G. Badger

I don't believe that I ever saw this one during my 90's AJPW period. It's been awhile since I've seen this stuff but man, it is great. The whole match is fought with an intensity and urgency. There's no wasted movement here. I try not to get bogged down in the King's Road calculations because I've found that it tries to quantify something that the wrestlers weren't actively thinking of. There's nuances to be sure and I think this match has them but they're not necessary to understand or enjoy the match fully. In fact, I feel that doing such mathematics takes away from the overall experience. This is an awesome match that around 20 minutes feels appropriate for a big time Triple Crown Championship. It's not perfect and the pacing maybe just a little too quick for my preference but I think it's a great entry point match for anyone wanting to get into 90's All Japan nowadays. Near classic match or ****1/4+ perhaps.

They just posted this one. It says 1985 but it looks like footage from '75 based on the graininess. Definitely something you could believe was stored in an actual vault 🙂

The Legends of Mid South Wrestling DVD is a compilation that I bought used a few years back. It seems like a good time to jump in and watch it. It's a WWE production so I'm not sure what to expect. I know that the DVDVR did a best of the Mid-South project a long time ago. That's going to be my guide. I'm fully aware that watching in this format might tarnish the match quality since I might be missing backstory, promos etc. I'm going to try to see what I do to give myself some background going into the highly recommended matches. Additionally, I'm going to greatly expand upon the WWE DVD like I did for my ECW project a few months back. The DVD is going to inform my choices... most notably what did the compilation get wrong & how can I supplement it through what's available online. Generally speaking, I'm going to organize according to years/era, wrestlers and singles/tag matches and notable feuds. From what I've seen at the time of writing this, Ted DiBiase is THE wrestler to watch and he will appear throughout this project. I thought that I'd start with a bang and feature the Ted DiBiase vs Hacksaw Jim Duggan feud. The background is that Duggan was part of a crew with DiBiase and Matt Borne. Eventually DiBiase signed up with Skandor Akbar and Duggan wasn't down with that since he's a patriotic guy. The 1985 tuxedo stuff starts because Duggan gets cufflinks for being Mid South athlete of the year for '84. DiBiase insults Duggan saying that he's classless. Duggan shows up on TV the next week in a white tux and roses for his girl/wife...well you can imagine how that goes...there's great stuff on Mid South TV like Ted smashing Duggans 's windshield with a bat etc. OK folks, let's get to the matches. Hacksaw Jim Duggan vs Ted DiBiase (Texas Street Fight) - 07/29/83 - Fucking great stuff here. Two guys in jeans beating the shit out of each other for 10 minutes. Nothing cute happens or when it looks like it might people eat a steel chair. This match is in Houston but it's Mid South for my purposes. Hacksaw Jim Duggan vs Ted Dibiase (08/26/83) - Cage match, another great violent brawl. Blood, punches, the rope breaks... this was a joy. Great finish too! Hacksaw Jim Duggan vs. Ted Dibiase (11/09/84) - Under 10 minutes and no gimmicks but this is still great. They are so great at just punching and trying to hurt each other. It all comes across very natural looking. Hacksaw Butch Reed & Hacksaw Jim Duggan vs. Ted DiBiase & Steve Williams (11/23/84) - This was off the hook! The physicality, the energy, the spots (they actually had spots including a tandem rope running spot)... this was awesome. Fantastic finish where the outcome was always in doubt. Classic match! (Houston btw) Terry Taylor & Hacksaw Jim Duggan vs. Ted DiBiase & Steve Williams (01/31/85 Midsouth TV ep.#282) Impromptu match and it's quite a pairing for the middle of the episode! Anyhow they cut a helluva pace and this was even more chaotic as Buddy Landel came out...and the ending was pretty fun/wacky as long as your not a stickler for the rules Also this is pretty close the start of the "Best Dressed Man in Mid South" tuxedo stuff...which explains why they're in tuxes in their famous match! Duggan vs DiBiase Taped Fist match (03/08/85) - The YouTube poster was kind enough to include the promos - great stuff! The match was pretty great as well. It's under 10 minutes of more blood-and-beat-the-shit-outta-each-other wrestling. If you've got a taste for that then this is yours to enjoy. 80's finish but it fuels the fire...I'm invested in this one, 40 years later. *“Hacksaw” Jim Duggan vs. Ted DiBiase (Coal Miner’s Glove Steel Cage Tuxedo Loser Leaves Town Match - 03/22/85) - This was a great match and dammit, it's a classic when you take the history and everything else into account. This is how you end a feud. It definitely plays off the early matches, which you want. But it adds the cage, it adds the miners glove...this is death match from someone who watches death matches. Blood, drama, visuals, spectacle. Definitely watch all of their stuff but it isn't essential. This can stand on its own. This is one that WWE got right including on their DVD set. HIGHLY Recommended on it's own and a MUST SEE if you're going to watch the above matches. This feud was voted the best by the DVDVR folks and I certainly loved it. For anyone who liked Duggan & DiBiase from WWF, like me, you need to see this. It will certainly put them in a new light. I absolutely recommend checking these matches out if you haven't. Since this is a puro centric blog: if you're a fan of what the Funks, Hansen, Brody, Tenryu, Riki Choshu, 1990 Onita were doing, you really need to check this feud out! Thanks for reading!

