the company and the show name, so you can track down the episode or DVD of anything you like.
The list covers every WWE and TNA pay per view as well as their television shows. I’m pretty sure that if it weren’t for my local library intervening I would have irrevocable brain damage. But you’ll notice most of the matches aren’t from those two companies. The list expands to every ROH DVD and PPV this year, and all the Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, Chikara Pro and IWA: Mid South I could get my hands on. Miscellaneous North American indies, such as IWS, got fewer viewings, but if readers have any matches they want considered, they can submit them to riren100@gmail.com. I’ve regularly watched NJPW, NOAH, Zero-1 and Dragon Gate, with a handful of AJPW, El Dorado, SEM, DDT, BJW, general Joshi and Battlarts on the side. A match must be watched at least twice to be on the list, as you can’t have a full grasp of a match in just one viewing. Again if you feel a match is unrepresented, feel free to drop me a line. Honestly my only regret in putting the list together is the absence of Lucha in my life, which comes from not getting the proper television stations. That, and I’d like to go outside every so often. Maybe read a book.
There is no such thing as the one formula for a great match. Not every tag match has to have a Ricky Morton character selling his way up to the hot tag under the oppression of a Midnight Express. Not every great singles match needs to be a Hart Dungeon technical clinic. The formula or story wrestlers try to tell can be just as important as how they tell it, and a variety of things succeed. For instance not every match requires deep, sympathetic selling; if you watch real sports, you see competitors suck it up, hide and overcome injuries all the time. An Olympic swimmer with a pinched nerve isn’t going to show it in every backstroke. Shawn Michaels can make a match more compelling by showing an injured leg in every motion he makes, while Samoa Joe can make a match just as compelling by noticeably ignoring that same pain. The psychology of how and what to show in response to an opponent’s offense is one of many factors that can make a match shine. Many things come into play, and different features become the basis of different matches: the way moves are executed, the kinds that are used, how they’re pulled together, the characters that are established, the physical chemistry, how they play the audience, general audience participation, how sympathetic or convincing selling is, the tenacity shown by someone who fights against injury or physical limitations, the story that is told, how the performance resonates with the style of the company. Rather, it’s how things work and what qualities come together that make a match, and they can come together in many different wildly entertaining ways. The importance in a list like this is less ranking one match above another, and more recognizing the many successful works in this art.
How are we supposed to compare matches without a rubric? Usually I hate comparing them, and generally avoid the practice except in this annual column. How the heck are you supposed to judge Michaels and Jericho’s Ladder Match against McGuinness and Danielson’s mat fare in Japan? A comedy tag against a hardcore war? The truth is that one match is seldom truly better than another. One match does certain things that another doesn’t, or does those things better. Especially in comparing your favorite matches of a year, you’ll find they are both better than each other at specific things. One has a perfect ending and frequent references to wrestling history, while another has more passion and more amazing highspots. Usually the best match of the year is the one that did the best at the things you care for the most. And in that spirit, I admit that most of these rankings are intuitive and based on personal preferences. I’ll also accuse that every other list is, too. The goal really isn’t to determine #1, #2 and #3, but to gather a hundred matches I loved and hope it resonates with others.
Despite all that, I expect hate mail for putting a comedy battle royale as high as I did.
The list will be revised in March or April when promotions have all of their 2008 DVD’s out, and readers can feel free to e-mail suggestions for consideration or re-consideration on the list. Given that there are a hundred matches, I’m sure you’ll disagree with at least one being ahead of another. And even though there are a hundred, I’m sure there are some you think I missed or was a bastard to exclude – I had 28 matches on my “short list†alone that I had to cut. But know that any criticism of match placement is less interesting than your response to what I actually wrote about the match. If you have a gripe, your own list (even just a Top 3), or if you have other matches you want to see praised, I encourage you drop a comment on wrestling.insidepulse.com, or e-mail me at Riren100@gmail.com.
