Austin Region, New Orleans Subregion, First Round: (9) Kane vs. (24) Bruiser Brody

[HBK-aholic]

This is a first round match in the Austin Region, New Orleans Subregion. It is a standard one on one match. It will be held at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana.

#9. Kane


Vs.

#24. Bruiser Brody


​

Polls will be open for three days following a one day period for discussion. Voting will be based on who you feel is the greater of the two competitors. Post your reasons for why your pick should win below. Remember that this is non-spam and the most votes in the poll win. Any ties will be broken by the amount of posts of support for each candidate, with one vote per poster.


Also remember that this is a non-spam forum. If you post a response without giving a reason for your selection, it will be penalized for spam and deleted.

 

[nightmare]

Oh boy. I have been waiting for this one. Two big men who would beat the shit out of each other in one hell of a crazy match.

I honestly have no idea which way to go on this. Gentlemen, prepare your word forts & sway me.

 

[FunKay the Inevitable]

Bruiser Brody is genuinely an inspiration to so many wrestlers in the generations that have come before and since. There are two very capable workers in the two biggest wrestler organizations in the world (WWE and NJPW) who have gimmicks directly inspired from Brody (Luke Harper and Togi Makabe). He drew money as a big time singles villain in the American territories and drew even bigger money as an even bigger villain in tandem with Stan Hansen in Japan. He's an innovator of hardcore wrestling and a legend.

Kane is the Undertaker's brother. Seriously, ask anyone who Kane is and pound-to-a-penny the first thing they say is 'Undertaker's brother'. That's not to say Kane isn't a legend in his own accord, but people won't be talking about the Big Red Machine as an icon of eras past long after he's gone. He's a good hand and very capable, but he's still 'Undertaker's brother'.

 

[Tastycles]

What happened to Bruiser Brody is awful. However, what we also should remember is the reason he had such a nomadic career is because his behaviour wasn't deemed worth the payoff. His behaviour was grossly unprofessional, but plenty of wrestlers have still managed to have long careers in major promotions with that in mind, so it must be that his value wasn't really that good.

Kane, on the other hand, has been the second most successful 'monster of the week' type character in wrestling history after The Undertaker. He has been a multiple time world champion and is still deemed a worthy opponent for up and coming stars. By the time he retires, Kane will have been a WWE employee for the best part of 25 years during which time he has made some awful gimmicks passable and during which he has barely ever been injured, has never been involved in any controversy and has provided us with some very memorable performances.

You can build a wrestling promotion out of 24 guys like Kane, you couldn't build a sandcastle with Bruiser Brody.

 

[enviousdominous]

Kane has built an amazing career out of making other people look better, his only non-transitional championship was the tag team championship. He's an amazing human being and one of the most reliable workers in prowrestling history, but we're talking about who would win this match.

Bruiser Brody had a reputation for breaking the script in the middle of a match and going stiff simply because he up and felt like doing it. Against an opponent like Kane, I would expect Kane to go with the flow and wait to pull Bruiser to the side until they got backstage and then ask him what the hell happened. The biggest assholes in the industry (Punk, Lesnar) have noted that Kane is one of their favorite people to work with because he never hurts anyone and he never loses his temper.

In a respectability contest, Kane beats anyone else in this tournament and he'll always be welcome at my dinner table. In a match; I see Bruiser Brody going easy on Kane but eventually picking up the win, so my vote is for Bruiser Brody.

 

[OYDK]

Behind Owen Hart and Chris Benoit, Brody has to be the most tragic story in wrestling history. Even more so because his murderer got off on a bullshit trial that ended before it began. Still I wouldn't say his death had much of an impact on his career as he had already carved out a nice niche for himself throughout 15 years in the business. His death shouldn't play a part in this decision.

Of the two, I'd have to say that Brody was more popular and influential than Kane all things considered. Brody may have never won a World title in any of the big three nationals promotions but he was one of the selling points wherever he wrestled. People did dish out their hard earned money to see Bruiser Brody take on guys like Abdullah the Butcher, Antonio Inoki, and Carlos Colon around the world. How many people have payed for a wrestling event strictly to see Kane? His influence on the business can be seen across multiple eras in guys like Luke Harper, Hacksaw Jim Duggan, and Mick Foley. To pro-wrestling, Brody was much more important than Kane.

On the other hand, Kane was a World Champion. He's been a main event talent for a good portion of his career, which has spanned nearly 25 years. I'd say Kane was the better talent in the ring and on the mic and much more versatile than Brody ever was. However Kane has also been known primarily for losing. His wins are not memorable and he was notorious for being the guy who jobbed to the Austins, Rock, and Takers of the AE, and the Angles, Cenas, and ...Takers of the RAE, and the Bryan's and Rollins of our current era. And I think if Kane were around during Brody's time, he'd do the job for him too. Kane's a good guy, Brody... wasn't at times.

