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G. Badger

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  1. G. Badger
    Here we are with the second half of 2002 GAEA. If you're new to this project, I am cherry picking what looks to be the very best that GAEA has to offer. This is based on reviews others have given and now that I've watched a good chunk, some personal preferences.
    Meiko Satomura vs. Chikayo Nagashima (06/02): Who the fuck is clapping when they trade finishers and no sell them? Do they actually believe it would be a pin? Talk about killing their moves off and not thinking. It makes no damn sense. And its a shame because they were doing so well but they cannot go longer than 15 minutes in singles...They sell the pain, they sell the desire to win but fuck its Death Valley Driver and Fisherman Buster every three moves or so it seems. Fuck...for real...I nearly gave up on this...it's stupid at this point...but it was over a minute later. Although it sounds like I absolutely hated it, the selling and intensity were fantastic but they repeated way too much for me to say this was anything beyond an OK match...like *** stars would be generous..it's just more of what I didn't like about the 04/14 match. If you're gonna pick, watch the 04/14 one.
    KAORU vs Meiko Satomura (06/30): This was suggested to me and I thought 'why not?I haven't seen enough KAORU for '02.' And whoa this was a great small show ace baby face vs heel (and her seconds) match. Lots of shenanigans but everything was really well timed with fun spots. It's not trying to look epic and therefore feels more organic... and it a better match. Satomura looks badass as ace in this one.
    Meiko Satomura & Ayako Hamada vs LCO (07/14/02): Oh yeah, about 15 minutes long, this is all killer! LCO still has it and Hamada & Satomura put on a near classic match. I dug the intensity and scrappy nature of the bout. I also liked all of the strikes here. It was a good example of Satomura using her strikes later in the match instead of repeating the Death Valley Driver. You know they didn't pull out everything and maybe why I reserve considering this a classic bout but damn it is awesome. The finishing stretch was phenomenal and the ending felt perfectly timed and fitting. 

    Manami Toyota & Aja Kong vs. Meiko Satomura & Ayako Hamada (08/30/02): 20 of 22 minutes shown and this was a classic GAEA tag match! Everything looked and worked great - perhaps since there's so much familiarity? But this is a relatively fresh match up with Toyota and Hamada. What I really liked were the cut-offs. There were a few occasions where it looked like one move was going to happen and an opponent would cut it off. So, this had that that element of surprise that is so important in making a bout feel like a competition. 

    Carlos Amano vs. Ran YuYu (10/20): Saw this recommended on the match discussion archives and am glad I checked it out! Jetlag created the entry. Man! This was great stuff. It's way more creative and fresh than Satomura vs Nagashima... I don't know how these two (who are curtain jerking this big show) understand some of the basics better than your top two homegrown wrestlers. This was full of surprises. I definitely recommend it to anyone interested. I'm glad that I took the time to watch this one!

    Mayumi Ozaki & KAORU vs. Meiko Satomura & Ayako Hamada (10/20): This was a blast! Maybe chalk it up to me watching TNA & ECW lately but I dug the shenanigans with KAORU & Oz (Police too) cheating - sneaking in weapons, fighting with the ref etc. None of it hurt the match but that possibility was always there...that the heels would get a cheap win. Instead we get an action packed match with weapons, fun tag spots and a good heel vs baby face battle. Satomura and Hamada are a great team and seeing them against Ozaki and KAORU was great. They brought out the best of each other. I thought this was a classic match but only if you can enjoy a bit of cheating and ref distractions etc. in the name of fun ECW & FMW fans would want to see this.

    Chikayo Nagashima vs. Manami Toyota (10/20): Very good title match for Nagashima vs the veteran Toyota. Lots of good moves and appreciated the mat wrestling. I don't really like the onslaught of nearfalls for the finishing segment. Anymore, I like to be surprised and I think that 'trading near falls' trope is played out. And that's not a criticism of this match alone...I think 2000's and beyond wrestling falls into that...without offering genuine surprise. GAEA benefits from 15 minute or less matches and I think this goes longer than they needed and padded with near falls. Toyota and Kyoko are the progenitors of this style with their 05/07/95 being the start of it. Still I think this was a very good match and an good showing from both wrestlers. Nagashima is tremendously limited as a singles wrestler though... she only does 5 moves when she gets into the final stretch and that hurts her. **Spoiler** I'm glad to see the strap off her waist...hopefully 2003 will get her back in tag matches.
    Manami Toyota & Aja Kong vs. Meiko Satomura & Ayako Hamada (11/10/02): 18 of 27 minutes shown. This isn't as top of the line as their other match as Aja gets hurt on a brutal STO onto a metal can. But damn they feel like they are fighting... it's not the big time epic in terms of moves since there's a couple strikes that don't hit (and I'm guessing other flubs may have been clipped out). All that said, this was a hard fought tag team battle. Everyone was beat up by the end of this. Gritty joshi tag match. I dug it.
    Chigusa Nagayo & Toshie Uematsu vs Mayumi Ozaki & KAORU (12/15): Awesome super intense 5 minute match. Chigusa and Toshie (who I haven't seen in awhile) have buzz cuts. I am pretty sure Chigusa got buzzed from losing a match with Ozaki. Perhaps the same is true with Toshie. I clearly haven't seen enough of this feud in 2002 but I want to. The brawling element is always a component of GAEA which must be from Chigusa vs Dump. And this really taps into that, especially the hair buzzing. I hope they do more of these teams feuding in 2003 or I might have to go back to this in '02. Post match interview with Ozaki and KAORU talking shit and acting bitchy with dried streams of blood on their face is absolutely badass! 

    Devil Masami & Aja Kong vs. Meiko Satomura & Carlos Amano (12/15): Had to include this since Carlos Amano was impressive above. Satomura vs Kong in tag matches is always good. Plus, I've got to see some Devil Masami. 11 of 13 minutes and this did not disappoint! Action from bell to bell with Carlos fitting in just fine at this level. Her work with Devil was really enjoyable as it was reminiscent of Legolas fighting the Oliphant in 'Return of the King' Aja vs Meiko was top notch as ever although I do wish it wasn't so expected. I suppose I'm the one cherry picking the matches so I'm probably skipping over a dozen other tag matches they had throughout 2002. It's like if Tanaka and Mike Awesome face each other, they are going to do some nod to their feud. It's a silly comment for me to make but, I really dug Carlos vs Devil Very good to great work. I'm hoping to see more Carlos Amano in 2003.

    Ayako Hamada seemed like the MVP of 2002 GAEA from what I watched. She brought a freshness to the tag division, and really kept Meiko Satomura in good standing with me. Their tag bouts were outstanding and I might have a hard time remembering in December, their tag matches are the best stuff of 2002 GAEA. Carlos Amano is someone else who was a standout for the year. I watched a couple of her matches earlier in my GAEA journey but, I may have been ignoring her too much. Aja Kong is the rock of GAEA though. I dug her team with Toyota. It's a dream team come true. Anyhow, I really dug 2002 GAEA. This second post was longer than the first as I just kept finding different matches to watch.
     
    Thanks for reading!!
  2. G. Badger
    The time has come when  nearly all of the 2002 GAEA matches that I have wanted to watch are up on YouTube! It's been a year and I'm in the middle of another project but dammit! we're getting back to GAEA for Joshi January!
    Meiko Satomura vs. KAORU (01/14): Unfortunately only half was shown but it was really good stuff. Ozaki and Police (their toady) were interfering and it really seemed like a handicap match. But it was great seeing Satomura repelling their attacks. A strange outcome given how 2001 ended...but I understand they are pitting the ace vs the biggest baddies.
    Mima Shimoda & Etsuko Mita vs. Akira Hokuto & Aja Kong (01/14): They very easily could have phoned this in but Aja Kong is bleeding when we join this match in progress. Hokuto is going off the top rope to the floor, Mita & Shimoda are swinging chairs and kicking people in the face. This was great stuff...a little unorganized but the intensity makes up for it.
    Chigusa Nagayo & Aja Kong vs. Meiko Satomura & Chikayo Nagashima (02/08): JIP by like 6 minutes but from what was shown, this was awesome! Great moves from both teams, Aja vs Meiko in tags is still one of the best things in '02 wrestling. Nagashima who more the high flyer/lucha of the class definitely has proven she should be at the top tier. Chigusa is as badass as ever. There's not much wrong here..other than the missing time. Near classic.
    Akira Hokuto, Etsuko Mita & Mima Shimoda vs. Mayumi Ozaki, Dynamite Kansai & Toshiyo Yamada (02/08): Old school Las Cachorras Orientales vs Oz & Kansai + Yamada. Just on paper this is exciting to me! Nostalgia aside, this was a great, hectic 6-woman tag match. Everyone had something to do and it his any limitations of age and injuries. Plus there were nice surprises like Kansai kicking Mita in the face every time she went to go for the Death Valley Driver. About 20 minutes of action only hampered some more intricate spots but that's a preference... they pulled them off perfectly. This is shown in full and one I'd recommend to anyone new here wanting to see GAEA.
    Meiko Satomura & Chikayo Nagashima vs. Aja Kong & Akira Hokuto (03/17): We only get the last 6 minutes but what was shown was good stuff. But not necessarily fast paced finishing sequence type stuff so I think I'd need to see a lot more to give a rating or recommendation. If you find this in full then, I'm sure it's quality wrestling. GAEAism has a lot of post match in case you think you're going to find the full version there
    Dynamite Kansai vs Aja Kong (04/07): Good stuff based on the effort by both women. This is not Kong vs Dynamite in their prime but dammit they really pushed themselves. 
    Meiko Satomura vs. Chikayo Nagashima (04/14):Yeah this was a great match! There's a lil spamming of moves which is a perennial gripe with Satomura singles matches but, it's not bad at all. There's a lot to like - good mat wrestling, aggression, creativity and a real sense they are trying to beat each other and win the match. Yeah this was a great match and perhaps a near classic.
    Ayako Hamada vs Carlos Amano (06/02): This is from a one night tournament to see who would challenge Satomura for the belt. Spoiler it was neither of these two. But let's dig this anyhow! A gutsy performance from both wrestlers. Both ladies took some hard shots and big bumps but kept on fighting. I think that their quickness and execution were top notch. Carlos' technical moves and Hamada's aerial moves flowed seamlessly. Great 10 minute match!
    GAEA is still kicking in 2002! Thanks for reading!
  3. G. Badger
    I'm doing a quickie this week even though I've got some stuff ready to go. I always think about the New Japan Tokyo Dome show for January but - nah! You can get that somewhere else. Let's do an old TNA show instead! 20 years ago there was TNA Final Resolution 2005. If you're getting long in the tooth like me then, 2005 seemed like just a few years ago.
     
    Christopher Daniels, Kazarian & Michael Shane vs. 3 Live Kru (BG James, Konnan & Ron Killings) - Fun but pretty much a misuse of Daniels, Kaz & Shane as they were pretty much bowled over by 3 Live Kru. There's good action though and a good way to start the show.
    Elix Skipper vs. Sonjay Dutt - This is your movez match of the card (so far) and it's good. Lotsa fun stuff to get you amped to be watching TNA
    Kid Kash vs. Dustin Rhodes - This is a weird angle but I guess Kash & Dusty had a angle going and this is an extension of that. Gotta say I love Dustin's punches... they remind me of Great Kabuki's...just a lot of snap to them and not so much stomping.. just looks like he really is popping the guy in the jaw. Anyhow they used some good psychology and made this different than a David vs Goliath match. It was really, really smart and really good. 
    Erik Watts vs. Raven - Just happy to see more Raven. I really should see more of him in early TNA. This was a lot of fun and actually a good match. Raven was calling it for sure but Watts did an excellent job despite getting hurt early on. I actually enjoyed this one.
    Scott Hall vs. Jeff Hardy (Special Referee: Roddy Piper) - RIP Roddy & Hall. This was a fun match...not sure if it's ppv worthy (it's not) but it was fun.
    Diamond Dallas Page vs. Monty Brown vs. Kevin Nash (#1 Contendership Three Way Elimination Match) - This was OK...Monty wins and is going to face Double J in the main event.
    Team Canada (Bobby Roode & Eric Young) (w/Scott D'Amore) vs. America's Most Wanted (Chris Harris & James Storm) - Wow! What a relatively simple but red hot match. The fans are going crazy, the announcers are going crazy, Scott D'Amore is going crazy  and this is so damn exciting. It's great to see TNA talent shine finally. This is one heck of an exciting match. There's shenanigans at the end (of course) but it works. It keeps the feud going and this absolutely delivered. I'm going to call it a classic TNA tag title match. If there's one thing older TNA should be remembered for, it's their excellent tag division.

