Top 100 Revisited

[LiquidLarry2GhostWF]

Alright, I'm stopping at 81, I just don't want to split hairs anymore...my head hurts.

1. Ric Flair
2. Shawn Michaels
3. Kenta Kobashi
4. Randy Savage
5. Bryan Danielson
6. Mitsuhara Misawa
7. Chris Jericho
8. Eddie Guerrero
9. Ricky Steamboat
10. Hiroshi Tanahashi
11. Kurt Angle
12. CM Punk
13. Jushin Liger
14. Dynamite Kid
15. Brian Pillman
16. Bret Hart
17. Steve Austin
18. Tiger Mask I
19. Terry Funk
20. Mick Foley
21. El Generico
22. KENTA
23. Chris Benoit
24. Keiji Mutoh
25. Vader
26. Nick Bockwinkel
27. Ultimo Dragon
28. Rey Mysterio Jr.
29. Owen Hart
30. Samoa Joe
31. AJ Styles
32. Naomichi Marufuji
33. Kevin Steen
34. The Undertaker
35. Kazuchika Okada
36. Bruiser Brody
37. Stan Hansen
38. Davey Richards
39. Curt Hennig
40. Nigel McGuiness
41. Claudio Castagnoli
42. Dean Malenko
43. John Cena
44. Hulk Hogan
45. Arn Anderson
46. The Rock
47. Tully Blanchard
48. Toshiaki Kawada
49. Sting
50. Rob Van Dam
51. Edge
52. Genichiro Tenryu
53. Shinsuke Nakamura
54. Davey Boy Smith
55. Christopher Daniels
56. Prince Devitt
57. Austin Aries
58. Christian
59. Minoru Tanaka
60. Kensuke Sasake
61. William Regal
62. Fit Finlay
63. Masato Tanaka
64. Minoru Suzuki
65. Barry Windham
66. Ted Dibiase
67. Bam Bam Bigelow
68. Dragon Kid
69. Taz
70. SHINGO
71. Dusty Rhodes
72. Katsuhiko Nakajima
73. Kota Ibushi
74. Go Shiozaki
75. Tito Santana
76. La Sombra
77. Larry Zybysko
78. Booker T
79. Rick Martel
80. Magnum TA
81. Art Barr


I will just let it be known, that card is subject to change. I may change this thing at any time I happen to remember something. Honestly, I started to use the very awesome "If I was stranded on an island and only could watch matches from X, who would I choose?" method right around #4.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Love the Tito Santana shout.

I only got two gripes.

-Edge over Christian means we have to fight. But that's a minor gripe.




























-Sorry, that was me stalling before posting my major gripe, Larry Zbyszko, like he stalled at the start of every match of his career. Seriously, fuck that guy. I hate him.

Good list.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Also, we can both get fucked for not including Tajiri.

Man, what was I thinking?

 

[LiquidLarry2GhostWF]

Love the Tito Santana shout.

I only got two gripes.

-Edge over Christian means we have to fight. But that's a minor gripe.

-Sorry, that was me stalling before posting my major gripe, Larry Zbyszko, like he stalled at the start of every match of his career. Seriously, fuck that guy. I hate him.

Good list.

Tito Santana rarely had bad matches. They had him run and mostly headline B-circuit for like a decade because he was such a good worker.

In 2009, when you made your list, I would not have included Edge on it at all. A few years later and a crash watch on his career and I put him somewhere in the middle. Christian is more consistent, while Edge is better at the high end, IMO.

I like Zbyszko, but at that point, I was running on fumes. I could probably put another 50 guys on the list if I thought hard enough, and still might, but I tap out for tonight.

 

[LiquidLarry2GhostWF]

Also, we can both get fucked for not including Tajiri.

Man, what was I thinking?

He is actually in my next 20, but I'm not putting them in order tonight.

 

[LiquidLarry2GhostWF]

The two hardest guys I found to place were KENTA and Benoit. I'm well aware they are A+ workers, but I never had a period where I marked out hard for their stuff like a lot of fans did, so thinking back at their stuff, its hard to judge with the rose colored glasses.

