The Wrestling Framework 03.04.12: Why? Because I love wrestling!

I’m Aaron “Not Adam” Frame and THIS is The Wrestling Framework!

How is everyone doing? That’s fantastic. You know, I’ve been enjoying a lot of the stuff that’s been on my TV lately as far as wrestling goes. The stories are usually pretty hit and miss, but some of the matches have been great. In WWE, I’ve been enjoying the Champion vs. Champion matches pitting Daniel Bryan against CM Punk. Kofi Kingston, R-Truth, Dolph Ziggler, Jack Swagger, Epico, and Primo have proven that if WWE focused on tag team wrestling, they could REALLY have some GREAT matches. I’ve said in the past that I’m not a huge fan of tag team wrestling, but that’s not exactly what I mean. I’ve just really given up on it because it seems nobody on national television really wants to focus on it and give us great tag team wrestling. If the companies actually put the effort forth and give us some solid tag wrestling, I would care more.

Over on the other side, TNA has been producing some really good matches. I mean, from their X-Division matches to the women’s wrestling to the main events. They have been impressing me time and time again. I really do hope that they’re finally going to go somewhere. What I think they really need to do is get the hell out of Universal Studios. I really don’t mind the idea of having a set studio to tape shows, it really helps keeping the wrestlers from getting burned out on an insane touring schedule. But I think that they need to hit the road and tour nationally. I’d like to see them hit California more. I understand that there is a huge, probably much bigger, fan base on the east coast, but the west coast has a good following as well. It’s the same with ROH and Sinclair not broadcasting over here. Oh well, I’ll take what I get.

Anyhow, this week I’ve got two good matches to share with you guys. The first one is from TNA’s Turning Point Pay-Per-View from 2009. Samoa Joe, AJ Styles and Christopher Daniels entered in to battle for the second time to showcase why they can be considered amongst the best in the business.

I decided this week, I’ll take a match from Mexico and review that. I didn’t really know what to pick, so I just looked around youtube before picking the one I did. I’ve been impressed by the work of Mascara Dorada and Mephisto in the past, and I wanted something recent, so this was an obvious choice.

In the Bonus Round, I’ll be talking about Ring Ka King.

Every category is rated 0-2.
0-.5: Bad
.5-1: Okay
1-1.5: Good
1.5-2: Excellent

Then the scores are added up from the five different categories of the Big 5; psychology, work rate, crowd, spots and finish. The final score will be a number 1-10.
0-1: Unwatchable
1-2: Terrible
2-3: Bad
3-4: Passable
4-5: Okay
5-6: Not Bad
6-7: Decent
7-8: Good
8-9: Really Good
9-10: Excellent

MATCH: Samoa Joe vs. AJ Styles vs. Christopher Daniels
TNA Turning Point 2009 – Aj Styles vs Samoa Joe… by timbaland1995

Psychology: 1.7
Work Rate: 2
Crowd: 2
Spots: 2
Finish: 1.9
Overall: 9.6

Psychology: So, the story here is that Samoa Joe was been playing mind games and getting AJ and Daniels to get at each others throats. And it worked. All three men were on the edge and ready to beat the hell out of the other two. And it was evident since the opening bell that Daniels was pissed at AJ for not trusting him and pissed at Samoa Joe for playing the games that got AJ and Daniels pissed at each other. AJ was in the same boat, but he was more worried about defending his title. Joe was there to kill them. That’s what he does. And these guys put on a hell of a show that displayed an emotional story of a cerebral assassin that drove a wedge between two best friends. But, there just seemed to be parts that fell flat. There were moments that I didn’t see the passion or fire that was there before. I could chalk it up to fatigue, but I think they could have at least kept in mind that they’re all pissed at each other and they have their own motives. It seemed like they got in to the mind set that they wanted to focus more on the in-ring action and not a whole lot on the deeper, emotional aspect that was the driving force behind the fact that this match was taking place.

Work Rate: This right here is one of the many reasons why people should just shut the hell up about what company these guys work for and enjoy the show. These guys know how to move in the ring and know how to make things really exciting. They’ve all worked with each other for a number of years, so they have that distinct advantage in their corner as far was work rate goes. They’ve had matches multiple times with each other and they know what works and what doesn’t. They know exactly what kind of moves to do to each other that compliments their own wrestling styles. AJ being the high-flying ace, Daniels the technical genius, and Joe the absolute beast of a man. You would never think that after hearing all three men work somewhat different styles that they would be able to gel so well. Excuse the pun, but this is the exact type of total nonstop action that TNA was built around and this is the stuff that got so many people to take notice of them. They deviated from this path, but I think they’re starting to get the big picture once again. If I can see Joe, Styles, Daniels, and other guys like them in the main event with the guys that are already there, they could put on **** – ***** star matches in their main events with ease.