    Petey Williams (w/Scott D'Amore) (c) vs. Chris Sabin vs. AJ Styles (Ultimate X Match) - I've actually seen this one as I have the TNA Best of the X-Division vol. 1 DVD. That's a highly recommended item if you like this stuff but, clearly a lot of it is on YouTube if you know how to find it. Shoot, it's probably been 7-8 years since I watched this so let's see. Yeah! this was a very good spot match...they did some pretty crazy rana & power bomb spots. And they told a lil story with AJ hurting his arm and had no way to shimmy across to capture the belt. AJ also takes an iconic bump here as well. Definitely a lot of fun
    NWA World Heavyweight Title Match
    Jeff Jarrett (c) vs. Monty Brown - I'm going to try...the other Monty Brown match is the kind of  why I turned off wrestling in the 2000's ... rigid muscle bound guys with no skill and old timers that couldn't work anymore but cashed nostalgia checks. Now I'm not a Jeff Jarrett fan but the dude could still work in 2005 so I'm going to see....OK this starts out pretty fun but eh..this is goofy. I watched this and drifted into watching an episode of 'Taxi' and I don't feel like I missed anything.
    This was a fun TNA PPV but I've seen better. There's a lot of talent on here but they didn't use them to their potential. There's certainly a lot of Monday Night War veterans clogging the card up, if I'm being honest. Kid Kash vs Dustin Rhodes & Raven vs Erik Watts were the exceptions. I think the could have booked DDP vs Jeff Hardy and that would have been pretty good. Monty Brown was on too much of the card. He would have been best in that 6 man match or some other kind of tag. The Ultimate X match was really good and something completely different... the kind of stuff the X Division is there for. You definitely want to see Roode & Young vs America's Most Wanted if you're a tag team fan. Again, it's a classic TNA tag match. So don't feel bad if you skip ahead to that and the ultimate X match
    Thanks for reading!!!
  4. G. Badger

    Spotlight: Jerry Lynn

    By G. Badger,


    Spotlight
    I really thought it would be worthwhile to check out the matches of Jerry Lynn outside of ECW. That's really where I know him from. Since I'm starting to look at ROH in 2009, I'm coming across a few matches featuring the man. It dawned on me that I really dig his work. He's really what holds the best RVD matches together and his stuff in ECW with others was always very good to great. Anyhow, I combed through YouTube, an old review and heck through in ECW match I missed in order to do this Spotlight on Jerry Lynn.

    vs Lightning Kid  (Sean Waltman) GWF 1991 2 out of 3 falls - Always wanted to see these guys...as in...how good could this really be ? This isn't their best match as that/those were a year earlier but wow! this was move wise light years ahead at times. Perhaps a little more than was necessary but they definitely were pushing the envelope!
    Dynamic Lynn (Jerry Lynn) & Lightning Kid (Sean Waltman) vs. Coolie SZ (Jado) & Sakigake Gantetsu (Dick Togo) (Universal Pro  05/24/92)  - Two out of Three Falls. First fall is an onslaught of fancy offense from Jerry & the Kid. Gantetsu/Dick is getting the crap beat outta him! Selling it really well. Coolie/Jado gets the tag and there's fall #2. Fall #3 is more about the drama and storytelling and really brings this all together. It's a very good match and one that I had no idea about! Just a lot of fun. Look for "Universal Pro Estrella in Mayo '92" on the 'tube and it's the first match.
    Gran Naniwa vs. "Gorgota Cross"  (Michinoku Pro - 08/25/95) - Cross is Jerry Lynn here sorta...Sasuke told him to wear the mask for the tournament. So put the name in quotation marks here. Also on this trip is when Jerry had his Mr. JL mask made. Anyhow, this was all action and near-falls! Really an excellent match and blew just about every other match in the Masked Man tourney outta the water. It was great to finally see Jerry Lynn given a chance to perform in this tournament.
    Jerry Lynn vs. Taka Michinoku (ECW 1999) - Not sure on the date but it's at the Elks Lodge/Madhouse of Extreme. Maybe joined in progress or TAKA jumps Jerry. Anyhow, this is about 7 minutes of top notch junior action. So clean but still feels competitive and both guys sell as much as needed in a short match. Happy to see this one...totally missed it for my ECW project... glad to recommend it to you now!
    vs AJ Styles (TNA PPV #20 11/06/02) - Pretty much a tank emptying X Division title match. This was fantastic! Tons of excitement and surprises...the only issue that I had was the outside interference wasn't needed. It was a little too much when you already had a great match going... thankfully it didn't spoil the match. I gotta call this a near classic match. TNA has this available and if you're a fan of either guy,go watch it!
     
    vs Juventud Guerrera (TNA 05/03/03) - It's a fun match! It's a little rough at times because of Juvi but they get super complex with the spots and I don't think he can keep up. But it's never sloppy or botched or anything like that. It's a enjoyable match and it totally is worth the 9 minutes... this could have been a great match had everything been as clean & quick as possible. They were swinging for the fences and they hit an off the wall double
    Triple X (Elix Skipper & Christopher Daniels) vs Jerry Lynn & Amazing Red (TNA 09/04/03) This was interesting because of the multi generational indie talent involved here. Well holy crap was this an ambitious spot-fu match and they pull it off! I think stylistically Daniels vs Lynn would have been my preference and this felt more like Elix & Red at times. This was around 14 minutes and there's not a dull moment. I could say that they don't sell, that they don't let allow anything to sink in before the next spot...but they did what they set out to do and have a big time fireworks tag title match. If you're interested, search this on YouTube and enjoy. I'm going to call it a classic TNA tag match.
    Spanky & Low Ki Vs Justin Credible & Jerry Lynn (06/02/04  Debut show World-1 wrestling) - Lynn & Credible had very good to great matches back in '98 in ECW. Their tags with Tanaka and Awesome are worthwhile. So this piqued my interest. This is new school vs old school. Almost forgot that Jerry has a bunch of experience working with Low Kids back in the early days of TNA. It shows as they continue to have great chemistry. Heck everyone gels here like they've been wrestling each other for awhile. Credible who might be the odd man out, fits perfectly by adding his heel shtick. This is a lot of fun and a very good match. I think I've seen a couple World-1 matches over the years.
     
    Jerry Lynn vs Eric Young vs Taichi vs Mr. Aguila (NWA-TNA PPV #95. shown 05/26/04): You're gonna wanna watch this if you're looking for a spot match with ladders. It's not an overblown spectacle like WWE. It's that TNA type stuff...which is appropriate but, they really do have their own type of match. This seems like a precursor to Ultimate X. Just turn your brain off, watch Jerry Lynn and Eric Young (Aguila & Taichi are window dressing...this could have been Lynn vs EY and it would have been just as good). Fun, fun stuff! (TNA has it listed as PPV #96)
     
    vs Sean Waltman (TNA Sacrifice 2005) - I probably don't give Waltman enough credit for his work. His "look" is off-putting but he's got talent in the ring. Here, Jerry and he really go for it like it's 1995. Seriously there's a couple spots where I was totally surprised they actually did (and didn't just teased) them. This was a blast and I'd probably call it a great match. There's very little to find fault with. Watching a WSI shoot interview on the 'tube and Jerry said this feud was the last time he felt there was real heat. I guess Jerry was bringing up real life history between him and Waltman (specifically Waltman getting picked up by WWF and leaving Jerry behind).
     
    Homicide vs Jerry Lynn (TNA/UWF 06/10/06) - This looked cool because it's an ECW guy going up against a JAPW guy...but you know it's TNA. Anyhow a house show but damn this was TV main event or even PPV quality. They totally could have phoned it in until the finish but nope! Good sequences, high flying, teases and all the big moves capped off by a slick finishing sequence. Very, very good match!
    vs Nigel McGuinness (ROH Southern Hostility 2008)
    Was trying to watch Nigel vs Lynn at Supercard IV...thought ROH had it up but found out afterwards that its from 2008 Southern Hostility. Still a damn good match...a near classic. Nigel is cleverly desperate and Lynn really is that never say die vet wrestler. I dug the heck outta this. I appreciate surprises and I think it had a few...they do a lot with simple elements. Great storytelling too. Reminds me of Nigel as Pure Champion.
     
    Bryan Danielson & Jerry Lynn vs Jimmy Jacobs & Delirious (ROH Proving Ground 2009) - I'm just geeking watching the pre-match with Jerry Lynn clapping for Danielson and Bryan looks to be having a great time. You know he was picking Jerry's brain in the locker room. But he and Jerry look like buddies talking and smiling before the match. Normally, this is something I'd gripe about but, both guys can instantly turn the intensity instantly. I thought this was a great all action, keep it simple stupid match...and maybe they did get clever towards the end but that was the right time to do it. Just a joy to watch at around 16 minutes or so. Here it is!
     
    I gotta say, none of these matches felt repetitive or that Lynn kept doing the same old moves every year and every match. And he had a pretty long in-ring career (1988 start date I believe) so, he definitely could have phoned it in after ECW (and a very short WWE run)...I'm glad that so many of these matches are available and easy to find. In fact, everything here is on YouTube if you do a simple search. At this point, I think I'm a bigger Jerry Lynn fan than I was even during my ECW watching days. Definitely looking forward to seeing more of him in my upcoming Ring of Honor 2009 project.
    Thanks for reading! Stay safe!

     
  5. G. Badger
    Sorry for the delay! The big draw for this show is the return of Shingo and his challenge for Gabe's golden boy Johnny Gargano's title.
    Shingo vs Johnny Gargano - This is the big selling point of the DVD. Shingo is back in DGUSA after right around where I stopped in 2011. Gargano's in ring abilities have greatly improved. He seems to know what to do more than before and doesn't have to do a fancy move all of the time...but he still favors doing something fancy over something basic. And this is where I continue to have a problem. He's "play wrestling" like many people of that generation of pros (Young Bucks were some of the first I remember). He doesn't always seem like he's in a fight, in a competition etc. He looks like he's the main character in TV show or movie with exaggerated facial expressions and hand gestures & posing. He is hamming for the camera and crowd way too much. I don't watch WWE very often (maybe a Smackdown every few months) and this is all what "wrestling" is now. And for awhile I guess... anyway...despite all of that this is still a pretty good match. Don't want to say Shingo is 100% responsible but, fuck it...he's 99% responsible. When Shingo is beating the hell out of Gargano, it's fantastic. Gargano isn't even in the same league as Shingo so when Johnny is on offense, it's just not believable. But J.G. does give you the impression (at times) that he is desperate and knows he's in trouble. If you watch this, there's a shenanigans finish that is not clever or anything... it's right outta the Jeff Jarrett book of cheap wins. It jives with the desperation angle but it's not truly sold strong enough throughout the match to warrant this type of finish.

    Re-watch: I wanted to give this another look and man, Gargano is just making faces and doing all of these little head shakes and stuff all match...and the crowd is pretty tired so he's doing this shit like he's about to transform into a werewolf or something I wish I could put a clip show together. Also he doesn't seem to know how to fill the time in between spots. This is why this is so good when Shingo is on the attack or when Johnny is counter attacking. Also Johnny didn't really sell anything in the "pop up right after taking a big move to run the ropes" way...but maybe this can be said of many of these types of matches so I'll stop now.

    I watched this before the rest of the show because of the hype (it didn't live up to it as predicted) so I'm going to review the rest of the show in order now.

    Brian Kendrick vs. Rich Swann - Oh yeah, this is really solid stuff. Nice pacing, good wrestling holds (especially from Kendrick) and a smattering of exciting moves. Swann looked excellent and I gotta think Kendrick laid this one out and Rich followed along. It was so much in that 2000's ROH /higher echelon Indie style...when doing a smart match was important. As a whole, I enjoyed this more than the Gargano match.

    Arik Cannon vs. Jigsaw vs. Fire Ant vs. Chuck Taylor vs. Anthony Nese vs. Shane Strickland - A LOT of fun...very much a call back to the early shows with Chikara guys, Taylor, Cannon... Strickland was still green but he did well...Nese was more polished. And this was bananas. All said, this could have been Cannon, Jigsaw, Taylor & Fire Ant and that would have satisfied me.

    Scott Reed (w/Larry Dallas) vs. Derek Ryze - skipped
    Jon Davis vs. Trent - Started watching this but the crowd killed it... they just wanted to shit on Davis. So I gave up on it...
    Eita & Tomahawk TT vs. The Super Smash Brothers (Player Dos & Player Uno) - This didn't really pull me in as there was too much comedy from the Smash Bros. The DG team were at half speed as were the Bros. But it was fun wrestling... lots of cool spots
    Akira Tozawa (w/Christina Von Eerie) vs. Ricochet - Ricochet has shaken off probably 90% of his bad habits. He does a couple melodrama moments but they are at the very end and feel earned. This should have been for the belt and the singles main event as this actually felt like a Dragon Gate singles match. Tozawa and Ricochet came up in the company at the same time, they are equally in rank & experience. Gargano vs Tozawa or Ricochet would have made more sense but Shingo really out ranks him in ability and experience. If I can do tangent, it felt like he was lowering himself to face Bargain especially in a title fight...sure Shingo wasn't a regular and you didn't need to protect him but it also kinda didn't make sense. Anyway,  Tozawa is a beast and Von Eerie was a great second/manager. Ricochet felt like a heel here and it worked. I would have liked a different finish but dammit! it was earned. Near classic match.
    Sami Callihan vs. Uhaa Nation - Very good to great match. Sami got to hit Uhaa really hard and he went after his opponent's knee (which Lenny Leonard let's us know was very injured & rehabbed recently). Psychology!? Wha!? Uhaa sold the hell out of it too. Tozawa vs Ricochet was a hard act to follow but this was really sound good wrestling. Everything was there except the fans' excitement.
    AR Fox & CIMA vs. The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson) - This was not as fast or crisp as the top tier DGUSA tag title fights of '09-'11 but, this was still great action packed tag wrestling. AR & CIMA are a sweet team! They had some absolutely nasty tag moves. Fox actually is fundamentally better than Ricochet was as CIMA's partner. The Bucks were their usual selves. They do the same kind of thing everywhere & every time but, there's always neat teases, variations that make it fresh. 
    This was a really good show...probably a great one. If you're a Gargano fan then, you're going to really like the main event more than me. And I'd recommend going on eBay and picking this up.
    -----Bonus!

    Akira Tozawa vs Shingo (Mercury Rising 2013) - So this took place the next night on the Wrestlemania Sunday afternoon. This is the superior version of powerhouse vet vs spunky rising star. Very much like the Gargano match Shingo is mopping the floor with his opponent for much of the early stages of the match. Eventually, the opponent mounts an offense. I prefer Tozawa's strike based attacks especially in this situation as he & Shingo get to beat the hell outta each other! But I admire that things didn't suddenly become even-steven. Tozawa was fighting with grit & heart. Near classic match maybe a little more.

