gordi

GREAT "turn about is fair play" spot with Brett Sawyer there!! And the AGAIN with Terry Taylor getting revenge on Tom Pritchard

I wonder if anyone else heard that in Mick Jagger's voice, from the song "Miss You" Definitely wondering how Commissioner Castillo owing a favour to Chicky Starr will pay off down the line.

VERY much looking forward to Bad News vs Dr. D!

Great set-up for the Duggan vs Doc re-match. I liked the Warrior vs Barbarian brawl, too.

Definitely. Some nice storytelling in the tag match, too, with Sammartino avoiding Putzki until he finally got caught.

With everything going on there, what I feel most excited about is Sting and Tonga Kid teaming up. They could be awesome together.

Well, there goes my theory that Kirchner is Leatherface... That was a perfect MACW TV Main Event

I like the classic set-up of the brawl at the top of he show setting up a multi-man tag in the Main Event. I love Killer Khan being hoisted on his own petard when the distraction he created allowed Adonis to cheat to win.

I'm really enjoying the character work with Saito and Larry Z. Buddy Rose & Doug Somers having a strong run at the top of the card is great stuff.

I'm delighted that the Eric Embry/Leatherface running gag has an actual pay-off. I wonder if it's Corporal Kirchner under that mask.

Luger vs Reed in a cage. JYD vs Slater in a Dog Collar Match. Flair vs Lawler. Damn, brother. You are giving us a LOT to look forward to here.

Hail to the king, baby! Hennig might have been the true MVP of the show, wrestling three good matches and showing some real class and sportsmanship. Some nice tag matches thrown in there as well, setting up WM2 pretty nicely.

Did Adonis just challenge Killer Khan??? That is going to be insane! Imagine the bumps Adonis is gonna take in this one. Maybe he's being over-confident thinking that he'll definitely beat Khan and go on to face Benoit for the TV title...

I like how you are able to get guys over without giving them a win. Like Vader putting up a good fight vs Gordy or Adams going the distance with Bock. Also: are we building to a chain match with Cactus and Buzz? I hope so!

I appreciate the Japan shout-out. I can't wait for Big Leon White to come back at the Varsity Club. I find your character work with Zbyszko to be both spot-on and hilarious.

He's a really successful action movie heavy character actor these days. He was in John Wick 2, Fate of the Furious, and most notably Wolf Warrior 2 which made a massive amount of money in China. I'm enjoying this new series of reviews, even though I have never seen most of the Elimination Chamber matches.

