Lurker > scarletspeed7

That's awesome charon.
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"It is too easy being monsters. Let us try to be human." ~Victor Frankenstein, Penny Dreadful

UltraMana posted...

Poker Night at the Inventory

The Thing
Human Torch
Wolverine
Cannonball
Captain Marvel (Carol Danvers)
Guy Gardner
Booster Gold
Blue Beetle (Ted Kord)
Renee Montoya

Weeeeeeeird.
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"It is too easy being monsters. Let us try to be human." ~Victor Frankenstein, Penny Dreadful

Cool cool. That's six at least.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Sci fi. November 5th. Let me know if you're planning on participating.

Metropolis
The Day The Earth Stood Still
When Worlds Collide
Forbidden Planet
Fantastic Voyage
Barbarella
2001: A Space Odyssey
Planet of the Apes
Westworld
Soylent Green
Logan's Run
Invasion of the Body Snatchers
Alien
Outland
Blade Runner (Watch 2007 version if possible)
The Terminator
Back to the Future
Aliens
RoboCop
They Live!
Total Recall
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
12 Monkeys
Independence Day
Gattaca
The Fifth Element
Men in Black
Dark City
The Matrix
Donnie Darko
Equilibrium
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Sunshine
District 9
Moon
Attack the Block
Gravity
Interstellar
Edge of Tomorrow
Ex Machina
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Day one of ranking is always hhhhhhhhhhhhhh tbh.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Update to Film Gauntlet with the most recent ranking list, 2018 and some odds and ends:
http://www.mediafire.com/file/rsj7ganqonp1rd1/Films.zip/file
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Jakyl25 posted...

https://twitter.com/rudygiuliani/status/1023540603215405056?s=21

Rudy is also a Twitter master

Honestly the number of different song lyrics posted in response to it are pretty impressive.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Chris lurked and in the end that's all that really matters. Thanks for following trdl!
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Lopen posted...

So I mean, what I'm talking about is related to story in that story will help bring it out, but not directly story, if that makes sense.

I can see what you're saying.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

But I can survive on snapshots of a character more than you. If Sid's incoherent promos and ring work created a more solidified character for me, he would have ranked higher. That said, Sid ranked as highly as he did for me because he was incoherent.

Scott Steiner is a great example of this. I ranked Steiner very highly because he is a coherent version of Sid's incoherency. There is an utterly stupid logic to Steiner. That's character, not story. Steiner's story arcs are the shits in TNA.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

I disagree with you Lopen. I just look for something different in characters than you. To me there has to be some nuance to a character. That's why I look at Luger and I'm like, "This is a character with some depth to him; I can rank this guy highly."

I don't really rate story for characters; I don't hold it against them too much. I try to rate the character purely for the character.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Lopen on the brain is a serious condition.

I think I work like this: Can the person put on an entertaining match? If so, you move on to round 2, if not rate. Round 2: can this person entertain me in between their matches? If so, move on to round 3, if not rate. Final Round: Does this character speak to me about something beyond simple wrestling? Rate based on this.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Gotcha. I do value great matches a lot though!
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

I'd be interested to hear what you value.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

I'm trying to think of what that would seriously entail. I think my biggest thing is being able to suspend my disbelief for entertaining segments, so I guess Panthera wants to not believe boring segments?

Triple H #1?
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Well if that was true you would reverse the rankings!
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Roddy Piper
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

It's fine, I'd rather have discussion than not.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Kamekguy posted...

Glad to lurk along to this topic. As a kid who worshiped at the heels of Savage and Hogan (mostly Savage) back in the day, to coming back in the late Attitude Era basically to hear The Rock's promos and ignoring a lot of the (non-Foley) wrestling content, to skipping most of the 2000's until the New Day piqued my interest and then diving back into the product retroactively to finally appreciate the whole "wrestling" content, this has really helped me fill in a lot of blanks and shown me an appreciation for the thing that isn't the usual wrestling smark stuff. Seeing guys like DiBiasse ranked so highly really makes me happy, as that kind of "pulling a great but not five-star match charged with enough emotion and character to make me care" is really what I love more than workrate, and that seems to be a hard opinion to find online past, like, Strowman in the last six months of 2017.