    And while I was contemplating watching more, the YouTube channel was axed...so I'm glad I got one last video in. Tozawa vs Shingo is a helluva final match. It's been a overall great experience watching Dragon Gate USA. It's not as hokey as I thought it would be back in '09-'10 when I'd see the PPV previews. The big time matches truly deliver especially in that time span. I was surprised to see Austin Aries here but his matches were also excellent. I can't vouch for everything but if you're interested, keep searching around on YouTube, or other video services or the DVDs are for sale on eBay... it's worth the time and money.
  6. G. Badger

    Best Matches Watched of 2024

    By G. Badger,


    From the Editor
    It's that time of year where I like many people look back at the past year and make lists or hand out superlatives My reason for doing this is to provide a guide for people looking for new or different wrestling especially starting out. All the different lists people made helped me either get started in watching old wrestling or helped me decide where to go next.  HR stands for Highly Recommended or honorable mention... near classic match, stars denote an all time classic...these are the front runners. Every thing else is a classic.. right around that ****1/2 range. I definitely recommend checking all of these out! Also I am going to use show titles/event names for American promotions since they are easier for you & me to track down than using the dates. If you're looking for reviews then, go back and take a look at the associated blog post from this year

    1980's
    Tatsumi Fujinami & Kantaro Hoshino vs Dynamite Kid & Steve Keirn 01/18/80 - HR
    Tatsumi Fujinami vs Dynamite Kid 02/05
    Antonio Inoki vs Stan Hansen 02/08/80 - HR
    Tatsumi Fujinami vs Ashura Hara 04/03/80
    Tatsumi Fujinami vs Chavo Guerrero 05/09/80 - HR
    Kengo Kimura vs Tatsumi Fujinami 09/25/80
    Kengo Kimura vs Chavo Guerrero 11/03/80
    Riki Choshu vs Tatsumi Fujinami (11/04/82)
    Kobayashi & Hiro Saito vs Shiro Koshinaka & Naoki Sano (05/25/89) - HR
    1990's
    Rob Van Dam & Sabu vs. Perry Saturn & John Kronus (ECW Cyberslam 1997 Feb. 1997) HR
    Taz vs. Sabu / Franchise vs. Taz (06/06/97 Wrestlepalooza '97) HR 
    Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Sabu (ECW World Title) 1997 HR
    Mike Awesome vs. 2 Cold Scorpio (ECW Wold Title - 12/02/99) HR on the fan cam footage
    2000
    Tajiri vs Super Crazy (ECW on TNN 01/21/2000) - HR
    2001
    Akira Hokuto & Mayumi Ozaki vs. Chigusa Nagayo & Meiko Satomura (03/11) GAEA - HR
    Akira Hokuto vs Meiko Satomura (04/29) GAEA
    Aja Kong & Toshiyo Yamada vs. Meiko Satomura & Toshie Uematsu (05/13) GAEA
    Akitoshi Saito & Jun Akiyama vs Takao Omori & Takashi Sugiura (06/16/01) NOAH
    Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Jun Akiyama (07/27/01) NOAH
    Vader vs. Jun Akiyama (12/09/01) NOAH - HR
    2002
    Takeshi Morishima & Takeshi Rikio vs Yoshihiro Takayama & Takao Omori (02/17) NOAH
    Jun Akiyama & Yuji Nagata vs Kenta Kobashi & Mitsuharu Misawa (02/17) NOAH - HR
    Jushin Liger/Minoru Tanaka vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru/Tsuyoshi Kikuchi - (8/29) NOAH
    Takeshi Morishima & Takeshi Rikio vs. Akitoshi Saito & Jun Akiyama (09/23) NOAH
    Mitsuharu Misawa vs Yoshihiro Takayama (09/23) NOAH - HR

    2003
    +Elix Skipper & Christopher Daniels vs Jerry Lynn & Amazing Red (09/04) TNA+
    2006
    Motor City Machine Guns vs Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black (All Star Weekend IV 2006 night 1) PWG
    No Remorse Corps vs. Kings Of Wrestling vs. MCMG vs. Super Dragon & B-Boy (All Star Weekend IV night 2) PWG
    2007
    El Generico vs. PAC (All Star Weekend V - Night 1) PWG
    Low Ki vs Samoa Joe - PWG All Star Weekend V - Night 2 - PWG - HR
    2008
    Beer Money vs LAX - (Hard Justice) TNA
    *AJ Styles vs Kurt Angle (Hard Justice) - TNA*
    Davey Richards Kota Ibushi (ROH Bedlam in Beantown 2008)
    2009
    +KENTA & El Generico vs Nigel McGuinness & Davey Richards (Steel City Clash 2009) +
    +Davey Richards vs KENTA (Supercard of Honor IV 2009) +
    +KENTA & Tyler Black vs Austin Aries & Katsuhiko Nakajima (Take No Prisoners 2009) +
    Shingo vs Naruki Doi (Open the Historic Gate) DGUSA - HR
    Davey Richards vs. SHINGO (Open the Ultimate Gate) DGUSA
    Young Bucks (Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson) vs. Real Hazard (Genki Horiguchi & Ryo Saito) (Open the Ultimate Gate) DGUSA
    Naruki Doi/Masato Yoshino vs Shingo/Dragon Kid (Open the Freedom Gate) DGUSA - HR
    + These matches have been watched this year for an in progress project. Reviews will be published after this list. 

    2010
    CHIKARA Sekigun (Hallowicked, Jigsaw & Mike Quackenbush) & Masato Yoshino vs. KAMIKAZE USA (Akira Tozawa, Gran Akuma, Jon Moxley & YAMATO) Enter the Dragon -DGUSA
    *Bryan Danielson vs. SHINGO (Enter the Dragon) DGUSA *
    Bryan Danielson vs. YAMATO (Untouchable 2010) DGUSA
    Mike Quackenbush/Jigsaw vs Naruki Doi/Pac (Uprising 2010) DGUSA
    Shingo/YAMATO vs CIMA/Dragon Kid (Uprising 2010) DGUSA - HR
    BxB Hulk vs Masato Yoshino (Uprising 2010) DGUSA 
    BxB Hulk vs Shingo (Bushido 2010) DGUSA
    2011
    Austin Aries vs Akira Tozawa (United Philly 2011) DGUSA
    Akira Tozawa vs BxB Hulk (United Finale 2011) DGUSA
    YAMATO vs Austin Aries (Mercury Rising 2011) DGUSA
    Masato Yoshino/Pac vs YAMATO/Akira Tozawa (Fearless 2011) DGUSA
    Akira Tozawa vs. Ricochet (Open the Ultimate Gate 2013) DGUSA - HM
    Akira Tozawa vs Shingo (Mercury Rising 2013) DGUSA - HM

    Best Match Watched of 2024: Bryan Danielson vs. SHINGO (Enter the Dragon) DGUSA
    It looks like it's a toss up between Bryan Danielson vs. SHINGO (Enter the Dragon) DGUSA 2010 & AJ Styles vs Kurt Angle (Hard Justice) - TNA 2008. But I'm going to put Tatsumi Fujinami vs Ashura Hara - NJ 04/03/80 & Kengo Kimura vs Tatsumi Fujinami - NJ 09/25/80 in the mix. Any of this is a toss up honestly. Danielson vs SHINGO is your quintessential late 2000's technical, yet stiff with bombs & big spots match. AJ vs Kurt is toned down just a little bit for TNA but still has everything you want along with the drama of a great story. Then you've got the Fujinami matches which are excellent representations of wrestling as sports combat - Hara is a bit more mean & Kimura is technical throughout. You can't go wrong with any of these. I'm going to say Danielson vs Shingo though. One time only Dream match fulfilled and that's why it beats out the others this year.

    Best Project: ECW 
    I think I knocked some long time projects off my "to watch" list. Dragon Gate USA was a good one which I was really surprised by. Again, I don't always like the go-go action match so often but damn! these guys know how to do it! I dipped my toe into PWG again and watched a couple DVDs & some YouTube videos. Getting to finally watch 1980 New Japan especially Dynamite vs Fujinami was pretty awesome. Again very, very surprised I would love it. So much more modern feeling than I thought it would be. Early 2000's NOAH and AJPW was pretty good too. I think I prefer early NOAH as it's trying to push forward while early 2000's AJ relied upon old stars too much...we get some great matches and it's very fun but it just doesn't hit the same way as NOAH. ECW was my favorite though. Totally could blame that on a recency bias. And you could apply nostalgia to it a bit as well but I will say I haven't seen like 95% of the matches I watched... so while I may have be familiar with the characters and stories (where applicable), this wasn't a trip down memory lane. It's the one project that I didn't get burnt out on until the very, very end (was going to watch another match or two and I was forcing it so I stopped myself). Usually, I hit a rut with most projects where it's just too much of the same thing over the course of a few weeks. ECW since it was  briefly covering start to finish of the company, offered enough variety in matches and wrestlers along with some actually entertaining storylines. 

    Best Wrestler: Kuniaki Kobayashi
    This is a tough one. I could say Tatsumi Fujinami as he was lights out fantastic in 1980 and beyond. I could say Keiji Muto for his quality matches in early 2000's as well and moreso for invigorating the promotion with his take puro, booking foreign talent etc. Just his overall presence. I could say Jun Akiyama for his performance in early 2000's NOAH and really helping make it something different than AJPW with a new name. I also could put Shingo & Davey Richards there too. Their work in the late 2000's and early 2010's was amazing. Perhaps the peak of that type of junior wrestling? I'm going to say Kuniaki Kobayashi though. Some part is because he passed away this year. But another part is that while doing a post looking back at his work (some new-to-me), I really appreciate what he did and the longevity of his quality despite not ever being a headliner. If you look at lists of Great Matches (including mine), he fades in the late 80's. His career seems to matter against Tiger Mask I & II and a little bit against Takada & Koshinaka and poof! But that's not the case. And even between those big time matches, he delivered in tags, 6 mans, and under card singles matches. So although it is a extremely small honor, I name him my wrestler of the year. Check out my post if you haven't:
    https://forums.prowrestlingonly.com/blogs/entry/949-thank-you-kobayashi/
     
    Surprise of the Year: Dragon Gate USA
    A quick one is that Madusa's matches in AJW were really good! I have to check more late 80's AJW out. Another is that ECW aged pretty well as long as I didn't try to compare it to NJ or AJ of the time. If you look at it as a complete package - ring action, storylines, characters, holy shit spots, sleaze etc., It's a damn good time! It's over the top escapism for the MTV generation... and it holds up for me at least Another surprise is that 1980 NJPW wasn't slower paced wrestling like I have seen in AJPW at the time. No, things were quick and combative. If I'm talking quality matches alone, Tatsumi Fujinami and his work in 1980 and later is off the chain! If you're looking for that technical Inoki wrestling as fighting sport Strong Style stuff But the surprise of 2024 (wrestling wise!) is Dragon Gate USA. I had a few DVDs that I bought during the pandemic lock down and was very skeptical other than a couple matches. Boy was I surprised! This was badass... not everything but the matches with the big names from ROH that came over along with the actual Dragon Gate guys (including PAC) were sweet! Again, perhaps the peak of that style of junior wrestling. I'm going to say if you're interested, stick with 2009-2011. It does have a short shelf life as it becomes more Indie darling wrestling than Dragon Gate action beyond then.
     
    Worst Wrestler: Johnny Gargano
    Ugh, I'm pretty much just saying it's him because I think his work in Dragon Gate was such a letdown. It was just so bush league and cosplay wrestling with all of the over the top (for wrestling!) facial expressions and mannerisms & special movez. I'm going to copy/paste from my review of his match versus Shingo. "He's "play wrestling" like many people of that generation of pros (Young Bucks were some of the first I remember). He doesn't always seem like he's in a fight, in a competition etc. He looks like he's the main character in TV show or movie with exaggerated facial expressions and hand gestures & posing. He is hamming for the camera and crowd way too much." This was in 2013...Ricochet had gotten his shit together by then... what's wrong with Johnny? (Not that Ricochet is the gold standard but you can see improvement in DGUSA). I've got an NXT Best of DVD with a few of his matches so we'll see. Not to be a jerk, I did like these matches of his:
    DGUSA Fearless 2011 - Austin Aries vs Johnny Gargano - Very good
    DGUSA Untouchable 2010 - Drake Younger vs. Chuck Taylor vs. Johnny Gargano vs. Rich Swann - Great

    What is in store for 2025?
    I want to watch more joshi. I had a whole DVD of AJW 1999 that I was planning on watching but don't have it available at the moment. So I'm going to get back to GAEA as well as 80's Bull Nakano. I've been wanting to push a little farther with GAEA to see if it's got some life past 2001. The Bull project is one I've wanted to do for awhile... just looks like fun. I've got a couple projects in progress. One on Jerry Lynn post ECW...mainly TNA stuff. Another is a maybe 4-6 post look into ROH 2009. Both of these projects have bouts that made the BMW list above. If you've read other posts, I'm trying to work through my DVD backlog so another one is Big Japan 2006. I got a set from Highspots right before they stopped selling DVD-R stuff. I'd also like to watch more stuff from Puerto Rico...drawn to Savio Vega, Miguel Perez Jr. so that might guide me a little. Probably will see what other stuff Tajiri & Super Crazy did for IWA as well. After that we'll see!
    Thanks for reading! Let's hope 2025 is better for everyone!
     
  7. G. Badger
    Here's the final post for the ECW Unreleased vol. 1 DVD. This is for the year 2000. Strangely, the DVD has more matches from this year than any other year. It's also not terribly representative of the year as they've avoided Steve Corino as a wrestler... was he doing commentary for ROH when this was released? Or maybe still wrestling with them? But I think he's a really big part of ECW from 1999 until closing. I really dug his feud with Dusty Rhodes for instance. I'm going to start with that.
    YouTube time:
    Dreamer & Dusty vs. Corino & Jack Victory - "Jacksonville Street Fight" (Jacksonville, FL early 2000) - Can't pin the date but it's probably the first couple months of 2000. Mainly clips but it's fun stuff. Corino was a great scrawny weasel. Dusty was great and really gave ECW a bit of a shot of energy/interest when things were getting stale. Rhino comes out as does Sandman. And that's another great fresh set of matches (looks like we'll get to that shortly)... although the story did seem reminiscent of Sandman vs Raven. There's a fan cam (02/04/00) of this show if you're interested.
    Jado & Gedo vs Roadkill & Danny Doring (Asbury Park, NJ fancam 03/03/00): Happy to include a Doring & Roadkill match...vs Jado & Gedo... that's a no brainer! Doring & Roadkill along with Chetti & Nova were great on the undercard. Honestly they felt like part of the main event... cool moves and comedy every time. Anyhow 10 minutes of fun...really we get great action from both teams, cool moves, nice heel & face work. There's everything to like about this one!
    OK DVD time:
    Taz vs. Tommy Dreamer  (ECW Cyberslam 2000, 04/22 - ECW World Heavyweight Title Match) - Taz never should have left ECW...I mean that as a fan...Taz wasn't getting paid in Philly though. This was OK..Taz did some good suplexes. Everyone knew Dreamer was going over so they were just happy to see him again. I understand why this is on here. It's a historic moment...and that leads to...
    Tommy Dreamer vs. Justin Credible (ECW Cyberslam 2000 ECW World Heavyweight Title Match)- Another OK match but it's really one big segment and is fun overall. Francine is out there (still as Raven's valet if you're following along) and is supporting Tommy...but she betrayed him (and Raven I suppose) and sides with Justin. She takes off the Raven grunge gear and goes back to lingerie basically. She has a nip slip moment (WWE blur it) but it's pretty funny actually. She's a super likable person and she mentions flashing the audience only once and I have to believe this was it She says something to ref Jim Molano (sp?) the ref and is laughing to herself. I'm talking about this because it's more interesting to me than the outcome of the match in 2024. And in all reality, Francine is just as much ECW as anyone else from the Pitbulls to Franchise to Tommy to Raven to Justin Credible...she spans about 5-6(?) years of the company's history. She absolutely is due a helluva lot of respect. The Queen of Extreme is damn right!
    YT:
    Masato Tanaka vs. Balls Mahoney (ECW 2000) - This is from ECW on TNN and is the rematch from Heatwave 2000...supposedly. It's clipped so we're just seeing the big spots. It's a lot of fun and despite Tanaka being more of a straight up wrestler at this point in FMW, he's still pretty damn hard core...he and Balls use tables, chairs and thumb tacks in this one.
    DVD:
    Rhino vs. The Sandman - ECW Heat Wave 2000, 07/16/00 - ECW World Television Title Match - Fun, fun match. They used a guardrail in the ring for a bunch of cool spots. But it's what most of the match is and then some run-ins. And honestly, I feel like the booking lost its zip. It just felt a little too much like WCW and WWF by this point. These two had a neat feud when Rhino was going after Sandman's wife. The Network (of TNN) vs ECW was actually kinda lame in hindsight. As a fan at the time, you felt it because I could tell ECW was changing but it's uninspired. I dunno what they could've done differently.

