Rikishi

[1.0] "If you are laying underneath a gargantuan man whom is gearing up to leap up & sit on you, why wouldn't you roll out of the way? If you're sitting in a turnbuckle with a gargantuan man whom is gearing up to stuff his ass in your face, why wouldn't you roll out of the way? Kurt freaking Angle couldn't get a good match out of him. All of his above-6 rated fare is multimans, & there's a good reason for that. He was never given meaningful title accolades further than his silly little tag team with Scotty 2 Hotty (whom in this life is going, "You know what I really wanna see? A Scotty 2 Hotty match! "), & there's good reason for that. He's an amazing wrestler if you value "vibes" & idiotic comedy over actual in-ring accolades. He named his stupid podcast after the singular, lone impressive thing he achieved in his entire 34 year career, & he uses that platform to spout endless, meaningless nonsense about how his terrible sons should be given the world on a silver platter when anyone with any ring skill can easily outdo them. He runs his school like an imbecile & has lost WWE credibility & has permanently altered a poor soul's life for it. An abysmal wrestler & an even worse human being."

[5.0] "There were instances where I enjoyed Rikishi, especially his run with Too Cool. But as a singles guy he was so awful and as a heel he was especially uninteresting. If I was basing this just off the year 2000, he'd be like a 8 or 9."

[2.0] "After several years of failed and middling gimmicks, he gets insanely over for about a year in 1999-2000 on the back of Too Cool's gimmick and then never acknowledges them for it during his sham of a hall of fame induction. No, he doesn't belong there either. No, he doesn't belong there either. He did nothing except stick his ass in people's faces. OH BOY HOW INNOVATIVE. He has become insufferable in retirement"

[10.0] "He Get's A 10 For Me. So Damn Funny. The Brother Invented The Stinkface. He Jumped From The Steel Cage! HE FELL FROM HELL IN A CELL! Former Intercontinental Champion, Tag Team Champion Hall Of Famer, Have Two Sons, jimmy & Jey Who has Became The Best Tag teams And Most iconic In WWE. I Could Never Stop Laughing Of How Rikishi Does His Stuff. It's Not About His Wrestling Or His Slow Pace. It's About Being A Showman In Comedy Style Match. PWG Could Never. Legend In Wrestling Indeed."

[4.0] "Rikishi is everything that they accuse his son Jey of being.Piss poor worker that existed in tag ranks for almost a decade and never particularly reached the top due to outstanding tag team scene in US in late 80s and early 90s. I don't mind Samoan Swat Team, but they ain't even the best samoan tag team ever. Whole Sultan thing in late 90s was one of last farts of New generation era of stupid phony cartoon gimmicks that nobody took seriously. At least it was excuse to get some TV time for Sheik and Backlund. Whole Rikishi thing is product of it's era, big guy dressed like that sticking his ass in people's faces and dancing in the breaks between, ofc it's gonna get over. You better bet your ass Vince enjoyed it more than anyone else. As a worker he was a big pile of nothing, he did his stuff and that's about it. Now and then he would have a good match and that depended on million factors which is why it was so rare. One credit I'll give him is obviously chokeslam of the cell which is insane bump to take and takes a lot of guts. After 01 Rumble I geniunely don't remember him doing anything of note in WWE. He had that legendarily lazy TNA run that is self explanatory. Now that he is "legend" and one of least worthy Hall of Famers he is shilling for his kids on his podcast and biting hand that feeds him and WWE has now as of recently cut ties with his "training" promotion where lunatic was allowed to beat the fuck out of poor wrestler. At least Rikishi's kids are more talented than him. He had a one good year of being over Duggan-style and has been cashing in on it ever since, which is type of wits and smartness that I respect, but it doesn't make anyone a great talent right? "I did it, I did it for The Rock, I did it for the people" may these words echo in WWE's hall of fame"

[8.0] ""Big Keeesh" - super agile for his size and overall one of the most entertaining superstars in WWE history - key part of the bloodline and father of the Uso's, Rikishi is a star that even the casual fans know, and had one of the most memorable moves in the stink face"

[7.0] "Solid worker throughout the 1990s and into the dawn of the millennium, who was given a mix of both good gimmicks (The Headshrinkers/Samoan SWAT Team era) and questionable ones (The Sultan, "Make A Difference" Fatu) until settling into one that worked in spite of itself - a hiphop dancing sumo wrestler who would shove his butt in the heels' faces. Even at that point in his career, though, Fatu was a beast in the ring, moving deceptively fast for a 400+ pound guy, and willing to take some crazy bumps in service of elevating a match. Had they not tried to turn him heel in late 2000, I think he would have made his way further up the card more organically."