Section B: The List
50. Naomichi Marufuji Vs. KENTA (October 8) – Pro Wrestling NOAH: Autumn Navigation
51. Yuji Nagata Vs. Masato Tanaka (October 13) – NJPW: Destruction 2008
52. Bryan Danielson Vs. Tyler Black (May 9) – ROH: Southern Navigation
53. Bryan Danielson Vs. Tyler Black (January 25) – ROH: Breakout
54. Ric Flair Vs. Shawn Michaels (March 30) – WWE: Wrestlemania 24
55. Mitsuharu Misawa, Naomichi Marufuji & Takashi Sugiura Vs. Kenta Kobashi, Yoshihiro Takayama & Katsuhiko Nakajima (July 18) – Pro Wrestling NOAH: Summer Navigation 2008
56. Kevin Steen & El Generico Vs. Homicide & Hernandez Vs. Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black Vs. Davey Richards & Chris Hero (October 24) – 30-Minute Iron Team Match from ROH: Return of 187
57. Jay & Mark Briscoe Vs. Katsuhiko Nakajima & Kota Ibushi (September 6) – Pro Wrestling NOAH: Shiny Navigation 2008
58. Takeshi Morishima, Naomichi Marufuji & Go Shiozaki Vs. Roderick Strong, Davey Richards & Rocky Romero (May 9) – ROH: Southern Navigation
59. Shingo Takagi & BxB Hulk Vs. Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black (March 28) – Ring of Honor: Dragon Gate Challenge 2
60. Bryan Danielson & Eddie Edwards Vs. KENTA & Taiji Ishimori (June 21) – Pro Wrestling NOAH: European Navigation
61. Nigel McGuinness Vs. Roderick Strong (September 19) – ROH: Driven 2008
62. John Cena Vs. Dave Batista (August 17) –WWE: Summerslam
63. Kurt Angle Vs. A.J. Styles (June 8) – TNA: Slammiversary
64. Shawn Michaels Vs. Chris Jericho (July 20) – WWE: Great American Bash
65. Shingo Takagi, BxB Hulk & Cyber Kong Vs. Kota Ibushi, HARASHIMA & Antonio Honda (April 13) – DDT and Dragon Gate co-present DDG Returns
66. Bryan Danielson Vs. Tyler Black Vs. Kenny Omega (November 8) – ROH: Bound By Hate
67. Eddie Kingston Vs. 2 Cold Scorpio (March 1) – IWA: Mid South: The 500th Show
68. Shingo Takagi & BxB Hulk Vs. Kevin Steen & El Generico (March 29) – Ring of Honor: Supercard of Honor 3
69. HHH Vs. Jeff Hardy (October 5) – WWE: No Mercy
70. Roderick Strong Vs. Davey Richards (September 13) – ROH: Battle of the Best
71. MEN’s Teioh, Shinobu, Onryo & KUDO Vs. Makoto Oishi, Tsutomu Oosugi, Hercules Senga & Yuki Sato (October 27) – BJW: Men’s World
72. Bryan Danielson Vs. Bad Bones (March 9) – Westside Xtreme Wrestling: 16 Carat Gold Tournament Night 3
73. Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black Vs. Jay & Mark Briscoe Vs. Brent Albright & B.J. Whitmer Vs. Jack Evans & Jigsaw (January 11) – “Ultimate†Ultimate Endurance ROH: Proving Ground
74. Kenta Kobashi, Tamon Honda & KENTA Vs. Yoshihiro Takayama, Takuma Sano & Go Shiozaki (April 27) –Pro Wrestling NOAH at the Tokyo Nippon Budokan
75. Jay & Mark Briscoe Vs. Homicide & Hernandez (October 25) –ROH: Ring of Homicide 2
76. Giant Bernard Vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (March 23) – NJPW New Japan Cup: Who Is The Highest?
77. Mitsuharu Misawa Vs. Takeshi Morishima (March 2) – Pro Wrestling NOAH: Second Navigation at the Nippon Budokan
78. Shingo Takagi & BxB Hulk Vs. KENTA & Taiji Ishimori (March 20) – Dragon Gate: The Gate of Generation
79. Bryan Danielson Vs. Mike Quackenbush (March 7) – Westside Xtreme Wrestling: 16 Carat Gold Tournament Night 1
80. Jun Akiyama & Takeshi Rikio Vs. Kensuke Sasaki & Katsuhiko Nakajima (April 27) – Pro Wrestling NOAH at the Tokyo Nippon Budokan
81. Naomichi Marufuji Vs. Roderick Strong (July 25) – ROH: Northern Navigation
82. Kurt Angle Vs. Christian Cage (February 10) – TNA: Against All Odds
83. Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black Vs. Naomichi Marufuji & Go Shiozaki (August 1) – ROH: Fueling the Fire
84. CIMA, Dragon Kid & Ryo Saito Vs. Masato Yoshino, Naruki Doi & Genki Horiguchi (March 29) – ROH: Supercard of Honor 3
85. Roderick Strong Vs. Rocky Romero (January 27) – Pro Wrestling Guerrilla: Pearl Habra
86. Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley Vs. James Storm & Bobby Roode (November 9) – TNA: Turning Point
87. Bryan Danielson Vs. Katsuhiko Nakajima (September 20) – ROH: Glory By Honor 7
88. Bryan Danielson Vs. Claudio Castagnoli (June 28) – ROH: Vendetta 2
89. El Generico Vs. Taiji Ishimori (March 7) – Westside Xtreme Wrestling: 16 Carat Gold Tournament Night 1
90. Nigel McGuinness Vs. Jimmy Jacobs (September 14) – ROH: Tokyo Summit
91. Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley Vs. Masato Tanaka & Daisuke Sekimoto (October 25) Pro Wrestling Expo: Part 3: Blue Chapter
