Ranking Mayhem Melee Matches

Written by Dlyan Vanthuyne

What’s this? A multiblog article? What’s the occasion? Good question, me. This Saturday we got an incredible card of matches for you in the eighth iteration (wow we have been doing this for a long time now) of our longest running event: Mayhem at the Multiplex. To celebrate, I decided to take a trip down memory lane and rank the 12* melee matches that have taken place at Mayhem in previous years.

*This does not include matches from Mayhem I because the 2018 season is no longer considered canon.

#12: Apokalips Now vs Blockbuster Video (@ Mayhem II)

Spoiler alert for the rest of this list: the three non-title matches were fighting an up-hill battle due to them lacking the “big fight feel” of the title matches, which was one of the criteria that I used to decide these rankings. This match in particular was a #1 contenders match where Caleb Boatman and Sean Sandberg defeated Mike Hanley and Nazario Montenegro in pretty dominant fashion after spinning their strength and securing an eight point lead in round two. It was a solid TKO for Apokalips, but ultimately the match itself wasn’t anything to write home about.

#11: Dustin Mason vs Ethan Beller (@ Mayhem II)

Mayhem at the Multiplex II was… weird. To be fair to the competitors, this was not a bad match by any means. It was competitive all the way through with both players getting their strengths in round two until Dustin eventually won in somewhat anticlimactic fashion in round three after Ethan missed his two, three, and four point questions. The reason why it ranks so low is because it had by far the lowest stakes of any match on the list due to either a title or #1 contendership being on the line in every other match. So while it was a better overall match than the teams contender match, it would’ve had to have been an all time great match on the level of Brian Michaels vs Mark Menchaca to justify putting it on a Mayhem card in the first place, let alone ranking it higher on this list.

#10: Caleb Boatman vs Michael Campbell (@ Mayhem III)

I personally don’t necessarily think that a match being one-sided inherently makes it a bad match. However, in this case after the legendary feel-good run that Michael went on when he won the singles tournament and completely turned his career around, it was a bit of a letdown seeing it end with him getting knocked out. With that being said, Michael didn’t even play poorly in this match. He kept pace with Boatman for the first two rounds only being down by one point going into the third, which was when Boatman began to pull away before securing the KO in the fourth. Overall, an incredible performance by Boatman, but not a great match.

#9: Caleb Boatman vs Andrew Barr III (@ Mayhem V)

The 2022 singles tournament finals is an example of a match that has so much history behind it that it justifies taking a spot on the Mayhem card instead of a title match. The reason why this one ranks higher than the matches below it is that Barr had previously defeated Boatman twice in title matches, but this was the first time that the two crossed paths in a three round match and it ended up being the only time that Boatman defeated Barr. For this reason alone, I had to rank it as the best non-title match in Melee history because of its historic significance in the most legendary rivalry in Melee history.

#8: David Nishimoto vs Dylan Vanthuyne (@ Mayhem VI)

I don’t like writing about myself so I’ll keep it brief. It’s a solid TKO. I think the surprise factor elevates it a bit considering I don’t think anybody predicted me being a champion at the beginning of the year (definitely not me). That being said, of the two singles title matches at Mayhem VI, this was definitely the weaker one.

#7: Kumite vs Ginyu Force II (@ Mayhem V)

Now this is where things start to get good. Mayhem V saw the rematch between the eventual GOATs of the teams division, Ginyu Force, and the reigning defending champs, Kumite, who had taken the belts off of them in the first place. Just like their previous match against each other, this match was electric… at least for the first four rounds. Unfortunately Kumite seemed a bit rattled in round five and couldn’t quite dig their way out of a three point deficit which resulted in Ginyu Force reclaiming the belts by way of TKO. If this match would have gone further into round five, this match could have cracked the top three for how competitive and intense it was up until the end.

#6: Ginyu Force vs Judgment City (@ Mayhem VI)

But Dylan? Wasn’t this match a blow out victory? Why is it this high up? Another good question, me. Like I said previously, I don’t think that a match needs to be razor close for it to be a great match. The reason why I ranked this one this high on the list is quite simple: this is one of the biggest statement victories in the history of the teams division. For those of you that don’t remember, Judgment City only had a record of 3-0 going into this match and they earned their title shot by beating Waterloo: Here We Go Again in a match that was way closer than anyone predicted it to be. At the time, I remember thinking that while they obviously have a shot at winning (its Boatman and Jeremy after all), surely if Waterloo can push them to their four pointer, then I think Ginyu Force should be able to get the job done just like they did against Boatman's previous team Double Indemnity… and boy was I wrong. Simply put, NOBODY has ever made Ginyu Force look as easy as Judgment City made them look that day. To do that to the consensus greatest team of all time makes it one of the most impressive and downright terrifying performances ever.