Don't totally agree with a lot, and the Savage fanboy in me can't entirely forgive him ONLY being 54 after watching his buildup to the Mania III match again and again, but this has been consistently enjoyable for a number of days, and thanks for it.

Thanks for following along. Admittedly, I am a little biased against Savage since I came to his greatest era years later and found the Steamboat-Savage match wanting a little bit. It's hard to rate a match when you are not the target audience for it, I think.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

It shouldn't be forgotten that Pillman also had amazing junior heavyweight matches and a fantastic run with Austin as the Blondes. There is still a lot there.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Ellie is actually a child version of Ellen Page.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Glad you followed along Snake!
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

For me, Pillman was an evolution over time and in different companies, and that always resonates with me as "real" for the character. Much like AJ Styles in that regard. The fact that he was cut short makes him more endearing for me because I have that dream of what's to come.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Thanks to everyone who followed along with this list. It certainly was a great time-killer at work. Special thanks to Lopen and Eddv and Tom who helped propel the conversation consistently. It really kept the topic going.

Now that it's finally finished, I'm probably going to post a topic looking for suggestions for another project, so if you're interested in helping alleviate my boredom some more, feel free to participate in that!
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Final Rankings:

150. Jenna Morasca
149. Ashley Massaro
148. The Great Khali
147. Krissy Vaine
146. The Final Solution
145. Rhaka Khan
144. Dave Crist
143. Rosa Mendes
142. Jackie Gayda
141. Matt Taven
140. Jinder Mahal
139. Heidenreich
138. Bryan Alvarez
137. Enzo Amore
136. Dan Matha
135. The Boogeyman
134. Vladimir Kozlov
133. Santino Marella
132. Glacier
131. Muhammad Hassan
130. Torrie Wilson
129. James Ellsworth
128. Nikki Bella
127. Jay White
126. The Shockmaster
125. Hornswoggle
124. Kevin Sullivan
123. Steve Blackman
122. Barry Darsow
121. Taylor Wilde
120. Ronda Rousey
119. Bob Holly
118. Chris Kanyon
117. Vickie Guerrero
116. Chase Owens
115. Disco Inferno
114. Sasha Banks
113. MVP
112. Buff Bagwell
111. The Big Boss Man
110. Heath Slater
109. Scott Norton
108. Charlotte Flair
107. Timothy Thatcher
106. Rich Swann
105. Goldust
104. Matt Sydal
103. Kane
102. Bayley
101. Tommaso Ciampa
100. Tyler Bate
99. Taichi
98. Mark Henry
97. Terry Gordy
96. Booker T
95. Vampiro
94. Ron Simmons
93. Dusty Rhodes
92. Dynamite Kid
91. Road Warrior Hawk
90. Raven
89. Alex Wright
88. SANADA
87. WALTER
86. Lou Thesz
85. Hirooki Goto
84. Chuck Taylor
83. Juice Robinson
82. Andre the Giant
81. Maria Kanellis
80. Hayabusa
79. Josh Mathews
78. Jacques Rougeau
77. Toru Yano
76. Triple H
75. Braun Strowman
74. Kevin Nash
73. Sid Vicious
72. EVIL
71. Perry Saturn
70. Daffney
69. Awesome Kong
68. Trish Stratus
67. Miz
66. Terry Funk
65. Kota Ibushi
64. Seth Rollins
63. Bruiser Brody
62. Billy Graham
61. Naomichi Marufuji
60. Brock Lesnar
59. Roderick Strong
58. Undertaker
57. AJ Lee
56. Kairi Sane
55. Chavo Guerrero
54. Randy Savage
53. Ultimo Dragon
52. John Cena
51. Hulk Hogan
50. Shawn Michaels
49. Jeff Hardy
48. Big Show
47. Rey Mysterio
46. Shinsuke Nakamura
45. Kurt Angle
44. Mickie James
43. Mick Foley
42. Jesse Ventura
41. Daniel Bryan
40. Scott Steiner
39. Finn Balor
38. KUSHIDA
37. Mister Perfect
36. Pentagon
35. Hurricane
34. Kazuchika Okada
33. CM Punk
32. Neville
31. Dave Meltzer
30. Ethan Carter III
29. Hiroshi Tanahashi
28. Edge
27. Eddie Guerrero
26. Dan Lambert
25. Tetsuya Naito
24. Matt Hardy
23. Will Ospreay
22. Jushin Liger
21. Becky Lynch
20. Dean Malenko
19. Hiromu Takahashi
18. Bobby Heenan
17. Bret Hart
16. William Regal
15. Eric Bischoff
14. Asuka
13. Lex Luger
12. Minoru Suzuki
11. Kenny Omega
10. Steve Austin
9. AJ Styles
8. Ric Flair
7. Tomohiro Ishii
6. Chris Jericho
5. Arn Anderson
4. Ted DiBiase
3. Jake Roberts
2. Brian Pillman
1. Diamond Dallas Page
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