92. Bryan Danielson Vs. Naomichi Marufuji (May 10) – ROH: A New Level
93. Roderick Strong Vs. Tyler Black (August 30) – PWG: All Star Weekend 7 Night 1
94. Edge Vs. Rey Mysterio Jr. (January 27) – WWE: Royal Rumble
95. El Generico Vs. Kota Ibushi (April 19) – ROH: Return Engagement
96. Naomichi Marufuji & Takashi Sugiura Vs. Jun Akiyama & Takeshi Rikio (April 12) – Pro Wrestling NOAH: Global Tag League at the Hiroshima Green Arena
97. Kurt Angle Vs. Samoa Joe (April 13) – TNA: Lockdown
98. Claudio Castagnoli Vs. El Generico (January 26) – ROH: Without Remorse
99. Naomichi Marufuji Vs. Mike Quackenbush (March 9) – Westside Xtreme Wrestling: 16 Carat Gold Tournament Night 3
100. Randy Orton Vs. HHH Vs. John Cena (March 30) – WWE: Wrestlemania 24
Section C: Countdown & Reviews
74. Kenta Kobashi, Tamon Honda & KENTA Vs. Yoshihiro Takayama, Takuma Sano & Go Shiozaki (April 27)
Pro Wrestling NOAH at the Tokyo Nippon Budokan – Go stepped up in a big way in his early segments with Kobashi and Takayama, showing respect, frustration and power, and generating some great emotion, especially in briefly turning against Takayama. The match never reached those heights again but followed a good course. For once Takayama actually seemed to care about a match. Kobashi and KENTA going to town on Takayama was great fun, especially with Kobashi and Takayama going after each other after the match. The final minutes were particularly engaging for the formula of four guys preoccupied on the outside while two traded pin attempts inside.
73. Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black Vs. Jay & Mark Briscoe Vs. Brent Albright & B.J. Whitmer Vs. Jack Evans & Jigsaw (January 11) – “Ultimate†Ultimate Endurance ROH: Proving Ground
The first fall featured some crazy creativity, particularly from the Vulture Squad. The second fall was so manic and uncontrollable, rising to one hard crashing wave at the end with the ladder. It wasn’t too long, but as a short single fall it was wild and more riveting than almost any single-fall match on WWE or TNA television this year, regardless of length. The final fall had more heart and energy than the Briscoes’ title loss at Final Battle 2007. Mark Briscoe was the soul of the match, showing so much guts and determination. Whitmer and Jacobs had a great moment of a showdown. The Vulture Squad brought the spectacle. Jacobs and Black looked like a fine-tuned team after only working together for a few matches in ROH.
72. Bryan Danielson Vs. Bad Bones (March 9) – Westside Xtreme Wrestling: 16 Carat Gold Tournament Night 3
Especially upon re-watching it, it’s impressive how many comebacks (major and just one-move momentum stoppers) Bad Bones pulled out that would typical signify dominance or physical superiority, but that he pulled off sympathetically. Danielson earned his dominant parts of the match better than he did in any other match of the tournament, not merely with technical savvy like he tried to pull off against Chris Hero, but with so many allusions the offense of past opponents (as well as how he beat them). He thought he deserved to be in control here, having used so many tricks for breathers and advantages before. He made many of the parts where he was in control about revenge on an audience that had hated him from the first minute of Night 1. Those dualities – Bones’s sympathetic offense, and Danielson’s cocky control – rapidly enriched everything else they did.
71. MEN’s Teioh, Shinobu, Onryo & KUDO Vs. Makoto Oishi, Tsutomu Oosugi, Hercules Senga & Yuki Sato (October 27) – BJW: Men’s World
Some of the most beautiful exchanges I’ve seen in a wrestling ring this year, and one of those matches that makes me wish I could follow BJW more regularly. There’s always 2009. For now, there’s this. Teioh can still go very well, especially put into the sequences of pairs in this kind of match. Similarly a guy like KUDO, who I think has issues that stand out even in 2 Vs. 2 matches, was just about flawless for the bits and pieces he jumped in to perform. It’s a series of sprints punctuated with a little humor (like the opening “dong†quadruple kick), and while sprint matches seldom have much story, these make them as much art in the form as anything. Some of the grace on display here would make Dragon Gate vets blush. It’s good to see some of these faces popping up in Dragon Gate now.
