PeteF3
-
Posts
10269 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Blogs
Everything posted by PeteF3
-
[1994-08-03-NJPW-G1 Climax] Keiji Muto vs Yoshiaki Fujiwara
PeteF3 replied to Loss's topic in August 1994
This was okay, when I was half-expecting a train wreck. These two do not match up well at all stylistically but they managed to work through that and put on a solid match. Good teases of the wakigatame before Fujiwara finally applies it in a pretty great finish. -
[1994-08-03-NJPW-G1 Climax] Hiroshi Hase vs Shinya Hashimoto
PeteF3 replied to Loss's topic in August 1994
Hash seems to be well on his way to avenging last year's G1 upset, only for Hase to bust out a crucifix to upset him again! This was more cute than good, but the sudden flash pin was appreciated. -
If these guys are plants, they picked an odd part of the crowd to put them, as Lawler and the camera have to crawl through the crowd to get to them. Lawler completely blows the introduction by introducing the girl as the dude's "girlfriend, fiancee--soon to be fiancee." Yeah, that killed the suspense. Aside from that, Lawler drops too many one-liners to count, then makes out with the girl. Lawler's special guest: the WWF CHAMPION! The man who never lost the title. Backlund attempted to BOON OUR LIVES as champion--physically, mentally, nutritionally, and financially. Vince and Savage need to shut up, because Backlund pretty much knocks it out of the park in his first attempt at a heel promo, pissing the crowd off mightily. Awkward at times, but with Mr. Backlund awkwardness is a feature, not a bug.
-
Savage is having too much fun referencing the trial. This was pretty good, with really good action down the stretch, but I really didn't see it as being on the level of the recent WCW TV bouts. I continue not to be impressed with Shawn's offense--other than the superkick and the elbow with Razor hanging off the apron, he doesn't offer much. Shawn gets the pin and Razor gets double-teamed during and after the match, to set up the idea that he needs a cornerman for SummerSlam.
-
No one in history has ever been so excited to be in Youngstown, Ohio.
-
This was a fun TV match, worked as about a 20-minute sprint. Double FIP action, and Sting was quite good in the unfamiliar role. Not the most structured match in the world but everyone works really hard and is at least true to their characters. Sting heaves Sherri over the top rope to the floor and misses Flair with her, resulting in a hellacious and dangerous bump. Meanwhile Austin pins Steamboat--how, no one will ever know.
-
I have nothing substantial to add. Just a request to please, please find room for at least one Brisco Brothers Body Shop commercial. Preferably the one with the New Generation-Era Vince voiceover.
-
Well, Dusty may have just locked up Best Interview on the strength of this promo alone. He speaks in his real voice for most of this, and I have a feeling a lot of this talk about neglecting Dustin and being a "corporate cowboy" is coming from a real place.
-
I actually like the idea of fining wrestlers and managers for abusing referees, as Sherri did at BatB. They just need to be more consistent about it, the way Bob Armstrong was. Bockwinkel announces a World title rematch at the Clash of the Champions, and Iowa makes up for losing out on the bidding for Starrcade '93 by landing Hogan/Flair II.
-
Leslie somehow manages to rise above this material and deadpan his way through it, and refrain from the incessant mugging to the camera that plagued his later work. Too bad his talents are wasted on such dreck.
-
Terrific bout--even as the U.S. starts to badly lag behind Japan in terms of ring-work, Bret stands out as probably the U.S. WOTY, as he's put on several terrific matches in several different styles, even within the stifling confines of the WWF. Old-school matwork here, natch, but both guys are just tremendous at working holds and counterholds, instead of the standard "armbar, then get up and walk to the ropes" way of killing time. That adds impact to relatively simple moves like the piledriver and back suplex, and the result is a match far, far more memorable and enriching than the Michinoku Pro spotfest we just saw. It would have been easy to have Backlund start to heel it up during the match itself, but aside from a non-clean break in the corner in the opening portion, it's wrestled 100% on the level. That just adds to the impact when Backlund levels Bret with the slap and clamps on the chicken-wing. Ten years after he first asked him to do it, Vince finally has a heel Backlund. More fans today remember Mr. Backlund more than the clean-cut WW(W)F Champion, but this was an utterly mindblowing development.
-
Hey, Al Snow and Sabu moved to Japan and did a non-ladder sequel to their match. Spot, spot, spot, spot. Another stunt show with well-done stunts, but that's as far as it went. And yeah, I'm a fan of guys blending disparate styles into one match, but there's a difference between doing that and not being able to decide if you want your match to be a high-flying spotfest, a brawl, or a mat-based match. The styles not only didn't match, the order seemed to be pulled out of a hat--they go from flinging chairs and tables to head scissors and headlocks when logic would generally dictate the opposite approach. There were some cool moves done here but all the near-falls felt overdone and self-indulgent, and neither guy could ultimately compel me to care who won or lost.
-
Most of what needs to be said about this already has been. Misawa took Kobashi's "too out of it to know he's out of it" sell of the backdrop driver to new heights here, popping up for a second and then collapsing outside--admittedly, it's really uncomfortable now to watch Misawa eat a backdrop, go "out," and have a crowd desperately chant his name as that was exactly what happened to him in 2009. But it works here, as does just about everything else in this match. Doc initially focuses on Misawa's back, because that's where his offense is based and because it sets up the Oklahoma Stampede. Misawa has to buy time with elbows, which he does to perfection throughout most of the match, before making the mistake of turning his back on a rolling elbow attempt and eating the first backdrop. Once Doc recovers he has a brand-new strategy. They toss in one last historical nod down the stretch: Misawa countering the backdrop by kicking off the top rope, a spot that was an All-Japan staple going back to the days of Giant Baba defending the PWF title. It's not enough to stop the Dr. Death train, though. It was time for Misawa to drop the belts, and Doc was clearly positioned throughout the fall of '93 and 1994 as the most capable man to do it. This is not the Match of the Year but it's another strong case for Doc as Wrestler of the Year.
