Hey howdy ho readerinos! G'day to you and welcome to this latest layer of 'Noah's Best Wrestling of the Week' AKA 'WWE 2K-17 Championships Around Ultimo Dragon's Waist'
But before we plunge ourselves into the depths of this week's wrestling, let's have a quick look at the stories that grabbed out attention this week.
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| Backstage footage of The Sandman getting ready to defend his ECW World Title c.1998 |
- It looks like Goldberg's gonna be on the next RAW. Good lord am I excited.
- Just when we thought TNA was in the clear a whole new shitstorm comes into town; taxes, threatened walk outs, Corgan/Dixie disputes. Dammit TNA, just do well.
- SaniTY debuted on NXT this week! It's been a while since we've had a stable in NXT, and this one consists of Alexander Wolfe, Sawyer Fulton, Nikki Glenncross and Eric Young! Fuckin' EY!
- It was announced on Talking Smack that James Ellsworth has a WWE World Championship match next week on SmackDown!. This is real.
- Survivor Series will see not one, not two, but three SmackDown! vs RAW elimination tag matches. 5v5 of the men, 5v5 of the women and, from what I understand 10v10 of the tag teams (5 teams apiece). That's at least 20 members of each roster in 3 matches alone. God knows what the rest of the card will look like.
- Apparently Hideo Itami is hurt A-FUCKING-GAIN. Jesus guys just call him straight up next time, this is fucking KENTA we're talking about here.
- Seeing as WWE have plastered it on their sites before its been on TV, I might as well say so. Mickie James has been announced as Asuka's next opponent at TakeOver: Toronto!
And now for the barbecue sauce on this wrestling blog rack of ribs, it's the matches!
WWE No Mercy
Best Match on No Mercy: The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Intercontinental Championship vs Career Match
Honourable Mention: AJ Styles vs John Cena vs Dean Ambrose - WWE World Championship Match
It's really cool how this Ziggler/Miz feud was one I didn't really care for at all, and then the last couple of promos leading up to this really got me invested in this match. Before we jump into things, I really think this should have ended the pay-per-view what with the World Championship Match opening. Whilst Harper returning was cool and it was nice to have a victorious Bray Wyatt closing the show, I feel the build and the outcome would have really boosted the title's image had it been last. But, I'm not a booker, so what do I know?
I feel like this match was a but of a slow-build into making you realise this was something special. Ziggler came out swinging against a more tentative and reserved Miz, which then would progress into a more competitive back and forth as Miz would begin getting the upper hand.
Dolph used the Rough Ryder which made me pop even though it was one little thing - I just love all things Zack Ryder (just wait til he's World Champion in my 2K Universe Mode). Also, Miz's repeated attempts at his new rope-rebound powerbomb was a nice little something thrown in there. I don't know whether he was meant to have 2 reversed because they all looked a bit shaky in getting Dolph up properly, even the one he did land in the end.
There were quite a few times where I legitimately thought it was going to end, and the kick-outs just heightened the drama so much more, and made the ending even more climactic and impacting. The pop that Ziggler's win was great, well deserved. It shows how they've managed to pull this feud around, I feel like I might not have been the only one who couldn't have given much less of a shit a little while before this match, but have it turned around on me.
Awesome stuff in this one, very exciting and a great pay-off to the past few weeks of story.
Monday Night RAW
Best Match on RAW (10/10/16): Lince Dorado & Sin Cara vs Drew Gulak & Tony Nese
WHO CAN STOP THE CRUISERWEIGHTS!? No-one this week it seems.
We've got another tag team match up, pitting 'The Premier Athlete' Tony Nese and fellow EVOLVE regular, Drew Gulak against Lince Dorado and Sin Cara! It's nice to see Sin Cara get to take part in this division, with it being, in my opinion, consistently one of the best parts of RAW. Hopefully we get Neville joining in too at some point.
Lince looked to be the shining star of this match-up, once again dazzling with his athleticism. This guy's agility is insane. Nese and Gulak did beat some shit out of him though, with Gulak getting him up for his sick looking Gory Special. However, it was their masked opponents that would overcome them and gain the victory
Wasn't a substantial match, but I enjoyed it. It wasn't the strongest episode of RAW, and this match was a nice little slice of excitement amidst some okay matches.
Best Match on RAW (10/10/16): Lince Dorado & Sin Cara vs Drew Gulak & Tony Nese
WHO CAN STOP THE CRUISERWEIGHTS!? No-one this week it seems.
We've got another tag team match up, pitting 'The Premier Athlete' Tony Nese and fellow EVOLVE regular, Drew Gulak against Lince Dorado and Sin Cara! It's nice to see Sin Cara get to take part in this division, with it being, in my opinion, consistently one of the best parts of RAW. Hopefully we get Neville joining in too at some point.
Lince looked to be the shining star of this match-up, once again dazzling with his athleticism. This guy's agility is insane. Nese and Gulak did beat some shit out of him though, with Gulak getting him up for his sick looking Gory Special. However, it was their masked opponents that would overcome them and gain the victory
Wasn't a substantial match, but I enjoyed it. It wasn't the strongest episode of RAW, and this match was a nice little slice of excitement amidst some okay matches.
