The Meltzer Thread

[cobainwasmurdered]

He's being absolutely brutal on twitter today again so it's just getting worse.

 

[strummer]

In the middle of all this mess the Observer .Awards are being released this week which I'm sure will lead to a lot of rational, well mannered discourse these next few days

 

[Valeyard]

Heel turn, AEW commish.

 

[Sex Machine Gun]

Imagine if big news stories and events were covered by one person, and one person alone. That's why I haven't put much into Meltzer talk. It's one of many guideposts to glean the real story. I liken it to how ESPN is a momolith of sports coverage.

Star ratings? Hahaha, I haven't cared about that since I was 19. I still read reviews and recaps to see what the zeitgeist is but rarely agree with them.

 

[Master Thrasher]

From Reddit:

Lou Thesz/Ric Flair Award (Wrestler of the Year): Kenny Omega, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kazuchika Okada

Most Outstanding Wrestler: Kenny Omega, Kota Ibushi, Kazuchika Okada

Tag Team of the Year: Young Bucks, Golden Lovers, Kyle O’Reilly & Roderick Strong

Best on Interviews: Daniel Bryan, Samoa Joe, Becky Lynch

Promotion of the Year: NJPW, WWE, ROH

Best Weekly Show: NXT, Being the Elite, NJPW on AXS

Match of the Year: Omega vs. Okada (Dominion), Ibushi vs. Tanahashi (G1 Finals), Almas vs. Gargano (TakeOver: Phoenix)

North America MVP: AJ Styles, Kenny Omega, Johnny Gargano

Japan MVP: Kenny Omega, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kazuchika Okada

Mexico MVP: LA Park, Pentagon Jr, Rush

Europe MVP: WALTER, Zack Sabre Jr, Will Ospreay

Non-Heavyweight MVP: Will Ospreay, Hiromu Takahashi, KUSHIDA

Women’s MVP: Becky Lynch, Ronda Rousey, Meiko Satomura

Best Box Office Draw: Conor McGregor, Kenny Omega, LA Park

Feud of the Year: Ciampa vs. Gargano, Khabib vs. McGregor, LA Park vs. Rush

Most Improved: Hangman Page, Jay White, Velveteen Dream

Most Charismatic: Tetsuya Naito, Becky Lynch, Hiroshi Tanahashi

Bryan Danielson Award (Best Technical Wrestler): Zack Sabre Jr, Daniel Bryan, Hideki Suzuki

Bruiser Brody Memorial Award (Best Brawler): Tomohiro Ishii, Chris Jericho, LA Park

Best Flying Wrestler: Will Ospreay, Ricochet, Fenix

Most Overrated: Baron Corbin, Nia Jax, Brock Lesnar

Most Underrated: Finn Balor, Gran Metalik, Andrade

Rookie of the Year: Ronda Rousey, Utami Hayashishita, Brian Pillman Jr

Best Non-Wrestler: Paul Heyman, Zelina Vega, Salina de la Renta

Best TV Announcer: Kevin Kelly, Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness

Worst TV Announcer: Jonathan Coachman, Michael Cole, Renee Young

Best Major Wrestling Show: NJPW Dominion, NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 12, NXT TakeOver New Orleans

Worst Major Wrestling Show: WWE Crown Jewel, WWE Backlash, AAA TripleMania

Best Wrestling Maneuver: One Winged Angel (Omega), Rainmaker (Okada), Stormbreaker (Ospreay)

Most Disgusting Promotional Tactic: WWE Saudi Arabia relationship, USADA’s handling of Jon Jones’ case, UFC using McGregor crime footage in promos

Worst TV Show: WWE Raw, Impact Wrestling, Lucha Underground

Worst Match of the Year: DX vs. Brothers of Destruction (Crown Jewel), Lesnar vs. Reigns (WrestleMania), Triple H vs. Undertaker (super Show-Down)

Worst Feud of the Year: Bayley vs. Banks, Lashley vs. Zayn, Ambrose vs. Rollins

Worst Promotion of the Year: WWE, AAA, Impact Wrestling

Best Booker: Gedo, Triple H, Jun Akiyama

Promoter of the Year: Takaaki Kidani, Triple H, Cody & Young Bucks

Best Gimmick: Velveteen Dream, Becky Lynch, Daniel Bryan

Worst Gimmick: Constable Corbin, Drake Maverick pissing, Lucha House Party

Best Book: Eggshells, Death of the Territories, Nitro

Best Documentary: Andre the Giant HBO Documentary, Bipolar Rock and Rolla, WWE 24 - Hardy Boyz

https://www.reddit.com/r/SquaredCircle/comments/b0za35/won_award_winners_2019/

 

[BorneAgain]

Huh, the streak of Impact being voted worst promotion has been broken after 11 years.

 

[KingPK]

Huh, the streak of Impact being voted worst promotion has been broken after 11 years.

And WWE finished second in best promotion....meaning that there are only two promotions in the world?

 

[BorneAgain]

Huh, the streak of Impact being voted worst promotion has been broken after 11 years.

And WWE finished second in best promotion....meaning that there are only two promotions in the world?

I presume NXT accounts for many of those latter votes.

 

[JHawk]

These are voted on by Observer subscribers.

That will not stop Meltzer's detractors from using it as proof of Meltzer's NJPW bias.

 

[Fall of Epic]

One could argue that Meltzer's general reporting helped cultivate their choices (which is a weak argument).

