2005 is where every promotion in North America finally step up their game. 2004 is one of the most regrettable years for the WWE which gave newer, more promising promotions a chance. 2005 is where WWE fixed their mistakes, TNA grew into the undisputed number 2 promotion in all of wrestling, and Ring of Honor finally took more risks to make their calendar year more interesting. For the WWE, everything you’ve known about the Ruthless Agression era and modern wrestling finally had it’s kick start here. Vince finally found his top stars with John Cena and Dave Batista and finally (and mercifully) end Triple H’s reign of terror. This would be the last time were WWE were putting new act over in a consistant basis as Vince never again push many of his rosters to stardom quite like this. Though Smackdown still is a weaker half of the Brand extension, I can easily say that Raw was far more enjoyable now. What’s also interesting is that WWE offer us an ECW reunion show. After years of hearing ECW chants in WWE shows and a successful DVD sale with Rise & Fall of ECW, releasing One Night Stand was a no brainer. TNA wrestling became absolutely hot in time where monthly Pay Per Views were consistant, Jarrett’s reign of terror had more constrains, the X Division was becoming more of an attraction, and wrestling fans found a home outside of the WWE. TNA’s consistant calendar year was complete where they finally made their first signature event with Bound For Glory (could have picked a better name) and forever gave the company an identity where all wrestling fans understood what is there to be expected. Meanwhile ROH was was the year in the company’s history by having the great roster and finally producing fantastic shows instead of randomizing the bouts. I feel so bad for what was happening in Japan considering that NOAH was one cruise control and New-Japan kept sucking as they continue Inoki’s worked-MMA matches. For North American wrestling fans, WWE, TNA, and ROH were among the best times of being a wrestling fan. As one of the best years in wrestling, what was the best night to be a wrestling fan?
The Year 2005 Wrestling Rewards
- Wrestler of 2005: AJ Styles
- Underrated Wrestler of 2005: Paul London
- Feud of 2005: Edge & Lita vs. Matt Hardy
- Wrestling Match of 2005: AJ Styles vs Christopher Daniels vs. Samoa Joe – TNA Unbreakable
- Wrestling Promotion of 2005: TNA Wrestling
Shame on WWE for making their product in 2004 one of the worst of all time! From 2002 – 2003 Smackdown once was the A-show because we had the best physical competition and the best starts. Not anymore because the moment Brock Lesnar left the company after Wrestlemania and made Eddie Guerrero drop the belt to John Bradshaw Layfield for the rest of 2004 was absolutely terrible. You would have thought that Undertaker’s return as the Deadman would have save the brand, but no, it got worse as he kept losing to JBL in a series of screwy finishes. Plus when Kurt Angle returned from a neck injury, his only opponent throughout 2004 was with Eddie Guerrero. Like it was nice to see him square off against Eddie since Wrestlemania but to do it throughout the rest of 2004 got REALLY stale. This is when Smackdown lost all credibility and became a worse show than Raw. Triple H’s reign of terror never stopped in 2004 and it was so bad. Kicking Randy Orton out of Evolution just to to push him as the babyface of the Raw brand fell completely flat on its face as Triple H just buried Orton for the World Heavyweight Championship. And that wasn’t the worst that Raw offered. The Kane and Lita marriage and miscarriage was the most distasteful storyline I’ve seen since Katie Vick. Like this soap opera drama for raping Lita and then turning babyface because she had a miscarriage had no place being in wrestling it sucked more as it continued. WWE in 2004 lost a whole lot of viewers where Vince was really feeling the downfall of the post-Attitude era like never before. So where did all those wrestling fans gone to? Well, this is where TNA Wrestling and Ring of Honor gathered the most loyal, die-hard fans imaginable. ROH finally got it’s idenity by being the American pure wrestling promotion that smartmarks dream of having and TNA finally got out of the TNA Asylum and moved ot Universal Studios Orlando, Florida and got out of the Weekly Pay Per View model and started doing monthly PPVs as they should. 
2003 is a very weird year for professional wrestling. This was a year where WWE was having a really rocky year for the company. The brand extension split between Smackdown and Raw has been extremely one-sided. Like who the hell even wanted to watch Raw where Triple H’s reign of terror was in full compacity while Smackdown was giving you the most physical and competitive feuds on television. The WWE had the greatest roster in the palm of its hands, and somehow Vince McMahon decides to just screw the pooch with the roster on Raw. Goldberg, Rob Van Dam, Booker T, Goldust, Kevin Nash, Kane, Test, and motherfucking Scott Steiner were tall brought into the spotlight only to have their credibility damaged and push them into the undercard. It was getting repulsive that Trips was continously pushing himself and makes his Evolution’s purpose of making Ric Flair relevant and make new stars to be top-tier bullshit. It’s no wonder why everyone was excited to see Brock Lesnar, Undertaker, Big Show, Kurt Angle, John Cena and the cruiserweights in action because the left hand doesn’t even know what the right hand is doing. That’s not to say that Smackdown was perfect, because Hulk Hogan’s Mr. America was too damn predictable, Sean O’Haire wasn’t pushed to the uppercard, Zach Gowen was abused on screen, and Stephanie & Vince were having the most uncomfortable feud ever. Ordering Smackdown’s exclusive Pay-Per-Views was often a bargan over Raw’s shows, and their cross-overs in the big four Pay-Per-Views were a mixed bag via clash of quality. Ring of Honor was picking up some steam with hipsters by being an American promotion that does Japanese-style booking. This was when ROH had a fantastic roster and it got wrestling fans interested in indie wrestling. This was an opportunity for new-faces that would never catch a break to carry an entire show and it gave many smartmarks optimism. Total Nonstop Action Wrestling was picking up some steam with the undercard while their main event scene is hampered with Jeff Jarrett’s over-exposure and Vince Russo’s degenerate booking as usual. This was when the Weekly Pay Per View model was getting REALLY out of hand and there’s a lack of quality and consistency as old faces come and go. While All-Japan & New-Japan were entering their dark times, Pro Wrestling NOAH became the best wrestling Promotion in Japan. It’s all thanks to Misawa and Kobashi’s efforts in making GHC Divisions work. Like NJPW doing MMA was embarrassing and All-Japan had no idead what to do without their stars. As one of the wierdest times being a wrestling fan, it’s not easy to look back at 2003 with any fondness. If anything it was a struggle to see what was the best night of wrestling in 2003 but let’s find out. 
The Top Lister 
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