#1 - Diamond Dallas Page Nominated by: JONA




He's a remarkable person both in and out of the ring, he's a man that turned the audience to his side purely thanks to his attitude in an era all about attitude, and he's the people's champion in a company of the biggest stars in the business. It's he, it's he, it's DDP, my #1 wrestler of all time.

I won't deny that fond memories propel DDP higher on this list. But I think of DDP as my home team. You always root for your home team. If wrestling is literature, than Page is the perfect representation of the villain redeemed, the everyman personified, and the vox populi magnified. It can certainly be said that DDP made his own way in the wrestling business. After a good run as a manager in AWA, he began training for active competition at age 35, a point where many wrestlers are already starting to eye retirement. Despite his age, he grew quickly into a reliable in-ring performer with a great deal of natural charisma. Early on he continued his heel persona from his AWA days, but after turning face his everyman persona, charisma and mastery of his Diamond Cutter finisher skyrocketed his popularity with the fans. Had a phenomenal feud with "Macho Man" Randy Savage and later gave Goldberg his career-best match.

The beauty of DDP is that he was willing to work constantly and with great effort. DDP believed in scripting his matches, and this actually worked in his favor. Every match was set up perfectly for DDP to get his character over even if he lost. DDP developed a character based on himself, so his mannerisms and body language really assisted in bolstering what fans saw in the ring. When little expressions are intentional, it can go a long way in defining a character, and DDP was first and foremost a character in wrestling.

When you look at his post-wrestling career and see just how much he is trying to give back to the business with DDP Yoga, you can't help but also root for him in real life as well. Not only has it helped some older talents fight addiction, but it's helped a LOT of younger talent overcome injury and maintain a core level of strength that gets them through long trips on the road in the grueling schedule of a modern worker. So DDP has a legacy that directly impacts a great number of workers.

For me, nothing is greater than DDP delivering a Diamond Cutter. Even Orton can't compare. And when I think of wrestling, my defining wrestling moment is DDP delivering that sneaky Diamond Cutter against the NWO and declaring his allegiance to WCW in what is still the greatest large-scale story in wrestling history. In the greatest era of wrestling history, DDP was my guy.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

#2 - Brian Pillman Nominated by: JONA




The line between fantasy and reality in professional wrestling is finer than most believe or comprehend.
No one performer walked that line on a regular basis more than the "Loose Cannon" Brian Pillman, a true visionary in the business and the man who I think had more influence on the Attitude Era than anyone else would give credit. Beginning in late 1995 and lasting until his unfortunate and untimely death in October of 1997, he underwent a character change that proved to be one of the most controversial in wrestling history and regularly had fans guessing as to what was real and what was simply an act.

Pillman quickly became one of the most talked about characters on television thanks to his unpredictable nature, but prior to changing his entire persona, Pillman was well-respected for his innovative, revolutionary, high-flying style that brought a flashiness to American wrestling typically reserved for Mexico and Japan.

It was a far cry from the man who really popularized the high flying style in North America. His feuds with Japanese sensation Jushin Liger were legendary and eventually propelled him into a tag team with his soon-to-be best friend Steve Austin. Austin often credits Pillman for really changing his view on the business and helping him develop his own (at the time) mediocre promo skills. If you look back at the Flair for the Old segments produced by the Hollywood Blondes, it was clear there was something special there.

