As wrestling fans no matter which promotion we follow or which wrestler we think is best or worst, there is one thing we are always looking for and this is the same thing that every wrestler is looking for, this is The Perfect Match. Now some may say that The Perfect Match has already happened when Benoit and Angle participated in the 30 min Submissions Iron Man Match, or when Benoit fought Regal at the Brian Pillman Memorial Show or maybe Flair/Steamboat from 1989 or other times. Maybe Rock/Hogan was The Perfect Match? Some might say HHH/Michaels from last year was The Perfect Match, and there are of course others that will say there could never be a Perfect wrestling match. This in some cases is true, as if there were a Perfect match is would have to be one that the whole world agreed was Perfect and you only need to spend 5 minutes on a wrestling forum to realise that will never happen.
So what is it in my opinion that makes up The Perfect Match, well in keeping with the rest of The Perfect Series I’m going to go over the main points of what is feel makes up The Perfect Match.
The Perfect Match is different to The Perfect PPV or Feud, when it comes to my first point, and that is build-up. It could be said the Perfect Match needs good build-up to show true emotion between two wrestlers, but I don’t feel that it is a necessity. Good build-up will give the fans something to think about during the match, but if there is too much history is can be distraction especially if it involves another person i.e. a tag partner or diva. Now some will say that wrestlers need a bit of history to fight each other, but I disagree.
If at WrestleMania Vince came out and said that C M Punk and Steve Corino were going to have the first match and the winner would be offered a WWE contract, I would put good money on the fact (if they were left to their own devices) that it would be a really good match, not perfect, but certainly up there. There would be no history that a lot of fans watching would know about yet it would be a great match. Or if Dean Malenko and Angle went at it when Malenko first joined WWE, they would have had the ability to put on The Perfect Match from a wrestling standpoint. But unfortunately today’s fans don’t just want great technical wrestling from a match; they need their impact moves and highflying fix. With this in mind The Perfect Match should be one that should be able to get the crowd into it using wrestlers reactions as well as ability, and that brings me onto my next point storytelling.
Now I’m not a wrestler, so I’m not going to even try to describe how to story tell properly, but I do know how important it is. In this modern ages of highflying/high impact moves story telling has been lost a bit. There was a time when moves like The Immortal Leg drop, or the Savage Elbow would finish a man off at the end of a match, but if they were used now in a match lets say Savage vs HHH, it more than likely that we would see two savage Elbows and two Pedigrees before we even considered seeing a winner.
The Perfect Match would need to be one where wrestlers actually took time to sell moves and give each other credibility. Storytelling goes beyond this though, it gives a match structure and The Perfect Match would need this structure to be Perfect. I’m not saying that there should be no high impact moves for high flying moves it’s just they should be used in the right proportions to make the match look believable so the wrestlers look like men, not wannabe gods.
The Perfect Match should be like a really good movie. It should bring out every emotion in the people watching it, but also should be one that can be looked back on and you will see things you don’t see when you first watch it.
One thing I have emphasised so far in this column is the fans. A good wrestler will feed off the fans and use them to his/her advantage. The fans will help make The Perfect Match, fans are needed to boo the heel, and cheer the face, to chant and create an atmosphere. I think everyone remembers the last year or so of WCW, where you could watch a show and there would be times where you could here a pin drop. Only fans can decide whether a match is perfect, if two wrestlers get a standing ovation and cheers like never before. It is this reason why Rock/Hogan could have been the Perfect Match; the atmosphere was amazing in that match, two Icons going at it, the fans torn between who to love. There may never be an atmosphere like that again and for a fan that feeling was near to perfection.
I have touched on technical ability being needed for The Perfect Match, which it is, but it may not be vital. We watch wrestling and love to see a technically perfect match, but as I said before today’s fans want more. To be classed as perfect by everyone, The Perfect Match would need the correct combination of technicality and impact. There are people who find Benoit matches boring because of his technical based style and would rather watch Batista decimate someone for 5 minutes than watch Benoit tie them in knots for 20 minutes. So to gain perfection a medium would need to be achieved, but it would have to be one everyone agreed on which would be near impossible.
This medium would also determine the length of the match. How long should The Perfect Match be? 20 minutes, an hour? I don’t think a time limit could be set on The Perfect Match, it would end naturally. The wrestlers in the ring would know from fatigue, crowd reaction and how they have told the story of the match, when would be the right time to end it. Giving a match a time limit immediately puts pressure on the wrestlers to fit everything in. But saying you’ve got as long as you want will give them time to do everything they want to do, and will help build suspense for the end of the match.
These are my thoughts on what I feel is needed for The Perfect Match. I may have missed out vital factors that some of you think are needed in The Perfect Match, but that is expected as writing this has proved to me that there will never be The Perfect Match.
This column has been a tough one to write and even now I’m not fully happy with it, but that is good, as if it had been easy to write this column, then The Perfect Match would have already happened.
The Perfect Match is something everyone will dream about, but will never universally happen, just something everyone will achieve in their own minds.
This has been my interpretation of The Perfect Match and as usual if you have any comments, feedback, questions please send them too thetrebormint@hotmail.com
This has been The Trebor Mint, whether you loved it, hated it, or just want to give you’re opinion or just need to answer my question email me at the above address.
Have a Nice Day!!
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