Match of the Year Podcast: Recent Episodes
Christopher J Garcia
We look at the evolution of professional wrestling through some of its greatest matches! Every episode, we take a Match of the Year award winner from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Pro Wrestling Illustrated, The Theszies (RSPW Readers Poll), Box-y-Lucha, or Tokyo Sport annual poll.
Episode Notes The Match on YouTube
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Episode Notes The best version you'll find!
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Episode Notes You can watch this one here!
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Episode Notes The Match is here!
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Episode Notes The Whole Match
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Episode Notes The Whole Match
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Episode Notes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Y0DaQKoxTQ
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Episode Notes This absolute classic (along with other matches from the Real World Tag Team tourney)
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Episode Notes A look at a 5-star classic! Thrill to Misawa vs. Tsuruta! Watch Fuchi bust Kobashi open! THrill to Akira Taue doing a Tope!
All that and more!
The Match itself!
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Episode Notes The Match - https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2869xc
An excellent look at the match
An amazing collection of their greatest matches
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Episode Notes Blood! Intensity! American Work! Brothers! A deserving and different style Match of the Year!!!!!
A look at one of the best matches in the history of SmackDonw! and what it means to be a match that has actual impact.
As is usually the case, the NXT Take Over show was amazing, and the Gargano vs. Ricochet match was not only the best match on the show, but the best match so far this year!
I look at the 4 main candidates for Wrestler of the Year, and why the Psychokiller is the easy choice!
THe best opening match of all-time? The best Brother v. Brother match ever? The last example of great and smart WWF booking? Is Owen Hart vs. Bret Hart all of those things? Let's find out!
The best match ever in San Jose? Big statement, but it might be true, as these three main evented a hot PPV and put in a match that might have won Match of the Year in another day and place. Becky is the hottest thing in wrestling, Charlotte proves what a great athlete she is, and Asuka is awesome!
We look at an amazing Ring of Honor match between Takeshi Morishima and Bryan Danielson which completely shows how brawling can fit into the context of a traditional wrestling. Also, how awesome was 2007 for Bryan Danielson!
We look at the November 2006 SmakDown brawl between Finlay and Chris Benoit. We discuss the way in which Finlay is basically Stan Hansen for the early 2000's WWE, why I still talk about Benoit after he murdered his family and killed himself, and how 2006 was a very interesting time!
The first of the Money in the Bank matches and one that really shows what the WWE was in 2005, what they were shooting for, how the Ladder match progressed, and especially how they could go from Attitude to PG-13
What does blood mean in wrestling? Eddie and JBL had a match that is an excellent example of what it can mean.
The feud that defined what RoH would become, that put Punk on the map, and that demonstrates how the rising quality of wrestling around the world led to far better gimmick matches!
A look at what will compete for Match of the Year and one of the all-time most dramatic matches that ever took place in the US, or anywhere for that matter! A look at what it took to make it all into one of the best matches ever!
The Return of The Heartbreak Kid in an unsanctioned Streetfight leads to one of the best brawls of the decade!
A look at a wonderful 1999 ECW brawl and what these guys meant to bringing FMW-style wrestling to the masses in the US. See table spots, and when a finisher still meant the finish was here.
NXT's best woman's match ever, and one of the best of th eyear! It's also Asuka's last NXT match and the best thing goin!
This is IWA Japan, and while it's a company that had a lot of wildness (and will be a major part of 1995: The Year Brawling Broke) this was one of the craziest, with two teams that understood how to tell the story of a good brawl.
Remember that match you saw back in the 1990s where Terry Funk was fighting a guy you didn't know and then the freakin' ring exploded? This is that match!
A look at the most violent tag team of the 1990s, bar none, and their classic feud with Jerry Lawler and Jeff Jarrett!
A Cage Match, a Stretcher Match, and a Falls Count Anywhere match, all in one night, all absolutely insane. One of the great brawls, and two guys who would change the business forever, even if only one of them seems to get any credit for it...
It's the best brawl of the 1980s, an amazing example of two athletes at their peak working a style that would influence the next decade of wrestling!
Yep, we're jumping into FMW, and not for the last time! Here, we see what a wild, out-of-control brawl looked like in 1990, why it was important, and most of all, how we can look at this and see where it fits in with wrestling in general.
An All Japan tag match that demonstrates what exceptional brawling looks like in the context of a traditional All Japan main event!