Gli-San Puroresu Super-show I've had this siting around since mid-December el Brazo de Plata vs Kantaro Hoshino These are absolutely two of my favourite pro wrestlers of all time, and this is every bit as much a dream match for me as the Hash vs Funk Main Event. Brazo de Plata is about 5’7” and 300 pounds, almost spherical in shape… but he can really move. He’s kind of the Platonic ideal of chubby Kaientai DX-era Dick Togo. He’ll often play the buffoon, but if you get him angry he will headbutt you right in the face. Kantaro Hoshino is about 5’3” and he often sports a 70s-yakuza-style punch perm. But, this goofy-looking little guy is a total bad-ass. He was a boxer before he became a wrestler. He was often the third man in trios matches with Antonio Inoki and Seiiji Sakaguchi. He will not back down, to anybody. He will go right at Andre the Giant and make you believe it, without in any way making Andre look stupid or weak. He’s in his mid to late 40s here and kinda looks ten years older than that, except that he can still really move. So: This was pure “Joy of Wrestling” from bell to bell. It started out as a pure comedy opening match, but built up to a harrowingly violent climax, then segued back into pure entertainment before el Brazo de Plata put Hoshino away with a Jumping Seated Senton. Ashura Hara and Mayumi Ozaki vs “Carpenter” Teranishi and Dynamite Kansai The opener built to a crescendo of violence. This match started out at a point of vicious, withering stiffness and pretty much just stayed in that zone for about 22 minutes. Mostly, it was Ozaki and Kansai trying to murder each other. From time to time, Hara would get to beat up on Teranishi and the Carpenter would get to show off how good he is at bumping and selling. Once in a while Kansai would throw a kick at Hara, or Oz would do the same to Teranishi. Unless you were watching closely and looking specifically for it, you might not have noticed that the men did not actually hit the women in this one… until a “malfunction at the junction” spot where everything was Bonzo Gonzo, and Hara was charging at the Carpenter, and Kansai threw Oz at Teranishi, which knocked Teranishi out of harm’s way and put Ozaki very much in harm’s way, too late for Hara to stop himself. One Splash Mountain and three counts later, Kansai and Ternaishi were celebrating their victory. The purpose of this match was to serve as sharp contrast to the Kawaii Pro Wrestling match later on the card and serve as a sampler of the more serious side of our Joshi division. In my opinion, that purpose was more than served. Dos Caras and Gran Hamada vs Super Strong Machine and El Samurai Speaking of contrasts: This match was all about athleticism and exciting action, with SSM serving as a base while Hamada and Samurai flew around the ring, and Dos Caras providing the crowd-pleasing finish with a bunch of Flying Cross Chops, a Quebradora con Giro, and finally a Flying Cross Body on Samurai for the pin. Hello Spider, Hello Kudo, and Gantetsu vs Tokyo Sweetheart, Bolshoi Kitty, and TMIII What the schoolgirls in the Sanrio Superfan Seats were hoping for was to see Bolshoi Kitty get her revenge on Hello Kudo and Hello Spider for the humiliation they bestowed on her at the lead-in show… but it’s way too early for that. So, Bolshoi and Sweetheart just sold and sold and sold with the odd hope spot tossed in here and there. Togo and Kanemoto got a nice little highflying showcase about ten minutes in, but otherwise were mostly there to break up pins. Eventually, Kudo kicked Bolshoi in the head and pinned her. This stuff is what pays the bills. Well… this stuff and the snack food sponsorships. Rusher Kimura vs Big John Nord - #1 Contender Match And… it’s time for some straight-up clubbering. Big John bumped big for the grizzled vet. At one point, Nord picked Rusher up and just dropped him over the top rope down to ringside, but he only got, like, a four-count out of it. Eventually Rusher wore the young big man down with a series of nasty Headbutts and European Uppercuts, before putting him away with the Rushing Lariat. Afterward, he got on the mic and challenged the winner of tonight’s main event to face him in a steel cage for the title. ***BREAK*** Baba, Jumbo, and Kikuchi vs The Can Am Express and Owen Hart – G&SP 6-Man Title Match Bolshoi Kitty and Carpenter Teranishi are two of the absolute best in the world at bumping and selling and getting sympathy heat… but even they have to bow down before the ultimate king of FiP: Tsuyoshi Kikuchi. The first 15 minutes of this match were almost all based around Kikuchi doing what he does best, as the gaijin heels ran through their athletic offense, power spots, and double-team manoeuvres. After several near-falls, a hot tag was made to Giant Baba and for a couple of crowd-pleasing minutes he knocked the bad guys around with Overhead Chops and 16-bun Kicks. Then, he got cut off and played the almost-unique role of “Giant in Peril” until the crowd were screaming for Jumbo. That hot tag blew the roof of of the place, and Jumbo got a very long shine segment where he almost put each member of the heel team away, more than once. Backdrop Drivers, Swinging Neckbreakers, Jumbo Lariats, Jumping Knees, and Powerbombs were all thrown, but the pinfalls kept getting broken up at the last possible second. Finally, exhausted, Jumbo tagged Kikuchi back in, and he got a nice little shine segment of his own, getting some measure of revenge with Elbow Smashes and Zero-Sen Kicks. Eventually, inevitably, the heels regained control. The moment they did, they sprang into action. Owen and Furnas charged across the ring, knocking Baba and Jumbo to the floor, while Kroffat picked Kikuchi up onto his shoulders. Then, as Owen climbed to the top turnbuckle, Furnas lifted Kroffat (and Kikuchi) up onto his shoulders… and Owen came off the ropes with a monster Flying Body Press on Kikuchi. With Kikuchi crashing to the mat from such a height, the three-count was pretty much a formality. Misawa and Kobashi vs Bam Bam Bam Bam – G&SP Tag Title Match Rusher Kimura vs Big John Nord was some pretty good clubbering, but this match was clubbering elevated to an art form. We got about 20 minutes of these Picassos and van Goghs of the form throwing chops, elbows, punches, and forearms before we moved into the big bomb section of the match, and for once the big bomb section was kept relatively short. Gordy nailed Kobashi with a Piledriver. He tagged in Bigelow, who went up for the Rolling Moonsault, but Kobashi rolled out of the way and tagged Misawa. Misawa knocked Gordy to the floor with a sick Running Elbow Smash, and then planted Bigelow with a Tiger Suplex followed by a Tiger Driver. Misawa tagged Kobashi, Kobashi went for a Moonsault of his own, and Bam Bam Bigelow did not roll out of the way. The ceremony where Misawa and Kobashi were awarded the G&SP Tag Title belts was very nice, if maybe a little long. Terry Funk vs Shinya Hashimoto – G&SP Title Match Funk got an early advantage, but Hash came back strong. Funk had a few encouraging words for Hashimoto, but once again the younger wrestler took that as a sign of disrespect and condescension. It’s hard to know if Funk failed to learn his lesson from the build-up show, or if he was hoping to goad Hashimoto into making a mistake… but either way Terry Funk ended up on the receiving end of twenty minutes of punishment at the hands of an enraged Shinya Hashimoto. The kicks flew, harder and harder each time. Funk did his bandy-legged wobbly selling, but he refused to stay down. Hash nailed him with a Jumping Spie DDT, but Funk kicked out at 2.999. Hashimoto planted the champ with a Vertical Drop Brainbuster, but he was too close to the ropes and Funk managed to get his leg up to prevent the 3-count. Frustrated, Hashimoto threw the champ outside, to deal out more punishment. Hash pushed Funk into the ring post and lined up a High Roundhouse Kick, but at the last minute, Funk ducked out of the way and Hashimoto ended up smashing his shin into the ring post at full power. Funk immediately seized the moment and went after Hashimoto’s injured leg with a vengeance. He picked the 280-pounder up and smashed his leg into the barricade and into the ringpost once again. Funk dragged Hashimoto into the ring and attacked the leg with elbows and knees. For good measure he dropped another knee on Hashimoto’s head, and punched him right in the face a few times. Then Terry Funk stood up and applied the Spinning Toe Hold. Shinya Hashimoto is a tough man, but even tough men have their limits.