[9.0] "Literally what is this rating. People today are so convinced that there is only one kind of good wrestler, and whether they think that's Orton or Omega, they can't look past their own preferences, cause if they could, Rikishi would not be a goddamn five lol. Incredibly athletic for his size. Extremely good understanding of psychology in the ring, capable of seeming genuinely dangerous and utterly ridiculous at the same time effectively. His superkick was incredible, best on the roster for almost all of his career. Very good on the mic. And yes, the stinkface is...something. But I think so many people ignore how freaking over it was: the crowds erupted every time he hit it. Some of his smaller gimmicks like the Sultan and Make a Difference had their moments despite being goofy. Overall, he's incredibly, INCREDIBLY talented and above average."

[6.0] "Rikishi was one of the most over midcard acts of the Attitude Era. He had a unique look, surprising agility, and a gimmick that somehow made rubbing your butt in someone's face one of the most crowd-popping moves in the company. But here's the thing -- Rikishi could go in the ring. For a man his size, his movement was shockingly smooth. Superkicks, top rope splashes, spinning heel kicks, he had the athleticism to work with anyone from cruiserweights to heavyweights. His run really took off when he joined Too Cool. The dancing, the energy, the crowd reactions -- it made him a fixture on TV. And then came the swerve. Turning heel in 2000 with the "I did it for The Rock" storyline was WWE's attempt to push Rikishi to the main event. It didn't quite land. The promo delivery didn't match the serious tone, and fans didn't buy him as a top heel, no matter how many people he ran over with a car. Still, Rikishi carved out a role and stayed relevant for years. He had memorable feuds in the tag team and mid card divisions, and kept the crowd involved with just a hip swivel. His Hall of Fame induction was deserved not for titles or match quality, but for sheer entertainment value and longevity. He also helped launch the legacy of the Anoa'i dynasty into the next generation, both on screen and off. Rikishi was never the best worker or a top-tier promo, but he connected with fans, delivered in his role, and left behind a highlight reel full of moments nobody forgets. His legacy continues with Jey, Jimmy & Solo"

[6.0] "As far as larger wrestlers go, Rikishi is one who is above average. He can hit a good superkick, turn himself inside out for a clothesline, and is willing to take a big bump (see the Armageddon Hell In A Cell bump). But Rikishi always was way more entertaining as a fun-loving comedic baby face. As a heel I could never take him seriously. His theme song described him as a "bad man" but he was more of a lackey."

[10.0] "despite not being relevant I give it a 10 He is a good fighter and had great potential, despite its weight which is 400 pounds is very agile, quick and good stamina, he would be the face of the company in the Ruggles Aggression era (2002-2008), their fights would be good in a 5 star way, very similar to Stan Hansen or Vader, His character is comical but also serious in the style of sumo like a Samoan warrior, but well, time has passed, Although he gave it relevance in the year 2000, but then it stopped being important That we all know. that's my opinion."

[8.0] "Rikishi is much better wrestler than people give him credit for. Sure he was doing a lot of comedy but his work was good. He has also trained many future greats on his school in California. Well deserved WWE HOF spot! And the stink face never gets old!"

[9.0] "The pure style of this man is just unmatched for me, he worked good as both comedic and serious wrestler, was very agile for his size too."

[7.0] "Attitude Era big man who could move and was pretty good in the ring. He had an up and down run with WWE, his best was with Too Cool and his worst was either his heel turn or his run as the Sultan, and an entirely forgettable TNA run."

