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In 2007, I made a thread wherein WrestleHut2000 chose their top ten favorite wrestlers of all time. In 2019, I thought it might be fun to do a similar thread again, showcasing Punch Sport Pagoda's Top Ten Currently Active Wrestlers, and it was successful enough to warrant doing again in 2020 and 2021. So here we are, our chance to once again write up a top ten list of our current favorites, assign points for places and then find out who we as a forum truly loved the most in 2022. Last year saw the utter domination of the entire ranking system by Bryan Danielson, who left WWE and came to AEW and seemed to turn back the clock and return to his utter peak, blowing the top results for every other iteration of this thread out of the water. Can he do it again, or can the eventual #1 beat or at least come close to his dominance? Speaking of which, AEW dominated as the top promotion with close to 3.5 times the number of wrestlers listed as favorites over distant 2nd place New Japan, with WWE managing 3rd place just a little behind New Japan and a little ahead of Tokyo Joshi Pro. More promotions than ever before were listed in 2021, 27 in all not including a broad "Independents" category: hopefully we see this diversity continue! So here is how it is going to work - think about all the wrestlers currently working in wrestling promotions, the indies, in America, Japan, Britain, Australia, Finland and anywhere else in the world. Write up who you are your current favorites, rank them from ten to one and then post them here in the thread. Feel free to go into as much or as little detail as you want as to why you've chosen who you've chosen, or to argue the case for any one (or more) particular wrestler you want to. I'll accept lists posted up till midnight Eastern on the 24th of January. Points will be assigned to each of the selected wrestlers and we'll see how each wrestler ranks - who the forum's overall favorite is and how other wrestlers rank beside them. Points will work based on individual rankings, with 10 points for a 1st place rank and 1 point for a 10th place rank. So for example: Poster A posted:10. Daniel Garcia Poster B posted:10. Konosuke Takeshita Would result in: Eddie Kingston = 14 Jordynne Grace = 13 Chris Jericho = 12 Konosuke Takeshita = 11 Tomohiro Ishii = 11 Bayley = 10 Miyu Yamashita = 8 Shingo Takagi = 8 Kazuchika Okada = 7 Dr. Britt Baker DMD = 5 Hangman Adam Page = 4 Wheeler Yuta = 3 Daniel Garcia = 1 For the sake of my sanity I'll be keeping a running tally of points, so all votes as made are final - so no editing your post after the fact or posting 27 posts later,"Change my vote for Indi Hartwell to a vote for Baliyan Akki!" - think VERY CAREFULLY before making your selection! Also, please consider:
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63 - 60 Results 59 - 55 Results 54 - 51 Results Top 50 Countdown Starts Here Top 25 Countdown Starts Here Top 10 Countdown Starts Here Complete Listing of Final Results Stats Post Here Best and Worst Picks List The Top Ten Favourite Active Tag Teams Thread Jerusalem fucked around with this message at 12:05 on Feb 19, 2023 |
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Jan 10, 2023 01:05
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Now, to kick things off - my "Top Ten": 10. Miu Watanabe (TJPW, 23) - ♪ L O V E  ♪ - if she just had an awesome theme song (and they didn't keep cutting it off!) that wouldn't be enough to put her on the list. If she just had a simple gimmick of STRONK that wouldn't be enough either. If she just had an infectious enthusiasm used to pump up the crowds at the start of shows as part of the Up Up Girls performances, that wouldn't be enough either. If she just was a good wrestler who was getting progressively better through experience and building up her skillset, that also wouldn't be enough. Luckily, she's ALL those things! Watching her improvement in-ring, her impressive displays of strength, her growing confidence in all aspects of being a wrestler, well it's made for a great year for a wrestler I am positive will be Princess of Princess Champion by the end of 2023. Plus, that theme song really is great! And she really is extremely STRONK!9. Samoa Joe (AEW, 43) - With the way Joe's WWE run ran down, and his spotty appearances after he joined AEW, there was a concern that maybe he'd finally worn down his body after over 20 years of hard work, languishing in TNA, taking painful bumps (I still wince at the stairs spot he once did in TNA) and he just couldn't do anymore. But then it turned out his absence was due to filming a television series, and that wasn't just empty talk as he returned seemingly at full power. Briefly teaming with WARDLOW as an unstoppable force of a tag team, Joe showed his true colors with a heel turn that saw him add the TNT Title to his ROH TV Title, at which point he declared himself The King of Television and demanded all - including journalists at a media scrum! - refer to him in that fashion. He BRUTALIZED Darby Allin, derailed WARDLOW's quest for revenge, and ended 2022 seemingly on top of the (television) world once more. If this is Samoa Joe worn down and no longer at his best, it's simply a reminder of just how much of a monster he was in his prime, because this version of Joe is still fantastic. 8. Konosuke Takeshita (AEW, 27) - Though he spent most of the first part of the year wrestling in his home promotion of DDT, and all those who watch that promotion are aware of how good he is, it's been the last 7 months of 2022 where Takeshita has become better known to a wider audience through his remarkable run in AEW that saw him signed to a contract there. Though he's not had many victories against "name" opponents on television, even in those defeats people could not stop raving about him. The crowds loves him, the commentators are infatuated with him, other wrestlers love wrestling him... and it's no surprise, Soup Boy is REALLY good! Like, crazy good! He's also a 10-year-vet despite only being 27! He's got everything: height, body, looks, talent, that "it" factor that makes him connect with crowds in person and on television. He's the kind of wrestler that other wrestlers who get saddled with the cursed phrase "has all the tools!" wish they could be. Because it's one thing to be the kind of wrestler promoters think people want, and another to be the kind of wrestler people want promoters to give them. To be both? Well that's Konosuke Takeshita, just a phenomenon we'll hopefully get to see much, much more of for many years to come. 7. Hangman Adam Page (AEW, 31) - So much happened in 2022 it's perhaps easy to forget that for almost half of 2022, Hangman was the AEW Champion! And he had a hell of a start to 2022 as well, defeating Bryan Danielson in an incredible near 30-minute match to answer the 60 minute draw they went to that closed out 2021. He had Texas Death Matches with Lance Archer and Adam Cole on top of his othr defenses, and went down as a fighting champion in a loss to CM Punk in what was SUPPOSED to mark an even more successful era for AEW with what was considered their biggest star/draw wrestler... well, things didn't quite go that way! But Page kept on trucking through 2022 despite never getting a second match with Punk (a lucky thing perhaps, given comments made at the disastrous CM Punk Media Scrum about Page being "an empty-headed gently caress") and prematurely calling out Kazuchika Okada for a shot at the IWGP Title at Forbidden Door before Switchblade Jay White threw that all into chaos as well. Page had seemingly moved beyond the depressed guy hiding his pain behind alcohol character, and it would have been fascinating to see where things were going if he hadn't suffered a terrible concussion in his title match against Jon Moxley in October. Even despite that, he still managed to finish up 2022 in exciting fashion with his return to brawl with Moxley despite not being "cleared" to wrestle, his character now a volatile mixture of anger towards Moxley's attitude as well as fear of his own brush with how his impacted health might affect his personal/family life. That's something Page does so well, he makes things feel like they have real meaning/stakes to him, and gets the crowds invested in wanting to see him succeed. We all just want Adam to be happy! 