What has happened to submission finishers?

[TKO 3:16]

Hell yes. Pwrsonally, I would love to see more submission finishers in the biz today. Tho, I say u have to have the right persona to REALLY capture the true grittyness of a submission finisher.
Guys like bret hart, cris benoit,kurt angle, million $$ man, they all had/got the "it" factor IMo when it comes to having that "special" personality.
I myself wrestled thru out my school carrear and ALWAYS loves slappin' a subbmission one some1. The only paret I hate is that these moves have to be "sold. Shit, in my hood, when you get into a fight, its not outta the rules to say I can't slap an ankle lock, or hell, eben a figure 4 on that ass. All fair in war and war, and submissions IMo are the ultimate form of flattery!

 

[scorpioking1026]

Did the Montreal Screw Job kill the art of submisssion moves? Yeah I know that even after that moment there were still guys like Flair, Hart, Malenko, and Bennoit. However, look at how many times we have seen the "Screw Job Part 2.3.4....etc" Vince especially drove that down our throats and of course Hogan did it too. Did it get to the point that fans couldn't bare to see submission moves anymore cuz the fear of another screw job was the first thought that popped in their head? I'm not saying its the main reason, as we have seen on this thread there are many, however, it should be considered.

As far as the idea that submissions slow a match down, I never believed that. A lot of great moments have happened over the years thanks to submissions. Just look at Austin-Hart at WM. The role switched never would have worked without the Sharpshooter. That element alone is enough to preserve the legacy of submissions. Take this years WM for example. It is assumed that Orton and Dibasie are going to face each other. Orton already gets the pops of a fan favorite so if they were to turn someone Orton would be the logical choice or have him as a tweener. They could do this by having Ted slap on the Million Dollar Dream, in tribute to his dad, and choke him out. Or even better, what if the match was no DQ and during the match the Million Dollar Man himself interferes and slaps Orton into the Dream. This would continue the storyline from when Ted Sr hosted Raw and had Jr face Orton. Or even better, Sr could slap the Dream on Jr and side with Orton. The thought of MDM placing a $100 bill in the mouth of his own son would be "Priceless". Granted neither of these scenerios would probably ever happen, but the use of a submission hold such as the Million Dollar Dream, just gives you more options.

 

[Crippler CrossFace]

Another reason submissions are rarely used as finishers is because it is very difficult to have a submission win tainted. We all know wrestling has been built on the rarity of clean pinfalls. Heels win by cheating, so it would be almost impossible for a heel to continue to win by submission and keep his heat.

I think the WWE could spin the heel aspect of this the way they did with Angle. Everyone knew that Ankle Lock was looming. It was a matter of time before he got it on you. He looked viscous when he locked it in too. It can be a huge win for a face to either reverse it or break the hold. Conversely I think it can make a heel win clean and look even more terrifying. Again I'll go with Angle. There were times when I thought someone was actually going to walk away with a broken ankle. It would play to a different heel than we have going on now. Where Randy Orton actually seems to be heading toward. A heel that just dominates. Someone that wins and wins and wins and wins clean. I think a submission is a great way to do that. Plus this would add to the heat because if you are truly connected to a face then when a heel puts him in a submission you are praying that he breaks it and if he doesn't boom you hate that guy.

 

[D-Man]

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