70. Roderick Strong Vs. Davey Richards (September 13) – ROH: Battle of the Best
They came in with an interesting dynamic. Richards wrestled like he thought he was in the right: he took the fight to Strong immediately, standing up to him and trying to embarrass him for a year of being treated like a lackey. But it was actually Strong who had been wronged back at Respect is Earned 2, and Strong who really had an axe to grind, so he was even more assertive as soon as he could shake loose of Richards’s holds. At first it looked like Richards was going to run, crawling to flee away from Strong’s stinging chops, until he was stuck in the corner and had to strike back. For a moment he was back in that lackey role, and whatever had made him come into the match swinging took over for the remainder. In all of it Richards looked about as good as he ever has, with masterful delivery of things as simple as a knee lift (finally making that move look like it should floor someone, as opposed to just doing it for that purpose), shoulder charge in the corner, and even his expression after the obligatory opening Mexican Standoff. He kept determination and weakness in his posture and face at nearly all times, but let that play through everything he executed. Execution has long been his greatest strength, and against Strong he had someone who could almost match it, but even when he couldn’t, could at least follow the structure of a brutal match that swung between strikes, throws and grueling holds. Thus Richards had to fight for a Camel Clutch mid-match, and Strong knew him enough to immediately go for a second Tiger Bomb at the end.
69. HHH Vs. Jeff Hardy (October 5) – WWE: No Mercy
The Hangman Pedigree tease was insane. In fact, most of HHH’s little variations added energy to the match, like his surprise attack at the opening and cheap pin attempt, first rope elbow drop to end a series of them, and sifting through vintage holds to maintain the advantage. Never has his version of the Flair corner bump felt more natural to one of his matches. Hardy deserves a medal for taking that missed plancha, feeding into what HHH setup with the partially blocked Flying Clothesline from the apron. That crash and burn led to one of the better domination periods HHH has had, thanks in part to his opponent being a ragdoll, but also with HHH getting creative in his abuse, looking more like a dominant powerhouse than normal. Hardy was more than a ragdoll, though, bringing his patented passion and framing it in gutsy little packages, like that horrendous flip to the outside, and then catching HHH with it a second time. The conclusion was reminiscent of Tyler Black Vs. Bryan Danielson from ROH’s Breakout, except (oddly for WWE) it was even more over the top. But Hardy’s natural connection with the audience sold the resilience, and noticeably getting into position for HHH’s reversal may have made some people’s blood boil, but it couldn’t ruin such a strong match.
68. Shingo Takagi & BxB Hulk Vs. Kevin Steen & El Generico (March 29) – ROH: Supercard of Honor 3
Everyone seems to overlook the sudden drop from their hot start into something resembling a “heat segment†on Hulk by two guys who were over as babyfaces, which dragged the match to a crawl. I don’t know why they felt the need to cool things down when they had the crowd ready from the start, but when they picked up again it was beautiful. Dueling sawed off powerhouses in Steen and Shingo with Hulk and Generico as energizing as ever, hot false finishes and two teams working in feverish tandem. When it was good, it was as good as anything that weekend, and if you check the date, you know it was a heck of a weekend.
67. Eddie Kingston Vs. 2 Cold Scorpio (March 1) – IWA: Mid South: The 500th Show
One of the more watchable struggles IWA:MS has featured in years. IWA:MS has a lot of off-kilter matches and a lot of off-kilter strike exchanges, but these two summoned a great rhythm that felt distinct to the company. Their exchange at the middle of the match clicked far better anything Mid South has seen since Low Ki left (at least until that point). They carried that intuitive sense of striking all the way to the end of the match, gradually making Kingston a more believability threat as it progressed. Technical wrestling is one of Kingston’s weakest points out of character, and it really said something to exhibit that in the opening with Scorpio manipulating the weakness in character. Not only did Kingston have something to prove against a much more famous opponent, but he was at a disadvantage in versatility of offense. He showed with little things like quickly going from a boxing stance into a collar-and-elbow tie-up, and hammered home his disadvantage in all the force he had to apply to get a hold to work, how he could only take the advantage through really basic holds (Kingston couldn’t rely on more than headlocks for the first half of the match), and emphasizing the pain of the holds he was caught in after reversals. You could see not just frustration, but desperate attempts to out-think Scorpio on Kingston’s face. The ending came out of nowhere, but it had to, and it spoke to Scorpio overlooking Kingston’s greatest strength after manipulating his weaknesses earlier.
