Finishers aren't what they used to be. Way back when, a "finisher" was just that- it finished the match almost every time. In today's WWE, however, and indeed the wider wrestling world, finishers often seem like just another move. We need only look to some of the biggest marquee matches of the past few years to see a number of finishers that would be considered astonishing in the 80s, that today are often brushed off for a two count.
There are, however, some finishers that are simply too powerful to shrug off. These are the stalwart pillars of top superstars' movesets, the go-to moves when it's time to stop playing around and score the victory. Today, I'll be analysing some of these moves seen in WWE in the modern era- sorry Atomic Leg Drop, maybe another time!
The F-5
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| PSA: If you're Samoan, Lesnar is probably going to F5 you. |
Perhaps the king of modern-day match enders, Brock Lesnar's F-5 is a devastating finishing move that needs no grand introduction. At Wrestlemania 33, Lesnar defeated Goldberg to hand the latter his first, and currently only, clean singles loss, a win that also began the "1 F-5" trend that would persist throughout the year that followed.
In 2017, Lesnar defeated Samoa Joe, Braun Strowman and AJ Styles- who at the time was the recently crowned WWE champion- each with just one F-5. Heading into 2018, it was beyond a shadow of a doubt the most protected and effective finishing move in WWE- that is, until Wrestlemania 34, when Roman Reigns managed to withstand five F-5s before a sixth put him down for the count. Reigns' resilience notwithstanding, the F-5 remains at the top of the pecking order when it comes to finishing moves that are worthy of their namesake.
The Powerslam
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| Is there anything better than a big hoss hitting a powerslam? |
The Powerslam is an interesting finishing move in that it is the wrestler who uses it that makes it seem so dominant. I am of course talking about Braun Strowman, a competitor that has steamrolled his competition over the course of the past year- and has used the Powerslam to aid him along the way.
In his Wyatt family days, the Monster Among Men used his elevated Triangle Choke to chalk up wins, but since stepping out on his own, he transitioned into using the Powerslam as his sole finisher. Why does it work so well? The answer lies in the spectacle of the move- a 6'8, near-400-pound behemoth hoisting his opponent up on his shoulder, before charging forward and driving them onto their back for the win. It's bound to knock the wind out of your sails, and the quickness and agility Braun showcases with the move adds to its devastation. Would this move have the same impact if, say, The Miz used it? Absolutely not. Which brings us to our interesting next entry...
The Running Knee
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| The Knee The Beat... Fandango? |
The Knee-Plus. The Knee That Beat John Cena. "THE KNEE!" if your name is Michael Cole. Whatever you want to call it, Daniel Bryan's finisher is a thing of beauty- and it's ultra powerful to boot. Unlike his "Yes! Lock," which like many submission finishers has been reversed and broken up countless times, Bryan's running knee rarely leads to anything but a three count for the Flying Goat.
The running knee goes to show that you don't need to be a hulking beast like Braun or Brock to make an impact with your finisher. As mentioned earlier, this has been called the "Knee That Beat Cena," no easy feat for just any move. In fact, the Running Knee had never been kicked out of (unless you count Randy Orton kicking out of Batista's pin at Wrestlemania XXX)... until everybody's favourite Big Dog did just that at Fastlane 2015. Speaking of which...
The Spear
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| Even better in slo-mo. |
Ah, the spear. A timeless classic used by all-time greats including Goldberg, Edge- and, in recent years, Roman Reigns. It's Reigns' spear that has surpassed its predecessors in terms of kayfabe power levels- a spear from The Big Dog means you're going home. It doesn't matter who you are- Brock Lesnar, The Undertaker, Daniel Bryan, John Cena... the list of competitors Reigns has felled with the spear feels endless, and is only likely to grow when he returns. (Get well soon champ- you'll be back in the ring spearing faithless fools out of their boots in no time!)
Reigns' spear is devastatingly powerful, but if we're analysing his finishing potential, it's only right that we look to his brothers in the Shield too.
The Curb Stomp
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| Admit it- you popped. |
If you're anything like me, you marked out when Rollins re-debuted the Curb Stomp against Finn Balor earlier this year. Infamous for being banned by WWE's top brass- allegedly for fears children would toss the "don't try this" warning aside and stomp their friends' teeth out- it marked the return of one of WWE's most protected finishers. To date, you can count on one hand the number of people that have kicked out of what is now known as the "Blackout-" John Cena at Royal Rumble 2015, and Randy Orton at Wrestlemania 31 (but we'll forgive him on account of the fantastic RKO reversal.)
It's close to call which Shield brother has the most devastating finisher, but really, it has to be...
Dirty Deeds
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| Did somebody say "protected?" |
Who'd have thought that a DDT would be one of WWE's most protected finishers? The Dirty Deeds is tantamount to a nuclear bomb in kayfabe terms, with only Cena and Reigns kicking out of one (you could argue Brock Lesnar kicked out of it at WM32, but to that I say "Dean didn't hook his arms." That makes all the difference, don't you know!)
Dirty Deeds is the best example I can give you of a finisher treated properly in the modern era. Whilst other finishers can be hit countless times without getting the job done, Dirty Deeds is teased throughout the match- Dean could hook only one arm, or have the move reversed some other way. When all is said and done, though, if he hits it- it's all over. Which will make it all the more shocking next time somebody shows the resilience to pop their shoulder up before 3.
While we're on the subject of DDTs, it's important I mention Alexa Bliss. Her DDT has, in recent memory, only been kicked out of once by Nia Jax, who took an arguably less effective kneeling version.
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| To nobody's surprise, Bliss gets the 1-2-3. |
Some honourable mentions are in order for Baron Corbin's End of Days, which would be higher in my estimations if it led to real career success for him- effective as it may be, we're yet to see it net Corbin a meaningful win unlike the other entries on this list. Another move that can't be understated is Aleister Black's "Black Mass," which to date has yet to be kicked out of. Don't expect to see anybody squirm out of a pin after this move until Black moves up to the main roster, where I'm sure it will be kicked out of by Bo Dallas in no time if creative keep up their track record with NXT callups.
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| Trying to out-kick Aleister Black. See also: bringing a knife to a gun fight. |
And of course, all of the above pales in comparison to the one move to rule them all. The move that beat Shinsuke Nakamura on multiple occasions. The move that beat AJ Styles, who succumbed to just one of these despite having kicked out of 3 AAs in the past. The move so powerful that even Randy Orton, the last man before Roman Reigns to kick out of an F5, couldn't withstand it's power... do I really need to spell it out for you?
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| Goodnight folks. |
Liam Croft is a contributor to Official Wrestling and their regular podcast, "A Few Good Marks," as well as being OW's resident NXT maestro. You may find him insisting that he's not fuming, spreading the good word of Braun Strowman to everyone he meets or swearing blind that the B-Team are going to revolutionise tag team wrestling.
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