Bruiser Brody

[9.0] "I know this is all subjective, but I do raise an eyebrow when we have users giving certain wrestlers 10 and Bruiser Brody a low rating. I understand that his style doesn't work through modern eyes, but he frightened fans and wrestlers alike with his demeanor. He was a true bad ass and workhorse and he also valued himself tremendously. He didn't allow promoters to low ball him or book him like a geek. It sadly got him killed but I respect his unwavering stance for his family. Saying Brody wasn't good at what he did tells me you only started watching wrestling yesterday."

[9.0] "In an era full of big wrestlers, Bruiser Brody stands out as one of the very best big men in professional wrestling history. In my opinion, he's at least in the top 3 of all time. Had an absolutely incredible look, something only really replicated by the late great Brodie Lee. Was a HUGE star and doesn't get talked about enough as one of the most iconic wrestlers of the 70s and 80s. Had a fantastic run in AJPW, NJPW, WCWA and Puerto Rico. If he was less of a strong personality, he would've made it and been a huge star in the WWF as well. But, Brody had a certain way of going about business and I cannot imagine a world in which he would've worked well with Vince and the WWF in the 80s. Aside from that, he's one of the very best brawlers of all time, and really sets the bar for wrestlers of a similar height. Still gets talked about to this day, despite not having a big run in WWF, which just goes to show how damn good and memorable he was. Truly an icon of his time that will never be forgotten."

[10.0] "Brody was the greatest brawler in pro wrestling history bar none. Every match of his was a slobberknocker. As big as he was, he moved well for his size too. His wars with Abdullah the Butcher must be watched by anybody who calls themselves a wrestling fan. They were the most bloody, violent matches of that era of professional wrestling and paved the way for hardcore/extreme wrestling. Nothing he did was pretty but it didn't have to be. He was a wild son of a bitch and we wouldn't have had it any other way. Sadly, his career and life were tragically cut short in Puerto Rico in July of 1988. Jose Gonzalez will burn in hell for murdering this icon. RIP Brody."

[8.0] "Bruiser Brody is a hard wrestler to rate. He wasn't necessarily great in ring or anything and doesn't have a ton of classic matches but he did bring a certain aura and wild chaos to his matches that not many wrestlers could bring. He was a fantastic brawler honestly and could hold his own in tag matches teaming with Snuka or Hansen."

[9.0] "Bruiser Brody was the ultimate "I can't convince you wrestling is real, but I can convince you that I'm real" wrestler. I discovered Brody through an action figure released by JAKKS, that was my introduction to him I was a kid and thought he looked cool. I then found his matches on YouTube and was captivated. He was violent, vicious, and charismatic he held the crowd in the palm of his hands from the moment he entered the arena a rebel, a badass, no-nonsense, and a true INDEPENDENT. I can't condone all of his actions (No showing a match against Randy Savage because another promoter gave him a better offer comes to mind) but I respect everyone who is authentic even if it's to a fault. His murder is one of the most disgusting things in the history of the wrestling business and I hate the entire Colon family to this day for being as responsible as the POS who committed the crime."

[7.0] "A good worker but heavily overrated, he was never top class and he was a good brawler but not the absolute best. His work in Texas and in AJPW is decent enough, his work in WWC wasn't for me. I can enjoy some of his stuff and think he was good but overrated. Obviously, what happened to him in Puerto Rico was awful and shame on WWC and unfortunately shame on Onita (of FMW) for thinking it was okay to parody Brody's murder for an angle. Good territory guy and decent Gaijin in AJPW."

[10.0] "From Santa Fe New Mexico! Bruiser Brody" that always made me chuckle as Santa Fe is probably the least wild place in New Mexico. With a great wild look, charging the ring with his big chain, clearing out audiences or whoever got in his way, he played his gimmick to the tee. The reality was that Bruiser had a presence & a style that made him the man of his time. Athletic for a man his size, especially at that time, it allowed him match up well with Tenryu and especially Tsuruta in AJPW. His tags with Stan Hansen also were some of the most tough guy wrestling. Whether it was in Japan or in territories like Georgia, Mid Atlantic, or Texas, he always brought it! Stiff and powerful and finishing guys off with that King Kong Knee Drop."

[10.0] "My personal GOAT. I love Bruiser. I saw him as a teen in AWA reruns on ESPN Classic and just felt the "aura" he had. Sure, he was stiff and out for himself. But a lot of his mentality has influenced modern wrestling. A lot of modern hardcore wrestling/brawling would likely not exist without at least the influence of this man's matches with Abdullah the Butcher all across the US. You may not like the way he acted, he may have been a mercenary. But he made money. He is one of the few men I look at and think "This is my definition of a wrestler.""

[9.0] "A legend of the brawling style, Brody's imposing image and wild, violent, ahead-of-its-time style stood out in the days of the '70s-'80s territory days and also made him very successful in Japan, and prefigured more hardcore wrestling styles that developed in the following decades. He reportedly wasn't the easiest to deal with backstage, but the uniqueness of his work makes him a very interesting figure to look back on. And, of course, the way in which his story ended is one of wrestling's major tragedies, for which there has never been justice."

[8.0] "There are things I really love about Bruiser Brody but there's alotta Abdullah the Butcher to fast forward past. Also, there are times the style gets straight up OLD! He should have been more giving more often. You're better off watching Terry Gordy do the almost the same thing but usually better ie: more selling for the other guy. I do find myself invested in many of his tag encounters, he made for one of the best hot tags ever and stuff like that keeps the negatives from hurting too much. Rest in peace and also, bless Tony Atlas that tragic evening. 7.75"

[10.0] "A god tier brawler, one of the best to ever live. I've been going through his matches the last few days and they've all been great."