6. Hiroshi Tanahashi (NJPW, 46) - He's 46-years-old, he's gone through 3 years of Pandemic affecting wrestling particularly badly in his country and his promotion, with more than clap crowds being few and far between as the promotion aims for larger crowds over ones that are allowed to be more vocal. You could forgive him for being down, for not bringing his A-Game, for letting all his various aches and pains from over twenty years of wrestling turn him barely mobile, simply going through the motions. Except... he's the Ace! He will never let you down! Tanahashi has been a pillar of strength for New Japan, giving his all just like he always does, and New Japan has - as they always have - leaned heavily on him as not just a steady hand but somebody they know can still instill that sense of excitement in the crowds, even if they're not allowed to cheer, or scream his name, or sob as they hand him a towel post-match to dry off his sweat. Every show he's out there doing his best, every show whether a multi-man, a singles, an opener or the main event, Tanahashi is giving his all. He will never give up. He will never let us down. He can't, he's the Ace of the Universe. Ahem. Go ACE! 5. Zack Sabre Jr. (NJPW, 35) - If what keeps Tanahashi going is his pure love for all of us, then it's pure spite that powers the windy man, the long mover. Whether for his opponent or for the British Conservative Party, ZSJ uses it to drive him ever forwards in his seemingly doomed quest to win singles gold in New Japan. That spite is offset, of course, by the camraderie and genuine love/friendship he has with his fellow Suzuki-Gun members, in particular his Dangerous Tekkers tag partner Taichi. So the fact 2022 ended with the dissolution of both Suzuki-Gun AND Dangerous Tekkers, the former decision made by Minoru Suzuki but accepted by them all, means interesting times ahead of ZSJ. But in 2022, it was another year of ZSJ going far but not QUITE getting there, much to his frustration. He defeated Tetsuya Naito to win the New Japan Cup, but failed to win the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship from Kazuchika Okada. He ended on 8 points in the G1, losing his last match to, of course, Tetsuya Naito. The Tekkers lost their tag titles at Wrestle Kingdom 16 and failed to win the Never Openweight Six Man Tag Titles at Dominion. But he did find success making it to the finals of the World Television Title Tournament (the results of which happened in 2023), the writing perhaps already on the wall that it was time for him to go his own way. ZSJ is just consistently excellent, sometimes easily overlooked but you can ALWAYS rely on him to be great in ring, to be hilarious on the mic (or just screaming his head off), to have neat spots like his continual baffling insistence of getting into Strike Battles, to cut amazing promos in a mixture of Japanese and English. He was one of the highlights for New Japan in a year that was improving as COVID restrictions finally started to slightly relax, and I look forward to seeing what 2023 has to bring. 4. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW, 35) - Like Hangman Adam Page, this was a year of two halves for Okada. It opened great, as he defeated Shingo Takagi in an INCREDIBLE match to win the World Heavyweight Championship back after a seemingly cursed 2021. Not only that, he defended it the very next night in ANOTHER absolutely INCREDIBLE match, beating Will Ospreay on Night 2 to cement his return to the top of New Japan. He had a strong run through the New Japan Cup, eventually losing in the Semi-Final to Tetsuya Naito, and went on to beat New Japan Cup winner Zack Sabre Jr first, then later revenged his loss to Tetsuya Naito. Yep, everything was looking great for Okada... and then that detestable pervert Switchblade Jay White returned and ruined EVERYTHING! Losing his title in June to Switchblade once again, Okada had to (once again!) set out on a quest to retrieve it, which he did by (once again!) winning the G1 Climax, defeating Will Ospreay (once again!) in a (once again) INCREDIBLE match to earn a title shot (once again) at Wrestle Kingdom! Yes, it was a lot of Okada doing what we've seen him do before, so why does he rank so highly on my list? Because he's really loving good at doing what we've seen him do before! Also because, and this is a pretty big deal, 2022 felt like pre-pandemic Okada again. It was the one chink in his seemingly inpenetrable armor, the realization that without the live crowd or crowds that could really express themselves, Okada was a little lost. But with crowds returning, even clap crowds learning better how to express themselves and the wrestlers in turn how to work within those limitations, more and more of Okada's old confidence and poise has returned. The Okada of 2022 feels more like that God Walking Amongst Men he used to feel like, even with Switchblade trying to expose him as having feet of clay. Some people get tired of seeing Okada at the top of New Japan. Me personally? I think the guy at the top should be the best, and right now Okada is (once again!) the best. 3. Bryan Danielson (AEW, 41) - After ending 2021 with a 60 minute time limit draw against AEW Champion Hangman Adam Page, Danielson went into 2022 with a hell of a lot of momentum... and then immediately had his first singles loss in AEW when Hangman defeated him on the first Dynamite of 2022. Luckily for everybody, Danielson followed up that loss by deciding to go to war against Jon Moxley, a war where we the fans were the winners. The two beat the poo poo out of each other, and though Danielson lost that match too what was far more important was what came out of it. As Danielson and Moxley were continuing to beat the poo poo out of each other post-match, William Regal of all people came marching to the ring and slapped the poo poo out of both of them... and the Blackpool Combat Club was born. This lead to some of the most entertaining (sports!?!) wrestling of the year, as Danielson stole The Best Friends' Young Boy from them, he and Moxley becoming Violence Stepdads to Wheeler Yuta before eventually taking their wrestling-focused faction up against the "Sports Ennah-dainahs!" of The Jericho Appreciation Society. Moxley and Danielson beat the poo poo out of each other again (as friends this time!) while attempting to win the vacant AEW Championship, before Danielson returned to his rivalry against Chris Jericho in another blast from the past as he took aim for - but sadly did not win - the ROH World Title he once held, now owned by Tony Khan. Danielson had a hell of a year despite his losses and failure to win titles, and the crazy thing is it could have been any bigger, as injury unfortunately kept him from a dream match against Zack Sabre Jr. at Forbidden Door... which did at least bring us the AEW debut of Claudio Castagnoli! 2022 ended with him in pursuit of MJF both for revenge for the assault and expulsion of Regal from AEW (actually returning to WWE to work a VP role) and another shot at the AEW Title. Can't wait to see what 2023 has to bring, but in 2022 Danielson remains one of my favorite (thankfully) active wrestlers. 