#5: Ginyu Force vs Bring Out Your Dead (@ Mayhem VII)

Oh goddammit, I guess I gotta write about myself again. This match frustrates me because it had the potential to be a truly incredible match due to how close it was in every round up until Ginyu eventually won on their three pointer in round five. Unfortunately, the thing that holds this match back from being incredible was that this was the first match with our new round four and it went so disastrously that we had to change the round immediately after Mayhem had ended. Both teams ended up leaving round four with eight less points than they had going into it which wound up tanking our scores in the end. The rest of the match was great though!

#4: The Concept vs Wyld Stallyns (@ Mayhem III)

Next up we got the first match in one of the best trilogies in the history of Multiplex between the two hall of fame teams The Concept and Wyld Stallyns. Similar to Boatman vs Barr III, this is another match that is very important in the Melee canon because it was the only match in which The Concept was able to defeat Wyld Stallyns. However, this match ended up being way closer with constant lead changes in rounds one and two. Then in round three The Concept was able to sweep the deep cuts securing a two point lead going into round four which they then turned into a six point lead going into round five. In the end The Concept won 31-30 after Stallyns missed their four pointer.

#3: David Nishimoto vs Jeremy Adams (@ Mayhem VI)

This was a very special match because it marked the first time in Melee history where a new champion was crowned in the finals of our 32-person Summer Series tournament due to Barr vacating the title. On paper this was a fascinating matchup because it featured the decorated teams champion, David Nishimoto, going up against the first ever Melee champion, Jeremy Adams, in his return season where he had been dominating everyone in his path through the tournament (except for the GOAT, Thomas Scully). While it may not have been the highest scoring title match ever, it ranks so highly on this list because this was one of the most razor close title matches in singles history. Jeremy had a one point lead coming out of round one before David was able to tie it up in round two. Then round three happened and they were still tied. Then round four happened and yep you guessed it: they were still tied. In the end David was able to secure the victory and become the double-belted champion with a final score of 21-19. It's easy to see why this won Match of the Year for 2023.

#2: Andrew Barr vs Cameron Redshaw (@ Mayhem IV)

Regardless of what you think of the ruling on the Ace in the Hole question, I think it is pretty hard to deny that this is one of the best singles title matches ever. Going into this match, Cameron was on the best win streak of his entire career that culminated in him defeating his then teammate Caleb Boatman in the finals of the tournament which set himself up in his first title match against the greatest singles champion of all time, Andrew Barr. This match sums up why Barr was such a special player, because regardless of how many points he may be trailing by, he is never out of the match. Coming out of round 2, Cameron had a commanding six point lead which he was able to hold onto in round three when both players swept the deep cuts. Then round four happened and Barr was able to close the gap to a two point deficit after picking up four points in Action/Adventure. Then in round five Barr was able to hit his one, two, and four point questions while Cameron hit his one pointer and missed his two and three. This left Cameron with his four pointer which he needed to hit to force sudden death and he was one “the” away from doing so. One of the most heartbreaking endings to one of the most electric matches ever and the craziest part is that it somehow wasn’t even the best match at Mayhem IV.

#1: The Concept vs Wyld Stallyns III (@ Mayhem IV)

42 points to 38… that was the final score of this historic match at Mayhem at the Multiplex IV which no other teams title match has even come close to. The most wild thing about The Concept vs Stallyns III is that, unlike the previous two entries on this list, for the first few rounds of this match it was not close at all. A four point lead after round one for the Stallyns quickly snowballed into a six point lead after round two and an eight point lead after round three. Then, The Concept decided that they were not going to go down without a fight in what ended up being their final match as a team and against all odds they went 10/10 in round four and 10/10 in round five. Now, all of a sudden the Stallyns were in a situation where they needed to hit their four pointer to avoid going to sudden death. Brian was able to pull their four pointer in directors to seal the victory in dramatic fashion after him and Joseph were unsure about it even being the correct answer. It’s the best rubber match in Melee history and for that reason it was the clear pick for the best match in Mayhem history.