My Favorite Finishers

A character can be made, or made to look like a fool, purely based on how he or she ends a match. A lot of work goes into the moveset a competitor uses, and the finisher should be the culmination of everything a match has built to. What are some of your favorite finishers? Here are my top 10:

10) Figure Four Leg Lock - This move has been around for as long as I can remember, and with that staying power, comes a list of legends who have used it. Greg Valentine, Dusty Rhodes, Jeff Jarrett, Tito Santana, AJ Styles, The Miz, and of course Ric Flair have all used the move to finish off opponents. For a submission move you are just as likely to see mid match as a weardown hold, few things in wrestling match the intensity of watching one of these guys lock the Figure Four on an opponent.

9) DDT - Similarly to the Figure Four, the DDT is a move that you might not see as a finisher as often as you did in the past, but when hit correctly, it looks as deadly as any other move on the list. Both Jake "The Snake" Roberts and Raven used it as a finisher, and it fit their characters perfectly. As long as the opponent can take the move safely, it is virtually impossible to sell poorly which is an added bonus for this simple but effective looking move.

8) Go To Sleep - KENTA/Hideo Itami and CM Punk have made the GTS famous and this move is the perfect mix of slam and strike. I love this move even more when the opponent is struggling to escape, and it is a move that looks great being countered. With a setup so dramatic, the speed of the knee strike looks even more sudden and lethal.

7) Tombstone Piledriver - There are very few moves that, although many other wrestlers have used it, can be linked so strongly to just one performer. I can't see this move living beyond the careers of the Undertaker and Kane, at least not in the WWE. While the move itself doesn't do that much for me when performed by anyone else, the way it leads so perfectly into the Undertaker's signature pin makes the move almost as much of an icon as the deadman himself.

6) Perfect-Plex/Fisherman's Suplex - A fisherman's suplex, for me, is the perfect mix of an impactful slam and an opponent being so tied up, that they can't escape. For someone like "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig, it was an example of both his strength, his technical prowess, and it always looks flashy. It matched his character, in a word, perfectly. While I can't think of anyone who performed it better, I always mark out a bit when I see anyone use it.

5) Chokeslam - While several of the previous moves made the list because they merged a few different styles of moves together, the chokeslam represents one thing: sheer size and power. From 911 to The Big Show, Abyss to (allegedly) Abraham Lincoln, if a bigman hits you with one of these, there's a slim chance you're kicking out.

4) Superkick - The superkick is, at this point, one of the most overused moves, regardless of promotion. If it weren't for this fact, the move would probably be even higher on the list. No other move has become such a staple of the modern wrestling moveset, which goes to show how influential Shawn Michaels was and how devastating Sweet Chin Music was. To speak to the overuse of the move at this point, I've grown to love the fact that the Young Bucks use the move so much to the point of parody. The most metafiction-influenced team finishing off opponents after a flurry of superkicks is one of the most entertaining things in wrestling today.

3) Styles Clash - There's just something about the Styles Clash. AJ Styles is easily one of the best in the world at what he does, as he's shown in TNA, NJPW, and now WWE, with an exciting, one of a kind assortment of moves. Although he's finished rivals off with the calf crusher, the phenomenal forearm, the spiral tap, no move is as unique as the Styles Clash (sorry Michelle McCool, I'm not including your name for the move in this discussion). AJ, along with Christopher Daniels and Samoa Joe (who's muscle buster almost made the list) put TNA on the map for me so I might be biased, but there are few moves that look as devastating, while also being believeably countered, and even more believeable for AJ to struggle with. Add in the fact that the bump itself at the end is so incredibly specific and unique, this move is a no-brainer for me.

2) Stone Cold Stunner - As a move, the Stunner isn't any different from Disco Inferno's Chartbuster, or any other stunner that undoubtedly countless others have used or will continue to use. Much like so many other things about the "Stone Cold" Steve Austin character, the move was part of a perfect storm that for some reason just clicked. From the boot to the gut to how often it was really the only thing that happened in an attack from the Texas Rattlesnake, the stunner was the whipped cream and cherry on top of the total package that was the biggest star of the attitude era.

1) Cutter/RKO/Diamond Cutter - No move creates drama without even being attempted quite like this one. Call it what you will, but you know that if the wrestler you're rooting for has this move in his or her arsenal as a finisher, your favorite to win will always have a chance. To add another layer of psychology to the move, you also know that the performer you're rooting against also knows that your performer of choice can pull this move out at any second. The tension from the countless potentialoptions for counters and ways to hit this move alone makes this the number one greatest finisher of all time. This only leaves the question: who does it best? "The Viper" Randy Orton, "Diamond" Dallas Paige, or "Machine Gun" Karl Anderson? I believe that's a discussion for a different day.

Think I've forgotten a move? Hate my list and want to completely rewrite it? Want to let me know that I did everything perfect and nothing should change? Let me know in the comments below.

Until then, stay (too) sweet!