    Rhino vs. Spike Dudley - ECW Massacre On 34th Street, 12/03/00 - ECW World Television Title Match - Now we get a really good match. This is like what Rhino would do in TNA. Big spots for both guys but good wrestling in the middle. Here Spike wants revenge for Rhino breaking his leg. He's looking to repay the favor! There's really good work here but Rhino is still too green to sell it to the extent that he needs to. If he did this would be even better. It does feel like the company is just about trying to one-up itself in terms of spots and reflexively, that's what the fans are there to see. I think this did a good job of actually telling a story and delivering the highspots.

    -----
    Jerry Lynn vs. Christian York  (ECW Hardcore TV #401, 12/31/00, taped 12/15) - This is a good example of how ECW had changed... the commentary is Joel Gertner and Joey Styles talking about Jerry Lynn's storyline (kayfabe) rather than calling the match. And not a couple comments but straight up WCW/WWF conversing about something else while quality wrestling is happening. So I'm going to mute that. Anyhow this feels like an early ROH match...heck Gabe S. is filming the fancam. It's definitely a shape of things to come match with the indie guys starting to make a splash. This is kinda when "movez" wrestling started going mainstream.. like I don't think York does one traditional wrestling maneuver all match. But its only 2000 so honestly to my 2024 eyes, its nothing bad at all So its a fun match and a good inclusion to show where things were headed (and maybe still are???)

    Mikey Whipwreck & Yoshihiro Tajiri vs. Kid Kash & Super Crazy vs. Little Guido & Tony Mamaluke - ECW Guilty As Charged 2001, 01/07/01 - Tag Team Three Way Dance_- I guess I could kinda say the same thing with a match like this. It doesn't really feel like ECW anymore but it's still a great match. Like pretend it takes place in TNA and there's nothing stopping me from enjoying it. And ECW isn't all chairs and tables, which this has little to none of. ECW grittiness wasn't really there...so it's no surprise that many of these guys were able to get on ramped to WWE. I totally dig the Tajiri & Mikey w/Sinister Minister. I think it was the only thing I was paying attention to at the end.

    -----
    I had to include the Tajiri vs Super Crazy 2000 "Death Match" trilogy..or what I could find...
    Tajiri vs Super Crazy "Mexican Death Match" - Unfortunately this is clipped for TNN which seems like a common occurrence for ECW but also other promotions around this time (Arsion, GAEA, AJPW) but we get all the big moments. This looks like a helluva great match!! I'm not sure if this is available in full though. I read the Match Review Archives and it seems people are seeing the full match but the TNN episode has little clips in it. It doesn't seem that they cut any wrestling from other matches where I've found the full version but it does disrupt the flow.
    Tajiri vs. Super Crazy "Japanese Death Match" (ECW 2000) Hardcore TV - confusing since they use the ECW on TNN entrance way. This is in Jacksonville and is from the same show as the Dusty match above. This looked equally as interesting (and clipped) but even from the clips didn't seem to have the same intensity. That one was a Philly show so that might have something to do with it. ....OK I tracked down the fancam footage and this is from 02/04/00 Jacksonville, FL. It's relatively short and its really a collection of spots but showing the full match would have been better on TV. There's no real reason to clip this other than TV time. It's a good match.
    Super Crazy vs. Tajiri (Tv Title "Japanese Death Match") ECW on TNN 2000 - Hell this is even more clipped than the others! Could be good? They clipped this down to nothing for post match shit which is more Network vs ECW. I think that's why I stopped watching ECW around this time. Wrestling took a backseat to storyline shit...Anyway, I believe one or more might be on a Best of Tajiri DVD comp from RF video before he stopped selling DVDs. I checked the website and he doesn't even have a boatload of the old Best of compilations available. So very glad that I was able to order a few things a couple years ago. If I do have fancam versions, I'll be sure to rewatch and review them.
    I had a blast watching ECW the past few weeks. To me '97-99 seemed like the peak years to me in terms of roster, storylines, and match quality. 2000 really seemed transitional to a future that never happened. Or not with this roster... original MLW actually really feels like ECW just changed its name...moreso than ROH did in 2002-03. Clearly ROH had a better idea to move forward rather than live in the past too long. And maybe that's the thing, wrestling was changing and ECW was heading that way but just didn't have a chance. Anyone that Vince wanted he got and used up...and ultimately that's what was always gonna happen. I don't think that's the case with ROH just because the company lasted like 20 years compared to 6-7 years of ECW. ROH went through a few more ups and downs and few people were there more than a few years at a time. 
    If you've dug this, I'm going to do a little more stuff... Fancams & IWA Puerto Rico for a teaser. I'm also going to get back to ROH, if you couldn't tell from the above paragraph. Anyhow, I recommend anyone who loved ECW checking this DVD out but you definitely will get the itch to watch more than what it offers. If you've been interested in ECW then it's a good place to start. I would recommend watching some of the YouTube matches first because as they used to say, "It's Not For Everyone." But for real, you'll have fun
    Hang in there and thanks for reading!
  8. G. Badger
    Daddy done did it again! Watched a bunch of YouTube videos in addition to the DVD... It's 1999 and may be the last great year of ECW so it was tough to keep it even this lean. I'm planning on doing a fan cam 1999 post in a few weeks. 
    Shane Douglas vs. Taz - (ECW Guilty As Charged 01/10/99 - ECW World Heavyweight Title Match) - They are in big time now. This is a big arena for a PPV and the fan base has changed as the Monday Night Wars era is in full swing. I remember the cool kids in High School asking me about wrestling... like wrestling was cool. And you can see that at this show. The crowd is full of frat boy marks who are geeking on themselves. Sure wrestling is going on but, they want to be on camera, throw shit, etc. This might sound stupid but you can tell by the haircuts and clothing. The real tell is that they chant "ECW" for next to nothing...Oh they're down in Florida.. that makes sense..this wasn't ECW country. And this is the match that has a couple run-ins and they have a great rematch for the "real" fans on Hardcore TV. Still this was a lot of fun and is a WCW/WWF match in essence... more storyline than match..but it felt more real. Also if you have the hots for Francine, you'll probably want to see this one.

    -----
    YouTube:
    Little Guido vs Yoshihiro Tajiri - (Ft. Lauderdale, FL. 04/30/99)- Master Blaster vibes when Guido is riding on Big Sal's shoulders. Also I think MLW ran some shows here back in the early 2000's. This was a great under 10 minute curtain jerker. What a way to kick things off! It begins with a little comedy then goes into an all action match with Guido adding the psychological depth looking to damage the arm for the win. Tajiri busts out his kicks and  even gets bloodied... almost looks like by the corner of his eye - ouch! This was recommended on the PWO 1999 yearbook so I had to watch to of my faves from this era go at it!
    Super Crazy vs Mosco de la Merced - Found out that Mosco de la Merced passed away this year back in August. Thank you for your exciting work in ECW. Always remembered him and wish we got to see more (maybe I will going through FanCams). The fans were doing the "you fucked up!" chant at couple of his "missed" move spots but are dumb marks and didn't recognize the spots or just wanted to be like the ECW Arena and shout. Anyways, this was a super fun match. Tons of cool dives & other spots...great follow up to the Tajiri vs Guido bout..excellent showcase of the wrestling ECW offered at this time.
    To the DVD now!
    Rob Van Dam & Jerry Lynn vs. Justin Credible & Lance Storm (ECW Heat Wave 1999, 07/18/99)- Wow, the entrances took awhile like this was a Tokyo Dome show. Anyhow, this was a great match! All four guys have experience wrestling each other and that goes a long way in the quality of their spots and sequences. I thought the ending was a lil overbooked but what the heck, it was fun This is one that I definitely missed out on. If you're an old ECW head, go check this one out!

    The focus is totally Lance Storm in this picture...100%. In all seriousness, Dawn Marie was one of the best valets in ECW and helped keep the heel scene fresh. Absolutely hilarious character too. She struck a balance between sexy and legitimately funny that I'm not sure I've seen elsewhere. That was a great role because Lance & Justin were so damn serious.

    Another awkward Justin Credible photo
    -----
    The 'tube:
    Super Crazy vs Yoshihiro Tajiri Dayton, OH. (10/30/99) - Bell to bell action... sure this was just another show on the road but this easily could have gone on TV. Not a 100% clean finish but it actually works given the story (kinda?) You should check this one out if you're a fan of either guy.
    Tracey Smothers vs Sabu - I think Tracey has been separated from the FBI here. Tommy Rich is gone, I think. So the FBI is just Sal and Guido...and actually comprised of actual Italian Americans.This match has some length to it and they do quite a bit with tables and chairs here. Smothers (along with Candido) were great working anyone's type of match... that's no exception here. Very good stuff... if you dig Sabu then, you're gonna dig this one. Both guys gave a great performance.
    Taz vs Mike Awesome - Fun tour of the arena to start then pretty cool spots back in the ring. I wish Taz would have stuck in ECW longer to see a true Taz vs Mike Awesome feud. I'm glad we get glimpses though.
    Back to the DVD!
    Mike Awesome vs. Masato Tanaka - (ECW November To Remember 1999 ECW World Heavyweight Title Match) - At the end Joey Styles says "this might have been the greatest ECW World Heavyweight title match we've ever seen. " Announcers are prone to hyperbole and hyping, Joey Styles especially, but he makes a good point. This was a great match. Yes, it was a collection of brutal spots but no one was even coming close to these anywhere else. Sure earlier ECW had matches with crazier spots but the matches themselves stunk like crap in many (not all) cases. Few if any were able to put on a match like these two. I think this may be the definitive Awesome vs Tanaka ECW match. I don't know if it's their greatest but it hits everything you want in their encounters and it provides twists/surprises/teases. They were doing what people loved about the Jerry Lynn/RVD or Tajiri/Super Crazy feuds but at an extreme level, no pun intended. This felt like a heavyweight title match in ECW should. I'm very lucky that I got to see this live on PPV (and taped it) as it lived up to the hype which could not be said for many PPV big matches. In fact his PPV was probably the best later ECW PPVs with a Tajiri/Super Crazy/Jerry Lynn 3 way dance, Sabu vs Chris Candido, RVD vs Taz in his final ECW match, and Impact Players + Rhino vs Dreamer, Sandman & Raven as the main event. **That was my review back in Feb. 2023 for my FMW post. I actually got this PPV and loved it and taped the thing. Sadly I don't have that anymore. This feud opened my eyes to puro beyond just death matches of BJW, IWA Japan etc. 
    And finally back to YouTube again:
    Mike Awesome vs. 2 Cold Scorpio (ECW Wold Title - 12/02/99)
    This is neat to see Scorpio back in ECW. It seems like he might have been passing through. I wish he would have gotten the welcome back he deserved but it's understandable. He didn't get the attention that Raven or even Sandman got when they went elsewhere. So I wonder if some folks knew he was a former ECW TV champ & Tag champ. This was in Atlanta so my guess that they were pretty unaware. Regardless this was an Awesome match!! No pun intended. It's unfortunately clipped up for TNN but many of the clips only seem to remove a couple seconds at a time...odd. The fans were going nuts for this so I can't believe the clips were hiding botches or dull periods. It seems it was just for time. I'm wondering if this is complete on fan cam...it's definitely worth tracking down. But if you're a fan of either guy then you need to see even this TV version! EDIT: Found the fan cam Atlanta. Jazz is Scorpio's second and I forgot how awesome she was. Her feud with Jason was great under card stuff. Anyhow, there's no screw ups covered by the clipping so go find the fan cam version in full...sure the angles aren't as up close as the TV but this is a great title match! In fact if it had gone on a minute longer, it'd be a fan cam near classic. Heck its a fan cam hidden gem in my book!
    Super Crazy vs. Ikuto Hidaka (ECW on TNN 1999) This one is in the ECW arena... can't recall if I have seen this one before. I have RF Video comp with a match (or two of them) but it's been years so I'll watch it again It's a lil over 6 minutes and it's a blast... just moves, moves, moves ! Hahaha but it's all good because that's what you want in a 6+ minute match just like those WCW junior or "cruiserweight" matches. I remember seeing stuff like this and it'd stick with me for a few days...just so damn fun & exciting. 