Crowd: You know, I’ve never been a huge fan of the iMpact Zone crowd. They really seem like what they are. Tourists, casual, and die-hard fans. A lot of times they just phone it in and don’t really contribute to the product like they should. And, from what I hear, the studio doesn’t sit a whole lot of people. Can I really fault them for that? I don’t really think I can. TNA is working with what it has. However, this was an example of how awesome the iMpact Zone crowd can be. They were on their feet and cheering like madmen. They were really, REALLY in to this match. They were throwing out chants left and right. During the announcements they were loud as hell. Well, maybe not. They were kind of quiet. Joe and Daniels had rather mild sounding reactions. Joe getting the better of the two. But AJ Styles? Forget about it. That crowd ERUPTED! They really loved AJ Styles. He was the bread and butter of TNA at the time. Between chants of TNA, AJ Styles, and Joe/Joe is gonna kill you, they were pretty good for a crowd of it’s size. I even liked how when the bell rang, all three guys just stood and looked to the crowd reacting to the cheering. Taking it in. Now, I may get called out on this, but I’m trying to gauge this on the size of the crowd. It has to be no more than maybe 1,000 people. And I’ve been to shows with about that many and I can say that if you were there it would probably have been a lot louder. Sometimes the actual noise of the crowd doesn’t translate well to TV.

Spots: I think this match was built a lot more around the base story and even more around the action inside the ring. While they didn’t have a whole lot of spots, the ones they did have worked really well. I think I understand that they wanted the match to be very work rate heavy and not loaded up and bogged down by a bunch of spots. Honestly, I’ll admit that if they had decided to use a lot of spots to try and make the match seem crazy and unpredictable, it would have ruined it. If they went out there and decided that they wanted a huge eye catching moment where AJ flies to the outside every 2 or 3 minutes it would come off as just a huge crap fest. They were smart enough to save all the big flashy, divey moves for the middle of the match. To me that made their use of spots so much more effective. At this point the casual fan may have started to grow a little bored, but then they start diving to the outside and doing some really exciting stuff and it brings them right back in to the action. My favorite spot came when AJ went to dive on to Joe and Joe moves prompting AJ to catch himself on the ring apron. Then Joe just chops him down with a kick. Was so damn epic to me because it worked to drive home the fact that Joe is just a machine that will dominate you in any situation. Of course the time shortly after that, AJ does get to fly to the outside with the Foxbury Flop….wait, did they just really call it that? Well, it was still damn cool.

Finish: That finish was about what I would expect from these three. And I say that in the best way possible. While there are many other finishes that could have worked great here, this one was perfect. There was just enough leading up to the 3 count that showcased the talent of all three men. Going from the possible superplex, you have Joe who knocks the hell out of AJ knocking him off the top rope and out of the ring showcasing Joe’s raw power. Then, you have Daniels who uses his technical abilities to escape being on the receiving end of another Muscle Buster and then taking Joe down with a STO. Following what is absolutely the Best Moonsault Ever, well maybe after Kurt Angle’s, AJ comes right back in and breaks up the count in all his high-flying glory with a very dangerous looking springboard 450…knee drop? Yeah, that was pretty sick looking. That’s what took the .1 point away. But at the same time, I didn’t want to do that. I really wanted to just make the finish a perfect 2 because that sick 450 knee drop was, well, sick looking. Other than that, as I said, this was just perfect. If this style of ending could be used more, I would be happy. I think that doing what you can to highlight the styles that the wrestlers use as you’re about to finish the match just has a certain appeal that makes it mean more.

