10 Times A Wrestler Did A Move Better Than The Innovator
1. The Superkick
Chris Adams invented the superkick, laying claim as a veritable wrestling architect in the process, but the move was popularised by - and for a time synonymous with - Shawn Michaels.
Michaels innovated the version that one in every two pro wrestlers continues to use in 2021, and his was fantastic. It was a masterpiece of suspense and execution; he registered the pop before he generated it, sold the effects of the epic he had just worked to make it feel both like a fight and a performance, and struck it perfectly, every time, flush on the chin of his opponent. The arc looked beautiful, and the snap was so perfectly performed that it convincingly put away many of the much larger opponents he defeated en route to the main event. The subjective opinion that the Young Bucks did it better is in no way a suggestion that Shawn's was bad.
While Shawn Michaels created a library of critically acclaimed classics with his superkick in a down period, the Bucks built a brand and revolutionised the business with their version - which was, yes, spammed in matches that were just as dramatic.
By mischievous design: the Bucks discovered a meta strain of heat to get over as a renegade act, using the kick far more than was necessary because it pissed off the right people and enchanted the right people respectively. "I'm sorry, I love you" was a moment in time.
The Superkick Party changed the timeline.