    **bonus**
    Gladiator vs Kenta Kobashi (AJPW - 09/04/99) I thought I would include this to compare it to how Awesome would work elsewhere at the same time. I have a shoot interview that he said he & Tanaka would do crazier stuff in FMW but actually I think their work in ECW is crazier from a spots & tables/chairs perspective. I've seen Gladiator vs Kobashi in 2004 NOAH and think it's slept on in terms of Kobashi's reign... he definitely met Awesome in the middle and it was a very good to great match iirc. I did review this for my FMW 1999 project so I'll put the main review below:
    ...these two had really good chemistry and unfortunately could have done a nice little program or feud. I think they left a lot on the table. I saw their match in NOAH and I think that they went bigger despite being older and more busted up. But this match was all Awesome/Gladiator and Kobashi was very gracious to let Mike drop so many bombs. If you're a a fan of both wrestlers, you need to see this. Heck if you just want a point of reference for how big Awesome was this is worth a gander. Dude is bigger than Kobashi. I really wish he would have stayed in Japan...
    In reference to ECW, like we saw with Dean & Eddie, Mike could work according to his audience. He knew the All Japan fans appreciated the slower storytelling style that was punctuated by big moments. ECW was the place to keep the tempo up and barrage the fans with spot after spot. In some ways it was good that Awesome left when he did. There wasn't really anywhere for him to go except lose the World Title to RVD. That would have been a helluva program but I think only bolster Van Dam's reputation. If Awesome was going to leave afterwards to WCW or WWE then, I'm not sure that they would have booked him any differently. You either saw the value in him or you didn't. He's not a monster you could have given a manager AND he's not a baby face. Heck looking to Muto AJPW, he was put in tag teams & stables when match quality-wise he should have been challenging for the belt (unfortunately got concussed vs Kawada in '03). I'm glad he got some time in NOAH which should have been his new home. But in some regards, I think his time overseas might have contributed to some his personal strife etc. Nevertheless, thank you "Gladiator" Mike Awesome.

    Masato Tanaka vs Balls Mahoney (FMW 12/11/99) - This might as well be up in the ECW section. These two had a really good match in '98 and I know teamed together. Balls (RIP) was really underrated for his actual wrestling... sure the hard-core chair swinging was great but he could work an actual match. So we get some wrestling in the beginning and then we get some good brawling and hard core spot wrestling - tables and chairs. I liked this..it's definitely an ECW match as 1999 Tanaka in FMW is a more straight forward wrestler. This wasn't a deep match or anything but it's enjoyable with a couple really sick spots. 
    I always give a lot of credit to Awesome vs Tanaka for starting me down the puroresu road but watching bits of ECW 1999, I could pin my future love of puro on this year in ECW. Just look at the roster and it's pretty plain to see why ECW had trumped WWF as my top promotion... not only the roster and the matches booked but the athleticism and performances given by the wrestlers. WWF was just doing ECW (albeit watered down) but they couldn't copy the excellent matches ECW was putting out on Hardcore TV or on TNN. That paired with the heavy metal/hard rock music and gritty aesthetic... it was the best. FMW, BJW and IWA Japan were clearly the first places I went... to varying degrees of enjoyment Hey, I was going off of word of mouth and the match titles written on the paper Scotch taped to the VHS box! But to be real with you, I went to a new school for my freshman year of high school and had 0 friends and wrestling on Monday Night and ECW were the highlight of my life at that time. Eventually (and I have no idea how) I made friends and a few of 'em dug wrestling so I didn't feel so all alone. Thank goodness for wrestling getting popular (not that we were). But only the "real" wrestling dorks watched ECW which was cool because I knew that it was hardcore compared to everything else on TV.
    Thanks for reading! Hang in there!
  9. G. Badger
    I'm not going to go crazy with YouTube videos this time. 1998 is when I started watching so I could really go too far with the nostalgia trip from 1998-2000. So I'll keep things manageable this week A couple YouTube videos to kick things off:
    The F.B.I. (Tommy Rich, Tracy Smothers & Little Guido) vs. Balls Mahoney, Axl Rotten, & Tommy Dreamer (Houseparty '98 01/10/98) - OK I'm marking out but this is the most fun I've had watching wrestling in a long ass time. This was an absolute blast of a hard-core comedy match. The wrestling was on point and the jaw jacking from the wrestlers and the crowd was perfect in setting this up. Stuff like this is what people didn't see...the perfect blend of character/Mic work, playing to your audience, wrestling that tells a story (even a funny one) and good action once things start cooking. I am going to give my highest recommendation if you're an ECW fan & appreciate humor in wrestling - find this & enjoy!
    Bubba Ray Dudley, D-Von Dudley, Big Dick Dudley & Jack Victory vs. Sandman, Tommy Dreamer, Spike Dudley & New Jack (ECW Hardcore TV 06/17/98 Team Streetfight/Brawl): We get clips in essence so I wish I could see this in full. The clips were fantastic! I'd definitely recommend checking it out especially if you find a full version. 
    Rob Van Dam & Sabu vs. Hayabusa & Jinsei Shinzaki - (ECW Heat Wave 1998): Oh this could have been great but, it's an unrealized dream tag match. It's cool that it happened and there's neat spots but everything was off. But that's my take knowing what Hayabusa & Shinzaki are capable as a tag team at this time. And 1998 is maybe the best in ring year for Hayabusa... this wasn't up to his standards. But in all honesty, like I said about Eddie and Dean, Hayabusa and Shinzaki weren't doing the same stuff in ECW that they did in Japan because they knew they didn't have to. But don't let me stop you - this is for sure on the WWE YouTube.
    -----
    Rob Van Dam vs. Lance Storm (ECW TV Title 1998) - Putting this here as Storm and Candido are tag partners still. Good athletic spot match between RVD & Lance...definitely a practice run for RVD vs Lynn. Sabu comes out and we get a triple jump elbow on Lance and Van Dam gets the W. Chris comes out and its action hyping the two teams meeting in Philly in a title fight.
    Chris Candido vs. Lance Storm (ECW August, 1998) - So Lance was part of the Triple Threat for a bit when Franchise & Bigelow were fighting for the title. Candido & Lance were tag partners. It seems that has dissolved and Bam Bam is back-back with Shane & Chris. Unfortunately this is basically clips for the TV show but there's lots of good moves from two of the best all-around in-ring workers. (Also they might have been tag champs still).

    Rob Van Dam vs. Jerry Lynn  (ECW Hardcore TV #277, 08/12/98) - Joey Styles sums up the RVD character, "The thing I hate about this guys is he might be as good as he thinks he is." That's the thing people who hate Van Dam's stalling or posing...he's a heel character. And even when he's a babyface - he's a cocky bastard. And Jerry Lynn was the opposite... all business. Lynn is the antidote to Van Dam's bullshit. All that aside, this is a sick match! This maybe the first match between these two and its not bloated with trying to one up themselves. No, here they are satisfied with putting on a good spot oriented match. And as a result, we get a great one! It's definitely worth checking out!

    -----
    Jerry Lynn vs. Mikey Whipwreck & Chris Candido (ECW 09/19/98 for first match) - The Candido vs Lynn match is probably a week or two later. The poster doesn't have the broadcast date. Anyhow, we get two clip job matches but what was shown was great. Lynn vs Mikey had a program going. Candido is still feuding with Lance Storm (who finally has Tammy Lynn Bytch aka Dawn Marie) too. Tammy Lynn Sytch aka Sunny is out with Chris and man things are a little too real but hey different strokes for different folks. Anyway, this was a great mix of jaw jacking, junior wrestling and T & A if that's your thing.  I think what's so crazy is that this much thought and effort was placed on a mid card feud. That's what made ECW great... something like this was just as interesting and entertaining as the upper card. And if you compare it to what WCW was doing... it blows it out of the water. WWF could complete but no way would they make it as organic as this. Great stuff!
    Tommy Dreamer vs Rob Van Dam (ECW 11/14/98) - I'm unclear exactly when this took place but it aired on this date. Anyhow, this is a great match by two fan favorites. It's a neat pairing that we really only saw during the Mr. Monday Night era RVD...when he, Sabu & Fonzie were team WWF. I think that was all over by now so in 98 until ECW closed, RVD & Dreamer existed in separate ecosystems. So, this was a great match with both guys entering their peak periods. We get some interference and run ins but nothing match wrecking but man that trend really was overplayed during this time in the U.S. I was used to it and never did it spoil anything in ECW unlike WWF & especially WCW. 
    More great stuff for 1998. Thanks for reading!
     
  10. G. Badger
    It's the second installment of the ECW Unreleased Vol.1 DVD and we're looking at 1996. As before, I'm adding some things not on the DVD to flesh things out. 
    Shane Douglas vs. Cactus Jack - ECW Cyberslam 1996: Absolute great match! There's a real grit and intensity to this match. There's no brawling in the stands or crazy table spots. Instead both guys look like they're really trying to hurt each other. This is American wrestling so we don't necessarily get a clean finish... I mean it's ECW so that's not uncommon either...we get a great match, great conclusion to a storyline and in brutal fashion from the mind of Mick. I think I like this match more as I get older.

    On YouTube 
    Sandman & Scorpio vs Gangstas vs Headhunters (ECW Big Ass Extreme Bash - 03/09/96): This is a great ECW bedlam match. Cat fight, canes & chairs swinging, moves off the top & to the outside... something going on seemingly everywhere. So not a great match in the traditional sense but this was so much fun!! Great to see the Headhunters!
    The Gangstas vs The Eliminators (03/30/96): Not so much a match but two separate brawls from one night. Just absolutely fun stuff...New Jack's promo is great and kicks things off. Nothing fancy about this but the energy & hate is palpable. 
    Tommy Dreamer & Dr. Death Steve Williams vs. Taz & Brian Lee (ECW - The Doctor is In 08/03/96): A super fun dream match of sorts. It gives you a little bit of everything that you'd want - Tommy takes a hellacious bump, we get Beulah vs Fonzie, Dr. Death man handling Fonzie in retribution, Taz vs Dr. Death... it's not a good match but it's more like a great TV segment.
    Back to the DVD
    Chris Jericho vs. Too Cold Scorpio - ECW The Doctor Is In - 08/03/96: Oh yeah this was cool! Scorpio comes out wearing his fancy Japan only pants. And don't you know it he & Jericho have a technical puro style bout. It's really good stuff too! It just looks hotter than hell in the ECW Arena and that does effect the pace a little bit. But they eventually pick up the pace, get their second wind, make moves they probably were too hot & tired to do and made this a very good 20 minute match. I didn't know this one happened but really glad it did & that I own it.

    -----
    And finally back to da 'tube
    Eliminators vs The Gangstas - Cage match (ECW Natural Born Killaz - 08/24/96): Oh man! This is a great ECW tag match! Brawling, weapons, blood, jumps off the cage AND a real sense that these guys want to hurt each other. There's a good amount of Pro-Wrestling inside the cage as well. Saturn is the star here just going off the top a few times.  This would get some love if it was in IWA Japan or BJW. It's not polished but is really exciting and chaotic. If you're an ECW fan or of the old sleazy Japanese promotions - go watch this!
    This was a lot of fun. I think most ECW guys excelled at tag matches because they didn't necessarily have to work smart and tell a story. They could do their spots and then switch out. Additionally, they could brawl on the outside and in the fans and it would generate excitement without actually doing anything too difficult. That's not knock but an observation and a smart way to work. Paul Heyman was smart to emphasize the importance of tag wrestling. 
     
    Hang in there! Thanks for reading!
  11. G. Badger

    Spotlight: ECW Unreleased vol. 1

    By G. Badger,


    Spotlight
    I'm getting back to more of my DVDs. This time I'll be looking Extreme Championship Wrestling or ECW!! E-C-W! E-C-W! Haha! Specifically I'll be looking at WWE's ECW Unreleased Vol. 1 DVD set (along with some YouTube videos to round things out). For a little back story on this purchase, I had gotten vol. 2 a few years after it's release in 2016 or 2017 as I was pretty interested in a few of the matches featured. I bought it used. Vol. 1 I just got a couple years ago new as the price dropped and I thought 'you know I really ought to have these matches as an ECW fan.' And added it to the DVD pile of shame. But I'm trying to topple that pile and this is a good one. It's been awhile since I've watched '90's wrestling at length and even longer since I've watched ECW. As a side note, I feel like WWE has put the "DVD matches" on YouTube  either clips or in full so probably everything will be available for you there. I'm not going to link them in the blog though. Just an FYI

     Disc 1
    1994-95
    Shane Douglas vs. Too Cold Scorpio - NWA World Title Tournament, 08/27/94 - NWA World Heavyweight Title Tournament Final Match: This is the match where Douglas throws down the NWA belt at the end. But the actual match is good stuff. Scorpio really shines with all of his cool offense. Douglas is good but generic in comparison but it works. He's not trying to heel it up on anything. Anyhow, I recommend this for the historic factor but it's an enjoyable title match too!

