RIPPA Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 MATT RIDDLE FIRST ROUND SAMOA JOE FIRST ROUND Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Technico Support Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 I look at Riddle the same way I look at Jeff Cobb. I like watching his stuff but he's just getting started and isn't nearly as well-rounded as he certainly will be. Joe has been there for quite a while and is awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIPPA Posted March 8, 2017 Author Share Posted March 8, 2017 I am fairly positive that this will be the first result of this tournament that will infuriate me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt D Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 7 minutes ago, RIPPA said: I am fairly positive that this will be the first result of this tournament that will infuriate me Because of the severity of the difference or because you simply can't rationalize Joe having a better year than Riddle? Riddle, to me, is still very incomplete and I wonder if his habits aren't getting worse with confidence instead of better. He's dynamic and a breath of fresh air but at the same time is as much Angle/RVD as he is anything else. Joe has been far steadier this year, especially if you count in the house show footage/fancams/live experiences some of us have had. I don't think it should necessarily be a blow out for Joe, but I'm leaning for him over Riddle right now and I've seen (and liked) my share of Riddle matches. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIPPA Posted March 8, 2017 Author Share Posted March 8, 2017 The latter but I also accept that apparently I am in the minority in thinking that Joe had a "meh" year But - apparently people aren't even considering the time period anymore... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Man Known as Dan Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 Just now, RIPPA said: The latter but I also accept that apparently I am in the minority in thinking that Joe had a "meh" year But - apparently people aren't even considering the time period anymore... I voted Joe No.1 on the RoH poll a couple weeks ago, and I think he had one of the weakest years of anyone in this tournament. The Balor matches were not amazing, save one (which was mostly Joe, so points to him there). The entire Joe/Nakamura series felt completely skippable. And, uh, that's it. That's his year. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVA Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 I feel like Riddle developed some bad habits this year, and that gives me some pause in voting him through. But, yeah, just not enough Joe in the period. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.T. Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 4 minutes ago, RIPPA said: But - apparently people aren't even considering the time period anymore... Which is why I vote for Riddle here and for Okada in another thread. Lots of workers resting on laurels this tourney. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIPPA Posted March 8, 2017 Author Share Posted March 8, 2017 1 minute ago, J.T. said: Which is why I vote for Riddle here and for Okada in another thread. Lots of workers resting on laurels this tourney. And Chris Hero is pretty much the only one of three in this tournament who isn't 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.T. Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 The Kairi Hojo vote is a black cloud that will hang over my head for the next ten years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Man Known as Dan Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 I love Io, but that is a fucking terriblle draw for both participants there. I'm probably gonna vote Io, but I have DIY to the Final 4 in my bracket, and for good reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicken Sandwich Carl Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 I really like Riddle, but Joe's work has been top notch. I don't think it's his fault that the Nak feud went south. How do your force your opponent to try harder, you know? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cristobal Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 Something I think people are underselling is Joe's character work. Whether it was non-talky Demon, or still learning English Nakamura, Joe had to carry his NXT feuds on the mic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DylanWaco Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 I want Samoa Joe to be good still, and he's a good promo, but I'd basically have to be a hardline NXT cultist to buy the idea he had a year roughly 1/4 as good as Riddle's. I mean...I attended 6 or 7 NXT events last year, and saw Joe live an awful lot so maybe I am an NXT cultist. But I just don't see any evidence to support the idea he's in the same universe as Riddle. Granted I'm less in line with the Segunda Caida critique that he's an emerging Angle BUT even if he was a 2004 Angle I'd take 2004 Angle over 2016 Samoa Joe 100 out of 100 times. Joe is a guy who was actually HURT some by me seeing him live last year and I say that as someone who has been a fan of his for well over a decade. If you were hurt by me seeing you live you shouldn't get out of the first round. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt D Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 49 minutes ago, Cristobal said: Something I think people are underselling is Joe's character work. Whether it was non-talky Demon, or still learning English Nakamura, Joe had to carry his NXT feuds on the mic. Some of this is definitely the nebulous voting criteria which is both part of the charm and part of the frustration of March Madness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NikoBaltimore Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 When I talked to Riddle recently he definitely knows the comparisons between him and Angle and I think it's led to him studying Kurt more. Even though he's taken some of Kurt's tendencies I'm still voting for the guy. I love Joe but this has been a down year for him. What I'd rather vote for is Riddle against Joe to see what happens. That would be one hell of a matchup. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIPPA Posted March 8, 2017 Author Share Posted March 8, 2017 #humblebrag 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NikoBaltimore Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 7 minutes ago, RIPPA said: #humblebrag Thank goodness for the Evolve show in Joppa. The guys out there had all the time in the world to talk before and after the show. Riddle had a long line, but when I got up there he was super cool. Love his Jim Beam and is every bit the bro one would expect. And as for hashtags I'm more for using in this case #blessed But that's one of the main benefits of going to Evolve shows so if it's in town go to it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevie Ray Von Erich Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 Joe had basically the same match at least three times with two different guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt D Posted March 8, 2017 Share Posted March 8, 2017 2 hours ago, RIPPA said: #humblebrag Probably not good to follow Dylan on that, since I think Riddle was at the Hales Family Thanksgiving or something. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OSJ Posted March 9, 2017 Share Posted March 9, 2017 7 hours ago, RIPPA said: The latter but I also accept that apparently I am in the minority in thinking that Joe had a "meh" year But - apparently people aren't even considering the time period anymore... Well, despite my terrible old man tastes, I find that we are in agreement here. Joe definitely had a down year, so the question becomes "Was Riddle's year sufficiently good to move him ahead of a rather stagnant Joe?" I think the answer is a resounding "Yes!". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cubbymark Posted March 9, 2017 Share Posted March 9, 2017 3 hours ago, Matt D said: Probably not good to follow Dylan on that, since I think Riddle was at the Hales Family Thanksgiving or something. You don't have to look that hard to see Bro all over Papa Hales' timeline. Vote for Bro, vote for Riddle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Niners Fan in CT Posted March 9, 2017 Share Posted March 9, 2017 Just broke the tie. Went with bro! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig H Posted March 9, 2017 Share Posted March 9, 2017 I went with Joe. Again, it came down to character and promo work and for me, I feel like Joe is one of the best guys in the company on the mic. He brings such an intensity to his promos, he doesn't flub them, and it never feels rehearsed. He looks physically imposing in the ring and on the mic, everything he says sounds like something he's going to back up. With Riddle, I know a lot of you enjoy him, but man, he just comes off as such a brah type guy, like Rob Van Dam, but way more of a stoner. Dude just bugs me whenever he talks. In ring, he's pretty good, but I like Joe's style more than Riddle's. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NikoBaltimore Posted March 9, 2017 Share Posted March 9, 2017 I can see you not liking his talking. He didn't sound that bad in his promo at the Evolve show (was more intense when calling somebody out). But meeting him at the table he seemed like he was high as a kite. I like him as a wrestler, but not sure I'd want to hang out with him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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