Call me old school, but I long for the days when a finisher was the true end of a match 95% of the time. Kicking out of multiple finishers is not something new. It was practically the majority of the Attitude Era! However, it is my opinion that wrestlers kick out of finishers way too much! Can we preserve at least some kayfabe? Can we pretend it's not completely dead? Don't get me wrong, I don't think wrestlers should never kick out of finishers. I just think it needs to be an incredibly rare thing!
Remember when the DDT was a finisher? Since the dawn of that maneuver, there have been different variations and suddenly, it's no longer a finisher! I don't understand how we got to that point! I understand wrestling evolves and things like body slams and suplexes don't finish matches anymore. A DDT is a totally different ballgame, though! It's a devastating move where your head goes straight down to the mat. How are people kicking out of this? Should they be kicking out of this?
You may be saying to yourself that only the main eventers kick out. I know John Cena is notoriously known for kicking out at two! Roman Reigns has also joined the party! However, it's all I see! I know it happens in WWE a lot but the worst culprits are Ring of Honor and various Indy promotions. The art of selling has gone to Hell! That's a different discussion altogether! I understand that having matches end abruptly after one finisher is not what fans enjoy these days. However, there are ways to get around not being pinned after the finisher. Everyone still loves the classic "foot on the rope" routine, for instance!
On the contrary, there are certain maneuvers that were there for the pageantry and showmanship and yet they were considered finishers. Case in point, The Worm! How can anyone in not kick out of that? Sure, it was entertaining, but it shouldn't have been a finisher. As much as I love The Rock, I still don't like the idea of the People's Elbow as a finisher. Is it a great signature move that sets up a finisher? It sure is! Another example would be the Cobra. It looks like it would delay your opponent briefly but not finish an opponent. I know I'm going to get heat for this but the Samoan Spike was not something I considered a finisher. Yes, a padded thumb to the throat can be quite painful but it looks to me as the perfect signature move before you go in for the kill.
Back to the lecture at hand! Let's talk about the Super Kick, shall we? Before anyone starts on me for what I'm about to say, I'm aware that Dolph Ziggler, the Usos, and various others have also overused this move! However, the biggest culprits when it comes to this move are the Young Bucks. They have practically ruined the Super Kick as a finisher. These stupid Super Kick parties are not entertaining to me. In fact, the evolution of the maneuver is quite amazing. Before Shawn Michaels adopted it and added the showmanship to make it "Sweet Chin Music," it was just a side kick. Now, we've gone backwards where it's not a finisher anymore. A swift kick to the face should definitely be a finisher!
I also know people are going to argue that Hulk Hogan's leg drop was not a finisher. It was also a different time then! However, I would think someone running and dropping their entire weight on you with their leg is quite devastating! Hogan was also a near 300lb guy. There's a difference between him dropping the leg and a Cruiserweight dropping the leg. I also know people will question why I don't think the People's Elbow is a finisher but Randy "Macho Man" Savage's flying elbow was. Here's the difference! Savage went to the top rope, whereas The Rock did it from a standing position.
When you talk about brutal and abrupt finishers, there were several that fall into this category. The Tombstone, the F-5, the Pedigree, the RKO, and the Stone Cold Stunner are just a few. Some people might argue that I'm a hypocrite because there are moves I consider silly but think highly of the Mandible Claw. Before the emergence of Mr. Socko, Mankind's Mandible Claw was based on hitting certain nerves in the mouth that render an opponent useless! I'll even go one further and say that Mr. Socko made it that much worse for an opponent. Not only were your nerves being worked over, but you also had the smell of an old sock that someone just pulled out of their pants! See, I like to have fun too!
Another problem seems to be matches where people "should" have kicked out of something because it was a single finisher but couldn't defeat their opponents with multiple ones. The biggest example would be the match between Brock Lesnar and Braun Strowman at No Mercy. People were very upset that Braun lost after one F-5, yet couldn't put Brock away. While I was also upset, it was not for this reason. I happened to think Braun should have won the match outright and became the Universal Champion, never mind the finisher nonsense! Here's hoping to a Royal Rumble win and the monster among men redeeming himself against the Beast at WrestleMania!
I guess I'm somewhat of a hypocrite in a way, as I really enjoyed the WrestleMania wars Shawn Michaels and the Undertaker had, as well as the classic Rock/Stone Cold rivalry, all of which contained multiple finisher kick-outs. Their matches also went well beyond that and contained fantastic story-telling! The bottom line is, is there a way to get back to where finishers are really finishers? I want finishers to mean something again!
If you have any further examples on the situation, let me know in comments. Heck, let us all know on The WAR Report podcast, every Tuesday at 7PM EST, brought to you by TagMeADate.com, the first and only dating site for wrestling fans. Go to askthewarreport@gmail.com or #askthewarreport. For TagMeADate members, our Android and Apple apps are vastly approaching so stay tuned!
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