Eventually Pillman began to suffer from some internal demons such as addiction thanks to a lifelong battle against polyps in his throat and extensive surgeries that stemmed back to age 5. Around this time, Pillman began developing his Loose Cannon character, a schtick that was worked both in front and behind the camera. There are famous legends of Pillman convincing WCW that he was having a surgery just to avoid appearing in the now infamously bad triple cage match where Hogan and Savage defeated 12 top heels in one match. Another legend tells of how Pillman tricked Eric Bischoff into letting him out of his contract as part of a bizarre angle with Kevin Sullivan in order to "sell it" to the smart fans. Pillman then left for ECW and WWF and Eric was left holding the bag.

In WWF, Pillman's run could have been something special. Aligned with the Hart Foundation, Pillman quickly became the Loose Cannon of the group, and his appearances often stole the show. When he began a singles feud with Steve Austin in WWF, one of the most controversial and influential segments in the history of wrestling was sure to follow, as Pillman began to blur the lines between reality and fiction to such an extent that no one was sure whether it was real or not. It certainly became water cooler talk though, and WWF discovered ratings followed with this new style of television formatting. However, within weeks, Pillman was found dead of an overdose, and a burgeoning new era in wrestling was forced to lurch forward without him.

One of the best wrestlers in the world during his time with WCW, it was a shame that his automobile accident did the extensive damage it did to his health, preventing a new audience in WWE fans from seeing just how truly great he was. His death came far too early as well, robbing future generations from watching the great performer ply his craft well into the next century.

As a final note, my first dynasty file in TEW featured Pillman as the eventual top star in a 1995 WCW. I think I've never felt the creative liberty I had with Pillman in any other file, and I think that's a testament to just how remarkable his character was.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

#3 - Jake Roberts Nominated by: Snake the Snake Roberts




Perhaps no other move during the WrestleMania era has been as feared as the DDT. Its creator was equally intimidating. Jake The Snake Roberts had something. Paul Heyman called it an intangible. Jake The Snake Roberts completely changed the way that wrestlers did interviews. Rather than scream and holler at the camera and make threats, the way the majority of wrestling promos worked for decades, Jake spoke in a very calm and monotone matter and delivered cerebral and at times, frightening, promos. Backed by a strangely nightmarish, yet invigorating, charisma, Jake put a stranglehold on the audiences mind like no other. Jake had free rein to create his own promos and fill them with imagery and symbolism that he felt fit his character, and that made a world of difference. Consequently, the greatest promo in the history of wrestling is Jake Roberts.

Jakes WWF run was filled with some of wrestlings most brutal moments. His first feud with Ricky The Dragon Steamboat took a dangerous turn when Jake DDTd Ricky on the concrete floor and cracked his head like a coconut. Jake legitimately knocked Ricky out cold. Then a short while later, Honky Tonk Man cracked Jake in the side of the head with a guitar to build up a match for Wrestlemania III. The plan was for Honky to hit Jake with a worked trick guitar, but somebody wound up making a mistake and replacing it with a real guitar, causing a concussion in Roberts head that led to his pain pill addiction. After this, Jake became a wildly popular babyface and began to battle heels such as Ted Dibiase, Bad News Brown, and an awesome feud with Ravishing Rick Rude after Rude hit on Jakes real life wife Cheryl who was in the front row.

All of these feuds had a visceral, real quality to them. They went further than other feuds in the Fed and gave Jake an air of legitimacy. Fans always had latched onto Jake thanks to his intangible charisma, but his midcard storylines really helped propel an era anchored on one or two big stars even further. When your entire card from top to bottom is compelling, it makes a world of difference.

It's always been interesting to me, and a testament to the star quality of Jake in his prime, that he ruined his own chances at a main event push. How? In 1988, Jake was being primed for a run against Hulk Hogan. However, on house shows, Jake could not stop getting cheered against Hogan, and Vince dropped the angle after seeing the crowd split. Hogan couldn't keep the crowd on his side against Jake, and that says a lot for Jake. At the height of one of the biggest wrestling star's popularity, Jake was leeching the crowd away from said star. If that doesn't demonstrate the innate charisma of Roberts, I don't know what does.