A Coal Miner's Glove on a Pole, Do DQ Steel Cage Tuxedo Loser-leaves-town match, and an amazing brawl!
A look at a classic of Portland brawling as Buddy Rose and Matt Borne go at it in a Lumberjack match that really defines Portland's style of brawling in the early 1980s!
A look at how Angle and Benoit worked together, brought out the best in each other, and ultimately worked a match that didn't require the tricks that so many of that era relied on. Also, I talk a bit about Benoit's legacy, and what we need to remember, especially the parts we wish we didn't have to.
A look at one of the nuttiest, and most fun, matches of the wonderful late 2000 period that saw Kurt take off!
Either the best or the worst, there are a couple of ways of looking at it. Kurt vs. Shane, the wrestler against the stuntman, in a match that shows just how dangeresque the entire wrestling thing can be. Blood, battery, and being dropped on your head in WWE 2002.
One of the best WrestleMania matches ever (Bobby Heenan even thought so!) and one of the finest examples of what happens when eras collide! The start of our extended look at Kurt Angle - The 21st Definition of Great Wrestling in the 21st Century!
A look at a unique match that you might not realise is REALLY unique! Tanahashi vs. Minoru Suzuki for the IWGP Championship in October 2012, in a match where both guys, who are both currently champions in New Japan despite being 40+) are at the top of their game.
A look at the final match of the Mae Young Classic between Kairi Sane and Shayna Bazsler and what's next!
No Match of the Year contenders, but it was a really impressive presentation and shows that the WWE actually does understand Women's wrestling
In many years, this would be a Match of the Year contender, but since it happened while the G1 was still going strong... well, you know. I look at how these two guys worked so well and what the second and third most important Japanese titles are all about these days!
I somehow missed how they've been establishing EVIL as a potential Main Eventer in the G1, and now I talk about it and how they're messing up with Kenny Omega.
Kenny got hisself pinned by Michael Elgin (who is awesome and excellent!) and now, I wonder... what the fuck New Japan? What does this mean for Block B? Where does this lead for post-G1? Does this make Okada-Omega 3 meaningless, or more meaningful, and just where do they go?
A look at how awesome Zack Sabre is, Okada vs. SANADA, Kenny Omega goes comedy (brilliantly) and what they're almost certainly building to!
two phenomenal and Important matches open up the Tourney! Stay tuned to Match of the Year Podcast for more reviews of the tourney!
A look at the implications of the headbutt that Shibata delivered to Okada in one of the best matches of the year, and in all likihood, the choice that ended Shibata's career.
A great match, but it highlights a battle between today and tomorrow, just like Hart v. Michaels, and many many more.
A look at the RSPW Theszie Award-winning 2-out-of-3 Falls classic between The Revival and DIY in NXT, though really it's about the guys, their upsides, and what Tag Team wrestling really means today!
A 60 minute classic, but what does it say about what wrestling of this style was and is...? You can eMail me at journeyplanet@gmail.com
The greatest match of all-time? Many are saying so, and I'm not fair off from that opinion! I talk about what the match did, what it meant, and why it wasn't 100% right in the booking... maybe.
A look at the best WWE match in ages, the best new comer to WWE in even longer, PLUS a look at other matches of 2016 that deserve a mention!
A look at Marufuji vs. Okada and Miyahara vs. Suwama, two matches that say a lot about the status, and future, of Japanese Pro Wrestling!
Kenny Omega had a helluva 2016, and Michael Elgin's pretty good. Here is the episode about the ladder match that was so great!
The two of 'em are damned good, and New Japan was awesome in 2016, and their G1 Climax match? Listen!
A look at a match that got a lot of attention, as The Young Bucks and Adam Cole take on Ricochet, Matt Sydal, and Will Ospreay at the Battle of Los Angeles. Was it a legit 5-star classic? You'll see!!!
A GHC Title Match that tells many stories, and gives the feeling of what it means to be an All Japan/NOAH main event.
The Wrestling Observer's Match of the Year for 1990, it's a great example of the Jr.s coming up to the big time and the new Main Event style that evolved out of it!
The match of the Year for 1983 in the Observer (and other places) this cage match was the final and full transition out of the 1970s and into the 1980s for the NWA Title!
The PWI Match of the Year for 1995, it's a match I was in the house for, and one that sorta sets up what was on the way!