2. Chris Jericho (AEW, 52) - He just keeps doing it! Every time I think that Jericho, talented though he may be, has allowed some dumb conservative/libertarian viewpoint to overwhelm my appreciation (no pun intended) for his incredible career... he manages to completely reinvent himself again and bring it in the ring, on the mic, and in his storylines to further elevate his status as one of the best to ever do it as a wrestler. After spending most of the first part of the year in a feud with Eddie Kingston, Jericho lost The Inner Circle but gained The Jericho Appreciation Society, a faction built entirely around him and the concept of "Sports Ennah-dainahs!" being better than pro-wrestlers. He suffered some defeats and humiliations, though he was saved from having to tap out to Eddie Kingston when Claudio Castagnoli submitted Daddy Magic instead, meaning Jericho lost but Kingston's victory was "tainted". But despite the JAS' entertaining antics, Jericho seemed to have dropped a little to upper midcard status with the odd main event, throwing fireballs and calling himself a wizard, playing the aging rockstar. But then (non-daddy) magic happened when, after failing to get the AEW Title back, he became an 8-time Champion when he defeated Claudio Castagnoli to become ROH Champion. Declaring himself THE OCHO, Jericho set out on a deranged quest to "dishonor" Ring of Honor, a promotion long affiliated with pro-wrestling excellence over the Sports Entertainment of the WWE. It was enormously entertaining, as well as including some excellent wrestling! Because Jericho is more than his gimmicks, he backs up everything he does with a foundation of wrestling talent that has been built up remarkably with his 30+ years of experience. He rebuilt his body, losing weight and getting into incredible shape, he moves faster and looks younger, and he still knows exactly when to win and when to lose, as he ended 2022 not only losing his ROH title back to Claudio but with an astonishing loss to Action Andretti in a match he had earlier declared would be a "tune up match with a jobber" that may have made a young star for life in 10 minutes. That's all on top of the apparent rock he has been backstage, as perhaps best evidenced by the way he managed to steer the disastrous CM Punk Media Scrum back into calm waters even with full knowledge of the brawl happening backstage between Punk, Ace Steel, Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks. Jericho is amazing, as he has been for decades, and everytime I think he's finally started to lose it, he completely changes everything up, and it just keeps working. Incredible. 1. Jon Moxley (AEW, 37) - But nobody had a bigger 2022 than Jon Moxley. He was AEW's MVP all year long, returning in January from a self-imposed stint in rehab when he recognized his alcoholism was becoming a real problem, affecting his work and more importantly potentially his family life with his wife and new child. He was the driving force behind the idea of the Forbidden Door PPV with New Japan Pro-Wrestling, he built a feud with Hiroshi Tanahashi entirely of his own back in a series of promos on AEW and appearances in New Japan Strong. He was the guy Tony Khan was able to turn to again and again for help in moments of crisis, a rock who saved him from CM Punk issues not once but twice! He brought a real sense of danger to his interactions with William Regal after Regal betrayed the Blackpool Combat Club and sided with MJF. He went to war with and against Bryan Danielson. He lost the title to MJF but didn't take the long deserved vacation he could have had, instead turning a real life concussion of Hangman Adam Page into enthralling bad blood brawls between the two closing out 2022. I didn't even see his GCW stuff but he was champion there for over a year, and made sure to lose to Nick Gage like he had to despite recently becoming the AEW Champion again unexpectedly after the Punk disaster. He insisted that he'd continue to go wherever the gently caress he wants to in spite of suggestions GCW wouldn't quite get the same easy access to AEW talent it once did... and I believe him! Because Mox is a guy who appears to know exactly what he's about, and is where he is because it is EXACTLY where he wants to be... and if he didn't, he wouldn't be! Nobody had a better 2022, nobody impressed me more, nobody could stand up to the sheer entertainment, admiration, delight and enjoyment in pro-wrestling I got this year than Jon Moxley. He lost all his titles, but he still ended 2022 the winner, my favorite currently active pro-wrestler in the world, and I suspect it may not be the last time he is. The long and short of it: 10. Miu Watanabe (TJPW, 23) 09. Samoa Joe (AEW, 43) 08. Konosuke Takeshita (AEW, 27) 07. Hangman Adam Page (AEW, 31) 06. Hiroshi Tanahashi (NJPW, 46) 05. Zack Sabre Jr. (NJPW, 35) 04. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW, 35) 03. Bryan Danielson (AEW, 41) 02. Chris Jericho (AEW, 52) 01. Jon Moxley (AEW, 37) So that's my top ten as at this present time. New Japan gets the most entries, despite still mostly having clap-only crowds. Because at least they have crowds again, and whenever the cheering restrictions are relaxed or lifted (or the wrestling is so good the crowd just can't help themselves!) the promotion has reminded me yet again just how good they can be. AEW isn't far behind, though some might argue Takeshita should count for DDT, it's really AEW where he has gotten the chance to shine in front of even larger crowds and that's in spite of rarely getting to win those matches! Miu Watanabe pips out the likes of the eternally cool Miyu Yamashita to add TJPW's single entry on my Top Ten, which is more about just how good she's gotten than anything else. There are a ton of really, really, really good wrestlers I wish I could have included: Kenny Omega! Hikaru Shida! Ricky Starks! The detestable Switchblade Jay White! Hyper Misao! Daddy Magic! Ren Narita! Jade Cargill! All were in the running and more besides, but there are only so many spots! So that's me, but what about you? Who were YOUR favorite active wrestlers in 2022? Have a think, post your lists, talk about your wrestlers, have fun! You have until midnight Eastern on the 23rd of January to get your lists in, and after that we can see what we, the posters of Punch Sport Pagoda, think! Jerusalem fucked around with this message at 04:59 on Jan 10, 2023 |
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Jan 10, 2023 01:06
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it's time for the best thread all year 
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Jan 10, 2023 01:45
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1. maki itoh 2. maki itoh 3. pom 4. maki itoh 5. maki itoh 6. maki itoh 7. maki itoh 8. maki itoh 9. maki itoh 10 and who has a better story than bran the broken?
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Jan 10, 2023 01:51
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10Jamie Hayter 9 Will Ospreay 8 KAIRI 7 Konosuke Takeshita 6 Dax Harwood 5 Jon Moxley 4 Ren Narita 3 Zack Sabre Jr 2 Tomohiro Ishii 1 Eddie Kingston
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Jan 10, 2023 02:08
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1. Daddy magic Fine 2. Angelo parker 3. Chris jericho 4. Daniel garcia 5. Tay conti 6. Anna jay 7. Jake Hager 8. Sammy guevara Reminder that daddy magic called out a SA meme on national tv, therefore he should win by default stab fucked around with this message at 03:44 on Jan 10, 2023 |
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Jan 10, 2023 02:23
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I initially had Daddy Magic on my list but other people kept slipping him down lower, and I felt bad, because he's such an amazing presence and feels like he teleported to the 2020s from a 1980s WWF backstage interview with Mean Gene, it's delightful.
