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2017 MOTY Yes/No Thread


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I'd like to see Shibata vs Goto represented, even if everyone says no.

I'd say yes to Shibata/Goto.

Just a note, nominations and votes should be accompanied by a sentence or two explaining why.

 

 

 

 

Shibata works like a rabid dog. It's such an adrenaline-frenzied way of working that his "no selling" doesn't bother me and I think his long-term selling pays off in the end after all the shit he's endured catches up with him. The W1 Akiyama match is a perfect example of that. I thought this match was great, the only one that had me hooked in from start to finish. I don't get too excited by Goto and I think he was decent to good for most of the match but they built heat and escalated the violence in a believable way that by the finish, he looked really strong and pissed off. Shibata's selling and facials were terrific down the stretch and made Goto look even more dominant coming out as champ.
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Shibata vs Goto - NO

Naito vs Tanahashi - YES

Omega vs Okada - YES

 

Thoughts on those in the WK11 thread.

 

Strong BJ vs Twin Towers- YES

I really enjoyed this. I thought it was a half step below some of their best they had back in 2015 (it was 2015 right?) but still a lot of fun. That headbutt was unreal. Maybe my favorite so far.

 

Nominating-

Kushida vs Takahashi NJPW 1/4

When was the last time the Dome crowd gave a shit about a junior match? I can't think of it. Thats what these guys accomplished, they made the Dome crowd care about a Junior match that involved a guy who had been away on excursion for the past 3 years. Yeah there were botched spots, but that almost added to the frenetic pace of the match. This was exactly what it needed to be- Takahashi returning and being crowned as the next junior ace.

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Big YES to Shibata/Goto 1.4:

 

I reviewed it here with pics/gifs: http://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2017/01/new-japan-pro-wrestling-142017-never.html

 

I wrote:

Hirooki Goto beat Katsuyori Shibata with the GTR. Awesome match. This was all brawling all the time and I loved it. A real man's man battle here with tons of haymakers. Everything Shibata did looked good. He even made corner stomps look legit, which almost every wrestler I've seen has been unable to do. Goto and Shibata match up so well together and this was another instance. They took it to the next level here with some of their exchanges and everything looked like it hurt. They did do a few no sells on suplexes which I hated, but overall I can forgive it for the strong work in other area's. Awesome pro wrestling and a definite must see match. Goto got the big win here and maybe NJPW can figure out how to get him in the main event in 2017. Rating:****1/2

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Nominating El Phantasmo vs Kyle O'Reilly (ECCW 1/14/2017)

 

KOR returns to his hometown and promotion for a title shot and the crowd is nuts for this.

 

El Phantasmo seems to be one of the best high flyers in the world and I've never seen him before. Seriously he does a rope walk moonsault to the floor and a dropkick from turnbuckle to corner diagonally across the ring. Just insane.. KOR worked his ass off keeping the match super dramatic and intense. KOR was just on another level working in his hometown. I'd say this is the best match I've seen all year (maybe on par with Yehi-Henry, but the crowd is super hot here). Easy nomination.

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I'll go with a yes to Bate/Dunn. Just a great match. My only critic is Bate didn't sell much of the shoulder injury. I loved the finish. I think Bate go the Tiger Driver over as legit finisher.

 

Nominating:

Pete Dunn vs Mark Andrews 1/15/17. I thought this was every bit as good as the final. Andrews is graceful when he does is shooting star press!

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Voting:

 

Dunn vs Bate-Yes. A tremendous final. The only critique I have is Bate really didn't do a good job selling the shoulder. Still though I overlooked it. Bate really got the Tiger Driver over as a legit finisher.

 

Nominating:

Mark Andrews vs Pete Dunn. I thought this was just as good as the final. Andrews just is so graceful with everything he does in the ring, especially his shooting star press.