    -----
    Tommy Dreamer vs. Raven - ECW Hostile City Showdown 1995: This was an OK match but was an awesome segment. We get a ton of feel good shit and a lot of interesting nuance and character work here from everyone. This is a great example of what made ECW different even from FMW in Japan. It's counter culture attitude has been lost or watered down as time has passed. Hell, the Raven grunge character is the obvious thing to point to. Then you have the anti-hero to the anti hero in Tommy Dreamer. Essentially a dork loser (even to the fans early on) who is the everyman trying to make it and be true to himself. Tommy Dreamer reminds me of a character in a Springsteen song. Mix this with iconic Eddie vs Dean match and this must have been a sick show!
    Dean Malenko & Too Cold Scorpio vs. Eddie Guerrero & Taz - ECW Heat Wave 1995: Fun match... it goes a little long but that's because it's 90-100 degrees in the ECW Arena. So I can't take anything away from them as they keep pushing the envelope. Scorpio and Taz potato each other a few times and Eddie & Dean do their thing. But really Eddie and Scorpio are the shining stars here. It's really amazing that they do some of the moves they do with how f-ing hot it is in there (A good portion of the crowd is in tank tops or shirtless).
    Dean Malenko vs. Eddie Guerrero - ECW Hardcore TV #120, 07/28/95 - ECW World Television Title Match - Very good match at a fairground this is for sure on the WWE YouTube (08/03/95). They worked a neat little story of Dean injuring Eddie's rib and then working them over. Nice moves from both guys. I liked this one and they had some really great sequences. I have to be honest, they knew who they were wrestling for. So when people say that their matches don't hold up 30 years later like other stuff...I would tell them to watch WWF or WCW from the time. They were not doing anything like Eddie & Dean were doing. Conversely, Eddie and Dean weren't doing the same stuff in ECW that they did in Japan because they knew they didn't have to. It's like the AWA guys wrestled more technical matches than WWF in 1984 but when those same guys went to AJPW, they stepped up their game even more. They knew the Japanese fans expected more. Their singles matches are something different from everything else ECW was doing at the time. They definitely would refine this match and style in WCW with tighter time constraints. Their ECW time really was seeing if they could dilute the story and dial in the spots & sequences... and have an American audience appreciate it. The answer was yes and they along with Benoit, Ultimo, Rey get al. would have arguably some of greatest mid card TV matches ever. Malenko in fact maybe the king of the under 10 minute mid card TV match. The big problem with Dean vs Eddie was that they didn't know how to fill the time. I'm looking back at my Eddie Guerrero in 1997 post - https://forums.prowrestlingonly.com/blogs/entry/844-spotlight-eddie-guerrero-1997/
    Their PPV matches where they had a lot of time (like they did in ECW) were inferior to their TV ones. Here's my run down:
    -Eddie Guerrero vs. Dean Malenko (WCW Saturday Night, • February 8, 1997) - A fantastic technical sprint to main event the show. 
    -Eddie Guerrero vs. Dean Malenko (WCW Uncensored, No DQ • March 16, 1997) - A very good to great match.
    -Eddie Guerrero vs. Dean Malenko (WCW Nitro • June 30, 1997) - I think Dean is a fantastic under 10 minute worker especially with Eddie. They just have so many spots and sequences in their arsenal that these shorter matches wrestle themselves. 
    -Dean Malenko vs. Eddie Guerrero (WCW Nitro • November 17, 1997) - Almost 10 minutes long and excellent stream of consciousness wrestling. Again Dean & Eddie can do these flawless fast TV matches and its a shame that doesn't translate into the PPV shows.
    -Eddie Guerrero vs. Dean Malenko (WCW Starrcade • December 28, 1997) - A very good to great match but a step down from what Eddie was doing with other guys..and even Dean on TV. Much of their best stuff is speedy sequences and a feeling of an ongoing fight with counters or reversals. Here I think they had to fill time for the PPV and were slowing down in between moves and taking rest holds to sequence stuff out on the fly to buy time.
    That '97 Starrcade match iirc matches the vibe of their ECW matches. I think the myth of the Dean vs Eddie in ECW singles matches is because nothing else on the card (or in the US) was like that either in execution or complexity and only a handful of wrestlers in the States had that along with the stamina. Like I'm thinking in '95 Bret & Shawn being exceptions. But the real impact was that smaller guys, could get signed on by WCW and start to spread the international junior style to the U.S.
    OK whew...take a breather... so I can't leave it there so I found a couple Hardcore TV matches that looked sweet on YouTube.
    Steiners & Guerrero  vs Malenko vs Cactus Jack & 2 Cold Scorpio (Hardcore TV 08/22/95 - Wrestlepalooza '95) I've seen this before but it's been awhile. It's on ECW Unreleased vol. 2 but I'm going to review it here. It's a very good... hell! a great dream 6-man tag match. Rick looks way too invincible, the doomsday frankensteiner doesn't work but dammit! It's got great energy, great moves and its a lot of fun. 
    Mikey Whipwreck vs The Sandman - Hardcore TV (08/22/95) - Singapore Cane match. I'm not sure I've seen this one before. Most of the pre-1996 stuff that I have watched is from the WWE compilations and I'm not seeing this listed. The match itself is clipped unfortunately (looks pretty good) but then we get the aftermath where Woman (Nancy R.I.P. )has to relinquish the cane to Mikey who just defeated the champ Sandman. We get the post match angle stuff which is a blast! Mikey exacts his revenge and then some but of course Sandman gets his hand on the weapon! And in true ECW fashion morphs into a completely different match And finally circles back to Mikey and Sandman! Just a fantastic violent depraved soap opera for men

    ---bonus---
    These are some NJPW matches that are on the 'tube. I wanted a reference point for what Dean & Eddie were doing around the time they were in ECW. I don't think Eddie's work in AAA is A good point of comparison. 
    Jushin Thunder Liger vs Dean Malenko  (05/26/93 NJPW) - Holy cow! That opening sequence is perfect! Really good psychology here with Dean keeping on Liger's knees...trying to keep the masked man grounded at the very least. A little bit was clipped out but we get 2/3rds at least. Very good stuff! And a great example of some of the things mentioned above with Dean vs Eddie in ECW.
    Black Tiger II (Guerrero) & Fit Finlay vs TAKA Michinoku & Shinjiro Otani (06/08/94 NJPW)
    Wow! That's a junior tag match! Eddie and Fit as a team reminds me of the early 80's Rocco Black Tiger teams. Fit is fantastically brutal and TAKA & Otani sell it perfectly! I actually felt Eddie might have had the weakest performance but it wasn't even close to average... it's was still very good. Here we do see a little bit of Eddie in ECW where he just does a big move too early...I question his psychology using power bombs so early. I feel like he uses it like a DDT or a pile driver. Maybe working Mexico is what changed his move psychology during this period?? I know the pile driver is protected over there. I digress. This is still a great match!! Even when Otani slips, it all works. They worked a great tag match despite seeming to be random pairings.
    I got to say, I have come back around to loving ECW. It's refreshing to see a wrestling program this honest and upfront about what it is. The t-shirts used to say, "it's not for everyone!" and that's still true. But if you like it then, I'm right there with you. It's not the cleanest wrestling, in ring story telling is hit or miss, the pacing is inconsistent at times etc. but it is A LOT of FUN! It's not prepackaged, sterile shit...it's definitely for punk rock, metal heads, and other folks that are counter to the status quo. And I think that is what makes it so appealing now as it was before. 
    Hang in there folks! Thanks for reading!

     
  12. G. Badger

    Why not W*ING? and IWA Japan too!

    By G. Badger,


    You Might Have Missed
    Akira Hokuto & Etsuko Mita vs Kyoko Inoue & Sakie Hasegawa (W*ING 08/02/92): Who knew this match took place in a W*ING ring? Not I, I sing! Dr. Seuss...It's a pretty darn good match too. Sure, it gets the standard W*ING buzzcut in the middle and it starts raining but, its these 4 in 1992. So, if you ever needed an incentive to check 90's joshi out this might be it: 4 greats, tag match, sopping wet babes, insane dives in the rain, and not a super long epic. Thanks W*ING!
     
    Now over to IWA Japan with a little spotlight on Takashi Okano!
     
    Super Astro vs Takashi Okano (IWA Japan 11/17/94): It was the Super Astro show so, it had lots of junior/lucha spots. Okano was good in hanging with Astro and making everything look good. Plus he added a little humor in as well. At around 9 minutes, its well worth a watch.
     
    Takashi Okano vs El Gran Apache (IWA Japan - 01/08/95): This was much more mat based than the Super Astro match. Okano again hangs in there very well making this a much more substantial match. Its less pizzazz and more of a fight. Highly recommended match. Okano has got talent.
     
    Edit: also watched these two guys from 10/16/94 but, its not paced or laid out as well. Its also in 2 parts on YouTube but, its worth just skipping to the 2nd segment. Its in Korakuen to distinguish it from the other.
     
    Silver King & El Texano vs Takashi Okano & Yoshihiro Tajiri (IWA Japan 03/07/95): Whoa! Let me catch my breath here. Double plus quick lucharesu opening. Tajiri's throwing kicks even in his green pad & trunk days, nice! Texano eats a couple then, says " Hey Silver! You get in there man!"
     
    Eventually chairs are brought into the mix & it gets really good. The native team look dusted but, Tajiri is showing all kinds of intestinal fortitude & our man Okano is busting up pins like a bowling ball. Make no mistake though: This is a chunk of Los Cowboys awesomeness.
     
    Ultimately, I had little clue something this technically outstanding was shown in full in IWA-J. There's no death match stuff here. Had this been viewed by a larger number of folks at the time, it would be considered a great match in the style. I mean its probably as good as any tag from Eddie, Dean, Chris etc. in ECW from the time. Its not the "cleanest" wrestling like NJ Jr. in '95 but, it sure is exciting!
  13. G. Badger

    AJPW Classics 173: 1988

    By G. Badger,


    You Might Have Missed
    Episode #173 collects matches from late autumn of 1988.
     
    Shunji Takano vs Shinichi Nakano (09/15/88): I'm skeptical of the date on this because it looks like there is a different mat in the next bout. This one IIRC is an all blue mat. But that's the date that everyone has for this match so why not This is very much my type of non-cooperative wrestling. Special emphasis on "wrestling" until they start slapping memories out of each other's heads. Oh did I mention the headbutts? Oh yes, yes y'all! Plus watch for Takano's life altering elbow drops. You want to see this one. High Recomemndation. I wish these two would have stayed around for AJ in the 90's.
     
    Shunji Takano & Shinichi Nakano vs Samson Fuyuki & Toshiaki Kawada (09/15/88): AJ Classics does show the date at the start as 09/15. Animal print headbands for Footloose! Everybody cut loose indeed. All Asia Tag beltos are up as Nakano & Takano defend. This is really vicious and heated. Double teams, stiff chair shots, and jumping knee, leg, and elbow drops like they're trying to put a hole in the ring. Takano & Kawada were my favorites here. This is the 2nd time I've watched this in a few months. Loved it as much if not more than the first time. Another highly recommended bout and a must see with their 07/19/88 match.
     
    Stan Hansen vs Yoshiaki Yatsu (10/28/88): Oh hell yes! Hansen's charging the ring like a berserker. Having the audio muted and listening to Windhand only multiplies this gnarliness! Fucking Yatsu is not to be trifled with though. He's a a burly bearded badass if there ever was one! Dont't believe it? Watch this! I dare say this is better than any Jumbo/Stan match out there. This is the awesome brutal fast paced violence you're looking for. Classic match...a little over 10 minutes. Same show as the Jumbo vs Tenryu Triple Crown match. Very nice.
     
    Awesome episode! Find this, buy this, watch this.
  14. G. Badger
    Onita's FMW is starting out just right in '91. Back to back February Korakuen hall shows ain't to shabby. Here's Onita's main events from those shows:
     
    Onita vs Tarzan Goto (02/26/91): Blood curdling blows- Haymakers, no touch headbutts that split skin, clotheslines, chair shots, table attacks! Oh yeah! This was just great wrestling, great brawling. Onita & Goto showed ultimate heart and guts. This was right up there with the Kurisu matches and so much better than their electric barbwire match. Shoot, if Goto wasn't the #2 man in FMW before, he was now. This was kinda like a bloody low-fi version of what Misawa & Kawada would start a year or two later...at least that's how I look at it. Great match!
     
    Onita vs Gregory Veritchev (02/27/91): Another night, another battle. Onita's taking it back to the different style fights by challenging the Russian Samboist Gregory Veritchev. Greg's a powerful looking dude almost reminds me of a shorter Stan Hansen in a gi. Surprisingly, this was an excellent competitive bout. It's arguably superior to the Lee Gak Soo match. I think because of that grappling link between wrestling and Sambo. Plus Greg knows how to take great bumps! The way the finish was done wasn't precisely how I would have liked it. It got a little repetitive but, it certainly got the point across. This was the only downside of the match that I saw. So, I highly recommend watching this match. Plus there's no rounds here so, if that screws you up- have no hesitation
  15. G. Badger

    AJPW Classics 172: 1988

    By G. Badger,


    You Might Have Missed
    AJPW Classic Selection #172
     
    Stan Hansen & Danny Kroffat vs Robert Gibson & Ricky Morton (10/26/88): Gibson seemed like he had a bad ankle and was really only in for the key spots. Ricky therefore wrestled his butt off with Kroffat and Hansen. The story focus seemed to be on Rock n' Roll vs Hansen which helped in the drama department. I believed that they, combined, could take out the Texan. Kroffat was there as junior talent to keep up the pace and action of the match. It was very clear that he was technically superior to the Express and part of the new generation of stars much like Tiger Mask Misawa. Hmm...didn't write a recommendation or assessment at the time of viewing. Nevertheless, you'll enjoy this.
     
    Jumbo Tsuruta & Hiroshi Wajima vs Abdullah The Butcher & Jimmy Snuka (08/20/88): This takes place prior to last week's episode as Jimmy & Abby are still partners. Abby is using the recently departed Brody's chain. Anyhow, this is a match! Chaotic fighting that's very, very basic. Lotsa heat, Abby's out of control- sticking Jumbo in the eye, choking Wajima with something. Jumbo eventually starts hurling chairs and yup! There's the bell! Abby's trying to slice young boy Kobashi and Baba's even there in his short sleeve shirt. Tons of after the bell mayhem. The Butcher "asks" Jimmy to juice him since his sadistic Sudanese blood lust hasn't been met. Korakuen gets redecorated.
     
    Jumbo Tsuruta vs Stan Hansen (10/17/88): Per Quebrada.net this was a title unification fight. We're talking about making the Triple Crown folks Whoa-oh, this is a rough and tumble match worthy of that prestige. Hard hitting from the outset and neither guy let up even after the final bell. Hansen's throwing a table in the ring and is fuming mad. Highly recommend checking this one out...perhaps a great match. I'll want to rewatch this puppy soon. Nice way to close out the episode.
     
    Another solid as stone episode here. Heavy focus on Stan & Jumbo here. If you've never seen them, this would be a good place to start!
  16. G. Badger
    What's kinda funny is that people will see 1 or 2 of the crazier death matches from original FMW and think they understand or get "Onita." It's probably worse as he's gotten older as he's had to rely more and more on the actual gimmicks to hide his mobility issues. I know I felt this way before I started researching, reading about and watching Onita. There's a notion that Onita was great in AJPW but, got hurt and etc.
     
    So, I think there may be this misconception that Onita sucked in FMW because he moved to the death matches, got sliced, made faces and cried. He was a legitimate baby face in a Japanese wrestlin where there were no old school faces and heels at the time. NJ & AJ wanted to shift away from the Abby, Tiger Jeet madman to the athletic competition of wrestling as UWF's shoot style was so darn popular. Clean matches, no blood, no run-ins, etc. Onita was like, "Screw that! My knee's all jacked and I'm gonna sell my ass off." Well, at first he wanted to prove himself to be a worthy competitor by challenging the UWF. They denied because well, he would have forced himself onto their card by cult of personality/hustling. They had enough personality with Maeda, Takada and Fujiwara.
     
    So the World Karate Association in '89 was game and wanted to put on Onita's challenge to legitimate fighters: Puro vs Karate.
     
    I think there's an assumption (again I felt this way when I first got into FMW) that Onita only saw death matches as the true evolution of wrestling OR that it simply covered up physical or talent limitations. Onita wanted to make a name for himself again. He wanted his names to be in light and wanted the fame, money, and women that came along with it. The death match was a means to an end for him. My impression is that he is a hustler and was going to get what he was after by any means necessary...including sacrificing his body.
     