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Jan 10, 2023 02:39
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Honorable Mentions: Bray Wyatt, "Hangman" Adam Page, Hiromu Takahashi, Ren Narita, Hook, Eddie Kingston, Seth Rollins, Wheeler YUTA, Daddy Magic, The Ocho, Takeshita 10. Shota Umino Shooter is my favorite young wrestler in the world. To the surprise of literally no one, the man with the seal of approval from the "Death Rider" Jon Moxley is someone whom I also have an unbelievable amount of fondness for. This kid is gonna go far, and I love the fact that he's basically if Jon Moxley and Hiroshi Tanahashi did the Fusion Dance. 9. Orange Cassidy Orange does, in my estimation, the best pure character work in the world. I love this dude so much. 8. Claudio Castagnoli The first member of the BCC on this list, Big Swiss came into AEW with a renewed sense of purpose after leaving WWE and has since just been absolutely killing it in every way. Love this European Superman, and I'm not gonna lie, he's completely believable in the BCC in a way I wouldn't necessarily have anticipated. 7. Cody Rhodes This is probably a controversial take round these parts, but there are genuinely good parts to WWE right now, and Cody is one of them. I mean, even my AEW loving homies would probably buy this, because lots of them talk about regularly missing him, but yes. Cody has been smashing it. If he doesn't win the Rumble and win one of the two titles at Mania, I'm going to be very salty. Don't you gently caress with this, Vince. Don't you loving dare, you old bastard. 6. Bryan Danielson AmDrag owns. Not too much else to say. The co-founder of the BCC continues to put on insane performance after insane performance, and I absolutely can't do anything me than say he's one of the best in the world. 5. Will Ospreay I really hate that Will is such a shithead, because good lord do I love watching him wrestle. I'm also pretty loving fascinated by his booking. The mirroring going on right now with the Kenny/Okada epic with Kenny now in the Okada role is honestly brilliant and by far my favorite thing in NJPW right now. 4. Roman Reigns Another potential hot take, The Head Of The Table has a lot of people loving hating what he's doing right now, but I believe he is at absolute worst the second best heel in wrestling, and the way the guy has completely reinvented himself and so completely elevated so many people along with him over the last couple years is genuinely remarkable. I don't blame people for hating WWE, but I gotta call it like it is, Roman is absolutely crushing it right now, and has been for years now. 3. Kenny Omega Best Bout Machine indeed. He was inactive for a long time, but holy poo poo has he ever made up for it in record time. Everything with the Trios Title has been exemplary, but Kenny took himself completely and totally to the next level with that absolute instant classic against Will Ospreay at Wrestle Kingdom. loving hell, the man really is a machine. 2. Sami Zayn Cody absolutely should beat Roman. But Sami Zayn has been the most entertaining thing about WWE for months. It wouldn't work at all without pieces like Roman and The Usos and Paul Heyman for Sami to play off of, but loving hell. It seemed for a while like Sami was gonna just kinda fade into a mostly managerial role, but as it stands, not only was he the emotional nucleus of an AWESOME War Games match at Survivor Series, Sami has managed to be simultaneously loving hilarious and also make himself into a guy who (as a de facto face who thinks he's a heel), will create babyface sympathy on the level of Mick Foley when The Bloodline inevitably turns on the Honorary Uce. Sami Zayn loving owns and I absolutely refuse to be told otherwise. Come at me. 1. Jon Moxley Was it gonna be anyone else? No. No it was not. Jon Moxley is my GOAT and will top this list from me until he retires or if I die or something. The dude owns. It's that simple. SamuraiFoochs fucked around with this message at 02:51 on Jan 10, 2023 |
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Jan 10, 2023 02:41
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10. Orange Cassidy 9. Jamie Hayter 8. Takeshita 7. Hangman Adam Page 6. Keith Lee 5. Swerve Strickland 4. Cash Wheeler 3. Dax Harwood 2. Bryan Danielson 1. Jon Moxley HMs: The Acclaimed, Sami Zayn, Danhausen, STTTTTTTIIIIIIIIING!!!!, Rey Fenix Conrad_Birdie fucked around with this message at 02:54 on Jan 10, 2023 |
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Jan 10, 2023 02:46
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Most of my favorites from last year have either been doing nothing interesting lately or are gone from tv for whatever reason. Last year my list had Asuka, Malakai Black, CM Punk, Miro, Thunder Rosa, and Kris Statlander. 10. Jeff Jarrett for some reason 9. Konosuke Takeshita 8. Jamie Hayter 7. Orange Cassidy 6. Hikaru Shida 5. Swerve Strickland 4. Bryan Danielson 3. Will Ospreay 2. Ricky Starks 1. Samoa Joe
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Jan 10, 2023 02:46
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stab posted:1. Daddy magic wait really?
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Jan 10, 2023 03:12
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10 kyle o'reilly 9 jamie hayter 8 ricky starks 7 utami hayashishita 6 asuka / veny 5 daniel garcia 4 trent beretta 3 shingo takagi 2 pac 1 katsuyori shibata
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Jan 10, 2023 03:29
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Sisal Two-Step posted:wait really? My picks or what daddy magic said?
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Jan 10, 2023 03:44
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stab posted:My picks or what daddy magic said? I'm 99% sure OP meant the latter in which case I also missed it and am curious.
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Jan 10, 2023 03:50
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Honorable Mentions: Danhausen, The Acclaimed, Kevin Owens, PAC, Daniel Garcia, Willow Nightingale, Rey Fenix 10. Orange Cassidy 09. Jaime Hayter 08. Will Ospreay 07. Kenny Omega 06. Takeshita 05. Darby Allin 04. Sami Zayn 03. Bryan Danielson 02. Chris Jericho 01. Jon Moxley
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Jan 10, 2023 04:01
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20. Dax Harwood 19. Willow Nightingale 18. Kenoh 17. Shingo Takagi 16. Hikaru Shida 15. Kenny Omega 14. Shunma Katsumata 13. Minoru Suzuki 12. Miyu Yamashita 11. PAC sorry PAC, you got bumped for... 10. Pom Harajuku - I bet this isn't even her final form 9. Chris Brookes - #1 wrestler I'd want to hang out with 8. Malakai Black - Not his best year, but still one of my favs 7. Hyper Misao - Endless joy 6. Chris Jericho - Somehow had the best year of his career 5. Jamie Hayter -  4. Eddie Kingston - My heart and soul 3. Konosuke Takeshita - Rules 2. Miu Watanabe - She will always give 110% 1. Zack Sabre Jr. - The most perfect wrestler of the year
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Jan 10, 2023 04:05
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SamuraiFoochs posted:I'm 99% sure OP meant the latter in which case I also missed it and am curious. PRINCES OF PAPE
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Jan 10, 2023 04:07
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I'm working on my list and I want to wait a couple of days before I finalize it... ...can I put Managers on my list? Because there's someone that I think has earned a spot.
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Jan 10, 2023 04:43
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Active wrestlers only, if they've had at least one match in 2022 they're good to go. There has to be a cutoff somewhere, so somebody who is purely nothing but a manager wouldn't count sorry. Edit: For example, Gideon Grey would absolutely count as a wrestler for the purposes of the poll, despite that most of what he did (in New Japan at least) was being a spokesman/manager for United Empire, he did wrestle some matches too. Paul Heyman on the other hand would not. Jerusalem fucked around with this message at 04:58 on Jan 10, 2023 |
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Jan 10, 2023 04:55
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1. Darby Allin 2. PAC 3. Bryan Danielson 4. Will Ospreay 5. Orange Cassidy 6. Fenix 7. Powerhouse Hobbs 8. Andrade El Idolo 9. Jade Cargill 10. Kyle O'Reilly
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Jan 10, 2023 05:20
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Jerusalem posted:Active wrestlers only, if they've had at least one match in 2022 they're good to go. There has to be a cutoff somewhere, so somebody who is purely nothing but a manager wouldn't count sorry. Fair. I'll just need to find someone else to fill that spot...