SmackDown! LIVE
Best Match on SD! (11/10/16): AJ Styles vs James Ellsworth (w/ Special Guest Referee Dean Ambrose)
Best Match on SD! (11/10/16): AJ Styles vs James Ellsworth (w/ Special Guest Referee Dean Ambrose)
Fuck it, why not?
This match entertained me the most out of everything on this episode of SmackDown! It amazes me how James Ellsworth has become so popular, he really hit the jackpot with being Braun's first squash recipient. He did land a good punch at the start that rocked Styles, but his offence was short lived. From then on, it was mainly AJ knocking the piss out of him.
I must say, Dean's antics were pretty funny. I find his comedy stuff a bit hit-and-miss, but I enjoyed essentially all the stuff he did in this one, from the pocket gag before the bell to him taking sips of a fan's drink.
I feel obliged to mention that Ellsworth did fuck up in taking the Styles Clash, tucking whatever amount of chin he has. Luckily, AJ's that damn good that he stopped it from destroying the poor guy. But, thanks to this Special Referee and two 'Dirty Deeds' DDTs, Ellsworth wins!
He was even on Talking Smack afterwards! I'm glad he's found a home on SmackDown!, he's getting plenty of time, and even though he probably wont be contracted, God I hope he keeps popping up.
I may have to do MyCareer mode on 2K as James Ellsworth
NXT
Best Match on NXT (12/10/16): TM61 (Shane Thorne & Nick Miller) vs Tino Sabbatelli & Riddick Moss
We've got some more Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic action! This time we've got the Aussies TM61 (fun fact, 3 out of 4 matches on this episode featured an Australian person), and the team of former ballers, Tino Sabbatelli and Riddick Moss.
I like the tandem of Tino and Moss, the promo they had sold me on their characters, plus I thought they did well in the ring. They didn't do anything too flashy, except that cool slingshot powerslam Tino did on Thorne. They talked smack, acted like super douches and did well at teasing hot tags and working down the more experienced team of Thorne and Miller. Also, I was pretty surprised with the reception Tino got from the crowd, I know he's done dark matches at tapings and is regularly on live events, but that was a lot more of a reaction than I thought he'd get. I feel like if these two get kept together for longer they could really do well. TM61 kept up their usual quality of ring work, doing some cool double teams and with Miller being the one to get the hot tag and clear house. It wasn't too much of a complex match, but I feel it did its job and did it well.
Best Match on NXT (12/10/16): TM61 (Shane Thorne & Nick Miller) vs Tino Sabbatelli & Riddick Moss
We've got some more Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic action! This time we've got the Aussies TM61 (fun fact, 3 out of 4 matches on this episode featured an Australian person), and the team of former ballers, Tino Sabbatelli and Riddick Moss.
I like the tandem of Tino and Moss, the promo they had sold me on their characters, plus I thought they did well in the ring. They didn't do anything too flashy, except that cool slingshot powerslam Tino did on Thorne. They talked smack, acted like super douches and did well at teasing hot tags and working down the more experienced team of Thorne and Miller. Also, I was pretty surprised with the reception Tino got from the crowd, I know he's done dark matches at tapings and is regularly on live events, but that was a lot more of a reaction than I thought he'd get. I feel like if these two get kept together for longer they could really do well. TM61 kept up their usual quality of ring work, doing some cool double teams and with Miller being the one to get the hot tag and clear house. It wasn't too much of a complex match, but I feel it did its job and did it well.
Ring of Honour
Best Match on ROH TV (Episode 264): Kyle O'Reilly vs Katsuyori Shibata
We're back at the Field of Honour tapings and this time we got this awesome match. It was exactly the type of match we'd expect from these two. Lots of grappling and feeling each other out to start the match a bit on the slower side of things. But, soon enough, that would transition into adding some harsh kicks and thudding strikes, mixing in the MMA submissions and chokes too.
Very physical action here, everything looked like it hurt, probably because it did. These guys work stiff, and when you throw two dudes together who destroy each other like these two do, it's always great to watch. The spots of going beat for beat in terms of kicks, elbows and suplexes were really cool to see.
Kyle is looking fucking good with this added muscle mass he's got lately. Looks much more intimidating and powerful. I still can't get over how good Shibata's hair looks. For a man of this wrestling style and brutality, it looks way too perfect for him.
As always, you can find ROH TV for FREE at www.rohwrestling.com/tv/current or on the Fite TV app.
Lucha Underground
Best Match on LU (S3E6): Pentagon Dark vs Chavo Geurrero Jr. vs Rey Mysterio Jr.
This is how the match started;
Jesus, Rey-Rey's still got it! This was a great match, hands down. Whilst it wasn't all as fast as the gif above, it kept a decent pace that was on the quicker end of the spectrum. Whenever Rey was about he was always charging about the place and bouncing off of something.