66. Bryan Danielson Vs. Tyler Black Vs. Kenny Omega (November 8) – ROH: Bound By Hate
While not Omega’s debut, this is how you introduce a bluechipper to an audience. It’ll probably go down in people’s memories as his first appearance. They started him out as humorously naïve against the omnipotent Bryan Danielson, with Black going after any openings Danielson left, giving Omega breathing room. Gradually he shone more against each man, surviving big offense, escaping big holds, and eventually hitting his own stuff in some very well-timed deliveries while the more seasoned wrestlers tried to take each other out. Letting him hang in when they abused him in various ways worked, especially by not focusing on grinding him down for two long. By the end it was totally believable that Danielson had to destroy him to beat him, and the finale certainly accomplished that. Around that you had Black’s opportunism and Danielson’s incredible technical savvy to spin out plenty of entertaining moments, building and building to an excellent three-way dance.
65. Shingo Takagi, BxB Hulk & Cyber Kong Vs. Kota Ibushi, HARASHIMA & Antonio Honda (April 13)
DDT and Dragon Gate co-present DDG Returns – What a moment when Honda kicked out of the Doomsday Heel Kick, tried to sit up with no idea where he was, skin beat red from exhaustion, and a little trickle of blood rolled out of his nose. HARASHIMA and Ibushi were on fire the entire match, and it might have been even better if Honda had sat more of it to let them play off of Shingo and Hulk. Kong showcased more character than usual, picking good spots to jump in and providing fitting brutality for the match-ending knockout.
64. Shawn Michaels Vs. Chris Jericho (July 20) – WWE: Great American Bash
Sting Vs. Angle last year was criticized for being too technical and straight-laced when it was supposed to be a bloodfeud. This seemed aimed for the same ends, with even better exchanges, but satisfying itself with smaller retribution, like Michaels making him scream in the Figure Four. What was a good exhibition with a vein of antagonism turned great, through, when Cade came out and set up that scary Moonsault. Then came the elbow and Michaels’s eye injury. Video packages played in the following month didn’t do justice to how aggressive the match got, including Jericho’s reaction to and escape from the desperation Crippler Crossface. HHH and Michaels insisting on using the Crippler Crossface has caused a lot of mixed emotions, but Jericho escaping it and attacking Michaels’s eye with greater fervor than ever was an inspired way of channeling those emotions into the flow of the actual match. The ref stoppage was so unusual and disturbing that the crowd simply stared, but that was part of its disturbing appeal.
63. Kurt Angle Vs. A.J. Styles (June 8) – TNA: Slammiversary
The kind of athletic wrestling we all wish TNA would showcase more often. Even Angle has lamented it in shoot interviews, and throughout 2008 he produced it on PPV’s. You had two guys near enough in size that they could do just about anything to each other, with Styles having the distinct aerial advantage and Angle having a superior ground and throwing game. Still Styles tried to dig into him with things like the Backbreaker or Pumphandle Rib Breaker, trying to prove himself by asserting himself through all these facets of offense. It produced such a meaty pro wrestling match that Angle had to resort to more brawling, specifically in punctuating his dominant periods with straight punches to keep Styles weak. The ending was hammy, but the body of the match was so refreshingly competitive that it proved itself despite the booking.
62. John Cena Vs. Dave Batista (August 17) – WWE: Summerslam
Everyone expected this to start out slowly for no good reason, other than that when WWE is unconfident about guys they always tell them to start with slow basics. That’s the way we’re used to it, I guess, but Cena and Batista went with their strengths and produced the heavy bombs within minutes. I was surprised WWE played it off as Batista only being “three seconds better†the next night when he clearly drilled Cena with the first Powerbomb and looked like a wild animal after the kick out, in comparison to his opponent looking dead. Cena deserves huge credit for his work in 2008: he choked against Orton, was the one pinned in the three-way at Wrestlemania, was eliminated at Backlash, lost clean to HHH in their big rematch, lost to JBL on PPV in a brawl and then went down to Batista at Summerslam. The Royal Rumble was his only big PPV win of the year until his return from neck surgery at Survivor Series, and in everything else he made a concentrated effort to help his opponents. It was no different at Summerslam, where he was vulnerable in everything he did, from getting tossed around to struggling to hoist Batista onto his shoulders (including in one very cool reversal).