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Jan 10, 2023 05:34
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Honorable Mentions: Deonna Purrazzo, Aussie Open, Michael Oku 10. Frankie Kazarian (AEW, 45) 9. “Switchblade” Jay White (NJPW, 30) 8. Trey Miguel (Impact Wrestling, 28) 7. Jordynne Grace (Impact Wrestling, 26) 6. Chris Bey (Impact Wrestling, 26) 5. Ace Austin (Impact Wrestling, 25) 4. Alex Shelly (Impact Wrestling, 39) 3. Chris Sabin (Impact Wrestling, 40) 2. “Speedball” Mike Bailey (Impact Wrestling, 32) 1. Josh Alexander (Impact Wrestling, 35) I MIGHT write words about them at a later time, but this is a phone-post.
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Jan 10, 2023 05:52
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I’ll be doing the best tag teams after this again for people who feel aggrieved they can’t rank a tag team 1. Taichi (NJPW, 42) - He’s Just One Guy, but he’s been one of the most compelling wrestlers in NJPW for years. He had one of the most interesting matches of the year with Shingo Takagi for the 30 count match and together with TAKA Michinoku he has promoted four of the best shows of the whole year. 2. Jun Kasai (FREEDOMS, 48) - Not just an absolute lunatic in the ring but one of the greatest in ring storytellers out there. He’s capable of injecting genuine emotion into his matches. He had probably the best match I’ve ever seen with El Desperado, and the post match interview was inspiring. 3. DOUKI (NJPW, 30) - Has probably the best real life story of anyone in NJPW. Slummed it for years in the scummiest of Mexican indies, called up his old pal Taichi to get booked on TakaTaichi shows while he was back in Japan. Got a tap on the shoulder to do BOSJ because Jun Kasai broke Desperado’s jaw and Flip Gordon is an idiot, and the rest is history. 4. Tetsuya Naito (NJPW, 40) - Is Tetsuya Naito and 2023 will be his year 5. Arisa Nakajima (SEAdLINNNG, 33) - One of the best wrestlers in the world. Sadly suffered an injury this year but still came back for a killer match with Hiroyo Matsumoto at the end of the year. 6. Makoto (free, 33) - One half of my favourite tag team with Asuka/VENY and she once ran up to me to say hello at a crane game. 7. Asuka/VENY (free, 22) - The other half of my favourite tag team in the world and one hell of a singles wrestler too. 8. SHO (NJPW, 33) - He has the funniest and best faces in the world. The MVP of everyone’s favourite faction The House. I will never ever forget the time that he screamed at a banana. A true hero. 9. Chihiro Hashimoto (Sendai Girls, 30) - Strong farmer girl who throws her opponents around. What’s not to love? Would be in WOTY discussions if people actually watched Senjo. 10. Great-O-Khan (NJPW, 30) - Not only a great wrestler who throws himself into his gimmick, but a true hero, legend. GEORGE W BUSHI fucked around with this message at 07:20 on Jan 10, 2023 |
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Jan 10, 2023 06:13
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1. Kazuchika Okada 2. Jon Moxley 3. Minoru Suzuki 4. Eddie Kingston 5. Swerve 6. Hikaru Shida 7. Malakai Black 8. Jamie Hayter 9. Orange Cassidy 10. Ricky Starks I just think they're really neat. HMs to Kenny Omega, Will Ospreay, Shingo Takagi, Kaito Kiyomiya, Chris Jericho, Bryan Danielson, Athena, Nyla Rose, ZSJ edogawa rando fucked around with this message at 20:47 on Jan 11, 2023 |
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Jan 10, 2023 07:11
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1. Syuri (33, Stardom) 2. Chris Jericho (52, AEW) 3. John Moxley (37, AEW) 4. Suzu Suzuki (20, Prominence) 5. Giulia (28, Stardom) 6. Orange Cassidy (38, AEW) 7. Starlight Kid (21, Stardom) 8. Dax Harwood (38, AEW) 9. Jamie Hayter (27, AEW) 10. Utami Hayashishita (24, Stardom) HMs for Konosuke Takeshita, Hangman Page, Bryan Danielson and Tomoka Inaba Crapple! fucked around with this message at 11:09 on Jan 10, 2023 |
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Jan 10, 2023 07:54
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10 spots is never enough, seems like every time I put a list together of my favourites from each promotion it swells to about 30 and there's some real hard cuts. And that's before I need to actually rank them. I've spent the time to be a lot stricter this time since for 2021 I listed nearly 40 people total. This was made a little bit easier since I finally dropped NOAH from my must watch list after months of them making me angry more often than happy with their booking HM for Kento Miyahara, Kazusada Higuchi, Miyu Yamashita, DOUKI, ASUKA. Really sucks I couldn't fit these guys in. DOUKI's a modern day sucess story, Higuchi is my goddamn champ, Miyu is everyone's champ, ASUKA is one of the best young wrestlers in the world and Kento is one of the best wrestlers period. But sometimes me thinking you're the best gets pipped at the post by me just liking you a bit more. 10 - Kazuki Hirata (35, DDT)  Hirata is my favourite comedy wrestler in the world. Can't understand a single word he says, but dude elevates every single segment he's in by being a master of physical comedy and facial expressions. And he can back it up by being a pretty drat good wrestler as well when the need calls for it. Match to watch: Blindfold Breastfold Match, DDT November 3rd 9 - Kazuchika Okada (35, NJPW)  After a rough year and a bit, Okada has retaken his place in my pantheon of the greatest wrestlers of the 21st century. While I certainly get that he is not as flashy as some of his contemporaries and the character can be a bit flat, there is noone better at doing the main event New Japan style match that brought my attention to puro in the first place a decade ago. Match to watch: Okada vs Will Ospreay, NJPW G1 Finals August 18th 8 - Chihiro Hashimoto (30, Sendai Girls)  Big Hash does not have bad matches, only reason she's not higher up is that she chooses to stay in SenJo which I don't watch nearly enough of Match to watch: Chihiro vs Ryo Mizunami, Sendai Girls September 3rd 7 - Drew Parker (25, Freelance)  Drew's a loving maniac and I love him for it, it's such a disconnect seeing the guy getting cut to poo poo