If we're looking at longevity and accomplishments, Brody doesn't have enough to take this one, but if we're considering lasting influence, popularity, and international recognition, Brody wins every time. I put the latter above the former when it comes to someone like Kane and as such, I think Brody should take it.

Vote Bruiser.

 

[MrMojoRisin]

What happened to Bruiser Brody is awful. However, what we also should remember is the reason he had such a nomadic career is because his behaviour wasn't deemed worth the payoff.

Why should we remember something that wasn't true?

He wasn't the easiest guy to deal with professionally (re: the promoters), because he was smarter than most of his contemporaries. He knew his own worth, and wouldn't allow himself to get less than what he deserved to work.

And he got it... because Bruiser Brody WAS worth the payoff. Promoters knew that they could make a lot more money with Brody on their card than they could without him... and that was even with him ultimately charging them more for his services than others would.

Brody was a nomad because it afforded him a better life than being beholden to a single promotion. He could make more money, get more time off to spend with his family. Why wouldn't he do what he did?

Before his death though, he did realize that the landscape was changing, and he wouldn't be able to keep being the nomadic rebel. He was waiting for the right time and angle, but he said he likely would have gone to the WWF, and he knew if he did, he'd have to eat the big boot, take the leg drop, and put over Hogan. He was willing to do it too, and it's interesting to think of how things would have unfolded differently if he wasn't murdered... because he likely would have taken that big boot at a Wrestlemania.

Envidomious said it best here. Kane's made a great career out of making others look fantastic. Brody made a career of leaving people lying on their backs.

Vote Brody.

 

[NSL]

This one really is a toss-up, and I've gone back and forth on this since seeing the bracket. Bruiser Brody is an inspiration to a lot of guys, as Tasty pointed out, and he was a legit badass...

But...this isn't the gimmick rouonds. And, I'm thinking, in a straight up one-on-one contest, Kane gets the advantage. In his prime, he was very agile in the ring, and brought a nice power game as well. He has his own list of championships and accomplishments, including one of the greatest feuds ever with Undertaker.

I'm voting Kane, but I wouldn't be heartbroken if this went the other way either.

 

[Tastycles]

Before his death though, he did realize that the landscape was changing, and he wouldn't be able to keep being the nomadic rebel. He was waiting for the right time and angle, but he said he likely would have gone to the WWF, and he knew if he did, he'd have to eat the big boot, take the leg drop, and put over Hogan. He was willing to do it too, and it's interesting to think of how things would have unfolded differently if he wasn't murdered... because he likely would have taken that big boot at a Wrestlemania.

That's very interesting because it seems so out of character. Brody was a smart man though, I guess.

Envidomious said it best here. Kane's made a great career out of making others look fantastic. Brody made a career of leaving people lying on their backs.

But that's the point, good wrestlers make their opponents look good. This match is amongst the most unprofessional things I've ever seen in a wrestling ring, and Luger certainly doesn't look better for it. Brody's conduct here is appalling, and Lex Luger and Bill Alfonso deserve credit for putting up with it.

[YOUTUBE]-FfngjQyIxM[/YOUTUBE]

As for leaving wrestlers lying on their backs, the majority of Brody's matches against world champions ended in draws or DQ finishes because he refused to job. If everyone conducted themselves in the manner Brody did, there would not be a professional wrestling industry.

 

[SSJPhenom]

It's gotta be Kane! (See what I did there?)

Kane has had the better career and more accomplishments. Is somebody that has always been able to be put into the main event at any given time. Also, in his prime, he was a genuine monster and anybody not named Austin or Undertaker were probably going to lose.

Vote Kane.

 

[nightmare]

That was ridiculous. I give Warrior shit for no selling, but that was terrible. Anyone know the story behind that match?


Either way, in a crazy brawl Brody would have an advantage, but this isnt a later round gimmick. I just have to vote Kane here. He can hold his own in a fight, one of the most consistent workers of the last 20 years, titles, memorable moments, etc. Brody has a legacy & unfortunately it was cut short, but Kane is still going and has made more of an impact on me than Bruiser.


In all likelihood, Brody would probably get pissed that things are not going his way and he gets a DQ. They get in to it & the match ends with the locker room hitting the ring. Brody fucks off & Kane is pissed which means extra bad news for his next opponent.