[8.0] "Growing up watching the attitude era, watching Rikishi on screen was special to watch, my childhood memories of the stinkface and running down stone cold steve austin, because he did it for the rock, seeing the heel turn and career resurgence was awesome to see. Whether it be the the fun loving dance partner of too cool, or a man willing to be thrown off the top of the hell in a cell, this guy poured his blood sweat and tears into the business. I can remember having a 1991 Hasbro figure of him as Fatu, and then a 2000 figure as Rikishi. The fact he was never a World Champion in WWE blows my mind. And now that the torch has been passed, the sons of Rikishi are doing him proud."

[6.0] "A very athletic person for his size which is 400 pound.He has his movements in the business.His dancing gimmick got him over in the atitude era.But he also has some stinkers which is I do it for rock and the Sultan.His team with samu was okish at best i say.Overall a nice career"

[7.0] "For being 400 pounds, few could move and sell like Rikishi could. Rikishi found most of his success in the ring as a tag team guy, he had a few runs as a single but he was never really anything more than a middle of the card babyface. His soul single title reign was when he held the Intercontinental for a mere 16 days with no clean wins before losing it to Val Venus. We all know about the famed heel run they tried with Rikishi that saw him run over Stone Cold Steve Austin for The Rock, I don't blame Rikishi for that as much as I blame it on just bad storytelling. Austin needed neck surgery and they needed a reason to write him off television for a bit, why they chose Rikishi is anyone's guess but I don't blame Rikishi for it in the slightest. The turn did absolutely nothing for Rikishi because Rikishi was over as a babyface and as apart of Too Cool. As a worker, Rikishi was decent but his athleticism and agility despite his frame was something that always impressed me."

[7.0] "A fine wrestler which changed many gimmick before finding the one perfect for him. I liked him in tag team in WCW, but my favorite Rikishi monster is as a monster heel in 2000, when there was Armageddon and he was a legit contender to the WWF Title. He had some trouble with weird gimmick in the middle '90s but after becoming Rikishi it was fine for him. I enjoy his babyface team with Scotty 2 Hotty and his dance moves after a match. Also, Stinkface is a fantastic babyface move that has been copied from many others."

[6.0] "The peak of his career was in 2000, he became an upper mid card guy when he was with too cool had a great unique look an was very entertaining, , wwf tried to push him to the top card putting him in a program with stone cold the man who ran him down he kind of came up short so true wwf had to get triple h to be the mastermind because rikishi was not on Austins level, after that his career went kind of flat, still better than your average pro wrestler thats why I gave him a six"

[8.0] "Hard reset edit: Loved the early years of his career when paired with Samu. Loved the name "The Samoan SWAT Team". Every territory they went to: they elevated it and became a reason to watch. It was right away that he showed his phenomenal agility and outstanding kicks as well as that tremendous top rope splash. GREAT run before the WWF. The Headshrinkers was a stupid name and I didn't like the "can't climb the ropes with boots on" bit, more stupid. "Make a Difference" was inoffensive but went nowhere. I could tell he was The Sultan, I didn't really mind but still, he was better than that. Now onto Rikishi. Focusing on his buttocks was a bit too much but he definitely seemed inspired then (great chemistry with Val Venis). 2 Cool was one of the most over things in the history of life, he was the brightest spot of the team! The heel turn was notably POOR. Love watching him in Royal Rumbles. The way he does that one absurd "getting turned inside out" bump from a clothesline (you know the one) is surreal - how can a man THAT SIZE achieve such a physical act? The negatives are glaring, the positives age well. 7.75"