Overall: This right here is the main event picture that I was hoping TNA would try to build the company around. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that what they have now is bad, just that these guys are good and look at them now. Styles and Daniels are locked in a feud that is actually pretty good, but it’s about a midcard feud. And Samoa Joe is a tag team champion. Well, I guess that’s not too bad, but I want more for him. I want more for all three of these guys. Austin Aries just got himself placed in the main event picture. Possibly. And I’m all for that, I love A Double and everything that he can do. But what about the guys who built the house of TNA? What about the guys that have busted their asses for years only to get passed up for stars established elsewhere? I understand the business behind it, those already established stars have a huge amount of drawing power as opposed to guys the casual fan may have never heard of. But why not use these established stars to help elevate the guys that have been the backbone of the company for years? Look how well Roode and Storm are doing as they mix it up with guys like Angle, Hardy, and Ray. They’ve become two of the hottest rising stars in the company. The same could be done for guys like Joe, AJ, and Daniels. I think they deserve it. Maybe they should take to Twitter…

Oh, and before you decide that you want to be “cool” and tear me down for praising TNA, how about you get over yourself, grow up, and enjoy some damn wrestling and quit being such a tool.

WINNER: AJ Styles

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COMMERCIAL BREAK

April can not come any faster.

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MATCH: Mascara Dorada vs. Mephisto

Psychology: 1.5
Work Rate: 2
Crowd: 2
Spots: 2
Finish: 1.8
Overall: 9.3

Psychology: Okay, fair warning, this isn’t going to be that great of a write up on this match. I didn’t quite catch all that was going on here. And to be honest, I don’t know a whole lot about Mexican wrestling. But I’m trying something new, so it’s a new adventure that I’m going on and you’re all coming with me. So anyhow, from what I could catch Dorada was the tecnico, or babyface, and Mephisto was the rudo, or heel. This was for the CMLL heavyweight title. And…they don’t really like each other. Okay, I guess that was all given. HOWEVER!! I gave this a 1.5 because I could feel the emotion within the match. I didn’t know any of the background story of this match, but there were times that their actions spoke loudly enough that I was understanding enough to enjoy it all. Not to mention how well these guys worked together. They really seemed to have a purpose behind the action inside the ring. For some reason their selling really jumped out at me the most. Can I just say that I love the fact that they walk a fine line between selling and over-selling? That right there was one of the main contributing factors as to why I scored the psychology of the match so high. It was just impressive to really watch how differently they do things and how body language in a wrestling match can mean so much to the progress of the match, the story, and the emotional quality.

Work Rate: Holy shitballs. These guys have just phenomenal work rate. I don’t know what I liked more! They’re creative high-flying maneuvers, their innovative submission holds, or just the flat out crazy reversals that they were pulling off. I’ll admit that the match was definitely an over-the-top spot-fest type of match, but I’ve come to believe that is the norm for luchadores. And aside from all the spots, there was some pretty decent actual wrestling here and there. I can’t forget about all that work from the top rope they do. I mean, to me it’s scary that they spend so much time jumping off the top rope, springboarding, or diving to the outside. They take some serious risks here. Hell, this match right here is a testament to the fact that the argument about whether or not high risk maneuvers like diving to the outside should not be banned in the states. These guys did it like 5 or 6 times in this one match and they were able to walk away from it all with probably just a few bumps and bruises. I now see the appeal to bringing a guy like Sin Cara or Hunico to the WWE. They bring a whole different style to the table that is just freaking outrageous. And I guess it would be much like how guys like Rey Misterio Jr. brought a more exciting product back in the late 90’s.

Crowd: Now, here’s the thing, I suck when it comes to international crowds. I just don’t know how to judge them. Mostly the reason being that I don’t have a whole lot of experience with them. I don’t know if there are certain cultural aspects as to whether the crowd should be silent here or loud and cheering there. It was much the same when I was doing this for Japanese crowds, I really had to do my research. Unfortunately, I haven’t quite had the time to do so for Mexican crowds. I’m going to assume they’re no different than an American crowd. And if that’s the case, this crowd was pretty damn good. They were loud and abuzz the entire match. Those wrestlers in the ring gave their all to entertain them and the crowd gave their all to let them know they were being entertained. That’s all you can really ask for. That’s also another good way to judge whether the match you’re watching is good or not. Or if you should boo one guy and cheer the other. And I’m talking in the case that you may not have all the background information needed to make emotional investments to the match. The crowd for this match came off like they were watching one of the greatest matches of all time. Like these two guys were the top two luchadores in the country. Actually, correct me if they are, please.