[6.0] "Crazy brawler type that looked like he could kick everybody's asses and I appreciate that, but his style wasn't much more than that. Can't give him top marks because aside from lacking in other departments, he wasn't around long enough because of his life being tragically cut short. Difficult to work with and didn't stay in one place too long so he wasn't able to build a legacy as a franchise guy like Flair or Hogan or Hart or Undertaker."

[10.0] "Brody was the most talented wrestler in the world, he was a caring man and was selfless. I love his different matches and I will never forget him."

[1.0] "Maybe the most overhyped wrestler from the territories. Given the namesake of WON's Best Brawler award when he was never the best brawler anywhere he wrestled. Coasted on his reputation more often than not. Terrible seller. Soft offense, while also being known to stiff opponents from time to time. Great stature and look, until the bell rings. If a wrestler could get great matches out of him, you know they're a miracle worker."

[9.0] "Regardless of anyone's opinion on Bruiser, there have been reports that he was difficult to work with behind the scenes, but still, he didn't deserve that fate. He was murdered cold-blooded by a sadist."

[5.0] "He was a huge draw but his work has aged poorly and he is pretty one dimensional. His offence does not look that great compared to those who followed and I rarely see a match in which he actually takes any sort of bumps."

[10.0] "Brody is just plain fun to watch and his gimmick was solid. Definitely over wherever he went, usually as a terrifying heel. He was the first shoot interview and the so brilliantly blurred lines. I give him a ten simply because he made Abby worth watching."

[7.0] "An amazing, albeit one-noted, character: he was truly great at playing the huge fearsome wildman and was smart enough to capitalize on it and move around promotions to avoid his act from getting stale. In the ring... he was not as excruciatingly bad as many other 70's brawlers but was definetely far from exciting even when facing great talents such as Ted DiBiase and Genichiro Tenryu: I consider him at his best when blood could flow freely, technical skills weren't required and a loud crowd got the adrenaline pumping. His body of work has unfortunately aged poorly as the late 80's/early 90's ushered in a far better generation of brawlers and laid the foundations for hardcore wrestling as we know it."

[6.0] "I think people look back pretty favorably on Bruiser thanks in part to what happened to him. I do recognize him for being a monster in Japan, but he was still just a sloppy brawler no matter how you slice it. Not my cup of tea."

[3.0] "Um, he is awful. Honestly, no clue why people think of this guy as a legend or anything like that; he has none of the work to justify that claim. For a brawler, his brawling looks weak as shit. Best brawler of all time? Fuck off. God knows how Tenryu got a good match out of him. One of the overrated wrestler of all time, IMO. BUT, he was a draw and influenced a whole lot of people."

[10.0] "Great brawler. He was considered a scary wrestler. He bleed and had hardcore matches. Had many moves and great feuds. Sad that he was murdered."

[10.0] "Bruiser Brody is both a legend and legendary. There were definitely other wrestlers of his style that were on his level, but none perhaps felt more natural than Brody. He would explain his reasoning for causing bodily harm in his promos and then he would deliver on those promises in the ring. Though some backstage stories make him seem like an asshole who was willing to kill an entire territory to get his way, the man was a legend and a draw and one of the first independent wrestlers regardless. No single promotion was big enough for Brody. He was too big a personality for his own business, and it cost him his life in some shithole locker room in Puerto Rico."

[10.0] "Truly a one in a million talent, Brody as a personality and performer had a magnetism and talent that checks every box. I've watched more Brody matches than almost every other wrestler(alongside Savage, TFunk, Tenryu, DiBiase, Bret) and one major compliment I always give Brody's work, is that even for a guy who could go through the motions and cop-out with simple blood and guts bladefests(which he had many of), Brody's hustle and ability to work diverse opponents and have a compelling match in various styles and regions, is extremely impressive. Couple his in-ring skill with the creation of his wildman character and the aura that surrounds him, and you've got an all-time great."

[10.0] "One of the best big man wrestlers of all time, a big draw everywhere he went, a unique character and one of the best brawlers of all time. Always entertaining to watch, a true great. 10/10"

[10.0] "One of the greatest big man workers and brawlers of all time, and one of the biggest and most consistent drawing cards of his era."

[10.0] "Was he a loose cannon when it came to dealing with promoters, sure. Did he have a limited moveset, without a doubt. Should he have been a WHC due to his drawing power, without a doubt. Brody could draw a crowd to see him wrestle a mop."

[10.0] "I see its becoming fashionable to call brody overrated. todays smart mark crowd likes to grade on work rate as opposed to crowd connection and making money. for the standard of his time, brody did exactly what was expected of him only he did it so much better than 99% of the other guys working. Brody was a political nightmare for promoters and yet they all gave him everything they could afford to get him to headline their cards. Brody was instant money. Brody was moving between the awa and texas and Puerto rico and japan and always headlining and filling stadiums wherever he went. Personally he was easily one of my top 10 favorites to watch. Brody told a story just by being brody. Often imitated never duplicated, he is a true wrestling icon and easily a 10"

[5.0] "Not really my cup of coffee. Great presence and charisma, he truly looked like a scary monster. In the ring a solid brawler, but nothing more, apparently used to often no-sell his opponents offensive."