 

[Bernkastel]

Tough one. I'm biased towards Kane because he's my favorite wrestler of all time, but I recognize what Brody brings to the table. Kane had more longevity, but really because Brody was cut down in his prime. I have no doubt that Brody would have continued to work into the mid 90's as he was only 42. Kane is 50 and still works full time. As far consistency Kane is one of the most underutilized stars in WWE history. In my opinion. Some years he had really high points, others were really low, but he was mostly used as an upper mid card talent. Brody you could argue was the same, but he main-evented far more often and was arguably a bigger drawing card. So I give him points for that. Both were very charismatic and had tons of appeal. As far as accomplishments go Kane has a better resume. Beating Steve Austin at the height of his popularity for the company title, and then defeating the Undertaker in 3 consecutive world title defenses are huge feats. Kane was also a highly decorated tag team specialist, as was Brody, but he didn't have near the compatibility that Kane did, who has won a tag title with at least 9 different partners.

I think Brody has an edge here, and if he wins the vote then it's understandable, but due to my biased I'll go ahead and vote Kane. I don't see him surviving the next round.

 

[enviousdominous]

That's very interesting because it seems so out of character. Brody was a smart man though, I guess.

If you look up some of Brody's interviews on Youtube, they're very thought provoking. As has been mentioned; he saw the landscape changing and it's amazing to see one of prowrestling's madmen appear to be in a state of deep contemplation. He would have been a huge player backstage if his story wasn't tragically cut short.

As for leaving wrestlers lying on their backs, the majority of Brody's matches against world champions ended in draws or DQ finishes because he refused to job. If everyone conducted themselves in the manner Brody did, there would not be a professional wrestling industry.

You know what man, I've got no argument against this point. Brody lived by the old school code that elites like him had to protect the industry from young upstarts, and he would very often behave like a jackoff like he did in his match with Lex Luger. He wasn't always like that though, and I doubt he'd have taken those kinds of liberties with Kane in that Kane isn't some dolled up golden boy.

A quick example of a more humble Bruiser Brody:

[YOUTUBE]qLYXf3x-evw[/YOUTUBE]

I think this will be a match where Kane will be willing to put over his childhood inspiration and earn a genuine handshake after the match.

 

[enviousdominous]

That was ridiculous. I give Warrior shit for no selling, but that was terrible. Anyone know the story behind that match?

There's only been theories tossed around, even interviews with Lex Luger haven't been able to explain much.

From what I can gather; Brody was pissed off because he was being put on the card of a company (CWF) that desperately needed his star power, and at the last minute they booked him as a heel to put a relative newcomer in Lex Luger over as the next big thing. Apparently he really didn't like Luger's style, and wanted to make an example of him.

According to Luger, nothing was discussed and after the match Brody had his usual "don't give a fuck" attitude. Some people hypothesize that Brody was trying to teach Luger a lesson for no-selling, but Luger was clearly selling responsibly for Brody in that match up until Brody went off-script.

It's definitely one of Brody's unapologetic fuck-ups, I make no attempt to justify it.

 

[Pay Per Ghost]

Close match and I look at the region and it says Austin. I'm guessing AE circa 98 so...

THAT Kane is pretty impressive. Brody as good as he was, was the most erratic man to work with in wrestling. Sure promoter were shysters but there are stories of Brusier being unreasonable and impossible to work with. If Brody had to work Japan next week, fuck your ME he is not selling.

I'll take Kane honestly, I see this as a close matchup but that AE Monster Kane against an equally big guy is Kane's. I think he is undefeated against the Big Show too I dunno I kinda have soft spot for Kane.

 

[Richard Blonoff]

This match would be hard hitting and entertaining for about ten or twelve minutes. I think Kane would take it though. He may be best remembered as Undertaker's brother, but Brody was almost always a lackey himself to guys like Stan Hansen and Sheik Adnan. Kane goes over in my eyes.

 

[Dmbfantomas]

Can I vote for both guys, please?

Brody is one of the most innovative and exciting wrestlers I've ever seen work. Amazing promo, phenomenal brawler, and the best part (for me anyway) is that I believed everything he did. I have to watch everything of his on video, and as someone who knows wrestling is a work...I'm still convinced Brody wanted to kill his opponent.

Kane, on the other hand, is the most versatile guy ever. He could be the scariest, meanest, most maniacal psychopath in the company, or he could be a hilarious comedy character who does a When Harry Met Sally knock off with Daniel Bryan, and both work. Undertaker being able to keep his character fresh is the most impressive thing in modern wrestling history to me. Kane being able to do it as his "brother" is an incredibly close #2. Add in to that, seemingly everyone loves him - even Ric Flair who doesn't love anyone not named Ric Flair.

Slight edge for Kane here, but if Brody advances that's more than fine with me.

 

[Prince Vee]

I haven't heard a much about Bruiser Brody as I am a 90s kid. I always have loved Kane, let alone for his tremendous hardwork in the ring. He is also considered as one of the safest workers in WWE. He has his whole career build up in WWE albeit like many others said, it hugely revolved around the legend of The Undertaker. I may not know much about Bruiser Brody, but I have heard of his legends. With these many people going behind him over Kane, I would do the same. That doesn't mean Kane isn't a hardworker, he just isn't Phenomenal.