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tcg91

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Everything posted by tcg91

  1. tcg91
    This was fun and the overbooking actually helped, for once. Fujinami was in one of his early test as a heavyweight and he shined with his selling, the gaijins repeatedly beat him down and he proved all of his resilience. It also worked because the crowd was crazy for Inoki, so the hot tag on him got a nice reaction and final stretch, even though the highlight of the match was definitely the heels working on poor Fujinami. As mentioned, the match restart actually added to the contest, first the lariat on Fujinami was an incredible nearfall and then Fujinami himself captured the final pin, against all odds. In hindsight, you could tell Fujinami was a rising star ***1/2
  2. tcg91
    This was slightly clipped, only 10 minutes out of 14 were shown. It was a good skirmish leading into the RWTL (both Dory and Snuka interfered) and the crowd was into it, but the match itself wasn't super. They both bled a lot and it almost felt like they were trying to create an epic battle, but it wasn't that good (it gave me HHH v Taker in a HIAC vibes). Funk did well, but his selling never reached the high levels that he can get to, maybe because the time wasn't enough, or maybe because he was smart enough not to let Brody dictate the whole match. The non finish wasn't a big deal, as this was a skirmish match and it served its purpose **3/4
  3. tcg91
    This was a nice match and, for once, it was refreshing to see a WWF blowoff without too much overbooking or contrived stuff going on. Just these two for 15 minutes and a clean finish; tons of fire and intensity, of course the MSG was also instrumental in making this a remarkable match. After Backlund being a copycat with a lot of opponents, this time Valentine used this strategy and his legwork was quite smooth. Backlund's weird charisma was off the charts here, he looked great in his struggle and hold reversal sequence, finally setting himself free before the finish. Not an all time great Backlund match, but this was tons of fun ***1/2
  4. tcg91
    This was amazing. Houston was ON FIRE for Santana towards the end, especially the ladies, and this made the match quite special. I really liked the initial pace on the mat and the psychology of Santana going toe to the with the champion Bock with a long hammerlock, only to lose the first fall because of a risky crossbody. Even better, it were actually two crossbodies to award Santana the other two falls, like he finally learned what to do and, especially for the decisive pin, his desperation made him risk everything with an over the top jump. Santana's furious comeback was also pretty great, as he started bleeding everywhere like a raging bull, I was so ready for a typical DQ finish before the spectacular end ****1/4
  5. tcg91
    Jesus, did Rocco owe Dynamite money or something? However, this was a nice change of pace and fresh air for Joint Promotions, even for Rocco's matches (even though I usually like them). Quick action, rapid mat sequences and more strikes than we usually see in this dynamic. They both didn't hold back and collected public warnings, Dynamite's knee from the top was quite spectacular but still very stiff. Rocco had a nasty wound and lots of stitches on his taped knee, so props for him for still doing well, but it's a shame that they never took advantage of this injury. We also got a clean and satisfying finish, Dynamite's win was a nice touch as he got the international star treatment ***1/2
  6. tcg91
    This was a complete surprise, as it was way better than it had any right to be. Fuji and Saito were just ruthless, while Jones and Atlas are such a weird couple at first sight, but gelled so well together. I find Atlas to be quite goofy at times, but here he sold well and bled all over the place, while the champions were greedy jackals on him. This also had the best hot tag of 1981 so far, but then they made it a bit weird with some sort of time out sequence and this time it was Jones to be beaten down, before the non-finish. Still, happy I saw this ***1/2
  7. tcg91
    I have never seen much of Duncum, but this was a really nice match, of course also thanks to the super reliable Robinson. While the beginning of the bout was solid and created a nice tension, things escalated quickly when Duncum started to work on Robinson's arm, after the most believable double collision spot I have seen in a ring (I usually hate those as they look phony). Duncum was amazing when he was on control and his knees were especially brutal. Crowd supported Robinson's final come back and struggle, the over the top rope DQ finish it's what it is, but the heat was slowly fading anyway after a bad executed sequence to get Duncun stuck in the ropes. Still, a very nice surprise ***1/2
  8. tcg91
    Real date is November 5th, according to cagematch. This was really really good and they showed great chemistry. At times, these kind of New Japan showdowns can feature a bit of stalling or dull matwork that goes nowhere, but this was not the case here. Hamada clearly showed Mask the right pace, their limb work meant something the also left plenty of space to the "fun stuff", especially towards the end. Mask didn't sell the leg at times, but Hamada never got a major heat segment on it, so that is not the end of the world. Not even the countout finish spoils this, as it makes sense in their dive psychology, it looked quite good and the fans were really into it. ***3/4
  9. tcg91