-
The production of this looks like 1990-91 all over again--still, refreshing to see a WCW TV match in an arena setting. Jesse has completely checked out at this point, though his comparing of Sherri to Gloria Steinem is pretty funny. This was a sprint by Flair/Steamboat standards, but still quite long for a TV match, and they blitz through the closing stretch at a pretty awesome pace, with some cool involvement from Sherri. Three visual falls by Steamboat on Flair is pretty excessive, though--this was a case of Flair's selflessness hurting his own push. Steamboat is triple-teamed by Flair, Sherri, and Austin before the fearsome duo of Brian Armstrong and some blond jobber make the save. A fun little footnote to the Flair/Steamboat rivalry.
-
They set out to do a stunt show, and a lot of the stunts looked pretty damn good. So in a pure execution sense, they succeeded. Psychology, selling, sensible transitions...yeah, there's none of that here. So for pure emotional fulfillment this fell short of the two earlier ladder matches this year. This was a good bit of exposure for Snow and I can see why this was a tape-trading hit at the time. But as an actual match I'm not sure it holds up even as well as the TLC stuntfests. Also way too long.
-
It was not. The finish involved Sid coming back to do a run-in, so it had to be excised completely.
-
Uh-oh, it's a Flair interview and he's in his robe. Minor complaint--I got used to it in the WWF eventually. Flair is always at his best after either a historic victory or a devastating defeat.
-
Shave that man's head and this could easily pass for a Stone Cold promo. He's channeling that character already. And this was right when Natural Born Killers, one of his influences, came out. Steamboat cuts a pretty fired-up promo and Austin responds with a long-ass bleep. Hot segment! Austin proclaims to Okerlund that he'd whip Steamboat "if you weren't holdin' me back!"
-
I disagree on Gordy's promos in general--I always thought he was underrated and only suffered in comparison to Hayes, who was pretty much incomparable. This is only okay and hopelessly generic, but it's kind of better than I expected. DWB has regained the title from Jake Roberts in a staggeringly anticlimactic phantom title change, thanks to Jake no-showing three straight loaded cards. Tony hypes up additional title defenses against Dick Slater and...Conan Chris Walker (!). I thought he dropped off the face of the earth after his WWF stint.
-
Holy moly--this gimmick was probably over-the-top and a failure, and if someone wanted to give the Most Disgusting Promotional Tactic Award to it...I couldn't really argue with them. But man oh man, it's so audacious and daring that I can't help but love it. ElP summed it up brilliantly but I'll also add that these guys are also about 975 times more authentic and realistic than the supposedly cutting-edge Public Enemy. The squash is pretty sloppy--Mustafa looks a lot like Charles Wright but with less talent--and it's pretty much the always supremely awesome bumping of Hamrick that saves it. But the entrance and presence and gimmick are all done pitch-perfect. The sight of Bob Caudle standing among a posse of 6 black guys is fantastic and may become my new wallpaper. Also note the trouble Caudle and ring announcer have with saying the word "Gangstas"--or "Gang Stahhhs," as they suddenly adopt Boston accents. It's insane and ridiculous that a rinkydink promotion running southern coal mining towns has by FAR the deepest tag team roster in the U.S. The Rock 'n Rolls, the Thrillseekers, the Armstrongs, the Gangstas, Lee & Candido...throw in Well Dunn and the Bodies on occasion and I'll take that against just about any U.S. tag roster since '89 NWA.
-
Memphis by numbers seems right. Conveniently missing babyface partner: check. Heel complains about imaginary cheating by the babyface: check. Heel unloads with punches at the earliest opportunity while Brown and Macklin complaint: check. A chain is used: check. Inconsistent officiating, this time instant replay and a post-match stop-and-frisk: check. Heels complain about conspiracies: check. JC's counters and flips were pretty cool, though.
-
Shawn has eschewed hotel puns for Tom Brokaw/news references. Luger takes his time making his entrance, and when he does he...points to the crowd. Not exactly going out of your way to deny Ted's proclamation, Lex. Luger is SO whiny here. After stringing Tatanka and us along, he wants to browbeat Tatanka for not trusting him. I always liked this angle, but this did nothing to dispel my belief they should have just turned Lex outright.
-
Leslie Nielsen is a pro's pro, but this is a baffling way to hype a match involving a guy who's been incredibly protected from doing comedy for his entire 23-year career in the WWF. Oh, and if I'm not mistaken this is narrated by TBS Announcer Guy. THAT was jarring.
-
Is this the debut of the Ross/Lawler partnership? Ross' trademark grouchiness is such a great fit for Lawler's jokes, and Lawler still had enough motivation to egg him on and on to the point of exasperation. "HOW COULD HE PULL HIS HAIR IF HE'S GOT HIM IN A WAISTLOCK, KING?!" This is a neat little TV match with a weak-sauce ending, though it does set up rematches.
-
Really nice hidden gem of a match, giving us a glimpse of the upcoming TC without giving away too much. Misawa looks vulnerable with how much he's worked over, and Ace gets chances to shine, but it's still mostly double-teams that have him in real peril. I liked Ace's TD kickout--it wasn't even a kickout so much as a desperation shoulder raise, so you got the sense that he was pretty much toast anyway unless Doc was able to get back in and save.