Spots: WARNING: BAD JOKE FOLLOWING. This match had so spotty…*how spotty was it?!* This match was so spotty you could have classified it as a dalmatian! Buh dum chi! But seriously, you couldn’t watch this match for more than five minutes without seeing some insane spot that just had you wondering if someone was going to die. I’ve seen a little bit of lucha libre, but not a lot to know if this is how they usually do matches. If so, I should probably lower the score because the spots in this match could have been terrible. Like I said, this is new territory for me. So if someone would like to school me up on if lucha libre is usually like this and if these spots were weak or just the usual stuff you would see in any other match, I would appreciate it. And to be honest, I don’t know if I should be in such high praise of this match. If I saw two well known American high-flyers like, say, AJ Styles and Evan Bourne have this type of match at some ROH or indie show, I might not have praised it so highly. It’s quite possible that I may have even praised it more. I mean, it really comes down to how the match itself was to play out. Point is, the spots in this match were things I’ve seen before, but there were so damn many in this one match that it just made things seem like they were extra special. It seems like it’s a harsh double standard for me to do so. But oh well.

Finish: Not too bad of a finish. I thought Mephisto was going to get the three but Dorada was able to get the shoulder up. Barely. And right as Dorada is pulling Mephisto in to his submission attempt, they cut to a midget luchadore. No, wait, sorry. That’s just a kid in a mask. But that was kind of annoying. I didn’t know if I had missed anything or what. That’s not what drags the score for the finish down though. In fact, I have yet to really grasp the reason myself. I’m an asshole like this because I get these feelings that I shouldn’t praise something as highly as I want to. These feelings usually come off as “something not being right” but I can never identify why I’m getting this feeling. It seemed fully legit to me. It looked like a perfect 2 finish. Good guy kicks out last second making the bad guy just look on, away from the good guy, in frustration setting up the come from behind pin or submission attempt. This was done quite well here by both men. So why the hell do I feel like something is off? Why is there this nagging in my head that is telling me that it deserves to be a 1.8 instead of a 2? I’m asking you guys to take a look and give me an idea. Maybe it’s just that I’m tired and not thinking clearly. Or maybe it was the cut away to the kid. But can I hit the finish for something that’s not their fault?

Overall: Lucha libre is just a beast all in its own. I think I should try to present more lucha matches in the column which leads me to ask you guys for some suggestions. I want lucha libre from Mexico. But before I take another whack at it, I think I should really do some research and get to know the intricate workings of their style of wrestling. I didn’t really think too much about it before diving right in, but that’s the fun about venturing in to new and exciting territory in the wrestling world. You never know when you will discover something that will just blow your mind and have you wondering why you never thought to watch it before. And then you start craving more and before you know it you’re in rehab for your addiction.

WINNER: Mascara Dorada

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COMMERCIAL BREAK

Ring Ka King

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B-B-B-BONUS ROUND!

Wow, okay, I know Ring Ka King could be considered old news by now, but I hadn’t given it much thought until recently. I must say I’m thoroughly impressed with the way it has been done. The production on it looks amazing.

Where to start? First of all, it seems like India takes wrestling to a whole different level. Their style seems very similar, but a lot more soap opera mixed with hosted show. The fact that I don’t understand anything that is being said most of the time kind of throws me off. I might have the wrong idea about the “hosted” bit. But they have pulled off something that is just produced so damn well. From the videos to the actual set, it all just looks nothing of what someone would expect from TNA. That’s not a knock on them, but compare to iMpact, Ring Ka King has a more visual appeal.

The Hindu stars they have are actually pretty damn talented. I forgot what I was watching but I saw some try out videos for RKK and I was NOT impressed by most of what I saw. A lot of the guys trying out were not very athletic to say the least. But when I started watching it, I was shocked at how well these guys wrestle. I’d say they’re almost above the American workers they have working there. Speaking of which, the wrestling product as a whole is pretty entertaining. Some of it seems like “yeah, I’ve seen that before,” but a good majority is showcasing guys that I have never seen, haven’t seen in a while, or just not seen much of. And anytime that I can watch Nick Dinsmore wrestler is okay with me.

RKK, to me, has been a huge slip that I let happen and shouldn’t have. I just kind of wrote RKK off as not being worth it. But there is so much more potential with this product than I initially thought. This has opened up my eyes to start looking in to how big the wrestling business is in India. I never gave it much thought, really. But these guys had to have come from somewhere, right? Currently up to the last released episode, which I believe was 10 and you can see it in the last commercial break, Matt Morgan has the title and Sir Brutus Magnus has won the #1 contenders spot. I don’t want to ruin it for anyone who hasn’t watched it but wants to catch up or who wants to watch it play out, but I’ve heard it gets better from here. I’m excited to watch as each episode releases.

And that’s all for me guys. I’ll be seeing you next week.