Kurt Angle

[Grimmas]

Discuss here.

[Matt D]

Nothing quite proves the anecdote about him telling Eddy to sell less so he could get to the next spot more than actually watching the guy wrestle.

 

Also he doesn't actually wrestle on the mat nearly enough, ever.

 

He wouldn't make my top 500 even if I had to list Roadblock four times to keep him out.

[Goodear]

Just such a frustrating watch as he seemed to get so much about wrestling so quickly his first couple of years and then regressed into the "main event wrestler" style he has to this day. The guy just never learned to let things breathe even a little and always seems more interested in making memorable moments instead of having meaningful matches. Whoever discovered that Angle could do pretty moonsaults should never have told him about it. It made him way worse.

[Timbo Slice]

No chance. Why he decided to go the route he did in his ring style is beyond me. As much a fan as I was of his at first, the more I watched him, the more I stopped enjoying him.

[BigBadMick]

I'm paraphrasing, but someone mentioned that KENTA only has one speed, but it's a good speed. Feel the same with Angle.

 

He's not a darling around here, but I enjoy his matches, flaws and all.

 

I also think TNA seems to be a blind spot with a lot of posters, and would recommend his matches v McGuinness, Kennedy, Hardy, Storm, Aries and Roode. Just to get you started

[W2BTD]

The Desmond Wolfe stuff in TNA, including the angles, are hidden gems.

 

I love Angle, and love the way he works. I don't remember if it was here or someplace else, so if i'm repeating myself i'm sorry, but his pace & style is exactly what I want out of his character. He's the high school bully jock who never knows when to turn it off, and spikes volleyballs into girls faces in gym class. He's the guy who makes everybody uneasy because you never know when he's going to randomly body check you into a locker or punch you in arm for no good reason. When I watch an Angle match, I want non stop action, I want people to get thrown on their heads, I want intensity, I want him to pull down his straps and scream like a lunatic, I want him to outwork whoever gets in his way, I want him to go go go go like a god damn machine. And that's exactly what he does.

 

If I want to see somebody sell, i'll watch Whipwreck. If I want to watch somebody grapple, I'll watch Regal. I want Angle to be the bully jock and fucking kill people. He's top ten material in my book.

[Matt D]

The Kennedy cage match is fucking terrible but I actually didn't mind their singles match on PPV the month before.

[Dylan Waco]

Actually the only time I thought Angle was the bully jock was during his WWECW phase - which was also the last time I thought he was any good.

[BillThompson]

Probably top 20 for me. I get that he's not well liked around these parts, and his style isn't usually a style that appeals to me. That being said, I really love the way Angle works matches, how he hits his spots, the pace he sets, etc. His run from 2000-2009 makes him a lock for this list, but the fact that he's still been relatively good in his twilight years is what keeps him up near the top of my list.

[FedEx227]

He's going to be a polarizing guy in this because like Bill and W2B, I'm a huge fan as his pace doesn't bother me much. I haven't been in love with much of his TNA work but I thought he had some great matches in WWE against a variety of different opponents. The biggest disappointment is him not being able to have a longer run in WWECW as I think character and in-ring wise he was really starting to hit his true peak.

 

He's going to be high on my list.

[Matt D]

Is there a dumber wrestler out there when it comes to the art of pro wrestling? RVD was just high and apathetic. Sid had the general sense of what he was supposed to do. He just couldn't do it. Someone list me some names.

[soup23]

Wonder what people think of the Edge series in 2002 as I was really disappointed in watching those matches a couple of months ago.

 

I thought Angle didn't have the pace that plays up to his gimmick in those matches. He was willing to kill time chatting it up with the fans, applying chinlocks and being lackadaisical. It didn't seem like a high school bully thinking he was better than everyone either. He seemed genuinely aloof. Edge for his part didn't help matters as the SummerSlam 2002 displays Angle's strengths a lot better, but those two matches were striking to me at how lifeless they were considering they get thrown out as underrated WWE gems all the time.

[JazeUSA]

His matches in TNA against Samoa Joe, AJ Styles, & Desmond Wolfe were all pretty good I thought.... the KOTR match against Shane Mcmahon (a non trained part timer) & how about his NJPW matches against Yugi Nagata & Hiroshi Tanahashi? I think Angle is pretty good IMO, I think he is in the top 25% of workers

[W2BTD]

Wonder what people think of the Edge series in 2002 as I was really disappointed in watching those matches a couple of months ago.