in deathmatches or jumping off any high thing he can find hanging out with Chrissy B shooting the poo poo on Tokyo Joshi's English comms or wrestling out of bars on a tiny mat. Dude's living his best life and you got to appreciate that. Match to watch: Drew vs Jun Kasai, FREEDOMS December 25th 6 - Yuji Hino (37, DDT)  Never has a wrestler done so much with so little. Armed only with a moveset that can charitably be descibed as 'limited', Hino gets by on sheer charisma and being the beefiest motherfucker in the room. Match to watch: Hino and ASUKA vs Shunma Katsumata and MAO, DDT April 22nd 5 - YOSHI-HASHI (40, NJPW)  THE modern day success story, a man who spent nearly a decade as a punchline before turning it all around during the pandemic era and becoming one of the more dependable wrestlers on the roster. Not content with revitalising the 6-man titles with The Lads, Hash decided to carry Hirooki Goto just a little bit further and help revitalise the ever stagnant tag scene. Truly, Yoshi-Hashi is the hero we should all aspire to. Match to watch: Yoshi-Hashi vs Shingo Takagi, NJPW G1 Climax July 23rd 4 - MAO (25, DDT)  I love Mao, he's my favourite member of 37KAMIINA (which includes forum fave Konosuke Takeshita) and also my favourite wrestler in DDT. Guy can do any style, be it high energy spotfests, genuinely gnarly hardcore matches, absurdist comedy or even emotionally resonant wrestling contests. If I see Mao show up I know i'm in for a good time. Match to watch: MAO and Asuka vs Chris Brookes and Masahiro Takanashi, DDT May 22nd 3 - Takuya Nomura (29, BJW)  Nomura rules, he's a guy I didn't think much of when I first saw him, he's pretty unassuming and dresses like a young lion. But then I saw him wrestle and realised dude hits like a goddamn truck. One half of the best tag team in the world (Astronauts with Fuminori Abe) that nobody watches because it's Big Japan and one half of the current AJPW tag champs with Kento Miyahara, the future looks bright for this boy. Match to watch: Nomura vs Kento Miyahara, AJPW Champion Carnival April 13th 2 - Miu Watanabe (23, TJPW)  If you're not doing the hands I don't want to know you Match to watch: Miu vs Miyu Yamashita, TJPW Princess Cup Semis August 13th 1 - Shigehiro Irie (34, Freelance)  loving love Irie, he's this generation's Tomohiro Ishii. Show up, beat the gently caress out of you, then go down making you look all the stronger in defeat. Plus he's one of the biggest workhorses on the indies, already this year he's worked 5 promotions and for 2022 he worked 32, and that's not even counting all the micro-indies that cagematch don't catch. Match to watch: Irie vs El Lindaman, GLEAT May 18th
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Jan 10, 2023 10:01
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10) Finn Balor 9) MJF 8) Cody Rhodes 7) Samoa Joe 6) Bryan Danielson 5) Will Osprey 4) Kenny Omega 3) Okada 2) CM Punk 1) Jon Moxley
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Jan 10, 2023 11:45
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10. Pac 9. Eddie Kingston 8. Bryan Danielson 7. Rey Fenix 6. Swerve Strickland 5. Hangman Adam Page 4. Konosuke Takeshita 3. Dax Harwood 2. Chris Jericho 1. Jon Moxley Would probably have Will Ospreay on this list if he wasn't such a colossal shithead
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Jan 10, 2023 13:25
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10. Jeff Jarrett (AEW, 55) 09. Fenix (AEW, 32) 08. Penta (AEW, 37) 07. Hangman Page (AEW, 31) 06. Darby Allin (AEW, 30) 05. Bryan Danielson (AEW, 41) 04. Ricky Starks (AEW, 32) 03. Chrus Jericho (AEW, 52) 02. Kenny Omega (AEW, 39) 01. Jon Moxley (AEW, 37) HMs: Pac, MJF, Wardlow, Orange Cassidy, Samoa Joe, Swerve Strickland, Jungle Boy, Keith Lee, Konosuke Takeshita, Sting, Cody Rhodes, Eddie Kingston, Powerhous Hobbs, Ethan Page and all my other friends in the AEW
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Jan 10, 2023 14:22
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stab posted:My picks or what daddy magic said? SamuraiFoochs posted:I'm 99% sure OP meant the latter in which case I also missed it and am curious. yeah, sorry, i meant when did DM references these forums on tv and how?
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Jan 10, 2023 14:33
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Sisal Two-Step posted:yeah, sorry, i meant when did DM references these forums on tv and how? He did goatse (I have my top 10 (well top 25...) ready but want to point a little effort into writing it up, so that will take some time)
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Jan 10, 2023 14:36
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10: Yuka Sakazaki (TJPW, Unending) 09: Hyper Misao (TJPW, 23 (source: https://twitter.com/misao_tjp/status/1610267309352054789) 08: Pom Harajuku (TJPW, 3 (in clown years)) 07: Mizuki (TJPW, 27) 06: Maki Itoh (TJPW, 27) 05: Miyu Yamashita (TJPW, 27) 04: Yuki Kamifuku (TJPW, 29) 03: Raku (TJPW, 25) 02: Miu Watanabe (TJPW, 23) 01: Mei Suruga (Gatoh Move, 23)
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Jan 10, 2023 14:45
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I watched a lot less this year, so this is going to be a boring list. 10. Kris Statlander - improved in ring, refocused (even though I liked the alien stuff), hit Adam Cole with a 450 splash, but has been out a while now. 9. Tomohiro Ishii - stone pitbull keeps goin 8. Kenny Omega - missed so much of the year that I can't put him higher, but drat, it was good to see him back. 7. Jon Moxley - kept having to put the company on his shoulders, but pulled it off. 6. Jamie Hayter - has really lived up to what everyone has wanted to see from her. 5. Minoru Suzuki - murder grandpa keeps goin 4. Orange Cassidy - honestly, you could argue he should be in first place. Quietly fantastic all year. 3. Eddie Kingston - learned to trust. his time is coming, I swear. 2. Bryan Danielson - just an endless series of terrific matches, including the best match I've ever seen in person. 1. Adam Page - tremendous reign as champ, pissed off CM Punk so badly he exploded twice and vanished, what's not to like?