    Once that WKA feud with Aoyagi was a smash, he and his partners knew they were on to something, even if for a little while. Onita was willing to go where others didn't want to go...either because of taste, sensibility, or fear of harm.
     
    I think that gets lost when people perhaps watch a couple of the landmark matches in FMW. Then, they see a pure wrestling match in AJPW and remark how much they like him there. Yes, Onita could go when young and healthy. That's vanilla. People want to care about there wrestlers. They want the guy who had to quit wrestling because of a bad injury, did manual labor, was in jail, and fought to be someone again. Someone who directly challenged legitimate fighters regardless of the cost to seek his former glory. Someone who was willing to go to the depths of wrestling hell for this- barbwire in place of ropes, barbwire boards, electrified explosion barbwire etc. Not only was this stuff not being done in Japan, it was not even done before. That is quite a story and a character and really isn't that what pro wrestling's all about.
     
    Onita vs Aoyagi (10/10/89): This is the first FMW main event to make commercial tape. The style here is Different Style which was influenced by UWF. Puro vs Karate. The World Karate Association was jointly involved as FMW was I'll say more the name of the show or series than a federation at the time. Kinda like how Big Mouth Loud had less than a dozen shows. That's kinda what Onita and his team were thinking with FMW.
     
    On to the fight! Very exciting stuff- first few rounds Aoyagi was in control by hitting Onita with some really good Karate kicks. Lotsa heat and Atsushi selling it like serious damage has been done. Vicious thunder fire bomb here...best P. Bomb in the biz to me. I thought this was going to be just an OK type of bout but, I'd highly recommend it. The round systems aids in the drama and relatively low workrate. I was into this one!
     
    Onita & Tarzan Goto vs M. Matsunaga & Jerry Bleyman (aka Jelly Greyman aka Jerry Flynn) (12/10/89): 1st Japan Barbwire match. Here the wire is attached to the ring posts so that it surrounds the apron. In deadly essence, it's a wire bound lumberjack match. It's actually more dangerous to be waiting for a tag than in the ring. Well...equally dangerous.
     
    In beautiful Onita fashion, that crazy fucker leans into the wire at every opportunity. He wants to sell to the fans just how deadly this is. Oh and he gets his wish in the form of a foot long 1/2 inch deep gash on his arm. It really is unsettling. I read from Bahu's site that this wire was much stiffer than wire used subsequently. I think this type was switched to the more flexible wire because of this wound. There was no give. Nonetheless, this felt like a real pit fight type match. Kinda like the end of 'Kickboxer' with the taped glass fists. The match itself was OK as Matsunaga was still all karate kicks but, Goto & Onita bled. Onita though was at the theatre. A must see for historical purposes for sure.
     
    Onita vs Masanobu Kurisu (02/12/90): For the first time ever, we get barb wire boards surrounding the ring. Plus we get two AJPW vets laying in the slaps, chops, and headbutts. This isn't a fuck around, tease the wire, do a crappy move or two, do a wire spot type death match. Both guys gave and received some really good shots here...barbwire spots too. It's a great match and and is relatively short. Brief but, intense so, they never overstay their welcome. Brutal finish- go see this!
     
    Onita & Tarzan Goto vs Masanobu Kurisu & Dragon Master (Kendo Nagasaki) (04/01/90 FMW): This match still gets some gab. Rightfully so. This is sublimely violent and realistically stiff. That sounds like some academic bullshit but, these were some of the most haphazard chair shots I've seen. Like, "I'm trying to pound this fucker into sand" attacking. And it ends perfectly at 11 minutes. The finish is tremendous. Showed my better half because it was so gnarly. She goes, "Well...that's violent!" Seal of approval in my book Classic awesome stuff.
     
    Lee Gak Soo vs Atsushi Onita (05/19/90): This match up is kinda a WTF match up but, Onita's WKA agreement was kinda over but, still wanted to have the martial arts component (realism) in the company. I believe he did a tour of South Korea and the company they worked in conjunction with loaned some talent for Japan shows. Lee Gak Soo being a Tae kwon do badass who is a lot of fun to watch. So again, this is a Different style match with rounds and such. First round, they're pretty evenly matched. LGS has got his kicks and speed but, Onita is bigger and can throw and pin down the martial artist. Round 2, Axe kick to Onita's nose but, answers with a hellish backdrop suplex. Round 3, Lee blasts O. in the face right at the bell and opens a cut. There was a saved by the bell moment here too. Nice finish tease! Round 4: LGS is shaky but, manages to put Onita down. It's not enough as he Thunder Fire bombs the will to live outta LGS. Damn that was getting great...I wish this was longer.
     
    Watch the post match as the up close video shows just how battered Atsushi's face is from those kicks. He got fucking blasted! Lee Gak Soo all the way man! He's got a match with Jimmy Backlund/Del Ray from the 04/01/90 show that's good as well. Doesn't top this match with Onita.
     
    Onita vs Tarzan Goto (08/04/90): First ever electric barbwire match. Onita was crazy! The brawling and moves done were really good but, to me there was way too much time spent on the Figure Four leg lock. Apparently, it's a last man standing type match so, it really doesn't make sense. Plus it's boring. In a hindsight kind of way, they really didn't use the wire effectively for any drama. Onita would accidently hit the wire, and it would go off. It looked pretty bad. More like the little kid getting zapped on the fence in Jurassic Park than, the latter firework type pops. It's 11 minutes but, this was just OK. Onita spams finishers and wins. It wins Tokyo Sports' MOTY but, it's for the sheer insanity and spectacle of it rather than the quality overall.
     
    *Hoping this would wash the bad taste of the above match outta my mouth* Tarzan Goto vs Gran Mendoza (08/20/90) This is a JIP handheld that I watched. There's probably a non JIP video but, it's all handheld. Here's it's a wire around the post match like the late '89 tag match. Goto gets cut pretty bad on his barrel chest and left arm. He exacts some serious vengence upon Mendoza by getting him to bathe in the steel spikes. This was fun but, unfortunately not worth going out of your way to see.
     
    Onita vs Mr. Pogo (11/05/90): Per Bahu and match/tape listings, most of the build up didn't make it to commercial tape. So, after the Lee Gak Soo match, Onita wants LGS to be his new tag partner. LGS accepts and Tarzan Goto is pissed as he's the #2 man. Onita's like, "It's my call bro." Then the two fight (see Aug. match) and Goto brings in Mr. Pogo as his secret weapon tag partner. Pogo is like pretty much all of the other stars in FMW as people know him from years past in a major company (NJ in his case) but, have been wrestling in the States and Puerto Rico in the meantime.
     
    Ok on to the fight! Atsushi comes in a like a demon- throwing his belt at Pogo and when he escapes to the out side, the Big O dives right through the ropes after him! Eventually (through the meddling of Victor Quinones) Pogo gets the better of our hero. He's sticking him with some kind of curve handled weapon. It looks like a children's umbrella with all the umbrella bit removed. Ha! Ok, why not!? Then, Senor Pogo decides to take his cowboy boots off and tenderize Onita-san's face. Holy head spike Batman! Pogo straight piledrove Onita on that chair. But, come on that's not enough...it's fucking Onita. He asks to get stabbed for an angle...he's crazy and tough...amongst other things :-I
     
    He fights back with some of the sickest no touch headbutts ever. Pogster is bleeding now and gets thrown to the concrete. He tries to steal back control but, O. says, "Fuck that noise!" DDT! Now he's flying off the apron like a poor man's Misawa. Victor Q. get's his too. Or the table collapses...I can't tell but, this the chaotic shit that is great about early FMW! This is Texas Deathmatch rules and Onita is clearly trying to KO the camo pants villain. It's unfortunately 11 minutes as I easily could have watched another 2-3 minutes said this was a great match. It's NOT but, only because I felt it wrapped up too soon Highly recommended match and an excellent close to FMW's first year.
  17. G. Badger

    AJPW You Might Have Missed: 02/28/93

    By G. Badger,


    You Might Have Missed
    This day in puroresu history...Stan Hansen & Toshiaki Kawada had a really great match here. I didn't think it was a classic but, pretty comparable to Kawada's match versus Jumbo in 1991 in terms of greatness. Here's some of the other matches that happened that you might have missed:
     
    Kenta Kobashi vs Dan Spivey: JIP This was an intense yet somewhat unorganized bout. It was plenty exciting but, not to the effect that is was super engaging. Spivey botched a Canadian Backbreaker Slam or something so it came out as a Headspiking Dominator/Complete Dust which was cool after it was clear Kobashi wasn't dead. Too much was edited to really appraise the match honestly but, fun stuff.
     
    Terry Gordy vs Jun Akiyama: Too short to rate. What was shown was great. Akiyama worked well with Bamm Bamm, who was just brutal.
     
    Masa Fuchi vs Tsuyoshi Kikuchi- Jr. Heavyweight title: Kikuchi played the scrappy youngster who wouldn't quit. He came right out of the gate and bloodied Fuchi with a Zero-ken kick to the nose. There was some average work in the middle and then Fuchi dumped Kikuchi on his head about a dozen times in a row that would make Dr. Death proud. As sweet as this was from a brutality standpoint, it diminished the efficacy of the snap backdrop. This was a very good mid-card match, with moments of brutality.
     
    Mitsuharu Misawa vs Akira Taue - Triple Crown title: Maybe I 'm guilty of buzzed viewing & this isn't all that good but, from what I saw it was a great match. Having seen the Jumbo saga play out really assists this match. I really appreciated the arm-work section where Misawa tries using his technical skills to control Taue. As we know, Taue isn't that far away from Misawa in terms of dangerous-ness so, it's a sound plan to work him over a bit before jumping into the heavy stuff. Where the Hansen-Kawada match was dragging in the middle, this match made up for it with great selling or what I think was a legitimately injure Misawa. He hurt his back performing a move on Taue or he hit the guardrail (can't remember) and Dynamic T when after it in his usual manner. Really good stuff! Also Taue was back up to performing wrestling duties and was doing all kinds of different dropkicks including a missle drop kick from the top! Eventually Miawa came back with some devilish elbows but Taue never looked out of it until the end. There were a couple execution cock-ups early on but they were worked out and what we have here is another great match from today. And better than the Hansen match to me...
  18. G. Badger
    Toshiaki Kawada vs Jun Akiyama Champ Carnival (03/21/95): This seemed like that match people were talking about when they were discussing Kobashi vs. Jumbo back in '91. Just an excellent match that really made Jun look like the future star and it made Kawada look tough yet beatable. Really cool match with Kawada getting really stiff at times. ****1/4
     
    Mitsuharu Misawa vs Toshiaki Kawada Champ Carnival: Talk about a grisly wrestling match. Hit the guy in the shoulder- fine, hit the guy in the chest-good, hit the guy in the fucking neck-even better, break his face- alright then! This is not the pretty AJ match that we usually get from these two but by God they bring it in this match. Any & everything counts and no one is going without a fight. It waivers a little bit toward the end but then you realize Shit! this isn't the end. This is the end! It gets nasty where Kawada's Stretch Plum is messing up every part of Misawa that's hurtin' and they keep going! A great carnival match. ****1/2 but in sections it could be more...
     
    Toshiaki Kawada vs. Akira Taue Champ Carnival (04/08/95): You know I thought the beginning of this match was really very good but somewhere the intensity from Taue got lost and it was really apparent he was having a hard time keeping up with Kawada. On paper the moves and exchanges sound good but seeing it is another matter. You could predict when he was going to put a boot up to counter a run and you could see the apron chokeslam coming. Now I don't know maybe this is the first time he did it but the announcers didn't seemed too thrilled by it. Like, "Oh there he chokeslamed Kawada off the apron...so anyways..." Kawada was masterful throughout and if you will led Taue through a very good match much like people claim Ric Flair did all of the time. However, I don't think he's the best opponent (Kawada) for Taue since Kawada is all about stiffness & you've got to try and keep up with that if the match is going to be believable and dramatic. Maybe since I knew the finish it ruined things eh...I'm starting to get that impression from stuff I watch. Re-Watch: This was better on the re-watch but it did drag in bits like the stretch plum attempts...I just fast forwarded past them & other time killers. With that done this thing really picked up to 4 1/2 star level stuff. Taue was a bit lethargic in his movement but I don't know if he always is or not. It was still pretty good since Kawada was so stiff and Taue's power moves are some of the most impactful. It's hard to rate this match but it is really good stuff.
     
    Toshiaki Kawada vs Takao Omori Champ Carnival (04/12/95): A very fun match that was just perfect for what it supposed to be. Omori is a very credible mid-carder and his elbow drops are brutal. If you're in the mood for a quick enjoyable AJPW match this is a good place to go.
  19. G. Badger

    AJPW Classics 171: 1988

    By G. Badger,


    You Might Have Missed
    So, this is where my official massive block of AJ Classics starts. Boy, its a good start
     
    Great Kabuki & Akio Sato vs Jimmy Snuka & Tiger Mask II (09/15/88): A really enjoyable match with great offense from Jimmy & Tiger. Kabuki was really effective when inside the ropes & Sato made everyone look good. I recommend checking this out especially for Superfly & Misawa's team work.
     
    Stan Hansen & Terry Gordy vs Jumbo Tsuruta & Yoshiaki Yatsu (07/29/88): Tag belts on the line. If Ted DiBiase was big then, Gordy is a giant. The foreign team is massive. The Bad Man from Borger's ribs are taped up and that's a target for the Japanese stars. Thing is...there's a lot of stomping & toe kicks in this early part of the match which is lame. But man, when Gordy finally gets in, hot damn! Things pick up in a big way. The Meat Loaf-esque Gordy is wrecking the shop. Hansen's recovered but is still selling the damage. Watch that finish! Ambitious but, wonderfully vicious. Aside from the slow start, this was a great match!
     
    Jumbo Tsuruta vs Abdullah the Butcher (09/09/88): This is an old feud but, this bout was just plain old. Way too one sided for too long BUT the post-match is what you're wanting too watch out for. Snuka & Tiger come out to help Jumbo. Snuka is on Abby's side and just trying to calm the Mad Man from Sudan. Good luck! He gets a spike for his troubles. Then, he and Tiger team up to take the big man down. Eventually, Jimmy goes after Abby and they're fighting in the crowd. Abby actually takes a bump from the stands to the floor. This is wild fun stuff. Honestly, there's no shame in fast-forwarding through the match to get to this.
     