    A good showcase, also because it didn't last too long. Mask keeps being comfortable around luchadores (rather than Dynamite Kid) and Kimura as a junior heavyweight is always a pleasant addition. Maybe there wasn't enough heat during the match; the pace was always good and quite crisp, but they failed to build a proper story or heat segment. Anyway, kudos to them because the crowd still loved all the quick spots and bumps. It was almost a spotfest by 1981 standards, the final stretch was quite interesting and we got a satisfying finish on top of that ***
  10. tcg91
    This was actually better than I thought it would be. Valentine controlled most of the pace later on, after Backlund did a few bits and, as done with other rivals, managed to switch gear to go toe to toe with the challenger. Nice control segment from Valentine and legwork on Backlund, who sold his leg really well. There was a long figure four tease and the crowd was quite invested in it, especially when the two started a slugfest and Backlund shined once again with tons of charisma and fire. Too bad that the finish was stupid, there is no way around it, and once again Backlund looked silly for using the airplane spin. Really nice match and really stupid finish ***1/2
  11. tcg91
    This was a good match overall, but the first part was a but dull, almost like it was going to be clipped from the broadcast. It took 15 minutes (out of 30) for the match to actually get good, when Flair started working the leg after minutes of Jumbo being in the hot seat and not doing anything special. Lots of energy from the crowd, from the cheers for the first fall finish to the drama of Jumbo selling and eventually giving up in the second fall. Amazing heat segment from Flair and Jumbo selling from the second fall onwards, their chemistry was obvious. The finish was overbooked maybe, but it only made sense to protect the future Ace like this (and it will only get better between these two) ***1/2
  12. tcg91
    This was fine, I guess, and the crowd was into it... but it wasn't a good match. It was slightly clipped and it was probably for the best, as nothing interesting happened, until Dory bled and started semi-convincingly selling Brody's attacks. Their attacks and expressions also were a bit cartoonish at times, but they got their point across and the fans reaction testifies that. Overbooked finish, that at least got some fire out of Dory and hypes their personal issue, even though I am not a fan of a title changing hands by DQ. This was what it was, at the end of the day **1/2
  13. tcg91
    This was a good little match, a nice 10 minutes deal before a hot crowd during the New Japan vs IWE show. Fujinami's style as a junior heavyweight is definitely my favourite, as his quickness is accompanied by hard strikes and good matwork. Too bad that the matwork didn't really go anyhwere, but it's also true that they didn't have excessive time to tell their story. I liked the fact that Fujinami tried to wrestle a quiet match, but then got the upper hand when he finally reacted to Teranishi's strikes, the finish was really nice too ***
  14. tcg91
    The title presentation of this match, with the announcer hyping it and the anthem being played, is fantastic. And, shocker, the match was fantastic as well. This was clearly more gritty and physical then the average Joint Promotion match (let alone most of the scene at this point), also helped by the fact that two babyfaces were going at it and so they had a "pure" match (also refreshing, as Marc Rocco was the previous champion). Kilby looked great, had a good timing and called the match well, while Benn used his physique wisely and seemed comfortable in exchanging strikes with Kilby. Despite the sportsmanship, they were so intense that breaking the rules would have been less harsh on their bodies. Really cool reaction and moment once Kilby picks the victory ****
  15. tcg91
    A good match overall, even if this was JIP and the first 11 minutes were not shown. It was the first big match for Tenryu and he clearly passed the Flair test: he was focused, solid on the mat and got the crowd behind him with good charisma. Interestingly, he was the one working on Flair's legs, which got a pretty good reaction when he "stole" the figure four from the Naitch. The crowd was hot when Tenryu seemed having a good shot of winning the match, which added some good drama, but I was disappointed on how quickly he gave up to the figure four, considering that Flair didn't do much damage to his legs during the match. ***1/4
  16. tcg91
    This was a pretty great match and their styles matched perfectly. Very solid matwork approach since the start, of course Rocco was the one to take over and his armwork on Adams was commendable. This also led to a leg injury for Adams but, as much as the psychology was quite cool, he stopped selling the arm on his comeback and that was a shame. As usual, Rocco bumped big time to make his opponent look like a million bucks, taking a nasty looking turnbuckle hit as well. Not a big fan of the knockout finish, but at least it made sense, as Adams damaged his neck too and was too banged to get up on time. A great match that could have been a classic ***3/4
  17. tcg91
    Date is September 26th 1981 I watched it twice, but this was quite boring and didn't work for me. Colon dictating the pace at the beginning was the best part of it, with a focus on Abdullah's ear and some nice punches. Butcher taking control was nothing special but okay, they both started bleeding all over the place really quickly, but the crowd wasn't crazy about it and they seemed more interested with a fight between two fans at ringside. What I disliked the most was the refereeing, there were basically no rules during the match despite DQs being in place. Bad finish, as the ref stops the match for excessive blood and the announcer rightfully wonders why this wasn't done 10 minutes earlier **1/2
