Wahoos Leg

There's a rack that's full. Two racks attached to the wall, one of which got to such capacity I have to buy anchors for it. More on the shelf in my offive. About seven spindles. All organized on a spreadsheet.

WWF Jr. Hvwt Title vs. NWA Intl Jr Hvwt Title-2/3 Falls: Tatsumi Fujinami vs. Steve Keirn, New Japan, 2/1/80 Always like a match where the matwork feels like a real struggle and it does here. Good psychology, as rather than just transition from mat stuff to more high-impact moves with no rhyme or reason, Keirn turns it into a slugfest after his failure to out-wrestle Fujinami. Hits another gear after Keirn rips off the bandage (which I always like), and the match stays red-hot from the end of the first fall through the entire second fall. Not as fun as the tag match, but still very solid. WWF Jr. Hvwt Title-Tatsumi Fujinami (Ch) vs. Dynamite Kid, New Japan, 2/5/80 What a fantastic match. Just a joy to watch. It combines all the positive aspects from the tag match involving both, as well as the bandage-ripping and clubbering from the Keirn singles. Dynamite's insistence on trying for the octopus is a little bit annoying (there should be a sign, “you must be THIS tall to attempt this submission”) but there is so much to like here. The crowd's super into it. The shrieks of dismay when Fujinami whiffs on the dropkick and the dive to the floor are great. Dynamite comes out of it looking quite strong as well. Easily the best match yet in 1980. 1980 1. WWF Jr. Hvwt Title-Tatsumi Fujinami (Ch) vs. Dynamite Kid, New Japan, 2/5/80 2. Tatsumi Fujinami & Kantaro Hoshino vs. Dynamite Kid & Steve Keirn, New Japan, 1/18/80 3. WWF Jr. Hvwt Title vs. NWA Intl Jr Hvwt Title-2/3 Falls: Tatsumi Fujinami vs. Steve Keirn, New Japan, 2/1/80 4. Lord Alfred Hayes vs. Bobby Heenan, AWA from St. Paul, 1/13/80

I'm attacking this a little bit differently than Loss, but he said the more the merrier, so here are my thoughts on the first couple of matches on this endeavor. Lord Alfred Hayes vs. Bobby Heenan, AWA, 1/13/80 Some nifty bits during the match with Hayes busting out the World Of Sport matwork, but this mostly a comedy match. Fans sure do hate Heenan, and the crowd heat is pretty substantial. Roots of Regal's original schtick in Lord Alfred's mannerisms and gestures. Heenan's attack after the match only compounds the level of hatred he receives from the St. Paul crowd. A fun watch, and worth seeking out to see Hayes wrestle, but that's about it. Tatsumi Fujinami & Kantaro Hoshino vs. Dynamite Kid & Steve Keirn, New Japan, 1/18/80 I've seen this one before and forgot how much I enjoyed it. Fujinami's bodyscissors counter would gain approval from even today's “workrate” Internet fans. Later, Hoshino MURDERS Keirn on a running dropkick that gets him right in the ear. After winning the first fall, Dynamite Kid completely eats shit on a diving headbutt to help extend the match to a third fall. Keirn's repeat backbreakers were nice as well, and I enjoyed little touches like Keirn holding Hoshino on the mat so Dynamite could hit a flying kneedrop. Things get a little screwy in the third fall when Dynamite Kid decides he's going to over-sell everything that happens to him, but the finish is fantastic. I think there's something here that any wrestling fan would like.

My watching varies wildly based on my work schedule. Sometimes I'll watch an hour a day. Sometimes two. Sometimes I'll go a week and watch maybe one match

I've got a spreadsheet that has all the 80s sets in chronological order, or as close as I've been able to sleuth out

I've got one spreadsheet cataloguing where everything is (which spindle, rack, hard drive, et cetera). Said spreadsheet also has different tabs indexing everything by promotion / region, with full matchlists (a work in progress, to be sure). Another spreadsheet catalogues everything in my collection, in chronological order. (Another work in progress). But it's also super handy if I want to only pull up, for example, everything World Class in my collection. Or, everything where Lawler and Dundee wrestled with or against one another.