61. Nigel McGuinness Vs. Roderick Strong (September 19) – ROH: Driven 2008
An excellent execution on the premise of a champion comfortable with plodding dominance trying to stop a very explosive challenger. Being dynamic worked so much better than their similar bland roles from the Without Remorse match, and Strong presented something unusual as the explosive challenger by relying on high-impact strikes, power moves and combos instead of the traditional flying or charismatic-based offense, making him not just someone who might beat McGuinness, but someone who challenged him on his fundamental strengths of a height/strength advantage and striking power. Everything after they returned from the floor for the second time was magic, with Strong getting more and more interesting combos and opportunities, breaking out of McGuinness’s attempts to define the match. Their timing got better as they went along, lending more gravity to the things they tried with little pauses or just the right pace in-between a series of moves.
60. Bryan Danielson & Eddie Edwards Vs. KENTA & Taiji Ishimori (June 21) – Pro Wrestling NOAH: European Navigation
One of the impressive feature was how they packaged Edwards and Ishimori’s normal offense. Ishimori loves to do the fake-out dive, but Danielson set it up so well this time. Similarly by having a fast exchange of strikes in the corner, Ishimori and Edwards setup the Backpack Stunner better than I’ve ever seen it done before. Things that normally look awkward were slick here. That smoothness helped keep the flow of the match, and so long as it seemed to come across without a hitch, the highs and lows were easier during multi-man offense and the much simpler stuff Danielson did worked much better. Instead of simply looking out of place by messing around the Surfboard, he came across as an awful prick that fit right into his team. The match speaks the aesthetic tag teams can create when they make everything click; otherwise, would a stomp to the arm get such a cry of sympathy from the crowd moments after a running power move? And just like that, Danielson and KENTA fit their more established offense in, one much more technical-based, the other with big kicks, able to plug them in at any time to the faster, more fundamentally exciting stuff Ishimori and Edwards would try. It made for a match where almost anything they wanted to do could fit in and where Danielson and KENTA were superstars, but also where Edwards could make himself with one of the best performances of his career.
59. Shingo Takagi & BxB Hulk Vs. Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black (March 28) – Ring of Honor: Dragon Gate Challenge 2
A sadly overlooked level in Tyler Black’s rise in Ring of Honor, showing he could step up in big tag match situations even better than he did at Final Battle 2007. Black’s athleticism shown as he managed to serve as a great base for Hulk and go nuts with Shingo. Shingo brought a sorely-missed fire back to Ring of Honor, plugging himself into ever spot where he could help, again showing his brilliance in tag scenarios. Shingo and Hulk flowed over the match, dropping in a great variety of offense while letting their opponents shine in their own ways. Jacobs had a minimized role, but was sound in what he did, while the others flourished. Amazing sprint-style action. The team of Shingo & Hulk will be missed.
58. Takeshi Morishima, Naomichi Marufuji & Go Shiozaki Vs. Roderick Strong, Davey Richards & Rocky Romero (May 9) – ROH: Southern Navigation
This belongs on the list solely for Morishima’s Azucar sexy dance, and I will hear nothing to the contrary. The first half of the match is a very good testament to the roles of comedy and lightheartedness in ROH, which completely won over the crowds and often came in unexpected ways. The one homophobic moment was irksome (“That was gay! That was gay!†Really, guys?), but other than that it all clicked, even Richards slingshotting Romero into a low blow late in the match. They transitioned from the No Remorse Corps as loony goons to threats fairly seamlessly, especially thanks to the NOAH team’s excellent give-and-take. Even Morishima bumped for them. You build that all around Romero being at the top of his game, Marufuji going a hundred miles an hour, Richards filling every gap he could find and Morishima, Strong and Go all bringing real force to it, and you had the right mix of fun and riveting action.
57. Jay & Mark Briscoe Vs. Katsuhiko Nakajima & Kota Ibushi (September 6) – Pro Wrestling NOAH: Shiny Navigation 2008
Jay Briscoe has never had such a believable nearfall from a Lariat. I mention the Lariat from a match of numerous amazing tandem moves because its success showed why this match worked. Dragon Gate has plenty of matches with amazing acrobatics, but between Ibushi and the Briscoes this match had a fundamental passion, pretty wild leading to a few errant palm strikes, but mostly holding to a serious devotion. Ibushi’s reversal mid-whip to the outside into a Moonsault on the other Briscoe signaled how crazy it would get, and the guys definitely didn’t disappoint on that end either.