Card for the JWA Trios Tournament Finals – Tokyo, February 24, 1986 JWA Trios Tournament Finals: Tenryu, Hara, and Kawada vs The Machines JWA Tag Titles Match: Power Rush vs The Fantastics Stan Hansen & Phil Hickerson vs Jumbo Tsuruta & Yoshiaki Yatsu ***BREAK*** Giant Baba vs Yoshiaki Fujiwara The British Bullies vs Fujinami, Kimura, & Hashimoto Mil Mascaras, Dos Caras, El Canek, & Gran Hamada vs Anoaro Atisanoe, Siva Afi, Tatsutoshi Goto, and Kensuke Masa Fuchi vs Masa Chono Tiger Mask, Keiji Mutoh, & ”Thunder” Yamada, vs Shiro Koshinaka, Mitsuharu Misawa, & Hiro Hase

Yeah, poor ole Jumbo can't seem to win a belt in the JWA, but at least he has this.

Does he know that Jerry Lawler is a baby banger?! A BABY BANGER! A BABY BANGER! - Terry Funk

Some nice showcase bouts for your young boys on that show: Huber, Candido, and Benoit all earning big wins.

I thought about allowing pinfalls and submissions... but I think I came up with a better way - or, at least, another way - to differentiate the JWA Rumble from the American versions. I wonder if anyone has/will pick up on it? In regards to the teams? I was trying to dissect it more but that's what I was coming up with. I almost thought about running a house show style rumble with teams of 4 ala the old N64 Wrestling Games but also only allowing 4 men in at a time or something to that style. Yes, that's it exactly. I'm sure everyone remembers that great moment at the start of the 1989 Royal Rumble where Axe and Smash were #1 and #2 and they just went at it... and in this year's Rumbles the commentators made much hay of how it's "everyone for themselves" ...but my feeling is that it wouldn't work that way in Japan, that wrestlers would be more likely to team up with/fight to save/and even sacrifice themselves for their stable-mates and in particular for the "senior" wrestlers in their groups. so, naturally, Atisanoe, Afi, and Kensuke would team up and Kengo Kimura would fight to save Fujinami, and so on... ... and maybe that makes Tsuruta's (possibly accidental) elimination of Baba at the end more of a big deal since it's the only time in the Rumble that someone eliminates a stable-mate and arguably the only time someone eliminates a wrestler who is above them in the hierarchy. In my experience, it seems reasonable to say that Japanese society and culture are less individualistic and more group-oriented than US culture and I wanted the JWA Rumble to reflect that. I'm pleased that you picked up on that.

I thought about allowing pinfalls and submissions... but I think I came up with a better way - or, at least, another way - to differentiate the JWA Rumble from the American versions. I wonder if anyone has/will pick up on it?