I think Rey could go to Mexico, work at one-third or half-speed and keep going strong for a while as a novelty/celebrity act.

I can tell you as an individual who runs his own MMA news site (might as well plug my own shit), it is very difficult to make money in the fight game. "Make money" being defined as significant take-home pay. One of my contributors debuted as a pro last year. He makes way more as a pro boxer.

I think I agree with this. However, these guys have been watching wrestling since the early 80s. I am not worried about them getting into old school stuff because they have been watching their entire lives. The Japanese and Lucha stuff is completely new to them though. These guys are hardcore fans with no internet recognition or PPV purchases since probably 2002. They probably have never seen any indy matches that have been popular on the internet for the past 10 years. You could even throw in the Von Erichs-Freebirds six-man tag Lumberjack Match. That was a fun one, and when you throw in the lumberjacks it was a who's who of the roster at the time. Lots of 80s nostalgia in that one.

Anyone else getting a 403 forbidden message when they visit DVDVR?

you beat me to it... pretty sure he still does this from time to time.

Very fine summary of his career. RIP

I've been wanting to get my hands on the Continental/East TN/Knoxville stuff from the 80s for years. Seems like there's just not much out there...

Got my hands on a mostly complete set of OVW TV from 2002, so been watching that. Cena as Prototype. Batista as Leviathan. Shitty local guys like Trailer Park Trash. And Shelton Benjamin proving that he REALLY needs a mouthpiece.

Some quick thoughts on the Buddy Rose, Jay Youngblood 2/3 falls match Finally digging into this set, and the third match on the very first disc I think is a real gem. Some very strong storytelling taking place, wrestling as art/stage production with Buddy bumping and making himself the butt of the joke for Lord Jonathan as the biased good guy referee. Come for the schtick. Stay to watch these two put on a fucking CLINIC of rope running at the end of the first fall, and then see Buddy bust out a series of slams and backbreakers that would seem apropos in a "strong style" match from current day. Cap things off with Boyd beating the fuck out of Buddy and splitting him wide open. Highly recommended.

Hell of a story. Can't imagine regularly working 110 hour weeks. He must be married to a saint.

Fun idea. I'll work up a list.

I liked Orton's HIAC match with Taker, Cowboy Bob's hepatitis notwithstanding. Am I the only one?

I need to become independently wealthy so I can start taking part in these

I remember enjoying his run as TNA world champ in 2005 much more than his ECW or WCW stuff. Not sure how it'd look on a rewatch...

An entertaining show from top to bottom. I thought the Chamber match was top-shelf, and loved how the intensity just built and built culminating with Mark Henry. Henry pounding on the chamber partition as he waited getting into the match was great, and he was the star of the match to me. Everything he did was over and seemed to mean the most. Believable elimination too after eating two finishers back to back. Swagger took a real beating. So many bumps onto the metal structure. Not sure where him winning puts Ziggler, but given the current Del Rio character, doing him vs Swagger makes sense. I eagerly await the Swagger/Dutch vs Del Rio/Ricardo tag match. I also really enjoyed the six man. The Shield have such a great act going as a trio. Didn't expect them to win, so that was a pleasant surprise. The double heat also built tons of anticipation for Ryback to finally tag into the match. People like to shit on the Miz, but the Cesaro-Miz match was good stuff. Tons of great limb work, and Cesaro was fantastic doing the little things, whether it was working Miz's fingers in arm holds or pounding on his own leg after the steps spot. Tip of the hat as well to the commentators for putting over Cesaro's lack of kneepads and how that could be his undoing. The two title matches weren't really memorable, but they were decent enough and entertaining, aside from Del Rio totally whiffing on the bucket dropkick. The divas match was short enough to be watchable, and Ziggler vs Kofi was a fun little sprint. For a wrestling fan, I can imagine many worse ways to spend an evening than watching this show.

I'd also wonder what the VQ is on that... decent?