The Watch List takes a look at what matches you should be watching while you’re at home and they come recommended by your favorite professional wrestling stars.
WrestleZone recently spoke with Big E, Andreas Hale and Jonathan Davenport of Our Heroes Rock, a hip-hop and science-fiction animation hybrid that aims to bring attention to the lesser-known heroes of Black history. In honor of Big E being on the call, Hale and Davenport both chose Big E’s feud with Sheamus, and his Falls Count Anywhere match on the October 9, 2020 episode of SmackDown in particular. They both noted how that run led to Big E being seen in a new light and reminded people that he can be a fun guy, but he’s also a formidable opponent and a well-rounded performer too.
Andreas: “I have to do it because Big E is on the call, but the feud with Sheamus. It was the [Falls Count Anywhere match] where we got to see E in a different light. Prior to this, we had the whole Miz thing with [him telling E on Talking Smack] that ‘you’ve got to be more serious’ and I saw this match, people were so entertained by it. They saw a side of E that maybe some people forgot. The man can be vicious when it comes down to it. He can be fun, but he can kick your ass too! I’ve watched that match a few times, not just because he’s my friend but because it felt like a true coming out party in a sense. So, that is a match I will recommend.
Jonathan: “I should have gone first because I was actually thinking of that same match. [laughs] Just to echo what you said, but I’m a big New Day fan as you can probably imagine, and by extension, I’m a humongous Big E fan. I have to tell you—and E, you can mute this because I know you hate hearing good things about yourself, go skip around and have some applesauce and come back—I love what a well-rounded performer he is.
I don’t think you see that a lot because yes, he’s big and he’s a badass, but he also has fun. Not always, and don’t cross him, and he can be on the side of the ring in a cable-knit sweater chillin’ out on the side, meanwhile chaos is brewing around him. He can be part of it or he can be—he’s a generous performer, like he can have the spotlight, but he can pass it to others too. I’m just a fan of all of his in-ring performances, but that one in particular, I like the entertainment of it. It was a very entertaining story, it was fun and there’s a little bit of energy that we’ve lost without the audience, anytime you can break those boundaries and move around a lot, that’s exciting to me. I know I’m watching a good match when my 11-year-old girl is with me and I’m like, ‘Oh, no!’ and [reacting to it]. It was epic for me, an epic match.”
IT'S OUTTA HERE!! ⚾️#SmackDown @WWEBigE @WWESheamus pic.twitter.com/fmIEf1dtNo
— WWE (@WWE) October 10, 2020
While Hale and Davenport praised their partner’s work with Sheamus, Big E opted for Walter and Ilja Dragunov’s impressive match on the October 29, 2020 episode of NXT UK. He said that they beat the hell out of each other and while you’ll see other big men work a faster-paced style, this was a nice contrast to that and stood out for being a fight.
Big E: “Well, I clearly paid him to say that, so I appreciate that. I will actually go with Walter and Ilja Dragunov, they had that super-violent, NXT UK match. Just, my God, they beat the hell out of each other. That was one that I really remember, so let’s go with that one. They were left black and blue afterwards, and it was unique for me, you don’t really see—I like in this era where the style tends to be super athletic and there’s movement and you have 300-pound guys that do dives, I like that this match was just a fight. It was an aggressive, not-very-pretty fight, so let’s go with Walter and Dragunov for me.”
Check out Big E’s Falls Count Anywhere match on Peacock at this link; the Walter vs. Ilja Dragunov match is here, and you can watch some more free-to-watch full-length matches from Big E’s career below:
Seth Rollins vs. Big E (NXT Championship)
NXT — January 9, 2013
John Cena vs. Big E (United States Championship)
WWE Raw — October 5, 2015
The New Day vs. The Usos (Hell In A Cell Match)
WWE Hell in a Cell 2017
The New Day vs. Shinsuke Nakamura & Cesaro (Tag Team Championship)
WWE SmackDown, Nov. 29, 2019