56. Kevin Steen & El Generico Vs. Homicide & Hernandez Vs. Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black Vs. Davey Richards & Chris Hero (October 24) – 30-Minute Iron Team Match from ROH: Return of 187
I watched Return of 187 and Ring of Homicide 2 on the same day, and couldn’t help comparing this match to the Six Man Mayhem from the other show. Realistically this had more rules, had more guys and was even more gimmicky, but it far out-shone the scramble on almost minute-by-minute basis. Sure, the guys in the Mayhem hit a lot of impressive stuff, but these men made it all fit together much better, whether it was Hero abusing Generico, Hero and Richards collaborating for a fluke double tag-in, Jacobs fleeing a challenge to set up Black entering as a formidable opponent, or LAX’s disdain for the Age of the Fall. These eight men had a better sense of beats in action than the six in a one-fall match, using tags to set up some hot entries (like Hernandez’s house of fire first entry). Upon re-watching it I came to terms with the two ways to approach this match: 1) it had way too many guys and rules, or 2) it had an amazing number of top-shelf tag wrestlers that should be able to make anything work. Fortunately the latter was the stronger force in the actual execution. So Steen and Hernandez were screwing around as the two biggest guys in the match, where Richards could only try to be a beast against either of them, and moments later when Black and Homicide swapped in you’d get a beautiful exchange, only for Jacobs to try to break up Homicide’s momentum. And in the middle of that kind of heated action you had Richards take advantage of a totally unrelated leg weakness in Steen to escape a certain fall – a memory to detail that validates looking for story in this type of match. That kind of flow is hard, and having to keep it up and keep improvising this level of creativity for a half an hour is a true feat. It only suffers for the lack of a proper finish, when everything they’d sustained so well for twenty-five minutes bottlenecked and even the winners got confused. Sometimes ROH is lucky they have the talent to execute the things they write for them.
55. Mitsuharu Misawa, Naomichi Marufuji & Takashi Sugiura Vs. Kenta Kobashi, Yoshihiro Takayama & Katsuhiko Nakajima (July 18) – Pro Wrestling NOAH: Summer Navigation 2008
Sugiura was the warhorse of this match, providing some great striking and power moments with each opponent, building around a match where the emotional highs came from Takayama and Kobashi’s self-destruction. Takayama being so petulant and Kobashi gradually losing his temper worked so well in a match where they were facing younger, faster guys with some unnerving raw power. Turning it around mid-match and having the younger guys play off Takayama and Kobashi’s issue made guys getting knocked off the apron more entertaining than it had any right to be. They let Misawa rest well and pick his involvements, setting up a great comeback for Nakajima and some above-par interactions with Kobashi, especially him getting pummeled in the corner. They had a match that could easily coast on the Kobashi team’s internal strife, but built so much more into it; Marufuji and Kobashi are as reliable as it gets in NOAH for fun moments in tag matches and this was no different with Marufuji’s smart counters and fake-outs. They were trying to have something at least a little special on nearly every tag-in. Quality NOAH trios tags are essentially about how many iterations of the guys can work out well, and this was one of those where nearly everything clicked.
54. Ric Flair Vs. Shawn Michaels (March 30) – WWE: Wrestlemania 24
For pure nostalgia and emotion, nothing will top this match. After an unparalleled career, fans refused to see flaws in Ric Flair’s game. There were plenty of flaws – he couldn’t hit his Shin Breaker and he was off on chops, but that didn’t matter. Shawn Michaels overusing the Superkick didn’t matter. They channeled dozens of wrestling memories through a clever eyepoke, a low blow everyone saw coming, Michaels’s Figure Four-style hold, and repeated attempts with Flair’s classic Figure Four. They rode what suspended disbelief the storyline had built (mostly what Flair’s riveting promo from the previous Raw had built) to create as many hopeful moments as possible before the inevitable fall. I’m not even close to Flair’s biggest fan, but the emotion that night was too great to ignore.
53. Bryan Danielson Vs. Tyler Black (January 25) – ROH: Breakout
A radically different upstart story from the ones told in Erick Stevens’s January matches, Black and Danielson told of an upstart character testing and digging on the veteran without sacrificing any of the athleticism. Really, this wouldn’t have worked without that athleticism – Black was taller, faster, far more agile, and managed to show it early on without having to go out of his way. The somersault into a slap was great early punctuation of that theme. They put Black on display, at first with counters and escapes, then later with tenacity, flying and some serious bombs in his offense, while never forgetting what they established earlier. Danielson’s early retribution made the best use of palm strikes in a long time, and from there they hit a fast middle gear that they kept up for a surprisingly long time, turning Black from an upstart to a caustic equal. The finishing stretch is phenomenal, but the actual ending is indefensible. Maybe Black intended to land the Phoenix Splash differently. It was something for them to think about for the inevitable rematch.