My Match of the Year for 1983, the brutal and masterful Dog Collar Match from the first Starrcade. I talk about it, the brutality, and more!!!
One of the best woman's matches in American history, and a wonderful overall presentation. We look at the PWI winner for 2015's best match!
One of the hottest crowds in WWE history meets one of the hottest angles ever devised. Punk at the top of his game, but a match that really showed where the WWE was headed, and I'll argue even set us up for NXT!
We celebrate the career of Bryan Danielson / Daniel Bryan by looking at an absolute classic he had against KENTA in 2006 during the ROH vs. NOAH program.
The match that should have won the 1996 Match of the Year, and one that changed the WWF forever!
The final of the 3 Michaels-Taker Match of the Year matches, and the final match in Michaels' career. It's an impressive match that closed out this amazing feud!
The Wrestling Observer Match of the Year for 2009 between Shawn Michaels and Undertaker where 'Taker takes a bad bump and the two tell an amazing story!
The first-ever Hell in the Cell, featuring the first bump off the cage through a table performed by Michaels, and the storyline that is was a part of!
A look at the important aspects of the Michaels vs. Undertaker matches that took Match of the Year in various forms in 1997, 2009, and 2010.
We're looking at the biggest-drawing match in English wrestling history between The British Bulldog Davey Boy Smith and The Hitman Bret Hart from SummerSlam 1992 at Wembley Stadium.
Here we go, giving out our own awards! We talk about the year's bests, and somehow manage to not duplicate ANY other major awards...
So, after re-watching Mick Foley's destruction in the most brutal match of all-time, I recorded an emotional episode that looks at it as a cultural artifact with an impressive depth of impact.
The most famous Match of the Year ever, as far as I'm concerned. Arguably the best American match of the 1980s, and perhaps one of the ten best to this day!
One of the most lauded matches of all-time - Rey Misterio and Edge take on Kurt Angle and Chris Benoit for the World Tag Team titles in an incredible match from WWE's No Way out 2002! It's on the WWE Network, but the SmackDown! Re-match between the teams is well-worth watching!
The best WWF matches ever? Maybe. We look at the two Match of the Year winners (Wrestling Observer Newsletter, RSPW, and Pro Wrestling Illustrated winner 1994, RSPW winner 1995) and what they meant to the future of wrestling.
The third of the three Ring of Honor Match of the Year winners is Bryan Danielson vs. Takeshi Morishima for the RoH World Title. Chris looks at various reasons why this might be the perfect Match of the Year for him! Thrill to the hard-hitting description of Morishima as the hybrid of Stan Hansen and Terry Gordy! Enjoy Chris totally misremembering things! You can see the match at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0Zms-3xXg0
Recorded in the back of a Google Self-Driving Car, it's the episode of Match of the Year Podcast that looks at the Dragon Gate six-man tag match from 2006 that won the WON Match of the Year. Chris talks about it, about how it probably wasn't the best Six-man/Japanese-Lucha hybrid, and why you need to look at TNA for what was the best of 2006. You can find the match at https://vimeo.com/109053397 And you can find other great 2006 matches at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLhbVYaAanIR9DYvCfms9fH2MwHPosvl6y
A look at a match that SHOULD have won every Match of the Year for 1985: Magnum TA vs. Tully Blanchard in the I Quit Cage match at Starrcade 1985!
Ring of Honor's 2005 classic between Samoa Joe and Pro Wrestling NOAH legend Kenta Kobashi! We use this as a jumping on point to discuss what wrestling means to smarts, how match of the year is dealt with, when wrestlers are awesome, and the careers of these two amazing performers! You can see the match at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZNiNWKC5jY
The only Lucha match to ever win the Observer Match of the year, we look at the real world of Lucha, what makes Lucha Lucha, why the mask matters, and so much more! You can see the match at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2nB09BVj4Ww and a Best of Lucha Heavyweights at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLhbVYaAanIR8uTFb_EYoKkvSix9-hE8Cl
Arguably the most important series of matches of the 1980s, Tiger Mask vs. Dynamite Kid is legendary, and we talk about these two guys' careers, the feud, the drugs, the 'roids, the way they changed wrestling, the people they inspired, and the ideas behind it. We've also put together a YouTube Playlist for Tiger Mask! https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLhbVYaAanIR-_ZeFFb6YCj3yjVsC1pBuZ