  18. tcg91
    This was really fun. The Duo was there to be destroyed and man, JYD was so over and looked like a star. I generally dislike stalling (especially in 15 minutes matches), but it worked here as the fans got really frustrated about the heel's antics, which only made the finish more satisfying. Nuclear heat and plenty objects got thrown in the ring during the heat segment on Conway, then a bloody JYD got the hot tag and it all went smoothly. Loved the multiple bodyslams on both Gino and Blanchard from JYD, we also got the babyface winning and the crowd loved it. Not a masterpiece by any means, but such a smart and well done piece of business, everything made sense (like keeping JYD away from the action and teasing the hot tag for so long) ***1/2
  19. tcg91
    I have never loved this as many people seem to do, but this was great and a unique spectacle. Of course, the crowd helped quite a lot here and Andre made Hansen look like a million bucks, a real monster that can hang with him. Godzilla vs Kong fits so well as a comparison. I liked Andre working on Hansen's arm from the very start, getting the Texan to violently fight from underneath. Good move, because the fans got into it and loved the bodyslam and lariat spots from Hansen, as again Andre sold them like a star. I don't mind non-finishes, especially in the 80s, but I hate when matches restart and still that doesn't lead to a finish. However, anything they did was so hot that it wasn't much of a problem here ****1/4
  20. tcg91
    The crowd was very hot and the announcer told them a couple times not to throw objects in the ring, that is the kind of heat the Duo had at the time. The action was pretty good, but the atmosphere made the match special. Once again, Gino was the man: cheap shots and goofy celebrations, before hiding behind the referees or escaping the ring to avoid the babyfaces. Mascaras left most of the action to Fernandez, who made the match better and got a really hot tag, but this was more about getting heat than wrestling itself (especially if compared to Southern tag team action). The crowd almost riots when the Duo gets a super dirty (and rare) pin on Mascaras and it felt pretty cool ***1/4
  21. tcg91
    This was a pretty good showcase. I liked the double gear concept, as Fujinami/Roberts was a rugged confrontation on the mat, while Mask and Solitario had a more mobile and quick series of exchanges. Even the other pairings were not bad and there I say Mask and Robert did well then the first Dynamite Kid match with their chemistry. However, this had "B-show match" written all over it and nothing was too captivating, I was disappointed because Mask and Fujinami is a really badass team on paper. Clean finish at least, albeit a bit flat, but this was a solid 12/13 minutes contest **3/4
  22. tcg91
    Much like the Lawler/Funk empty arena deal, it's an angle and not really a match, even though this one actually takes place after a ring bell at least. This kind of brawls are not my things, plus it's JIP and it doesn't even have a finish, but it's somewhat historic. I can see while some people love this and why this was quite unique in 1981
  23. tcg91
    This was JIP, we got 11 minutes out of 18. That is shame, because the von Erichs in St. Louis keep being tons of fun and this looked really good. Race relied a lot on headbutts as his main point of offense, hitting David everywhere and making him bump left and right with it. It was established that Race was dominating thanks to his experience, but David was always a threat. The crowd was fully behind David's comeback and his lethal claw, as David finally managed to apply it after a few teases. Race sold the claw really well until the non-finish, as Race managed to save himself. Can't go higher as almost half of the match wasn't shown ***
  24. tcg91
    Not a dream match, but quite a suggestive pairing at the very least. Unfortunately, they seemed to be in spot show mode and some of the action was quite lethargic. However, they started this strong and the matwork in the first fall was solid, it's just too bad that all the good armwork didn't have a relevant follow up later in the match. This is yet another bout that had a promising start and then died in the later falls, despite the first two having decent endings. They actually brough the arm stuff back at the very last minute of the match, with an abdominal stretch battle, but it was followed by a non-finish by interference. This could have been so much better **3/4
  25. tcg91
    This was absolutely tremendous. Cortez was probably having the best performance of his career here, starting this as a babyface match and gradually getting more and more heelish to keep controlling the pace. Grey is a good hand himself and, as seen in previous matches, loves to fight from underneath. I liked the growing tension and battle for supremacy, Cortez finally found a weakness in Grey's arm and started working on it without mercy. The last two rounds were all about Grey's reaction, with some rare vicious strikes and and a good comeback. The finish, although creative, was a bit of a let-down as I really wanted to see somebody get the victory here. Especially with no funny characters and both wearing basic black trunks, this is the best example of how great and simple Joint Promotions was ****1/4
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