Even though his personal demons eventually ended the prominence of his career, Jake is still fondly regarded by many as the most fantastic character in a universe inhabited by fantastic characters.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

I wouldn't be surprised if Arn influenced him, but Austin always says that Stone Cold Steve Austin is based on Vince McMahon.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

#4 - Ted DiBiase Nominated by: JONA




The best pure heel in the wrestling business, DiBiase was a phenomenal worker in his era and one of the most criminally underutilized guys on the WWF roster. Throughout wrestling history, the best performers have had the ability to combine both sport and entertainment. They are the men and women who have left the greatest marks on the industry and, at the same time, captured the imaginations of millions of fans worldwide. Ted DiBiase's ability to blend outstanding in-ring work with an over-the-top character made him one of the most memorable and enduring characters in the business.

If you look at his entire WWE run, it centered on a character who believed in the philosophy of "greed is good", an acolyte of the Gordon Gekko era. What made him tick so well was that he also completely believed that other wrestlers subscribed to this same philosophy. His plots were always about forcing his opponent to succumb to the seduction of the dollar in the same way he did. In a lot of ways, he was like the devil tempting Christ over and over and over again. But even if the basic tenets of a DiBiase feud didn't change, the variety of ways in which he proselytized his faith were different enoguh to keep a fan engaged. He also spent most of his WWE career in positions of influence so that he really did appear to be a big name player who's name carried some weight. There were times where the Million Dollar Belt, a completely bogus title with no significance created purely by DiBiase, felt more significant than other titles in the company. That's quite an achievement and testament to the power of DiBiase's promo skills.

DiBiase was also a master of cutting an old school promo, and the fact that he was able to lay into his character gave him an edge over every Tito Santana or Greg Valentine in the business. DiBiase was a performer in every sense of the word, and his comic book villainy was layered with just enough simple philosophy and morality that it drew you in and made you think just a little bit during DiBiase's matches. And when I watch wrestling, I want that superhero treatment. Superheroes are, at their core, modern day mythology, allegories for which we can explore the problems of our world through the lens of another. DiBiase rose at a time in which affluence and greed were worshiped, and, like a twisted mirror, DiBiase reflected the very worst those attributes had to offer. For me, that makes him an utterly perfect character.

Though he was never officially recognized as WWE champion, a title he deserved at least once in his storied career, DiBiase is remembered as one of the top stars of the first big wrestling boom.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Arn isn't the title winner though and that's why he had a great little feud with Flair. The point of Arn was that he served as Ric's support (in a multitude of ways). He morphed into the leader of the Horsemen because he was a teacher to younger members as time went on as well as a grounded center for the group like Martian Manhunter in the Justice League.

And the reasons he gives for why someone couldn't be a Horsemen start as saying that they operate on a high level of wrestling and slowly become "you spend so much time operating on this high level that you're going to destroy your own life."

And this idea that he needs to have a singles title is really flawed. Think of WCW as a traditional old school promotion that it was. Arn won enough titles to earn the respect he should have in the tag division. I'm really not huge on everyone having a copious number of belts. He wrestled great matches and defeated a lot of tough opponents. He earned the credibility. I don't take Miz seriously up until this day and he has a warchest of titles. But he does WWE crap comedy just like everyone else and I can't accept him as legitimate.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Arn's promos are really different from Bret's. Arn is a teacher and his consistent theme is that the life of a Horseman shouldn't appeal to anyone. It takes a toll on a man and it strains the family to a breaking point, all because of a concept that is more like tilting at windmills than achieving anything satisfying. And during the Monday Night Wars, the Horsemen were clearly a gang of bad guys, but their "bad" at least had a code of honor to it. There was a camaraderie and a code and a price you paid to be a Horseman.

I don't know. I just find Arn to be a very excellent character who pondered all of these moral questions in wrestling that no one else ever does.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

I didn't watch old Arn and his promos meant a lot to me even without watching the Horsemen of yore.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

In some ways, Ric Flair is the best friend ever, because he knew Arn needed a Ric Flair.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Waiting for @Eddv to talk about my boy Arn.