52. Bryan Danielson Vs. Tyler Black (May 9) – ROH: Southern Navigation
At Breakout Black was constantly responding to Danielson, with his most impressive offense being a slap across the face. This time he came out at the bell and hit Danielson with his style of offense. The lead couldn’t last, but it defined the match as something between two guys who were much closer to the equal than the kick-out-kid act Black had in their first match and at Take No Prisoners against Nigel McGuinness. The offense wasn’t just flying, but some slick kicks in unexpected positions to counter Danielson’s offense, and at least one truly impressive power spot with the Powerbomb into the corner. Black presented a package of threats that defined the match as different, even as Danielson’s simple technical genius and striking ability let him find his openings and tear Black apart. It always warms my heart to see a crowd in a high-octane company like ROH cheer louder for a Dragon Sleeper than a Backbreaker onto chairs. Danielson was possibly even more on his game than at Breakout, not having to dictate quite so much of the match but firing up like a good disgruntled veteran (veteran by ROH standards, anyway), and working holds like the Indian Deathlock and Heel Hooks that functioned viciously and entertainingly, even as the low-demand style of that offense made Black’s cutting edge repertoire look even flashier.
51. Yuji Nagata Vs. Masato Tanaka (October 13) – NJPW: Destruction 2008
This was my match. I had an internet black out three days before it happened and wouldn’t check e-mail until I had the chance to see it, unspoiled and unfettered. I threatened at least two other writers with physical violence to preserve its sanctity. There was a glee in my life at the mere prospect of Nagata, my favorite Japanese wrestler of 2007 now back from a health scare, facing Masato Tanaka, who had been on a tear like no one else in the country in all of 2008. NJPW Vs. Zero-1 had me giddy. Nagata and Tanaka knew it was more than just Tanaka’s first singles match against a top NJPW guy – it was the Tanaka singles match against * the * NJPW guy. That was why they fought evenly in a lock-up and went forearm for forearm to start things off, before expertly switching to Nagata trying kick Tanaka’s head off his shoulders. There was an equality about them, each man with his assortment of killer strikes, of hazards on the mat, and suplexes that could destroy. Tanaka reminded us of that last part when he dragged Nagata out and dropped him on the concrete to maintain a struggling advantage. Of course it turned into Tanaka being the weaker one, almost embarrassing himself in moments like the failed Spear on Nagata that merely turned into a front facelock, but all of it came out of a great sense of understated showmanship in front of NJPW’s audience. Tanaka was the hero in his buildings, but the vulnerable antagonist here. Nagata was the quintessential Japanese hero, upright with the big holds, almost punishing Tanaka for the audience. Tanaka put him in the perfect frame of peril for the second half, especially on those sick Sliding D elbow strikes. Nagata’s bloody nose only added to the spirit he was wrestling for.
50. Naomichi Marufuji Vs. KENTA (October 8) – Pro Wrestling NOAH: Autumn Navigation
One of those matches that brings up the futility of comparing matches at all. Contrast this sixty-minute draw of amazing moves and a handful of dramatic false finishes to a tight fifteen-minute story of hatred and brawling. Which is better? They’re nothing alike and have disparate appeals. For the few threads that run through the match, especially in what offense was chosen when, it hardly deserves high praise. Yet the amount of athleticism, toughness and innovation displayed throughout with a focus that never dropped to plodding or wondering what to do absolutely makes it one of the hundred most notable matches of the year. The ending has grown on me more subsequent viewings, not a dramatic false finish or the strikes galore of the KENTA/Kobashi Vs. Sasaki/Nakajima tag in the same promotion, but two guys worn out and relying on those same palm strikes, barely able to stand and yet damned if they’d let the other guy one-up them here, in the main event that would give the other guy two belts. The storied rivalry of KENTA and Marufuji will last a great deal longer, but it came through in so much of what they did, not raw hate, but an emotion just as dangerous in how competitive they were and how badly they wanted this victory – and more importantly, how badly each didn’t want the other guy to win. That’s what makes this going an hour not hurt all the matches against other competitors of similar ability that their offense will end. It made all the kick-outs worthwhile – and critics of overkill be damned, but they did have the decency to protect the Pole Shift by having a battered Marufuji struggle to get over to the cover. But especially in subsequent viewings what stood out wasn’t the ungodly offense they ate over that hour, but how they so seldom meandered, paused or stretched something out unnaturally. That gravely hurt the Kondo/Marufuji title match from AJPW – it was a great twenty-minute match that went forty. A lot of NOAH singles go longer than they need to, and longer than the wrestlers have the talent to give them a sense of substance. Clearly they paced themselves in the opening ten minutes, but there was an overwhelming feeling that these were two wrestlers going at each other for an hour, not two guys doing a match for an hour. Outside of that, it was a heck of a ride.
Check back Monday for the next installment, and Tuesday for the finale. Also jump onto my non-wrestling blog at www.johnwiswell.blogspot.com