I would definitely agree with El McKell yet his classic vs Chavo Guerrero (11/03/80) gives me reason to believe he's got some more great non-Fujinami work out there especially in the very early 80's. I want there to be a clutch of great Kengo matches on his own or separate from Fujinami. Still he probably doesn't make 100...

I've been watching Mid South for the first time so I thought I would chime in. If you're still interested, the DVDVR voted on these being his top matches in Mid-South: Junkyard Dog vs. Nick Bockwinkel ( 6/11/1982 ) Junkyard Dog & Mr. Olympia vs. Ted DiBiase & Hacksaw Duggan ( 8/18/1982 ) Junkyard Dog & Mr. Olympia vs. Ted DiBiase & Matt Borne (Loser Leaves Town) ( 10/27/1982 ) Mr. Wrestling II & Junkyard Dog vs. Matt Borne & Ted DiBiase ( 2/16/1983 ) Some others that I enjoyed include: Nick Bockwinkel vs. Junkyard Dog (1982/05/14) Junkyard Dog vs. Ted DiBiase - North American Title 6/24/82 Junk Yard Dog & Jim Duggan vs Midnight Express 08.04.84

Seeing as no one has posted in here for 11 years...Going to recommend Sabu vs Too Cold Scorpio from the same show. I figure if you're looking up Cactus vs Terry then you're also interested in this match 😋 Both guys are in good shape and are doing all kinds of dangerous shit. All in all it's probably a spot fest but it does feel competitive and like they are trying to win a damn wrestling match. Additionally, I never felt like that they were just "showing off." I actually prefer this to their 1996 match since this was shorter than that & I felt the pace was better here. RVD has posted it:

Absolutely bananas fun match! It's really great match if you're a fan of these guys and this style. It is very chaotic yet Sabu & Goto did pro wrestling so its a wonderful mix of brawling, hard core spots, blood, a few moves...and it's a fantastic length even with the post match fighting. RVD has this one up on his YouTube:

