Best Way to Finish?

[The People's Peep]

I was watching TNA last night and the main event ended with Styles DDTing RVD onto the floor. He rolled him into the ring and pinned him for the win. It was a brutal looking DDT and he placed his feet on the ropes for the win, but it got me thinking. With most of the matches in the WWE ending with finishing moves, which is the better way to finish a match. Would you rather end it with a finisher, a regular move, a roll-up, a submission, etc. ?

 

[IrishCanadian25]

This is an excellent question.

For one thing, if matches always just routinely end in finishing moves, it does two things:

1. it diminutizes non-finishing moves, and
2. it creates an atmosphere where fans can turn themselves off until they see a finisher.

Generally, in a match invovling Steve Austin or The Rock, you could bet even money that unless you saw a Stunner or a Rock Bottom coming, there wasn't going to be a finish. On the other hand, there was always a chance that Bret Hart would beat a guy with a Small Package or a Roll up.

So I like some variety, and I don't think non-finishing move wins makes the opponent look weak, as long as it is done right.

 

[Ferbian]

I agree with IC, I really prefer a variation of ways to finish the match.

While I've never considered the match to be less boring due to the fact that someone had a long livid tough match where it ended with a finisher, because in the end, for the majority of times, the finisher in it self is a wow factor to experience, moves like the Shooting Star Press, the RKO, or a Frog Splash, it doesn't matter what move it is, if it's flashy or if it's simple and effective, I still consider them to be a focus point of the match, without taking too much from the remainder of the match.

But on the other side, I am by far not against a match finishing with a normal move, all depending on how the match has progressed, I would be annoyed if it's a squash match to end with a non finishing move, but a match that has been absolutely brutal, I could live with a finish through a DDT, or a normal regular match finishing with a DDT on the floor is just fine as well, due to the brutality of the way it's finished.

I could really go on about every single thing and how it's finished, but when it all comes down to it, I don't mind either way of finishing the match, as long as it's done without it seeming fake, like a squash or like a legitimate upset that doesn't serve a purpose of putting anybody over, but merely buries someone.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

I'm always OK with the idea of non traditional match finishes, especially via small package or roll-up, as it usually comes as the result of a distraction a la Doug(las) Williams and Brian Kendrick last night on iMPACT! thanks to Franky Kazarian.

To be honest, if the only way to end a match is via a finisher, I tend to get bored and can get easily distracted during the match by anything around me because I know the only time the pin is coming is when I hear the climax of the finisher's call or set-up coming from one of the announcers.

I also believe that when matches end in non traditional ways, the finishers themselves take on more meaning, which means when AJ pulls out the Styles Clash, it not only seems more devastating, but in a sense it actually is, because it's the type of move he knows he needs to use to beat a much tougher opponent in a much tougher match.

 

[Ruthless-RKO]

I've gotta say, back in the 90's there weremore matches that ended in roll-ups than finishing moves, but I have to agree with what someone said before about the rock/austin matches, they could only end in finisher moves, then you now get wrestlers doing more submission holds such as hart dynasty and dolph ziggler, as for cena's submission, i just can't take it seriously...

I would like it in the near future if a match would end in a roll-up, it adds that bit of extra excitement, fans don't expect it and you get good crowd reactions..

 

[SuperKnockout]

i would like to see more heel rollups like TNA does. Like when TBP spray someone and then roll her up. I would also like to soo more brutal finsihes like AJ did to RVD. Even heel blows like a title shot to the head.

 

[Rayne]

I think that the reason you see finishing moves end matches more often is because the attention span of the viewer has gone down.

We've all seen that the focus of the product is no longer on the matches themselves, but the interviews and what occurs within those matches to further the storyline. Think back to Bret Hart vs. British Bulldog all those Summerfests ago. Could you end a high profile match these days with a sunset flip reversal and have the crowd pop like that for it? Hell, half of them would be looking up the ramp waiting to see who was going to interfere.

Like any public performer, people have certain things they want to see. Comics repeat the same bit from a prerecorded album 200 times a year in different clubs because people want to hear the jokes they know from that guy they saw. Finishing moves are no different. Fans want to see the Pedigree. They still pop like gleeful little children when Cena puts someone on his back. It's a cue, like the old signs that said "APPLAUSE".