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[1995-08-04-SMW-Superbowl of Wrestling] Al Snow vs Marty Jannetty


Loss

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  • 2 months later...

Fantastic match, maybe one of the better U.S. matches of the year. Snow looks ready for the big time, and I really like the spot where he hides under the ring and Jannetty figures out what he's doing. Nice mix of highspots and ground work. This is much better than Malenko/Guerrero from TV a few days before this because the face/heel line in the sand is much sharper. A smarter, more thoughtful build than Malenko/Guerrero too. Jannetty's spin bump off of the clothesline was just great, as was Snow missing the slingshot legdrop and Jannetty immediately catching him with an atomic drop. Lots of parity spots that work well. As good as or better than any Michaels/Jannetty matches. There are some "boring" chants in this, but they win over the crowd by being patient and sticking to their guns, to a point where the heat is really strong down the final stretch.

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  • 5 months later...
  • 6 months later...
  • 1 year later...

Very slow to start--not *bad*, but slow, and we saw signs of impatience from the crowd. But it was all according to plan, as they go about 26 minutes without wearing things out. Jannetty is honestly about as limited offensively as Shawn Michaels, but I think he's smarter at transitions and counters--he has about a million ways to incorporate arm drags and sunset flips in various forms throughout a match that keep them looking fresh. This was easily better than Eddy/Dean, as the build-up to the big moves and learned psychology added a bit more to the parity storyline. And it was probably better than HBK/Jarrett in terms of working an epic match in a southern setting. I don't think it's quite the best SMW match, but it might be the best non-gimmick singles match.

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  • 2 years later...

#287

 

I'd been wanting to see Al Snow but hadn't been able to find any of his stuff so far. He looks like he stole Rick "The Model" Martel's kit bag! The early part of the match was filled with all sorts of US staples. There were plenty of leapfrogs and criss-cross spots, armdrags and hiptosses. There was even a fireman's carry and a backslide. It almost felt old-fashioned in a way. Solid, but not as exciting as watching Crockett workers do it during the Kip Frey era of WCW, for example. I thought Snow hiding under the ring was stupid and the payoff made it pointless. After that, he tried to up the stakes a bit with state-of-the-art offense like the powerbomb and a release german, but Jannetty didn't have the arsenal to match him. The finishing stretch was okay, but I never got the feeling I was watching anything special. My feelings were encapsulated by the finish -- "he held onto the tights. Is that it??"

 

Afterwards, one of the commentators mentioned off-camera that it was a hell of a match and that it was a shame that the crowd weren't into it more, but I think they were a bit too caught up in the old-school psychology of working the arm, wearing your man down and thinking two or three moves ahead to notice that Snow and Jannetty hadn't done enough to get the crowd invested. Not at a time when the bar was being constantly raised by the 90s workrate heroes. Snow seemed like a solid worker, but that "Sensational" Rick Martel shtick barely played its way into the match once the bell had rung and I think that was a big shortcoming since Jannetty wasn't really the most charismatic of dudes even in his Rockers days. .

 

So, a bit disappointing, but we'll see if anymore Al Snow makes the list.

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  • GSR changed the title to [1995-08-04-SMW-Superbowl of Wrestling] Al Snow vs Marty Jannetty
  • 4 weeks later...

OJ nailed on the charisma front these two, just didnt have it in the beginning. 

Midwest Territorial Heavyweight Champion Marty Jannetty vs Al Snow - SMW SuperBowl Of Wrestling

NEW ROCKERS EXPLODE~! ;);)

Man, I thought the Western States Heritage Title was the lamest title ever but Midwest Territorial Heavyweight Championship takes the cake. 

"Simply Sensational" Al Snow is going through his generic, cocky heel phase. First half of this match is just super solid American wrestling done at 90s workrate speed. So lots of shouldertackles into pinning combinations, lots of armdrags and a lot of symmetry to demonstrate this is an even wrestling contest. It looks inferior to what Benoit and Guerrero were doing around the same time, but it is very solid dont get me wrong. Benoit and Guerrero are just on another level. Jannetty is able to win an armdrag by punching Snow during a contested break out of a corner. Then it is just the usual babyface besting the heel at every turn with armdrags. Snow was trying a lot and losing, but he was not very charismatic about it. I knew he was the heel because he was losing the exchanges, but I didnt have any reason to boo him. The eventual turning point is a backbreaker by Snow and followed up by a nice belly to back suplex. Snow hits a spring board dive to the outside as we go full 90s there. Snow clearly wanted to show he was on the cutting edge of offense. We get a split-legged moonsault, a slingshot legdrop and a springboard legdrop. Out of all them, the springboard legdrop was the most impressive the way he missed and shot right up and sold was great. Then Marty hit an Atomic Drop! Best sequence of the match. The match improved with Snow on offense, but because Marty was better at selling. I loved Marty's bump into the railing. He basically did the Flair Flip or Bulldog upside down bump into the railing. It was insane and I never seen that done before. Great hope spot with the rana too timed well to make sure the crowd knew he was alive. There was definitely a lack of struggle in the match, a problem that plagues a lot of workrate exhibitions. Love the double dropkick and double clothesline late in the match. So 90s! These 90s pinning combinations, the Crucifix and that hook your toes under the armpits then O'Connor Roll just look clunky. Jannetty suicide dive and Snow hits his back hard against the table. They go old school with the finish as Snow rolls through the Jannetty crossbody and grabs the tights. "Simply Sensational" Al Snow is the NEW Midwest Territorial Heavyweight Champion, probably the peak of his singles career. :P

I didnt feel like there was anything to really carry this match. The face/heel dynamics werent that strong. Jannetty is a great face. Snow is a pretty poor heel. No interesting working psychology. Then the workrate which was what they were going for as the hook falls flat when you have seen Benoit, Guerrero and Mysterio crush it. Felt awkward and clunky. But there were good parts to the match and it was interesting. Just felt amateur. A for effort. ***1/4

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