If I overrated someone, oddly, it was probably Foley, but every time I try and move him down, I can't stop thinking about the number of stars he made that dominated the 90's. I just can't move him down on pure principle.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

I had no idea what to do with Mick Foley, I had all sorts of trouble with him myself. I like him just fine, and his best stuff is as cerebral and brilliant as it gets, but with a gun to my head, I rather watch the workhorse types. So he ended up sort of like an Undertaker type or Terry Gordy or Hansen where yeah, they belong on the list more so than some of the people who made it, but I didn't want to bother sticking them at #87 or whatever so instead went with some vanity picks to spice things up and rattle some cages.

 

[s@ppisgod]

Christian and Edge are totally different animals. Christian is the better wrestler, but Edge is infinitely more entertaining in the ring. He was the first guy to get a really good match out of Cena when Cena was at his stalest. Edge had great matches with Taker, Angle, Foley, an underrated match with Flair, etc. Christian is the type who would turn a short 10 minute match into a really fun watch. Versus Edge who really built to well-placed big spots and reversals. Such a great fit for the WWE's formulaic "great" matches of counter-finishers, trade finishers, false finishes, then ending.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Many of Edge's great matches are gimmick matches and stunt shows. Sounds like a knock, and I guess it is, but I don't mean it to be.

Christian appeals more to my tastes. I like a good ladder match just as much as the next guy, but man, Christian is a wrestler's wrestler. He can really put together a compelling match, and he really helped me turn a corner on Randy Orton of all people in 2011.

 

[s@ppisgod]

Larry, only real problem I have with your list is Jericho over Angle. What's the deal? As a starting point, Angle vs. hBK IMO was worlds better than Jericho/HBK.

 

[BigBiss]

Its really cool I can say I have had meaningful conversation with over a 10th of this list ... that blows my mind at times

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Its really cool I can say I have had meaningful conversation with over a 10th of this list ... that blows my mind at times

Which list? Pretty impressive if it's mine vs Larry's since mine is like 40% Japanese due to my hipster tastes.

 

[LiquidLarry2GhostWF]

Larry, only real problem I have with your list is Jericho over Angle. What's the deal? As a starting point, Angle vs. hBK IMO was worlds better than Jericho/HBK.

Love Angle...I just prefer Jericho. Angle's run in TNA doesn't help his cause. He's spent most of the best years of his career in the purgatory known as TNA...the past SEVEN (!!) years...and he's got maybe five good matches to show for it. Jericho returns to the WWE after a tour with Fozzy and has five good matches in his first month back. Angle was full speed ahead as a true all-timer. The time in TNA has sullied him a bit, IMO.

He was one of the quickest learns in the history of wrestling. He showed up...a few months later, he was legitimately one of the best in the world. He has his falling out with the WWE, goes to TNA and outside of his matches with Joe, a cage match with Mr. Anderson, a match or two with Styles, and a match or two with Nigel...meh. And, honestly, outside of the cage match with Anderson and his matches with Joe, he's had some good matches, but I couldn't give you details on them.

To be fair, in 2013, I thought I was overrating Kurt Angle a little bit, because its actually been so long since he's been consistently great. I loved Angle in the WWE and definitely look at him with rose colored glasses. But, Jericho is my nigga and I can't recall the last time he's been off his game.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Don't "Ladainian Tomlinson" Angle's career. Dude was the fucking truth from the day he stepped in a ring until well into his TNA run.

The guy can barely move. He legit can't turn his neck anymore. He can mail it in from here to eternity from this point forward and I don't care. But even as recently as last year, he was killing it in tag matches with Styles.

I considered him for #1 but the peak was too short. I'm not ripping you for having hi at 12 or whatever, to each his own and that's pretty damn high, but I just had to defend him. He's a beast.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

But, Jericho is my nigga and I can't recall the last time he's been off his game.

This last run, particularly towards the end, was the first time I thought he's slipped a bit in ring. I thought the RVD matches were overrated by some (some of that is on RVD) and i've seen other people have better matches with Fandango. Fandango looked like a greenhorn at Mania with Jericho, but then looked great in TV matches with people like Punk & even recently with Kofi & Killings who aren't exactly known for carrying dues.

Don't get me wrong, I like Jericho a lot, but we're splitting hairs here. This is what we do in this uppity thread.