I'm definitely in the camp of good/bad Muto but he's definitely grown on me now that I've seen more of his career. The NWA matches are the best that I've seen of him in the U.S. but maybe there's better ones? Here's a list of his best stuff imo. Nobuhiko Takada & Akira Maeda vs Keiji Mutoh & Shiro Koshinaka (NJPW 03/20/87) Takada & Maeda vs Mutoh & Koshinaka (NJPW 03/26/87) Muta vs Sting (WCW/NWA 09/01/89) Flair vs Muta (WCW/NWA 11/25/89) Muta vs Sting (WCW/NWA Starrcade 1989 12/13/89) Great Muta vs Hiroshi Hase (NJPW 09/14/90) Much better than the Muta Scale '92 match Keiji Mutoh & Masahiro Chono vs Hiroshi Hase & Kensuke Sasaki (NJ 11/1/90) Keiji Muto vs Masa Chono (NJPW G-1 Climax 08/11/91) Keiji Mutoh & Hiroshi Hase vs Bam Bam Bigelow & Vader (03/01/92 NJPW) Big Van Vader & Bam Bam Bigelow vs Keiji Mutoh & Hiroshi Hase (NJ 5/1/92) Keiji Mutoh & Hiroshi Hase vs Masahiro Chono & Shinya Hashimoto (NJ 11/4/93) Steiner Brothers vs. Keiji Muto & Hiroshi Hase (01/04/95 NJPW) Keiji Muto vs Shinya Hashimoto (NJPW G-1 Climax 08/15/95) Genichiro Tenryu vs Great Muta (WAR 10/11/96) Genichiro Tenryu vs Keiji Muto (NJPW 05/03/99) Genichiro Tenryu vs. Keiji Mutoh (AJPW 06/08/2001) Keiji Muto vs. Yuji Nagata (NJPW G-1 Climax 08/12/01) Keiji Mutoh vs. Toshiaki Kawada (AJPW 02/24/02) Toshiaki Kawada & Masanobu Fuchi vs Keiji Muto & Satoshi Kojima (AJPW 04/12/03) Kaz Hayashi VS Keiji Muto (AJPW 10/24/10) I think people have softened their opinion on Muto over the years as tapes gave way to DVD which gave way to reliable high speed internet. It's easier to come across very good to great Muto matches which help fill in the gaps between the great-classic matches listed above. That said he does have some low-lows where you have to wonder, " what the hell is he thinking!? " Personally I'm interested in seeing more of him in the 90's to see what his day-to-day matches were like.

