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Top 20 Of 2016
Graphic by Salwinder Singh.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“It.” “Delete.” “Obsolete.” “The List.” “10.” “The Champ That Runs The Camp.” “Stupid Idiot.” “Glorious.” “Too Sweet.”
The list above describes a fiesta of phrases commonly found in pro wrestling jargon that made 2016 possibly its best year ever.
The one below describes select moments that help seal that argument and make us forget about things like The Titus Brand, The Cruiserweight Division, Raw’s Third Hour, WWE’s overloaded Pay-Per-View schedule, TNA’s X-Division and Matanza Cueto.
If you want to remember that bad stuff, check this out.
Notes In Observance – WWE 205 Live 12/13/16: Still Feeling Lucky
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 12/13/16)
Still Feeling Lucky
– The opening video recapped last week when WWE Cruiserweight Champion Rich Swann successfully defended against Brian Kendrick in their rematch. There was some accidental physicality between the “good friends” of TJ Perkins/Swann, as we ended with Swann laid out with a superkick meant for Kendrick. As we know, we’ll get a Triple-Threat for the Title at Roadblock: End Of The Line. One has to assume that we’ll get more build. The main event would be Swann-Perkins.
Notes In Observance – WWE CWC 9/14/16: The Finale
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 9/14/16)
The Finale
– From its inception to the two-hour live finale, the Cruiserweight Classic was treated like the hand-crafted gift to the IWC it was meant to be. Where else on a WWE platform would you see the likes of Zack Sabre Jr., Cedric Alexander, Johnny Gargano, Rich Swann, Drew Gulak, Kota Ibushi and TJ Perkins among others do what they truly are known for? On top of it all was a credible commentary team of Mauro Ranallo and SmackDown Live General Manager Daniel Bryan. Through it all, we saw the rise of relatively unknown talent like Gran Metalik and Noam Dar to an American audience while indie mainstays like ZSJ, TJP and Alexander stepped their own games up to prove their worth. The opening video highlighted all the tourney’s happenings with a voiceover from Triple H as he talked about how far they’d come. From 32 men from 16 countries, it was now down to four men from four countries. We also heard separately from the final four, who were GM, ZSJ, TJP and Ibushi about how much the tourney meant to them.
Notes In Observance – WWE CWC 9/7/16: Can You Handle This?
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 9/7/16)
Can You Handle This?
– With the Cruiserweight Classic winding down to the esteemed Finals, it had been a fun journey thus far. We’ve seen great work from talents on the rise like Tony Nese and Gran Metalik, while other established veterans like Tajiri and Brian Kendrick enjoyed one last shot at glory. It shouldn’t be a shock to many that the final eight have turned out the way that they have. This episode featured the last of the Quarterfinal Round with matches between Zack Sabre Jr.-Noam Dar and Rich Swann-TJ Perkins. Still a good matchup no matter how you arrange the four.
Notes In Observance – WWE CWC 8/31/16: The Great Eight
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 8/31/16)
The Great Eight
– The Cruiserweight Classic has been exactly that from the moment it became reality. As the weeks pass on, the 32 men that the tournament started with has dwindled itself now to “The Great Eight,” which were shown in the opening video to be Noam Dar, Brian Kendrick, Rich Swann, TJ Perkins, Gran Metalik, Akira Tozawa, Kota Ibushi and Zack Sabre Jr.. This show would feature Quarterfinal Round action from Metalik-Tozawa and Kendrick-Ibushi.
Notes In Observance – WWE CWC 8/24/16: Rounding Out The Elite Eight
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By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 8/24/16)
Rounding Out The Elite Eight
– The Cruiserweight Classic could in many ways be described as WWE’s hand-crafted gift to the internet wrestling community. Name recognition has never meant so much these days and the next stars are just waiting to be made here. The opening video followed in the way of NXT TakeOver highlight reels in that we saw the prettiest slow-motion sequences of the series’ biggest strikes, flips and submission holds. Also worked in was the sound bite from Triple H at TakeOver: Brooklyn II where the CWC winner would be crowned on Sep. 14 and receive a trophy designed by the guys at Orange County Choppers. We finished it out as we saw how Akira Tozawa, Noam Dar and Brian Kendrick all made it to the “Elite Eight.” Hyped for this episode were the last of the Second Round matches, which were Zack Sabre Jr.-Drew Gulak, Lince Dorado-Rich Swann and TJ Perkins-Johnny Gargano. That card alone sounds so good on a regular show.
WWE NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn II Reaction
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
The more things change, the more they stay the same.
While that cliche can apply to most things in life, it especially applies to NXT, particularly around SummerSlam weekend.
Again, despite efforts to divert attention to the six-hour spectacle that is SummerSlam itself, it only goes to that of its previous-day predecessor, NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn.
Last year, 15,000 Brooklynites held witness to one of WWE’s matches between WWE Women’s Champion Sasha Banks and Bayley.
While this year’s bouts didn’t capture that match’s emotional whirlwind, just like every previous TakeOver special, we left each contest with a “talking point” of some sort.
Notes In Observance – WWE CWC 8/17/16: Fishin’ For The Submission
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By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 8/17/16)
Fishin’ For The Submission
– The Cruiserweight Classic continued on, as the opening video showed highlights of last week’s amazing action where Gran Metalik defeated Tajiri and then we were subjected to a mat classic between Cedric Alexander and Kota Ibushi, as the latter advanced. As we wonder how they could possibly top that potential Match Of The Year candidate, we had three more Second Round matches to salivate over – Akira Tozawa Vs. Jack Gallagher, Noam Dar Vs. Hoho Lun and Brian Kendrick Vs. Tony Nese. Let’s roll.
Notes In Observance – WWE CWC 8/10/16: The Epitome Of Strong Style
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By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 8/10/16)
The Epitome Of Strong Style
– If you’ve just caught onto the Cruiserweight Classic, good for you. The first round finished up last week and appropriately, the opening video showcased the many highlights it provided. It was reminiscent to the slow-motion video packages on the NXT episodes that are post-TakeOvers. In short, 32 men in this tournament that represented 16 countries was now down to 16. Little did we know the fun would truly start at this point.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 8/10/16: Psychological Warfare
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 8/10/16)
Psychological Warfare
– We liked how the show opened out of the usual realm, as Bobby Roode walked out of General Manager William Regal’s office with a smile on his face now that he knew of “something great.” He left it at that and walked away. Yummy, some light drama and anticipation.
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