 

I thought Angle didn't have the pace that plays up to his gimmick in those matches. He was willing to kill time chatting it up with the fans, applying chinlocks and being lackadaisical. It didn't seem like a high school bully thinking he was better than everyone either. He seemed genuinely aloof. Edge for his part didn't help matters as the SummerSlam 2002 displays Angle's strengths a lot better, but those two matches were striking to me at how lifeless they were considering they get thrown out as underrated WWE gems all the time.

 

I can't even remember these matches. That probably tells you what I think of them.

[FedEx227]

I have no memory of them either. As a note, I absolutely hated Edge in that era so I probably didn't like them at all.

[moazzam23]

Probably the dumbest thing I've seen on an Angle match was Shane McMahon one-upping him on the mat in their street fight, but that might not have been Angle's idea. But I always liked him to varying degrees in 2000-06 so I will consider him.

[soup23]

We have some good TNA recs from Mick and Joe.

 

What would be some of the hidden gems for Angle in WWF/WWE. I can see him having a shot at my top 100.

[Matt D]

Has anyone watched the RR Benoit match lately? That's something I was at live. It was universally loved at the time. Some of the 2001 Austin series were universally loved as well. This stuff probably needs to be revisited. The Cena debut match. Some of the Lesnar series for both guys. Smackdown six stuff. There's a decent amount that needs to be looked at, I guess. I'm not going to be doing it though, not unless people who aren't already praising him come back with pretty universal praise. I think people need to look at the Henry match from 2006 and see if it's bad as Meltzer thinks (and he fully blames Henry of course).

 

Actually, I've never seen it. I need to look at that match and I will.

[FedEx227]

Probably the dumbest thing I've seen on an Angle match was Shane McMahon one-upping him on the mat in their street fight, but that might not have been Angle's idea. But I always liked him to varying degrees in 2000-06 so I will consider him.

 

Given that Shane McMahon was routinely booked to be better than everyday in-ring workers in a number of his matches, I'll assume that wasn't all on Angle.

[soup23]

I did watch the Cena debut match a few months ago too and thought it was fine and a perfectly acceptable performance from both men.

 

Grimmas really loved the Benoit Rumble match. LOL

[NintendoLogic]

The Austin Summerslam match is one of my favorite matches of all time, but it should be noted that it's not a Kurt Angle workrate match at all. It's a brawl with Angle spending most of the match bleeding and selling. There are a few Kurt Angle moments, but they're incidental.

[Matt D]

I have to revisit a lot of Austin from that era. I haven't seen a ton of 98-01 since it first happened and I really wasn't hotwired to appreciate brawls as a teenager.

[WingedEagle]

Maybe I'm crazy but I didn't mind the odd spot like Shane outwrestling Kurt. Done well and very sparingly, that always seemed like someone pulling out a move from the and1 tour just to pop people for a second before getting back to business. I found the extended mat wrestling in the Benoit match at 17 a lot more tedious and absurd.

[tim]

Has anyone watched the RR Benoit match lately? That's something I was at live. It was universally loved at the time. Some of the 2001 Austin series were universally loved as well. This stuff probably needs to be revisited. The Cena debut match. Some of the Lesnar series for both guys. Smackdown six stuff. There's a decent amount that needs to be looked at, I guess. I'm not going to be doing it though, not unless people who aren't already praising him come back with pretty universal praise. I think people need to look at the Henry match from 2006 and see if it's bad as Meltzer thinks (and he fully blames Henry of course).

 

Actually, I've never seen it. I need to look at that match and I will.

 

For what it's worth, I remember liking the Judgment Day Henry/Angle match when I watched it at the time, right after I started coming around on Henry thanks to the Rey matches.

 

Also, 2006 Angle was my least favorite iteration of him. I don't know if I could call it the worst because I haven't re-watched Angle in any systematic way and won't do so because I know he doesn't have a chance for making my list. Super-intense mouthguard corner strike Angle fucking did me in in 2006, hated it.

[BillThompson]

I watched the Benoit Rumble match earlier this year, and still loved the hell out of it.