[7.0] "Rikishi deserved better come the Attitude Era... A solid worker, natural charisma and wrestling royalty (coming from the Anoa'i family). The Headshrinkers were a fun call back to the Wild Samoans, arguably more polished in the ring but not nearly as natural in presence. Rikishi had amazing chemistry with one Scotty 2 Hotty, and it could be argued that their title run along with his IC championship win were his career peaks. Yet we get to that elephant in the room, his TNA run was completely phoned-in. (Was anyone truly excited to be on TNA? Well, Sting and Jeff Jarret but that's besides the point.) Moreover, the Attitude Era had some really stupid moments, and Rikishi's rump becoming a key element of his move-set is one of them. If someone walks in the room who doesn't watch pro wrestling sees men and women shoving their faces in a giant Samoan booty, you'd have a lot to explain and defending it is nearly impossible. Thus some seriousness to Rikishi is removed and damage done to the legacy. As a "good guy" Rikishi was super lovable, but as a "bad guy" something was missing and audiences seemed to disconnect a bit. Weirdly enough the whole Sultan alter-ego was super cool, shame it never fully solidified. 7.8/10 for Rikishi sounds about right."

[7.0] "The run of Rikishi is quite an unfortunate tale of the Attitude Era. He got incredibly over by sticking his rear end in the faces of his peers while his in-ring work was highly overlooked. He was a solid worker and the way he sold clotheslines/lariats was pure gold, and was very agile and daring for a man his size (ex: diving off the cage). I feel like he still could've done just as good without the stinkface and the dancing in his gimmick. He's still the most known out of any members from 2 Cool."

[6.0] "The most successful of the island boys post Jimmy Snuka (unless you count The Rock). A solid tag team wrestler then kind of a mediocre baby face singles run before hitting it big as Rikishi, then they screwed with his push by making him heel and he dropped out of site sometime in 2001 before coming back as a baby face and he stayed that way for the rest of his WWE run. 5 star wrestler, bumped up to a 6 for his best run in 2000."

[5.0] "He did it for da Rock. His career was going nowhere until Too Cool came along and he turned mostly to comedy. SST looked cool as hell but never really had great matches."

[8.0] "Unfortunately, many have stopped at the comic side that the character has had in recent years in WWE. Not remembering or without seeing him fight. In the ring he was as good as few."

[8.0] "Unfortunately, Rikishi did not get the value he deserved from this site and got a very low score. An iconic star who has been one of the main stars of the Attitude era, and has also contributed to the development of many wrestlers. One of the most important members of the Samoan wrestling family."

[8.0] "Underrated here. He was obviously the best as the Rikishi gimmick and in the first year he was pushed as a main event star. He was great in the ring, he could sell and was athletic and was obviously convincing in his offense. Outside of the comedic stinkface his arsenal of moves looked devastating, he could have great singles matches with guys like Triple H and Val Venis. He would have benefited from a longer intercontinental title reign to build him up and the whole running over Steve Austin storyline was not executed at the right time. He had the charisma to work as a face but also the ability to portray a heel convincingly."

[7.0] "Underappreciated. His early tag team work in the SST and The Headshrinkers was really solid, he had the size and aglity to work well with just about anyone back in those days. And once he finally found a gimmick in the WWE he really made it work. Say what you want about his weight size or the quality of his later matches, people are never going to forget the stinkface, or the fact that he was the only dancing fat guy in pro wrestling that actully pulled it off and didnt come off like a total geek."

[7.0] "A solid if also underrated tag specialist with the Headshrinkers and his comedic part in 2 Cool: he was big but also athletic enough to bump well and could move surprisingly fast for his size. He was a great middle card wrestler and quite reliable in his better days, even doing some insane spots like a splash from the top of a steel cage, which you definitely never see from guys his size at all if ever. If anything he was the prototypical "big guy who can actually go" kind of style that we see today. People bitch about the whole Stink Face stuff but the fact of the matter is that it got mega over and made him far more memorable than anything else he did, so while it was goofy, it was very much over goofy, so it's excused in my book. His later career wasn't great, however. Increasing weight meant that he simply couldn't work the way he used to and the quality of his wrestling went way the fuck down to the pits as he just wasn't motivated anymore."

[7.0] "Rikishi was awesome. Too cool was his best stuff but the guy was extremely athletic. Rikishi held his own In an era that was star studded from top to bottom and in a different time he would have been a heavyweight champion."