Opposed to having a third man come in when one gets knocked down, I thought it was a nice touch to have the third man wedge his way in by taking one out. It gave a more unpredictable feel to the match and kept things that much more exciting. Like, you'd be seeing Chavo and Rey get going, then Pentagon kicks one in the face and replaces them, I preferred that much more to 'let's have a sit until someone leaves the ring'.
Something I noticed in this one is that Pentagon's superkicks have a charm to them, the ferocity of them making them look more like someone's getting clocked with the butt of a rifle than a foot. A proper clubbing blow, he got like 3 of them in and each was more thudding than the last.
Lots of high pace action in this one that left you wanting more, but not in a bad way. Really recommend this one.
Best Match on LU (S3E6): Pentagon Dark vs Chavo Geurrero Jr. vs Rey Mysterio Jr.
This is how the match started;
Jesus, Rey-Rey's still got it! This was a great match, hands down. Whilst it wasn't all as fast as the gif above, it kept a decent pace that was on the quicker end of the spectrum. Whenever Rey was about he was always charging about the place and bouncing off of something.
Opposed to having a third man come in when one gets knocked down, I thought it was a nice touch to have the third man wedge his way in by taking one out. It gave a more unpredictable feel to the match and kept things that much more exciting. Like, you'd be seeing Chavo and Rey get going, then Pentagon kicks one in the face and replaces them, I preferred that much more to 'let's have a sit until someone leaves the ring'.
Something I noticed in this one is that Pentagon's superkicks have a charm to them, the ferocity of them making them look more like someone's getting clocked with the butt of a rifle than a foot. A proper clubbing blow, he got like 3 of them in and each was more thudding than the last.
Lots of high pace action in this one that left you wanting more, but not in a bad way. Really recommend this one.
NJPW: King of Pro Wrestling
Best Match on NJPW: KoPW: Kenny Omega vs Hirooki Goto - No.1 Contender's Match for IWGP Heavyweight Championship at Tokyo Dome
It's a rematch from the G1 Climax finals, 'The Cleaner' Kenny Omega goes one-on-one with Hirooki Goto for the opportunity to face the IWGP Champion in the main event of Wrestle Kingdom 11.
The opening threw me, but in a good way. We've got Omega coming out with The Young Bucks (who also had a great match earlier on), so I figured he's gonna strictly be the heel here, but we have Goto attack him before the bell and even using a foreign object in the process. This got quite a big boo from those in the Sumo Hall, and rightfully so. I thought it was cool to add that layer of story telling of how fucking pissed Goto is.
These guys knocked seven shades of shit out of each other. New Japan, and Japanese wrestling in general, is known for its 'Strong Style', but fuck me no matter how much you watch it's also wince-worthy when you get guys like these laying in their shots hard.
Those weren't the only painful looking aspects of the match though. Omega took some sore-looking bumps on the outside, going through a table and clonking his head on the steel guard rail. Looked real nasty. Kenny is awesome, he just is. His moveset is so cool, his facial expressions and body language is great, and he is so damn strong. Goto's a big lad and Kenny lifted him without too much a struggle.
This was a great match, hard thought, lots of dramatic moments and good storytelling.
It's also worth mentioning that if you liked the O'Reilly/Shibata match on ROH TV, this show also saw the two square off but for the NEVER Openweight Championship, in a match which I thought was a lot better than that at Field of Honour.
The Verdict
Best Match of the Week: The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Intercontinental Championship Match
Yep, fucking Miz has to put on great matches just to spite me doesn't he? There were great matches this week, notably Pentagon/Chavo/Rey and Omega/Goto, but I feel this match engrossed me so much more than the others, and kept me on the edge of my seat. Maybe if I knew more about what was going on with the Omega/Goto match ahead of time, I might have liked it more, but that's the circumstances we're working with here. Not to detract from Ziggler/Miz though, cuz that shit was amazing.
Welp, with one more week having arrived, raised hell and left, here's what the leaderboard looks like nowadays.
That's gonna just about be all from me this week folks! Thanks for clicking, reading and joining me for this one. I've got some new stuff in the works for those of you, or those you know, who might fancy trying to get into wrestling or just understanding it, so look forward to that gracing your screens sometime soon. I'll see you guys down the road!
Best Match of the Week: The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Intercontinental Championship Match
Yep, fucking Miz has to put on great matches just to spite me doesn't he? There were great matches this week, notably Pentagon/Chavo/Rey and Omega/Goto, but I feel this match engrossed me so much more than the others, and kept me on the edge of my seat. Maybe if I knew more about what was going on with the Omega/Goto match ahead of time, I might have liked it more, but that's the circumstances we're working with here. Not to detract from Ziggler/Miz though, cuz that shit was amazing.
Welp, with one more week having arrived, raised hell and left, here's what the leaderboard looks like nowadays.
That's gonna just about be all from me this week folks! Thanks for clicking, reading and joining me for this one. I've got some new stuff in the works for those of you, or those you know, who might fancy trying to get into wrestling or just understanding it, so look forward to that gracing your screens sometime soon. I'll see you guys down the road!
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