OK folks, it's that time! We're wrapping up the WCW 1994 project. There's some really interesting matches ahead so buckle up and let's get going! TAGS Pretty Wonderful (Paul Orndorff & Paul Roma) vs. Stars and Stripes (Bagwell & Patriot) - (10/23/1994 - Halloween Havoc) - I liked how they did a very exciting, all action few minutes before going into the Buff in peril match that they have been doing. We actually got to see Patriot wrestling! Also not sure if it's out there but a Buff vs Roma singles match or two would be pretty entertaining. They are both super athletic at the time. His elbow drop off the top here is phenomenal! Paul Orndorff's YouTube page has it so I'll share it below: The Nasty Boys (Brian Knobbs & Jerry Sags) vs. The Stud Stable (Bunkhouse Buck & Terry Funk) (w/Col. Robert Parker & Meng) WCW Halloween Havoc 1994 23-10-1994 - Um wait... that was the match? Was Bunkhouse Buck even tagged in? I'm all for a Terry Funk does everything match but did his team even get offense in? What the actual fuck was this? This was 2nd from the top of the PPV? Is this Hoganomics showing its true colors? This had potential to be wild as heck but it's basically Terry jobbing to the Fatty Boys. He does an awesome job of making himself look like a crazy bastard. Good for him! The Stink Twins have wore out their welcome from having great matches with Mick & Kevin Sullivan months ago. Back to your cages Boys! Fantastics vs Mark Starr & Frankie Lancaster (Saturday Night 11/19/94) - Yes! yes, that is how you do it! A return to form for the tag division. The Fantastics and Lancaster & Starr show you how to do a keep it simple tag match that gets everyone pumped up. It's the classic three act tag match but WCW tags have been lacking that to be honest. This was very good stuff! Fantastics vs Pretty Wonderful Worldwide Dec 10th, 1994 - Oh shit! This was a hoot! No offense to Stars n Stripes but their how you do a TV face-heel match. Orndorff & Roma have been the absolute GLUE of the tag scene and for a bit there it felt stale. It wasn't them. Fantastics come in and Pretty Wonderful tear the shack down. It's action packed but clever and bets all of those lil moments in there that make you cheer or boo. Great stuff... watch that Roma elbow drop! Again, Paul Orndorff legacy YouTube page has it: Harlem Heat (w/ Sensational Sherri) vs. The Fantastics (12 10 1994 WCW Saturday Night) -A really clever match where both teams played up the size difference. The Fantastics needed to be quick and use team maneuvers to get the better of Booker & Stevie. You know Sherri factors into this too. Really fun match, glad to see Harlem Heat again and Fantastics have been a joy to watch! REGAL Hacksaw” Jim Duggan vs. Lord Steven Regal (10 01 1994 WCW Saturday Night) - Top shelf Larry Z levels of stalling from Regal. Stalling crowd work is underappreciated. It pisses everyone off - the casual fans, the marks, the smarks, the other wrestler (kayfabe)...it's great. Eventually, it irritates me which is great too 😄 This is a good match. I thought it was going to Duggan cartoon wrestling (WWF wrecked him) but Regal got nasty. Unfortunately we don't get a clean finish but it's a set up for the tag below. Johnny B. Badd and Jim Duggan vs. Steve Austin and Lord Steven Regal (10 08 1994 WCW Saturday Night) - Thank goodness that the baby faces came to wrestle! This was a lot of fun and a very good match as a result. Regal vs Mero/Badd was the best pairing as they really had fantastic chemistry at this point. Duggan actually was on defense for some time and they worked a proper tag team match here. This is the final Steven Regal match for the project I think. He had a fantastic 1994 with the Flair & Zbyszko series of matches being the pinnacle of not just his year but WCW, in my humble opinion. The honor of wrestling Inoki is something he definitely earned even if Hulkamania over shadowed it. VADER Big Van Vader vs. Sting (10 15 1994 WCW Saturday Night) - Oh yes, this was sweet! Sting & Vader are putting on a PPV level match but we don't get a clean finish BUT a great post match, great vibes & amazing out of control Vader post match. That leads to the match below 🙂 Tons to enjoy here! Also I believe this is the final Sting vs Vader match. I don't love all of their matches but he might be my favorite US opponent for Vader. When they are really cooking, there's great stuff to be had. Vader vs. The Guardian Angel (Halloween Havoc 1994 23-10-1994) - Vader is shit talking Sting & Muhammad Ali, Guardian Angel beats the ass out of Harley Race. Harley is not in great shape at this point and Angel gives no fucks. Vader is like, " WTF dude? Harley wasn't crumpled in a ball when I left him." This sets the tone. They beat the crap out of each other and I loved it. Plus a clean finish that was smart too!! Definitely RECOMMEND this one. I felt this could have taken place in New Japan. ---- Vader vs Dustin Rhodes (Clash of the Champions XXIX 11/16): Oh boy, this was a slobber knocker. Vader was pummeling Dustin but he wouldn't let the big man beat him. Rhodes used everything in his arsenal to try to take out the monster. This had a great intensity and pace and some excellent action. This was a great match! Again, I could see this in '94 NJPW. RECOMMENDED viewing! WWF vault has this match along with the 04/30 Cactus Jack match below: Big Van Vader vs. “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan (12/10 WCW Saturday Night) - This totally could have taken place in Mid South 😄. This was really good stuff and like or dislike it, Duggan was absolutely competitive with the big man. Duggan could still go and his clothesline on Vader & Race on the floor were awesome! They are giving Vader excellent opponents and he's bringing out the best in them. Big Van Vader vs. Dustin Rhodes (12 17 1994 WCW Saturday Night) - Really good stuff! Brain himself thinks Dustin is as good an opponent as Sting...and I do too. He and Vader work so well together. Dustin is able to do more junior oriented offense since Vader is so big plus Rhodes Jr. is willing to take a beating to put on a quality bout. Obviously their Clash match is better than this but, absolutely worth checking it out! ---- Vader vs "Hacksaw” Jim Duggan (12/27 Starrcade) - This was the curtain jerker for Starrcade...which seems odd. Your " triple threat " main event is Mr. T vs Kevin Sullivan, John Tenta vs Sting & Hogan vs Brutus the Barber Beefcake...I mean The Butcher. It's not 1988...I guess I should say the same for Duggan vs Vader but like Sting vs Tenta, it is potentially an interesting match. Harlem Heat vs Nasty Boys is on the card too. The Hogan era is in full motherfucking effect. Also, I know Duggan's gimmick is Mr. USA working class hero but it's really been distilled into a 2x4 and U-S-A chants. Vader is from the USA too. So people never really chant "Duggan" like in Mid South...they chant for their country which seems like he's not as popular as it would seem, you know? Kind of a cheap pop type of gimmick he's got going. Anyhow...This was a good match...maybe 3 stars or 3.25 stars. There's a lot to like but I do get that they were wrestling in the opener too so I think they did their job. Good action, everyone in the stands was pumped up..and good finish too 😋 I prefer their TV match though. Vader definitely finished 1994 strong and certainly feels like he's going forward somewhat. Most of the other guys that I looked at left the company or their push got stalled out (probably due to the WWF influx). Regal definitely should have been going forward past the TV title and onto US Champion contention after this year. Hell - put him up against Vader! Overall, this was a pretty enjoyable experience. Although I focused on the tag division, Ricky Steamboat, Steven Regal & Vader, I think I got an excellent taste of the best of what WCW had to offer in 1994. The three singles wrestlers all had an excellent year and worthwhile matches. I felt the tag division was strong all year with Buff & Scorpio feuding with Harlem Heat then Cactus & Kevin fighting the Nasty Boys along with the Stud Stable mixing things up with Dustin, Sting, Ricky & others. Orndorff & Roma definitely were the glue in the middle & end of the year as Stars & Stripes just didn't deliver in my eyes. Bad Attitude should have had more of a role but they were used as enhancement/support rather than players. Anyhow, I would recommend checking some of these matches out from 1994. There's a lot to like with this year of WCW - exciting tags, technical battles, wild brawls, dramatic title matches and an entertaining commentary team. Thanks for reading!