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Jan 10, 2023 15:02
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10. Hoodfoot Mo Atlas - Despite having 2 pretty serious injuries, Hoodfoot is a must watch for me 9. Wheeler Yuta - If you told me in 2021 that Wheeler Yuta became one of my favorite wrestlers of 2022 I don't think I would've believed you. The shift from "Best Friends Job guy" to "Blackpool Combat Club killer" was awesome. 8. Sawyer Wreck - For me Sawyer Wreck just sort of came out of nowhere this year. Her no ropes barbed wire death match with Matt Tremont and her match with John Wayne Murdoch were both violent as hell and totally amazing 7. Dax Harwood - Dax has had an amazing year. From having 5* matches with Cash Wheeler to himself having amazing matches as a solo guy, Dax has had great matches this year. When I see him on the card I know we are going to have a good match 6. Chris Jericho - Jericho constantly reinvents himself, and this year has been no exception. From the Wizard, to GFY to the Ocho, Jericho has had a great year 5. Sami Zayn - From a great match with Johnny Knoxville to being the best part of the Bloodline. Sami has had one of, if not the BEST year of his WWE tenure. 4. Speedball Mike Bailey - I had never seen this guy have a match before this year. I knew of him and I knew that he was supposedly awesome, but holy poo poo was I not prepared 3. Roman Reigns - I know this one might be controversial but Roman has had another great year. 2. Brian Danielson - Amazing year for Big Brian. From having amazing matches with Moxley to tagging with Moxley, to the seeds of his feud with MJF. 1. Jon Moxley - What more can be said. Since coming back from rehab he carried AEW on his back this entire year, nobody has done more for one company than Moxley has for AEW
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Jan 10, 2023 16:41
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I put this list together and then compared to my lists from the last 2 years and, shockingly, it’s almost exactly the same as last year (give or take a few omissions due to injury/creative having nothing for them): EDIT: I had a bit to reconsider my initial pick here and thought it would only be fair to put Mox in over Dr. Britt. Mox’s 2022 was a HUGE deal and it’d be unfair not to give him the nod here over Dr. Britt (who bumps to Honorable Mentions now). Mox proved to be the Ace of AEW through 2 impromptu title reigns and countless solid matches, both as a singles guy and as part of BCC. I just hope the guy gets to take that vacation finally! 9. Jaime Hayter Dr. Britt’s heater EXPLODED this year, with great early showings as Britt’s tag partner and even better showings as the Hayter train picked up steam, culminating in her title victory over Toni Storm at Full Gear ‘22. Combo that with her awesome defense against Hikaru Shida a few weeks later and it’s no wonder that Jamie is getting hyped up as much as she is as of late. There may be some recency bias here, but it’s awesome to see how much Jamie has grown from those pre-pandemic shows. Plus her hard-hitting style is a breath of fresh air that I hope inspires a similar level of quality in the women’s division moving forward. 8. Chris Jericho THE OCHO! The most fitting #8 wrestler, Jericho does it again with his constant reinvention. The JAS has been a fun vanity project, and while the Kingston/BCC feud may have meandered a bit, Jericho himself has been a bright spot across promos and in-ring. Plus, his ROH Title run was the first time ANY of the ROH in AEW stuff landed for me, which is a big deal. 7. Bryan Danielson The best wrestler in the world (bar maybe #1 on this list) continues his amazing AEW run, with the BCC and several amazing title bouts making Danielson a standout performer of the last year. No matter who he’s facing, you KNOW you’re in for a spectacle when The American Dragon is on-screen. 6. Orange Cassidy Still cool. Has a belt in his bag now and his proper theme music. 5. Hangman Adam Page Hanger had a REALLY good run as top champ in the first half, with great defenses against Danielson, Lance Archer, Dante Martin, and Adam Cole. Losing to Punk was potentially the start of a cool turn for Hangman, as his journey to the top had been the main story of AEW, so it’d be cool to see what happens next, right? Not so, since Punk’s foot exploded right after (nixing the rematch), then the Trios tourney ended with suspensions that paused Hangman’s progress in THAT story. It’s all good though, as his late feud with Mox over getting hit in the head too hard has been compelling stuff that I’m excited to see come to a head soon. The Anxious Millennial Cowboy is still my champ, Big Yee Haw. 4. PAC THEY GAVE THE GOBLIN SOME GOLD!!! PAC had a GREAT year, winning the All-Atlantic Belt first (which I really think was developed specifically to finally give PAC a belt), and then the Trios titles with the Lucha Bros. PAC is always amazing to watch in-ring and it’s awesome to see him finally getting his due. 3. Rey Fenix The flippiest dude in the world kept on flipping. After recovering from a NASTY injury, Fenix didn’t miss a beat, winning the Trios titles with his Death Triangle pals and putting on some amazing perfomances throughout the year. Plus he’s finally getting in some character work: never has a man’s struggle over whether to use a tiny hammer to cheat been so compelling.  2. Penta  Penta continues to be the coolest dude on the planet. Great matches, fun times in tags and trios, a few strong singles title shots. Penta continues to rule, CERO MIEDO. 1. Kenny Omega Despite missing more than half the year, Kenny remains the absolute BEST in the world. Sorely missed in the first half of the year, his return for the Trios title reinvigorated my interest in AEW, and his matches just keep getting better and better. The Cleaner once again tops my list for the 4th year in a row, and I can’t see that changing anytime soon (especially considering how his 2023 has kicked off  ). The Short List: 10. Jon Moxley 9. Jamie Hayter 8. Chris Jericho 7. Bryan Danielson 6. Orange Cassidy 5. Hangman Adam Page 4. PAC 3. Rey Fenix 2. Penta 1. Kenny Omega Honorable Mentions Dr. Britt Baker DMD, Thunder Rosa, Serena Deeb, Angelico, Malakai Black, HOOK, Darby Allin, The Young Bucks, Eddie Kingston, Jade Cargill, Will Osprey, Zack Sabre Jr. BodyMassageMachine fucked around with this message at 00:53 on Jan 11, 2023 |
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Jan 10, 2023 16:47
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1) Chuck Taylor - I'm glad this is Favorite wrestlers and not subjectively the best. Chuckie T has been my favorite for years and years and years and years and years and it legit is disappointing he hasn't had some sort of title in AEW. 2) Orange Cassidy - The fact he is Andy from Wet Hot American Summer will never not endear him to me. WHAS has been a staple in my life for 20+ years now, so it makes sense OC is the same. I do a wrestling youtube show with a friend and she doesn't get OC, which is totally fine... she likes his matches once he gets into 5th gear, but when we went to AEW at Moheagan, when she saw the only time I was viscerally reacting was to hearing Jane, it finally clicked to her. 3) Alec Price - The Northeast Beast put New England indie wrestling on his back in 2022. Dude is insanely talented and so glad I saw him beat Nick Wayne in person at GCW. 4) MJF - For me, one of the only reasons I watch AEW (Good wrestling aside), Still blows my mind one of those promos with Regal had the audience standing by the end. His mic work is probably going to get him oversaturated in 2023, but loved him in 2022. 5) Jamie Hayter - If it ain't obvious, my favorite women's wrestler. Worked super hard whenever she was on camera and the audience picked up on it and helped lead her to getting the AEW Women's Title, yay! 6) Maki Itoh - By the previous posters lists, Im sure there are much better options for Joshi wrestlers... but Maki is the one I know and enjoy. 7) Eddie Kingston - It pains me Eddie doesn't get more TV time. Super hard worker I just love to watch 8) Danielson - It's the American Dragon, back to doing American Dragon things, how can you not love it? 9) Mox - It would feel wrong not having Mox on the top 10 list, but I have a hard time listing him above anyone else. 10) Vikingo - Dude is loving wild to watch. Hopefully AAA lets indie promotions air his matches with them in the near future because he deserves all the eyes he can get. HM's - Ospreay, Omega, Okada, Owens, ORicky O'Starks (All the O's. Not on purpose) There's a lot of great wrestling out there, and I sat down and typed out a list next week, there'd probably be some changes. (Although the top 3-5 would probably be set in stone)
