He certainly is the most successful modern skater but when I think of individual performances that amazed me athletically and moved me emotionally. Skates that I'll watch over again, none are his. Kwan was the best at creating that magic for me, but Yagudin, Abbott, Lambiel, Buttle, and kozuka can too. Plushy never has for me
Some of you are probably clueless enough to be judging Plushenko on his level of skating from 2009-2014. That is an old Plushenko, many surgeries and many years past his prime. That and with the sport always evolving in technical demands and presentation, a skater should be judged mostly on what they did for their own time (plus in some cases like Plushenko amazing longevity as well). Like I said earlier I laugh at even imagining what Chan and Hanyu would look like vs the future field competing at 30 (we will never find out as I highly doubt either will skate amateur past 25, but it would not be pretty).
I think his 2006 LP is a pretty good example of what every has talked about ... good consistency in jumping and that's about it. If you want to go earlier around 2002, his programs were slightly better. But following CoP and no actual rival, his skating never lived up to its potential (except save for maybe Euros 2012). In terms of accolades and consistency and being a competitor, he is the best ever. But Hanyu and Chan, jumps/consistency aside, are vastly superior skaters overall.
Age is impressive but it has little to do with it. Should we say Shen and Zhao are the best pairs figure skaters who ever lived because of their Olympic gold at such a late age? Arguably, they have more of a case than Plushenko because there are several aspects of their skating that they can be lauded for, and are a modicum of what well-rounded skaters should be.
Nobody (other than an uber) can ever say that Plushenko is a well-rounded skater, and for that reason, he cannot be the best male skater who ever lived.
If you honestly think Plushenko in 2006 was the best artistic skater, more than Lambiel or Buttle.. had better skating skills, transitions, or choreography, etc. then you're an even bigger fool than you already make yourself out to be. I consider "best male skater" as the most well-rounded skater not just in terms of elements but in terms of programs, and Plushenko's programs pale in comparison to tons of male figure skaters, even though not all had his jump proficiency or consistency.
Do you know what? Who cares of it? I'm a little bored this, and I'm a little bit angry too. Everyone is a little bit envious, as Mishin said. A decade or two from now, if anyone look at the history of figure skating will see his results. End of the story .. Who will remember that there was a figure skating forum where some "experts" explained why he is not the best??
Don't worry plushyfan, Plushenko is well -rounded skater, his skating record at Olympic, Worlds, Euros..etc. proves that. As Mishin said very precisely, who denies it just simply jealous. Nothing is matters, ONLY skating record.
A program can be impactful with command of the ice with excellent jumps but still be a poor representation of what ideal figure skating is. Surya Bonaly had strong, consistent jumps and usually a strong presence on the ice, and I doubt anyone would call her even close to an ideal skater (and even she has more intricate choreography than Plushenko's 2006 LP). Stojko as well isn't the best male figure skater ever, even though he had superb jumps and ice presence.
Plushenko is definitely an improvement on some of the best skaters in the 1990's. For example, Petrenko usually spent the first 30 seconds of his programs just doing crossovers to gain speed for his 3A (watch his 1994 SP to see what I mean). Plushenko at least does some turns into a few of his jumps and between elements. Chan and Hanyu have improved upon what Plushenko does and I'm sure in a few years we'll see men doing even more. You have to remember that Plushenko skated under 6.0 for much of his career (when he was competing regularly) so it's understandable that his skill set doesn't match exactly to what is expected now.