[8.0] "Nostalgia aside, there's no denying over the course of his wrestling career he proved to have the athleticism and prowess as part of the Headshrinkers, something he would maintain later as Rikishi despite his size, which itself combined with his look made him standout. Rikishi would be his best known incarnation, one that would incredibly over the crowd at the time. It was goofy sure but fitted nicely in with the era but could still give off an imposing presence when needed. His heel run was however a disaster, being too much of a likeable and fun loving persona before, not main event material, but a very solid IC/mid to upper mid card talent."

[2.0] "So his role was just to shove his ass into guys faces... man wtf was this crap, he's just a meme these days"

[8.0] "Underrated, as a worker he was quite good. On the mic he was meh, but he still had some charisma with his ass I guess."

[7.0] "Scotty 2 Hotty , Grandmaster Sexay and Rikishi as Too Cool made my childhood amazing , even though I can barely remember them from my actual childhood as I was so young , sadly. Luckily , youTube exists. Worked very well for a man of his size. Truly an amazing competitor within the squared circle."

[7.0] "I hate that he became just an excuse for the Stink Face spot. When he was used better, he was really great. Was right on the cusp of joining in the main event scene for a while. His cage splash on Val Venus should really be remembered more than it is. He moved exceedingly well for a super-heavyweight. His companionship with Too Cool was exactly what he needed & was really a nice dynamic. Worst thing besides just being known as "the Stink Face guy" was "I did it for The Rock"."

[7.0] "Rikishi was always a solid worker, and was very agile for his size. In the earlier part of his career he had a good run as a tag specialist alongside Samu as the Heashrinkers/Samoan SWAT Team, but the second act of his career as a single in the WWE around the turn of the millenium will probably be his best-remembered role. He would likely have never risen to main event status, the Stinkface move did get pretty played out, and his short-lived heel turn didn't really pan out, but overall he was a reliable middle- to upper-middle-level babyface and was always over with the crowd."

[6.0] "Rikishi was a solid worker who had a decent run thanks to a somewhat goofy gimmick. He wasn't long-term main event material, Rikishi could at least be put into the mix to make up the numbers."

[8.0] "Rikishi is an excellent worker in the ring. This is because of his family traits with the Anoias. Great tag partner with his twin brother Sam Fatu (Tama) and Samu as the Samoan SWAT Team/Headshrinkers. When he teamed with Sionne (Barbarian) they weren't that great and should have gotten a bigger push. When he had the "Make a Difference" gimmick in 1995-96 it was very motivational for young fans but he did not get a big push. The Sultan gimmick was horrible for him as it did not match his ethnicity. When he was Rikishi everything changed and he is a fan favorite of mine. He is a bit overrated and I was surprised that he is in the Hall of Fame. He can kick like a mule. Such a tremendous wrestler after all. Great entertainer as well. Now his Sons, the Uso Twins have followed his footsteps."

[6.0] "Rikishi was the quintessential midcarder in his time in the WWE. An entertaining performer with a memorable gimmick, he was always able to elicit a reaction when he came out. But discarding the Stinkface and dancing, Rikishi was a very capable big man worker, he was athletic and one hell of a bumper in his prime. As weight became an issue and novelty of his gimmick wore off, he was soon phased out of the company. However, he is definitely one of the most recognizable faces of a stacked WWF midcard."

[7.0] "Yeah, he's a big ol' guy, but he's really athletic and agile. Might be the heaviest person to jump from the top of a cage? Maybe? But either way, he's a fun watch, and great worker. And he made his gimmick super memorable."

[8.0] "Rikishi is a great face mid carder with a fun gimmick wo is capable of great matches. While his heel run was sub par at best, he makes up for it with plenty of fun memorable moments."

[6.0] "Agile, and could do some fun stuff and take bumps that most fat guys can't. His dancing gimmick was fun as well. But, that kind of gimmick has a shelf life, and when they turned him heel, it was clear that he was finished."

[6.0] "I'm surprised this guy is getting inducted into the Hall Of Fame class of 2015. While not a bad worker, Rikishi has had some moments with him originating the "Stinkface" move and Undertaker pushing his ass off the cell in the six person Hell In A Cell match at Armageddon 2000."

[7.0] "For a man of his size and age being able to do half the stuff he's done, he's pretty impressive."