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El Phantasmo vs Kyle O'Reilly (ECCW 1/14/2017)- NO

 

This match had a hot crowd and Phantasmo has some springs for legs. That's the good. The bad- There was so many over contrived, overly cooperative spots in this match. And this is coming from somebody who like Okada vs Omega (and usually likes Okada's work in general so I have a high tolerance for athletic overly cooperative nonsense). With that said there were several times in the match where I was like what the fuck. Really I feel like Phantasmo missed his calling as a gymnast. Anyways there was a really hot crowd and that sort of saved it from being unwatchable.

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My reviews of these are in the UK and WK threads, but I can dig them up if need be.

 

YES to:

Bate vs. Dunne

Shibata vs. Goto

Naito vs. Tanahashi

Okada vs. Omega

 

NO to:

Dunne vs. Andrews

Kushida vs. Hiromu

 

Nominating: Drew Galloway vs. Bully Ray (WhatCulture, 1/6/17)

This is a match where the face joins the crowd for a beer. It is one of multiple nut shots. Of a long heel promo in which Liverpool is praised and promises to be broken are made. Of mugging to the crowd and foreign objects. Whereas Rhodes-Ricochet in the match prior to this seemed to have no story, this is all story. A wild brawl through the crowd, with Bully doing hardly more than throwing punches and gouging eyes. Timeless characters played very well by both: Galloway is less obvious, but he is a killer babyface here as he gives Ray a ton and sells so believably. Not sure who the two small money mark looking dudes were at the end, but this also had an ending and post-match angle that felt big and crazy yet totally worked, presenting a big star who seems way better suited as a heel than his usual role as a face.

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NOMINATING-

Matt Riddle vs Katsuyori Shibata RevPro 1/21/17

 

This was a lot a fun. It was a Shibata type match where they just beat the shit out of each other at a frenzied pace. Some really great echanges. Hot crowd. Only problem with it is there's some limbwork that doesn't go anywhere, but in the scheme of things, you don't expect much working over a body part in a Shibata type of match.

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I'll throw Shibata/Riddle a YES. My thoughts are in the match thread, but I feel like it's worth noting further how much fun Riddle's selling and facial expressions are here. His staggering dazedness reminds me of Kawada at times, and he really makes Shibata look like a badass. Only complaints I have are that Riddle's strikes early on felt pretty light compared to Shibata's, and then the inevitable German trading section was a bit obnoxious. This was certainly a Shibata match, and a real good one. I have it just above the Goto match.

 

Also, while I usually hate the English crowd singing and chanting, I did enjoy them singing Spandau Ballet's "Gold" throughout this match. I had no context, no idea why they were doing it, but I thought it was fun.

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Yes to Dunn/Bate from the UK Tournament.
No to Dunn/Andrews from the UK Tournament.
No to Goto/Shibata from Wrestle Kingdom...but it's really close.
HARD NO to Kushida/Takahashi from Wrestle Kingdom

 

Please provide reasons, even a sentence or link to your words elsewhere.

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Nominating: Imposible vs Relampago (IWRG, 1/22)

 

A really heated lucha match with an amazing beat down by the rudo for the first two falls. So much so the crowd (to be fair, a lot of them were his "clients") interfered giving the babyface water, distracting the referee, and saving him from future torture.

 

The crowd brawling section was as good as I've seen that done in a long long time. Great match!

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I'll throw Shibata/Riddle a YES. My thoughts are in the match thread, but I feel like it's worth noting further how much fun Riddle's selling and facial expressions are here. His staggering dazedness reminds me of Kawada at times, and he really makes Shibata look like a badass. Only complaints I have are that Riddle's strikes early on felt pretty light compared to Shibata's, and then the inevitable German trading section was a bit obnoxious. This was certainly a Shibata match, and a real good one. I have it just above the Goto match.

 

Also, while I usually hate the English crowd singing and chanting, I did enjoy them singing Spandau Ballet's "Gold" throughout this match. I had no context, no idea why they were doing it, but I thought it was fun.

The crowd are replacing gold with 'bro' whilst singing. Pretty funny stuff.
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