    A very nice episode of wrestling!
  20. G. Badger

    Spotlight: AJW 01/04/91

    By G. Badger,


    Spotlight
    AJW TV January 4th 1991 (1/4/91)
     
    Yumiko Hotta vs. Bat Yoshinaga- Nothing too awesome here other than Hotta kicking Bat in the face a few good times and busting out a top rope backdrop. ***
     
    Mima Shimoda & Etsuko Mita & Toshiyo Yamada vs. Takako Inoue & Miori Kamiya & Mika Takahashi- Really weird seeing Mita with short hair like Yamada and Takako was a little chubby here but, not in a bad way. Kind like you could tell she was 18 or so. Surprisingly Mima was the worst here but, she was trying and of course would be one of the best ever. Yamada was badass already and the two other girls I didn't recognize were pretty good too. Just really super fast paced albeit loose mid-card 6 person tag stuff. This is the type of stuff that makes Zenjo special. ***3/4
     
    Aja Kong & Bison Kimura vs. Manami Toyota & Suzuka Minami- Pretty sweet tag team match but, was over way too quick with Suzuki only being in for one segment. Jungle Jack isolated Toyota who was maybe low girl on the totem pole. It was pretty sweet while it lasted & Jungle Jack is an awesomely violent tag team. ***3/4
     
    Bull Nakano vs. Akira Hokuto-WWWA Championship Who the hell is this chick looking like Lioness Asuka and with feet wraps instead of boots and wearing a white & blue get-up? Shit that's Hokuto!? Bull is the ice queen wearing a Napalm Death t-shirt with full on blue hair and her awesome make-up. Okay so getting over that this is 1991, we've got two of the greatest Joshi facing off. It's probably everything you could hope for EXCEPT the awesome explosive finish. Instead we get Bull beating Hokuto via a sort of flash-pin off a bridging leg-lift backdrop. It's ok because Bull's the #1 in the company & the vet and Hokuto is a spunky babyface follower of the Crush Gals (but still her own woman) and she can't make a slip-up with the champ in the ring. For it to have that awesome blow-up finish it would put them as equals and for what I can ascertain they're not equals. It's the #3 trying to take on the clear cut #1. I don't actually know if Hokuto ever had the red belt or would be more than third but, she stopped begging for a rematch as she cememnted herself as possibly the greatest Joshi in the months to come. ****1/2
  21. G. Badger

    SWS: Akira Katayama

    By G. Badger,


    Quickie
    Akira Katayama was one of my favorite little discoveries from SWS but, sadly found out the he was paralyzed from a dive sometime in 1992. These are two matches found online.
     
    Akira Katayama vs Kenichi Oya SWS from 9/17/91 and man, this was some good stuff! For whatever reason I thought Oya was gonna be some skinny crew cut rookie but, nope. He's a solid man with a beard and shit...perhaps rockin' a surfer gimmick?? I guess it was '91 so those orange and neon yellow trunks were pretty standard... I think I had swim trunks like those actually so, perhaps that's why I'm thinking surfer...I digress. Two relatively unknown wrestlers, mid carding a short lived promotion putting on a solid meat & potatoes, steak & eggs match...all under the watchful eyes of papa Tenryu. This is fun
     
    Kitahara vs Akira Katayama from 10/29/91 and my goodness that was Kawada, Aja Kong level stiff. Lariats, kicks to the face, head spikes :S Katayama was wearing tiger print trunks and maybe Kitahara is a vegan and took offense...I have no clue. It was a very good match as Akira was fired up too and focused on taking out Kita's legs with some nice submission holds. At around 11 minutes this was compact, physical, and engaging stuff for something never on my radar.
  22. G. Badger

    Matsunaga and the Bed of Nails

    By G. Badger,


    Quickie
    They don't call Mitsuhiro Matsunaga "Mr. Danger" for nothing! Along with Jun Kasai, he's got to be my favorite death matcher.
     
    I'm not positive but, the Bed of Nails has to be one of his signature death matches...although they aren't always the most spectacular. The fans love it so, I guess they keep doing it! Of course, they probably take too far nowadays but, here are some goodies (baddies?) with Mr. Danger!
     
    Leatherface vs Mitsuhiro Matsunaga (Original Spike Nail Death Match) 12/20/92 W*ING
     
    Eh this was just alright... Leatherface was pretty bland on offense and frankly Matsunaga was as well. At least I can sense his kicks being harmful rather than Leather's paltry punching and stomping. They tease the nails, kill the heat by incorporating a knee brace story element, and the match ends with one guy rolling onto a single nail board :-/ Mind you they (W*ING) have set up like 5 boards on each side of the ring so, it really looks they're trying to put the 'death' in death match but nah...1 board and then they (W*ING wrestlers) carry the defeated man off in a blanket like volunteers carrying a rehabilitated dolphin back to the ocean. Its Matsunaga...he lost...am I spoiling anything at this point?
     
    So, I found the rematch with higher hopes.
     
    5/5/93 Spike Nail rematch
     
    So, the rematch was better. The general offense was pretty lame and meandering but, they teased the nails a lot better this time including fighting on the apron. Leatherface went off the top rope a couple times which was an improvement. This finish was a lot better and appropriate for the stipulation. I won't really recommend this match in full form but maybe a clipped version is out there worth checking out.
     
    Yuki Ishikawa vs Mitsuhiro Matsunaga (Bed of Nails Death Match, 05/14/99 Battlarts): I thought this really good for awhile as they were teasing the bed of nails so well and the non-wrestling was very good in getting across just how much they wanted the other guy to eat it but, it was not to be. It turned into poorly executed slice and dice and then was over. No one took the nails which was a bit of a letdown since they were teased beautifully. *** but at one point 4 stars, if that makes sense.
  23. G. Badger

    The 2010's: Kenny & the Bucks

    By G. Badger,


    Spotlight
    Work was busy and the weather was nice so, I didn't get around to watching day #2 of wXw's 2010 tournament
     
    I thought about skipping today but, figured I'd share my take on the most popular wrestlers not in WWE- Kenny Omega & the Young Bucks.
     
    Although both are sort of the antithesis of the blog as they are just so darn well known and praised by Dave M. And that's cool because I do like them both. No, they're not my favorites or wrestle according to my stylistic preference. But, shit they make it fun and sometimes even great.
     
    Tetsuya Naito vs Kenny Omega (NJPW 08/13/2016): I liked this one especially towards the end. All in all this reminded me of a souped up 90's NJ Jr's. match. Didn't get the spitting schtick but, whatever...
     
    I'll say this: selling a hurt leg is easy to do. Hop around a little, rub the knee etc. but, selling it well is much more difficult.
     
    Omega did a pretty good job down the stretch with nice little touches especially toward the end. Was it Kawada-like? No but, I was believing in a submission...
     
    So much modern offense is based on running and jumping that basing a match of a bum wheel can be a recipe for junk but, I have become more lenient in my judgements though. I will give Omega credit for sticking to it as best he could based on his style and the current NJ style. I mean he very well could have blown it off by hulking up, calling upon his fighting spirit or whatever but he did not. Naito was excellent in his selling too...just in a more generalized fatigue/brain damaged kind way. Some of the looks he made after a big move or counter were priceless!
     
    So, overall it got me engaged and invested. I bought the leg damage and thought it was a great match. Glad I went out of my way to watch it! The speech afterwards was a nice bonus. Go see this!
     
    Kevin Steen & Super Dragon vs Young Bucks (PWG FEAR 12/10/11): The outset of the match appeared to one sided. The hefty Super Dragon & even heftier Steen were mauling the Jackson Brothers. Elbows, punches, chairs, you name it.
     
    Obviously, the Bucks mount a comeback and we get one brutal hardcore match. What makes it so special (in addition to Dragon's return) is the intensity that Steen & Super brought. It legitimately looked like they wanted to hurt/kill the other team. The Bucks were heel but, man they garnered sympathy.
     
    Every move even if just a punch or stomp gave a little hope that they would survive. It even looked like they had a chance of winning when they'd isolated Steen from Dragon.
     
    Its a wonder no one was hurt more than they were. A really well done hateful No DQ (Guerrilla Warfare) match. No glitz no glamour.
     
    Kenny Omega vs Hirooki Goto (NJPW G1 Climax Final 08/14/16): I watched this match twice since I saw that people gave it ****3/4.
     
    Here are my thoughts from both viewings:
     
    Omega is charismatic and his mannerisms and expressions are indicative of a character he's playing rather than "himself." He engages the crowd very well with these attributes which have a tinge of dark humor. It's fun to watch.
     
    I am a fan of Goto especially in his IC fights with Nakamura. I thought this would be similar since Omega is playing something like Nakamura's but, Goto came across as bland. He was not as stiff and or intense as I would have liked.
     
    They could have traded out Goto for any big/strong wrestler as I felt this was all Kenny. Watching this made the Naito match all that more worth watching again.
     
    All in all this was a great match with the powerbomb fake out and the tributes to Ibushi and past Bullet Clubbers. I was hoping that they would play more off of Omega's knee from the Naito match from the previous night...that would have been awesome and a recipe for a classic but, i just had higher expectations than what this turned out to be. Great match nonetheless!
     
    Generation Me vs. the Motor City Machine Guns (Full Metal Mayhem match, Final Resolution TNA 12/05/10): This is a recommended TLC match which I'm a little down on as a gimmick. Oh excuse me...Full Metal Mayhem® match! Duh!
     
    I liked this mainly because they keep the action moving despite the death trap made in the middle of the ring. The MCMG provide some psych in building this too. "Oh man, I can't get both belts! Its too tall for these ladders!"
     
    The Bucks are restrained in their shenanigans but, bring the Indy wackiness. The Guns wisely abstain from their combos (either due to age/injury or a stylistic choice). They still go off the turnbuckles and stuff but, it wasn't a Junior acrobatic type train wreck. And it wasn't a plodding "set up the high spots" match either. I liked it a lot actually.
     
    Should mention: Sabin damn near fell off the contraption after the match.
     
    Now I will sing Kenny & the Bucks to the tune of Sir Elton's 'Benny & the Jets'
     
    Come on and join me!
  24. G. Badger

    Spotlight: Big Mouth Loud

    By G. Badger,


    Spotlight
    Ah Big Mouth Loud we hardly knew ye! Now twelve years passed and you are forgotten by all but a few! Seriously though, I remember hearing about this promotion and not knowing what the hell it was about. I think my understanding was that it was a shoot style group. I no longer was into that so, I walked away. Recently however, I'd come across matches recommended by YouTube. Kurisu vs Kudo isn't shoot style! OK, this is something I've got to take a look for myself.
     
    It does start out as more shoot based but, ultimately its not really a promotion as much as it is a series of high profile Indy shows. So, it becomes whatever it needs to be based on whatever talent is booked. Its more like NJPW in that regard. Well, older NJ.
     
    I haven't seen every match but, these were best that I saw. For those interested there is a thread in the Microscope section here with more details and such: http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/36227-big-mouth-loud/
     
    My reviews below are there but, I've consolidated the best here:
     
    Kazunari Murakami & Kensuke Sasaki vs Yoshiaki Fujiwara & Minoru Suzuki (04/19/06): Wow, this was fantastic! Awesome character & heel work from Suzuki and Fujiwara. Sasaki had minimal in-ring time but, was maximum in his effectiveness. Match showcased some comedy, hard way blood, and a really satisfying finishing stretch. Fujiwara at 100 years old here still was very very dangerous and didn't hold the match back one bit. Great match!
     
    Katsuyori Shibata vs Katsuhiko Nakajima (04/19/06): Battle of the young stars in K-Hall! Kicks, slaps, elbows and all the other stuff you'd expect outta these two lads. 'jima is outranked and outclassed in 2006 so its a lotta guts and guile from him...well and kicks...he does kick a bit. 12 minute match is just right. Nice compact stuff. Not sure I would have booked this after the tag but, Shibata is the ace so to speak. Highly recommended.
     
    Katsuhiko Nakajima vs Munenori Sawa (07/02/06): Hot damn this was nifty UWF in NJ type match. Plus its around 7 minutes long so, its all good stuff. Nakajima looks badass in it. Highly recommend checking this one out.
     
    Minoru Suzuki & Yoshihiro Takayama vs Kazunari Murakami & Yuji Nagata (08/20/06): This one, the last match of BML did not disappoint. It is all the striking grappling goodness that I'd hoped for. Minoru Suzuki and Takayama are total awesome destroyer heels. Referee Wada even won't put up with their crap. Nagata is the awesome hero. But, man Murakami was great too. The finish is good but, after the bell was rung and Suzuki starts redecoration of K-hall, that's when I thought this was a damn great match. I'd like to rewatch it because it seems like it could be a mid 2000s Indy classic.
  25. G. Badger

    NJPW You Might Have Missed: Keiichi Yamada

    By G. Badger,


    You Might Have Missed
    I really enjoy puro from the late 80's so, I'll admit that I probably get more rewatch value from pre-Jushin Liger Yamada than most. I think when I think about his work with and without a mask, he's probably in my top 10...I think! There's been a backlash against the 90's NJ Jr. style but, I've also seen that with the 80's Jr. stuff as well. That's cool but, that ain't me.
     
    Keiichi Yamada vs Marc "Rollerball" Rocco (09/01/87): JIP, All action plus a leapfrog face to the nuts spot! Yes! This is PWG style complete with Shooting Star Press in '87! Go see this! It's timeless fun stuff plus short.
     
    Yamada & Nobuhiko Takada vs Rocco & Owen Hart (09/07/87): Headbands, flashy jackets, it's 1987 alrighty! The Japanese team come out to the Rocky Theme. Oh snap, Rocco's got a studded leather glove like Judas Priest or Iron Maiden. British Metal in full effect sucka!
     
    Starts fast with Yamada & Rocco but, Takada's in soon. Fan's chants are loud as a jet engine. Owen's in with the T-man. It's a little slower but, still great. Yamada and Rollerball are back and again they are working cobra quick. This is frenetic yet, beautifully executed wrestling. All 4 guys are cardio machines. The finish, while not my favorite, works for this match. I would have liked something ultra brutal or cool but, it'll do Really great match especially if you're open to a Junior workrate match.
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