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Post by lemming on Sept 12, 2022 7:59:10 GMT -5
This was exhaustingly brutal. On first watch I preferred it to Gunther's matches against Dragunov in NXT: UK.
Sheamus is well known for his stiff offense and therefore a natural match up for Gunther, but I think his babyface selling and ability to build sympathy is underrated, probably because his size means he doesn't get to play underdog too often. Similar to his great match against Big Show a decade ago, this is all about him going toe to toe against a more powerful force, and defiantly refusing to take a backwards step, even when it seems like he is being overwhelmed.
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Post by tetsujin on Sept 12, 2022 9:45:37 GMT -5
A wonderful underdog Sheamus performance, indeed. I really prefer this kind of "fighting spirit"-focused matches than the usual NJPW ones, they seem much more natural and don't relly on clichés. These two dudes just didn't stop hitting each other whenever they could, that's all you need. Definitely the best match of the card (bad overbooking hurts the otherwise great Reigns/McIntyre) and a WWE 2022 MOTYC.
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Post by mvz on Sept 17, 2022 8:34:33 GMT -5
Third. I don’t view it as a contender for my list but it was a great viewing experience between the stiffness and the storyline.
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Post by microstatistics on Sept 17, 2022 18:07:08 GMT -5
This was pretty good. I especially liked Gunther's non-chop based strikes here. The semi-botched powerbomb was forgivable and in fact set up the back psychology nicely. His explosive dropkick looked weak though.
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Post by Cap on Dec 20, 2022 16:17:35 GMT -5
This is very much worthy of MOTY buzz, especially if your tastes (or brand loyalties) align with WWE. I just rewtached it yesterday and felt like it certainly held up as a slugfest, but it also had a really astute sort of direction to it. This will sound more pretentious than I mean it, but I think this would have been better in a smaller room. Even in an average Raw arena, this probably would have punched through the screen a bit more. That stadium they were in was just so spread out with a massive floor section. This kind of brutality has a different sound and feel to it in a smaller space. That isn't really knock on the match though. This was quite excellent and probably the best (or one of the best) WWE match of 2022
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Post by elliott on Oct 23, 2023 0:33:58 GMT -5
Not one I'm a fan of. Gunther is a tough hang.
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