JWA Rumble 1986 – Presented live on Asahi TV by World Pro Wrestling The Fantastics vs Kuniaki Kobayashi and Black Tiger (if The Fantastics win, they earn a title shot vs Power Rush in Tokyo on the 24th) The Fantastics entered to the sound of “Sharp Dressed Man” and got a pretty decent crowd reaction. The Choshu’s Army team entered to Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D minor, accompanied by Phil Hickerson and an even larger man with long black hair, a bushy black beard, and a red one-shoulder singlet. The match was an all-out brawl from the opening bell, and every time Tommy or Bobby got the advantage Hickerson or his friend would do something to take it away. Every time Tommy or Bobby got tossed outside the ring, they’d get roughed up a little before getting thrown back in. Kobayashi and Rocco spent almost as much time distracting the referee as they did fighting. Eventually, these tactics wore The Fantastics down and Fulton got trapped in the heel corner, taking a beating. When Rodgers tried to break it up, the ref got distracted yet again and Hickerson and the other man got involved in the beat-down, choking and hitting Fulton from outside of the ring. This brought Toshiaki Kawada and Samson Fuyuki out from the back. Footloose charged the ring and attacked Hickerson and the other big man, driving them away from the action. Seizing the moment, Fulton made a hot tag to his partner. Tommy Rogers came in fired up, knocked Black Tiger out of the ring with a Dropkick, planted Kobayashi in the middle of the ring with an Inverted Underhook Facebuster, then tagged Fulton back in to finish things off with a Rocket Launcher. The JWA Rumble First in were JWA Japanese Champion Tastumi Fujinami and the 330-pound Western Samoan Anoaro Atisanoe. Fujinami was able to use his speed and ring savvy to counter Atisanoe’s superior size and power, but… In at #3 was Atisanoe’s frequent tag team partner Siva Afi. Fujinami was in deep trouble as the two men were able to cut off the ring and corner the Japanese Champion and he was taking a tremendous beating as the countdown began for… #4: Atisanoe and Afi’s Choshu’s Army stable-mate, the rookie Kensuke. That was a whole lot of muscle and power ganging up on Fujinami and he had to fight like a maniac to hold on until… The cavalry finally arrived at #5 as Fujinami’s friend and tag partner Kengo Kimura came sprinting into the ring to make a last-second save. Three on two is better odds than three on one, and Kengo Kimura was fired up, but the Choshu’s Army Trio fought back hard as… The crowd popped for entrant #6, Jumbo Tsuruta! However, the cheers died out quickly when Jumbo tossed Kimura from the ring and went after Fujinami as Atisanoe, Afi, and Kensuke looked on in surprise. Soon all four men were ganged up on Fujinami and he was once again fighting like mad to stay in the ring… And the crowd heated right up, when #7 turned out to be JWA Champion Tenryu! The champ charged into the ring and made short work of Afi and Kensuke, tossing both men out of the ring. Atisanoe proved to be tougher to eliminate, though, and the two sumo stylists ended up throwing big forearms at each other while Jumbo and Fujinami continued battling, and… #8 was Shinya Hashimoto and he immediately came to the aid of Fujinami, saving him from elimination yet again. The two stable-mates teamed up against Jumbo and seemed close to tossing him but… Jumbo’s stable-mate and friend Yoshiaki Yatsu came charging into the ring at #9. He went straight after Hashimoto and tossed him over the top rope, and then he and Jumbo teamed up to eliminate Tatsumi Fujinami, much to the crowd’s displeasure. The two men then tried to push Tenryu and Atisanoe out of the ring, but the big sumo fighters held on and came brawling back as… Baba’s Corporation member “Carpenter” Teranishi came in at #10 and with, his help Jumbo and Yatsu were able to eliminate Atisanoe, but not Tenryu. And then… Keiji Mutoh was entrant #11 and, perhaps angry that Jumbo and Yatsu had tossed Kimura, Hashimoto and Fujinami he went after the Baba’s Corporation group… And he got more help at #12 as Masa Chono ran to the ring. The Fujinami’s Family young lions fought hard, but ended up getting tossed out by Jumbo and Yatsu as Teranishi fought tooth and nail with Tenryu. And… In at #13 was the blonde heel Umanosuke Ueda. He blindsided Tenryu and Teranishi, knocking hte latter out of the ring, and then he went after Yatsu while Tenryu and Tsuruta locked up, popping the crowd… And at #14, Tenryu