Also Jona has 75% of the remaining field! Pretty solid sweep.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

MGSV is a game that has trouble reconciling the previous games' heavy characterization with its design. I think all characters suffer a little because of it. But the gameplay is more fun than normal. It's a mixed bag, I guess.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Let's talk about MGSV Ocelot.

Ocelot was one of the three Metal Gear characters I would have guessed. Although I would've predicted higher so I'm guessing we have more MGS coming than I thought.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

I'm in for Dragon Quest III. Probably it for me this month.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

#5 - Arn Anderson Nominated by: Eddv

Arn Anderson is the singularly most realistic wrestler both in-ring and on the mic.

One of the words most often associated with perennial Four Horsemen enforcer Arn Anderson is often overlooked. Whether in singles competition, or as part of the Tag Team Champions in WCW or the WWF, Anderson was a "wrestler's wrestler." Anderson, a thinking man's technician, would often isolate a body part before nailing his opponents, who were usually either bigger or faster, with an AA spinebuster or DDT. Always using great, quiet psychology, Arn was Ric Flair's rock, and the proto-Cerebral Assassin. Arn's style always stood out as a real world, competitive style. When he wasn't using outside shenanigans in order to ensure a victory, Arn would prove mentally tough; there were easy-to-explain tactics in Arn's arsenal, and those explanation produced the air of a character that truly knew what he was doing. Combine that with the general crispness of Arn's work, and you could put him in front of a non-wrestling fan and probably convince them that this guy was really, truly wrestling and not just "acting".

But the aspect of Arn that pushes him into my Top 5 (and really everyone in my Top 5 lands here for this) is his promo work. Arn Anderson has to be the most forgotten promo in the modern world. I don't need loud promos or funny segments in my wrestling. I just need to be able to BELIEVE. I need to suspend my disbelief. Arn created for himself one of the most complex characters in the history of wrestling. Was Arn a bad guy? Sometimes. But often you could overlook it because of the attention to detail in his promos. He poured out his heart and soul into his work and it always showed. I can't even truly do justice to Arn's intricacy. He spoke with the pain of a veteran fighting for his family, thinking only of putting food on their table, even at the expense of every other worker around him. It was noble and also at times morally repugnant, and that layered text spoke volumes in every move he did and every word he said. No character ever felt as fleshed out to me as Arn Anderson. His cadence was that of a thinking man, a philosopher of sorts. He sought to justify his every action, not to the audience, but to himself and his fellow Horsemen. In the end, this drive created a quiet, reserved and deadly threat.

Take a look at what I consider the height of character:




Arn Anderson presented a noble savage. A man who made great sacrifices for a purpose he believed was unassailable: defending his friends and providing for his family. He treated the Horsemen like they mattered, and because he did, they mattered.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

And then there were five:

Arn Anderson (Eddv)
Brian Pillman (JONA)
Diamond Dallas Page (JONA)
Jake Roberts (Snake)
Ted DiBiase (JONA)
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

#6 - Chris Jericho Nominated by: Inviso




Chris Jericho is the master of reinvention and probably the most purely creative mind in the business.

Strictly from an in-ring perspective, few Superstars have entered WWE with an ability to have as many good matches against as varied a crop of workers as Jericho. Over the course of his 18 years with Vince McMahon's company, he has had the opportunity to work with everyone from The Rock to Fandango and, in the process, has delivered truly definitive matches across several eras. On top of his WWE run is a fantastic rookie plow through the cruiserweight division of WCW in a host of major feuds. Jericho comes away with an eclectic variety of iconic moments in the US alone, but when you add his current New Japan feud, you can just make a laundry list of all of the great Jericho moments. I feel the only proper way to do a Jericho write-up justice is to make a list:

1) The Man of 1,004 Holds Promo
2) The Jericho/Malenko Feud
3) Jericho Blaming the Locker Room in WCW as Part of a Conspiracy to Keep Him Down
4) Jericho Mocking Goldberg's Entrance
5) The Countdown to Jericho's WWF Debut, Probably the Singularly Greatest Debut in Wrestling History
6) Jericho and Chyna
7) Jericho's Spell in the Tag Division in 2001
8) Jericho Becoming the First Undisputed Champion
9) Jericho and Christian Feud
10) Save_Us.Y2J
11) Jericho vs. Shawn Michaels
12) Jericho vs. CM Punk
13) Jericho's Silent Promos
14) The List
15) The Festival of Friendship
16) Jericho vs. Omega
17) Jericho vs. Naito