THIS is the definitive version of this match-up! Under 20 minutes, all fireworks still but the slimmed down version of their March match. They wrestled it as Aoki vs Crazy in the first half and then Marvin vs Kotaro in the second. Of course there were double teams and break -ups but the legal guys really broke down like that. I respect their decision to do this. It made for a much better match. Great fireworks match!.

Watched this back in 2021 and did a blog post for AJPW 2012. Go back and take a look at those 🙂 This is your big time Tag Title FIGHT! There's history between these teams and the straps are on the line. The strength of Strong BJW is unmatched in 2012. However AJ's SUWAMA is a destroyer and Soya has the heart of a lion. This does not disappoint. Everyone gets banged up, most notably Sekimoto who's go a bruise on his cheekbone egging up. A great story along with great action and timing makes this a Classic match to me.

For anyone like me who missed 99% of prime/golden era NXT, it looks like they have a WWE NXT YouTube page. It launched Nov 2024 and looks to have a good number of older matches and events available. Better late than never 😋 Might have to check this out down the road.

Full show available below in its most complete form per WWE Vault

ROH YouTube posted this...probably the last great thing to come out of ROH or so I've heard. Definitely going to watch this for my blog but am posting here:

Had to look that DVD and the match list up - good catch! In typical WWE fashion, they spread a bunch of quality stuff out over a few DVDs years apart. I think I was hoping for Stampede stuff on that one and it seemed like a hodge podge set so I blanked on that one (not that I'm an expert on WWE DVDs 😋). Anything else on that DVD that you'd recommend?