protégé Toshiaki Kawada came running to the ring and he and Tenryu teamed up to eliminate Ueda and Yatsu. Kawada and Tenryu then faced off with Jumbo as the crowd went crazy… And the pop only intensified as Mitsuharu Misawa joined the fray at #15. Jumbo, Misawa, Tenryu, and Kawada fought, as only they can… Then Tenryu’s Gang gained the advantage as Masa Fuchi was the 16th man to enter the Rumble. Tenryu battled fiercely with Jumbo as Kawada and Fuchi teamed up to almost eliminate Misawa. But… As #17 El Canek ran down to the ring, Jumbo broke free from Tenryu and nailed Fuchi with a vicious Jumping Knee, knocking him out of the ring. Then… Jumbo, Canek, and Misawa got some extra support as Shiro Koshinaka came in at #18. Together, the Baba’s Corporation members managed to eliminate Kawada and came very close to eliminating Tenryu as well, but… The 19th entrant was Tenryu team-mate Super Strong Machine, and he made the last-second save. Tenryu and Hirata fought bravely against two to one odds, until… JWA’s top heel, Riki Choshu, stormed to the ring at #20 and went absolutely crazy, tossing Tenryu, Misawa, and Koshinaka before getting dumped by Jumbo and Canek as… #21, Very Tall Machine, ran to the ring making it a showdown between Jumbo & Canek and the two Machines. Clubbering ensued. At #22, Phil Hickerson joined the party… And at #23, Rusher Kimura charged the ring and the brawl intensified… By the time #24, Masakatsu Funaki, hit the ring, things were absolutely out of control and Funaki got tossed just as… #25 Nobuhiko Takada ran to the ring, and in turn he got eliminated just as… #26 Mighty Inoue entered the fray, only to get dumped over the top rope… And at #27 Sumo Machine came down and he teamed up with Super Strong Machine and Very Tall Machine in a concerted effort to toss out Phil Hickerson … At #28, there was a SURPRISE ENTRANT and the crowd popped hard as the tough little veteran Kantaro Hoshino bounced around the ring, throwing rights and lefts. However, Jumbo and Canek teamed up to dump Sumo Machine, Very Tall Machine, and Phil Hickerson over the ropes, and then picked up Kantaro and tossed him out on top of the pile of big men on the outside. As Jumbo and Canek were laughing, Super Strong Machine caught Canek by surprise and tossed him… Yoshiaki Fujiwara was entrant #29 and he and Super Strong Machine put a major beating on Jumbo, busting him wide open… Giant Baba was the final entrant, and he quickly tossed Super Strong Machine from the ring. Baba and Fujiwara then battled ferociously as Jumbo struggled to his feet. Blood streaming down his face (and perhaps obscuring his vision) Jumbo charged into Baba and Fujiwara, who were fighting close to the ropes, and knocked both men to the outside. Baba made his way back into the ring and raised Jumbo’s hand in victory. On the outside, Fujiwara was furious, yelling threats and challenges at Baba and Jumbo. Ashura Hara vs ??? (TV Time Remaining) After the ring was cleared, Ashura Hara came out to ringside and grabbed the house mic. He explained that he had stepped aside to let Kantaro Hoshino enter the Rumble, but he still wanted to fight someone. He then dropped the mic and entered the ring. Within seconds, a tall and very powerful-looking American wrestler wearing bright blue tights and white boots ran into the ring and went straight at the big former rugby player. The two tough men exchanged punches, chops, forearms, and big shoulder blocks but neither would back up or give even an inch of ground. Eventually, the big American (Ron Simmons) bounced off of the ropes and came back at Hara with a Flying Shoulder Tackle but Hara also launched himself straight at Simmons and they collided forehead to forehead at full speed. The sound of the collision was sickening, and both men collapsed to the mat. They staggered back to their feet, and Hara threw a big punch at Simmons, busting open his badly swollen forehead. As blood poured down his face, Simmons roared with laughter and threw a huge right hand of his own. The two men went toe to toe and blow for blow for two full minutes, until the bell rang to signal the end of TV time remaining. Hara grabbed Simmons by the wrist and… raised his arm. He took him to each side of the ring so the crowd could show appreciation for the big American’s fighting spirit.

Nice teamwork there between Race and Roop, with Race going after Rocky's shoulder to set up Roop's finisher. I also like the more subtle interference in the Flair vs Terry Taylor match. Is Ric the TV Champion now?