 

[AA484]

One could argue that Meltzer's general reporting helped cultivate their choices (which is a weak argument).

I think that was much more the case 20+ years ago but not so much now, especially with the ease in which footage can be recommended and subsequently obtained.

 

[cobainwasmurdered]

If you don't think Dave has a NJPW bias you're pretty blind and he obviously has influence on his voters but not as much as he did before. The awards don't really matter that much anymore tbh. The HOF is more interesting.

 

[KOAB]

yeah these awards seem weird when damn near most of them are filled with people and things in the worst promotion of the year

 

[AA484]

If you don't think Dave has a NJPW bias you're pretty blind and he obviously has influence on his voters but not as much as he did before. The awards don't really matter that much anymore tbh. The HOF is more interesting.

I don't watch the American stuff live anymore and it also gives me a list of foreign stuff to check out, too. So it serves a purpose to a casual like me, at least.

 

[BruiserBrody]

https://twitter.com/FO_VVerhei/status/1108430943012814848

Will this help Dave realize he's in self parody mode now?

 

[Big Papa Paegan]

When a major league sports team is making fun of your shit...

 

[Big Beard Booty Daddy]

I can't find the Tweet, but he said that he went to school, and knows the person running the page, so he doesn't take offense to it, like many were blowing it up to him.

 

[BruiserBrody]

https://twitter.com/allan_cheapshot/status/1113417863707205632

 

[vivisectvi]

Context?

 

[BUTT]

Former ROH photography Mary Kate Anthony found a VHS tape of the legendary Bret Hart-Tom Magee match but stated she couldn't post it online due to legal reasons, and I guess Dave extrapolated that she had received threats from WWE rather than the truth which is that she was, I guess, expecting threats from WWE? idk

 

[Baby Shoes]

Some lady has THE missing Tom Magee and Bret Hart match for a project she is doing for Bret, I believe. She posted evidence and Meltzer is claiming WWE flipped out since supposedly that match is on the banned list that talent can’t request alongside only Owen’s death and Droz getting paralyzed.

 

[JHawk]

Former ROH photography Mary Kate Anthony found a VHS tape of the legendary Bret Hart-Tom Magee match but stated she couldn't post it online due to legal reasons, and I guess Dave extrapolated that she had received threats from WWE rather than the truth which is that she was, I guess, expecting threats from WWE? idk

Most likely that's the case because a WWE copyright claim would literally be the only legal reason she couldn't post it. So the gist is correct even if the actual story isn't.

Some lady has THE missing Tom Magee and Bret Hart match for a project she is doing for Bret, I believe. She posted evidence and Meltzer is claiming WWE flipped out since supposedly that match is on the banned list that talent can’t request alongside only Owen’s death and Droz getting paralyzed.

FWIW, Colt Cabana said when he worked for WWE, he requested a series of matches every month that would show up in a DVD. Every month, he'd request the Hart-McGee match and every month, it would be the only match not on his DVD. He interviewed Meltzer several years ago about it and was shocked when Dave said he's seen it at some point.

 

[Baby Shoes]

The latest on this story is that Dave and Mary-Kate were in touch this morning and are now "on the same page" but the more interesting note is Meltzer is claiming that WWE never made this available because supposedly they did not have the footage of this and are in contact to acquire this match now.

 

[vivisectvi]

What's the big deal with the match?

 

[Baby Shoes]

Magee was pegged to be in the spot Warrior got and eventually take over for Hogan, reportedly due to his look and how great this match was, supposedly. He and Bret got rave reviews for this match. Apparently the guy looked like a complete goof in anything and everything else, was gone soon and this really raised Bret’s stock as a singles guy.

 

[The Thread Killer]

I actually saw Tom Magee wrestle live for the WWF, at a TV taping at the Brantford Civic Centre back in 1986 or 87, I think. He didn't wrestle Bret Hart, I am pretty sure he wrestled an enhancement guy named Terry Gibbs. I don't think the match ever aired, or if it did I didn't see it on TV. Magee wasn't that bad. I remember he was a big muscular guy, he looked kind of like Kerry Von Erich, but he could fly. I remember him coming off the top rope and doing what kind of looked like a shooting star press. It was basically a squash match, but he looked impressive to me (of course I was only 16 at the time.) This was over 30 years ago, so I may be remembering this whole thing wrong, but I do remember him jumping off the top rope and doing some sort of flip which in that era was pretty rare, for a guy of his size especially. I was surprised he basically never showed up on TV and was never heard of again. The next time I saw him was a few years later in a horrible cheesy action movie called "Stone Cold" fighting Brian Bozworth in the mud or something.

Not sure why he never made it, it's not like he was much worse than most of the muscleheads in the WWF during that era.

 

[alkeiper]

Magee was terrible. He had a tremendous look, and could do some amazing spots. Picture Kerry Von Erich taking a back body trip but doing a flip and landing on his feet. Obvious raw talent. But in between spots he moved like a video game character and looked lost. As unnatural a wrestler as you've ever seen.

 

[Fall of Epic]

I mean, Magee being an awful, failed experiment has been known amongst the wrestling community for awhile but agreed, from everything I've seen, he wasn't any different from say, Lex Luger in 1993.

 

[909]

I mean, Magee being an awful, failed experiment has been known amongst the wrestling community for awhile but agreed, from everything I've seen, he wasn't any different from say, Lex Luger in 1993.

Are you serious?

 

[AA484]

Luger was eons better than Magee. He could go when he wanted to, especially before injuries started taking their toll.