 

[BigBiss]

14 on yours 7 on larry's

 

[LiquidLarry2GhostWF]

This last run, particularly towards the end, was the first time I thought he's slipped a bit in ring. I thought the RVD matches were overrated by some (some of that is on RVD) and i've seen other people have better matches with Fandango. Fandango looked like a greenhorn at Mania with Jericho, but then looked great in TV matches with people like Punk & even recently with Kofi & Killings who aren't exactly known for carrying dues.

Don't get me wrong, I like Jericho a lot, but we're splitting hairs here. This is what we do in this uppity thread.

During this last run...he came in and immediately had good matches. Then he got put into a program with Fandango, and it was legitimately, Fandangos first few matches of his WWE career. Then he worked with Ryback...not even Punk can have good matches with Ryback. In between, he had some good matches with Ziggler. A good one with Punk.

 

[LiquidLarry2GhostWF]

Don't "Ladainian Tomlinson" Angle's career. Dude was the fucking truth from the day he stepped in a ring until well into his TNA run.

The guy can barely move. He legit can't turn his neck anymore. He can mail it in from here to eternity from this point forward and I don't care. But even as recently as last year, he was killing it in tag matches with Styles.

I considered him for #1 but the peak was too short. I'm not ripping you for having hi at 12 or whatever, to each his own and that's pretty damn high, but I just had to defend him. He's a beast.

Angle's peak was legit...he was awesome. But it was so short. His TNA run has some highlights but they are merely speckled around that seven years. I don't even blame Angle so much (maybe a little, because he has always basically hand picked who he wrestles and feuds with in TNA)...there have been numerous guys that have trended upward at some point and then got TNA'd. I try not to use it too much against them, but at the top, I'm splitting hairs.

 

[s@ppisgod]

Love Angle...I just prefer Jericho. Angle's run in TNA doesn't help his cause. He's spent most of the best years of his career in the purgatory known as TNA...the past SEVEN (!!) years...and he's got maybe five good matches to show for it. Jericho returns to the WWE after a tour with Fozzy and has five good matches in his first month back. Angle was full speed ahead as a true all-timer. The time in TNA has sullied him a bit, IMO.

He was one of the quickest learns in the history of wrestling. He showed up...a few months later, he was legitimately one of the best in the world. He has his falling out with the WWE, goes to TNA and outside of his matches with Joe, a cage match with Mr. Anderson, a match or two with Styles, and a match or two with Nigel...meh. And, honestly, outside of the cage match with Anderson and his matches with Joe, he's had some good matches, but I couldn't give you details on them.

To be fair, in 2013, I thought I was overrating Kurt Angle a little bit, because its actually been so long since he's been consistently great. I loved Angle in the WWE and definitely look at him with rose colored glasses. But, Jericho is my nigga and I can't recall the last time he's been off his game.

Angle didn't have amazing matches throughout his TNA run, but he was fully capable of them. Just had the deck unstacked (?) against him. His matches with Joe were great. His matches with Styles were great. He had two really good title matches against Kaz and Jay Lethal. The Desmond Wolfe feud was solid while it lasted. But before that, he was one of the best for 6-7 years in WWE. He could carry a match better than Jericho IMO. And the intensity he brought to big matches is something sorely missed in a lot of WWE's big matches, sans maybe Punk or Danielson.

Jericho definitely has him on longevity and consistency, but I think Angle was the brighter star that burned out faster.

 

[LiquidLarry2GhostWF]

Angle didn't have amazing matches throughout his TNA run, but he was fully capable of them. Just had the deck unstacked (?) against him. His matches with Joe were great. His matches with Styles were great. He had two really good title matches against Kaz and Jay Lethal. The Desmond Wolfe feud was solid while it lasted. But before that, he was one of the best for 6-7 years in WWE. He could carry a match better than Jericho IMO. And the intensity he brought to big matches is something sorely missed in a lot of WWE's big matches, sans maybe Punk or Danielson.

Jericho definitely has him on longevity and consistency, but I think Angle was the brighter star that burned out faster.

I don't disagree with that synopsis...I actually agree.

But, if I could sit on an island and watch someone for all eternity...I got like 20+ years of Jericho all over the world and like...8 of Kurt Angle, mostly in the WWE and a few TNA matches.