I could break down all of these individual moments, but the fact that most wrestlers are lucky to get 5 or 6 truly iconic moments or characters or feuds and Jericho sits at 17 with still no end in sight is a testament to just how truly, truly great Jericho remains until this day. A master of evolving to meet the demands of a changing crowd, Jericho is an expert in storytelling, an in-ring specialist, and a lock from my #6 spot on this list.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

#7 - Tomohiro Ishii Nominated by: JONA




Tomohiro Ishii is, quite honestly, my favorite wrestler on the planet.

From a purely wrestling perspective, he may not be the same technical marvel or high spot flying death defying magician that other workers are, but there's no wrestler who has created more enjoyment in a match than Ishii. Tomohiro Ishii is an awe-inspiring professional wrestler. No, he wont wow you with amazing aerial moves, mind melting athleticism or classy technical displays. But he will brawl with you. He will invite and take each and every shot you have, and dish out blows just as hard. Might even pick up guys twice his size for a slam or suplex. Or counter a bomb with uncanny craftiness, using hurricanranas or stunners with a grace you would never think he could pull off. If you drop him in his head, he may rise up immediately. If you pin him, he may kick out at one, just to prove a point. His fighting spirit makes him do things no one could ever believe he would be able to, in a staggeringly consistent manner.

Stone Pitbull is one of the most perfect monikers in all of wrestling, because it encapsulates most of Ishiis personality in just two words. Imagine a Pitbull, okay? Not a lot of expressions, usually. Yet, when its angry, it will come at you ferociously and persistently. Now, and picture this really hard: it is made out of actual stone. Oh fuck, how do you get rid of this thing? Do I have to break it? Can I even break it? But heres the thing: even with the intimidating figure, it is still a dog, so its inherently likable. Sometimes you cant help but be in awe. And thats how Ishii is.

And, as a final tidbit, there's no better shoot comment than Ishii believing that when he came to ROH, they handed him the top belt in the promotion when it was just the TV Title.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

#8 - Ric Flair Nominated by: Inviso




There will almost certainly be another C.M. Punk. There may be another Rock. There may be another Stone Cold Steve Austin. There may even be another Lou Theisz (another candidate). But there will never again be another Ric Flair because theres no place to do what he was so good at. And I doubt any other main event talent in history has either got more four star matches out of mediocre talent in their first ever meeting or put more mediocre talent over than Ric Flair.

Ric Flair was a great wrestler with more than his share of five star matches with both a lot of skill and ring psychology and he was damn good on the mic all supported by a very good gimmick - but so is literally every first rate wrestler in history. Ric Flair had to regularly fight against people hed never met before, making them look good no matter how good they really were - and frequently leaving the local audience able to at least tell themselves the local champion had been cheated of the title.

He didnt just pull five star matches out against great wrestlers - he pulled four star matches out against mediocre wrestlers who used literally any style seen anywhere in America or Japan. He could brawl with the brawlers, he could grapple the grapplers, and he could handle the high flyers. And on top of that, he was one of the most outlandish, ridiculous characters in history. In the best way possible.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Reunited and it feels so good:

https://imgur.com/Gbhriz9
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Can someone please tell me why Hardcore typed "Oooh, Meltzer" and didn't reference Chavo's theme? Or why he's still pushing his anti-Meltzer agenda?
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

Can't wait to photoshop Riddle shaking Triple H's hand
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

It's official?
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

I think it says a lot that there was 10% growth vs. 1% drop and it's a clear overall drop. It used to be way more even with men and women.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

That might actually be cute if they frame it right. I mean, it is LOLTNA, but it's also a completely different regime.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer

You almost hope more people tune out or turn over to Smackdown in order to help push the message, but I think we're close to bottom levels in terms of audience.
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"Reading would be your friend." ~Dave Meltzer