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Jan 10, 2023 17:56
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I got back into watching wrestling in a big way this year after burning out on early pandemic NJPW. Started following AEW seriously and gradually started watching more and more. But since most of my time was with AEW and checking back in on NJPW most of my list will be from there. 10. Willow Nightingale (AEW, 28) Hopefully a rising star for AEW. The crowds are already on her side. Has a cool look, is strong, and the "nothing matters, smile anyway" gimmick really lands with me. It was so much fun to see her put on great matches and then finally get the "Willow Nightingale is All Elite" graphic. Would love to see her win some gold in 2023. 9. Josh Alexander (Impact, 35) Lives up to the Walking Weapon nickname. An imposing man who always looks like a beast. I don't watch Impact regularly but have made a point of watching as many of Alexander's matches as I can. Ended the year strong with an absolutely mind-blowing nearly 60-minute match against "Speedball" Mike Bailey. But he also had a really fun match with Konosuke Takeshita in an indie promotion. Any match with this guy is going to be a stunner. 8. Keith Lee (AEW, 38) I love the Big Motherfucker. My favorite style of wrestler. A big guy who moves fast, hits hard, and can bust out a moonsault for a huge pop. His storyline with Swerve was one of the highlights of last year and their matches together were electric. I'm not sure what kind of role he'll be in this year but I have high hopes. Especially since it seems like the Swerve stuff will continue, maybe as a singles feud. 7. Swerve Strickland (AEW, 32) Whose house? Swerve is a great heel, is so smooth in the ring, and is genuinely menacing. Now that he's got a goon squad of Parker Boudreaux and Baseball "Granden Goetzman" Mutant I expect to see him do more of his excellent heel work. Had great matches in 2022 and is someone I really look forward to watching whenever he's making an appearance. Would really like to see him go on a tear and win singles gold this year. 6. Jamie Hayter (AEW, 27) The champ! Her rise in AEW last year was another one of those organic things that is just great to witness. Got over with crowds by putting on hard-hitting matches. Got a title shot at a PPV and won the drat belt. This is someone you want if you want to raise the status of women's wrestling. I hope her magic will inspire great stuff from all the women on AEW's roster. Hopeful for a nice long string of stellar title defenses. 5. Darby Allin (AEW, 30) This guy is a loving sicko freak and I can't get enough of him. He takes the most insane bumps that make me want to wince and look away but his ring presence is so magnetic that I can't. The Coffin Drop is one of the coolest moves but pretty much everything Darby does in his matches is radical. One of the first AEW matches I saw (before I was a fan) was his debut against Cody Rhodes and it's interesting to see how far he's come since then. Great character work and intense matches make this guy a star in my book. 4. Will Ospreay (NJPW, 29) Yeah, he's a shithead, but he's the reason I started watching pro wrestling at all. And he's only gotten better in the ring. The United Empire stable has been a nice thing for NJPW and Will's hunger has been a huge part of its success. His matches are almost always gold. He sells like a fiend and has some of the best looking acrobatic moves in the sport. If his match at Wrestle Kingdom 17 is any indication he's going to have another banner year in 2023. 3. Orange Cassidy (AEW, 38) Despite having one of the most immediately engaging gimmicks, Orange Cassidy isn't content with relying on his apathetic persona to get over. He's also got the goods in the ring and has been a seriously entertaining champ. His title defenses on Rampage have been highlights nearly every week since he nabbed the gold. He's funny, he's a good wrestler, and a reliable reason to tune in to AEW's "b-show." 2. Jon Moxley (AEW, 37) Speaking of reliable, how about our violent friend Jon Moxley? He helped AEW through some rocky times what with unfortunate injuries and unfortunate meltdowns. He's AEW's Ace, it's undeniable. While I hated to see him fall to MJF, he's put on some great matches and seems genuinely interested in building up some of AEW's younger stars which is great to see. The feud with Page has been good and I'm interested to see how that will end up. But what I'd really like to see is for him to get a win back on MJF, even if it isn't for the title. But Moxley is great for AEW and will no doubt be a star in whatever role he find himself in 2023. 1. Chris Jericho (AEW, 52) Similar to Moxley, Jericho has been a stellar guy for AEW. Whether its his promo work, his great turns at the commentary desk, or his actual matches, Jericho had an electrifying 2022. His ROH title run was superb and ended in the funniest way possible. He's wildly entertaining but what really solidified him at the top of my list is his commitment to building up AEW. He seems like a genuinely encouraging guy to have backstage. And he's willing to put guys like Action Andretti over. He makes everyone look good and puts on some great matches himself, even at 52. If Jamie Hayter is the high water mark for AEW's women, Jericho is that for the men. Long live The Ocho. Honorable Mentions Jeff Cobb, Miu Watanabe, Hikaru Shida, Konosuke Takeshita, RUSH, Bryan Danielson, Sammy Guevara, Ricky Starks, Athena, Mei Suruga, Cash Wheeler, Dax Harwood, Zack Sabre Jr., Wheeler Yuta, Lee Moriarty, Jay White, Kazuchika Okada, Kenny Omega, Penta El Zero Miedo, PAC, Jungle Boy Jack Perry, Tomohiro Ishii, Eddie Kingston, Samoa Joe, Wardlow, El Desperado. Most of these are folks I only watched a couple of matches of but I definitely will keep an eye on in 2023.
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Jan 10, 2023 18:06
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10. Darby Allin. He represents what AEW is at its best - a crazy alternative to WWE where you'll see talent that would have been overlooked or underutilized anywhere else. His alliance with Sting is one of the greatest things in wrestling history IMHO, basically Sting and his adopted son doing crazy poo poo together. 9. Rey Fenix. At least once a match he does something that seems physically impossible. 8. Kenny Omega. He's just that good. You know any match with him is going to be great and I think he's a wonderfully goofy heel or face. 7. Willow Nightingale. She's great in AEW and it seems like a lot of people are realizing that. I saw her wrestle locally back at the beginning of 2022 and she was incredible there; easily swapping between fun high-energy stuff and straight up hardcore brawling. 6. Swerve Strickland. Someone who really clicked for me in 2022. His team with Keith Lee was apparently just born from their natural chemistry, and Swerve has done great leaning in to just being a sneaky piece of poo poo heel. A great wrestler who really understands every aspect of his character. 5. Jamie Hayter. What's not to like about a woman who just manhandles everybody and knocks the crap out of them? 4. Orange Cassidy. I enjoy every single thing he does, be it a match or promo or just popping up somewhere. It's even funnier when nerds lose their mind online because he's one of the best wrestlers on the roster, but the gimmick just makes some people freak out so much. 3. Penta. I think he's the most charismatic wrestler today, which is saying a lot. He's great in the ring but he's also plain incredible at getting people invested in those matches. I taught my nephew to do the Cero Miedo hand thing and I laugh every time he does it. 2. Hangman Adam Page. I still view him as the "main character" of AEW and him winning the belt off of Kenny was probably the high point of the company for me, personally. He's someone else who's a great wrestler and promo, and there's something about him that's extremely easy to root for. 1. Jon Moxley. Dude was asked to basically carry AEW on his shoulders for a few months and he did it. If AEW ever starts a hall of fame Mox and Brodie Lee should be the first 2 entrants.
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Jan 10, 2023 18:31
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