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tcg91

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Everything posted by tcg91

  1. tcg91
    Really good showdown between the best All Japan talents and the most menacing group of gaijins. Tenryu and Jumbo were also fine with a time limit, but Brody and Hansen immediately went all out and it was quickly clear that this wouldn't last 30 minutes, win or lose. This was all about Tenryu finally getting to hang with the big boys in a big match, he showed plenty of courage and helped Tsuruta working on Hansen's arm, which affected the gaijins' chances at the beginning. Even Brody was very good here, bumping for the opponents and showing great chemistry with Hansen. Good and credible final, poor Tenryu got isolated and did all he could before Hansen's lariat ***1/2
  2. tcg91
    This was quite underwhelming, despite the good presentation. I get the idea of the cage being there to keep them in the ring and everyone else away from it, but at the end of the day we got lots of rest holds (in a cage) and DQ finish for interference (in a cage), so what the hell. The bout itself wasn't terrible or anything: good Lawler punches, Savage used the structure well a couple of times and decent selling. With a good finish or a more "rough" approach, this would have been so more enjoyable despite all the political restraints **1/2
  3. tcg91
    Fine match, but it was missing something and the crowd wasn't that great either, they only popped a few times (like when Flair used the ropes for leverage, which led him to do that over and over to gain more heat). This was a C show Flair performance, which was still pretty good, but he went through the motions at times. Rich looked good on his comeback, but he was clearly a few notches below the Naitch when trying to build up the action. The finish was also disappointing, from the weak belt shot to the bad crowd reaction **3/4
  4. tcg91
    Fujinami and Choshu went at it again and this was nicely paced, also thanks to their respective partners. Maeda showed potential and lack of fear towards the opponents, but of course he ended up suffering during the heat segment, as the mean Choshu and the veteran Hamaguchi did not go easy on him. This also went to a time limit draw, but it didn't drag too much, thanks for frequent tags and Fujinami having to work extra hard to fix things. Very hot finishing run, much better than the 29/11 All Japan time limit draw from a few days earlier, even though that match surely had a better feeling due to its participants. The Choshu/Fujinami stuff was top notch and the non-finish only enhanced the feud ***1/2
  5. tcg91
    Santito was still a rookie at this point and this is a showcase for him, which worked very well. He got plenty of time from the beginning, indulging on the mat against los rudos, but also stealing the show later on when things became flashy and quick. Atlantis was just a great partner here, selling big time and also assisting Santo in their high flying attacks. Guerrera and Rubio shined when isolating Atlantis, but also in their frustrations against the quickness of the tecnicos. Good heat, solid action and good spots, including the finish, but this felt a bit too long at 25+ minutes and dragged in a few parts ***1/2
  6. tcg91
    This can't be everyone's cup of tea, but it was a fun and tight 45 minutes draw. While the action is wisely paced and "just" good, the limbwork never reached a dull point and this was made better by intangibles like Tenryu being a prick instead of respecting the legends, Dory stepping up to support his limited partner or Jumbo and Baba going at it, when they would normally team up in the RWTL. But yes, while they were smart enough to work around their flaws or limitations, this kind of dragged at some point and it's not an all time great match ***
  7. tcg91
    This was an historic match, but such a huge disappointment, especially considering the big time angle that they did to build the bout. The best part of the contest was Race trying to destroy Flair's neck again with some very stiff knee drops, but the match went too long at 25+ minutes, when Flair comeback 10 minutes earlier could have easily closed it in a more fitting way. Nothing was "bad", but the second part really looked like a filler, even though the finish was epic due to Flair always failing his top rope dives. Referee Gene Kiniski also hurted the match, as there were No DQs but he kept stepping in to enforce the rules ***
  8. tcg91
    This was an incredible match and probably the reason Dog Collar matches got a decent success in the later years. Their ring psychology here was off the charts, going back to Valentine injuring Piper's ear in their July bout and now whipping him there with the chain, some shots looked very harsh and Piper was bleeding from his poor ear. Heel Piper was a blast, but babyface Piper was so underrated: he showed plenty of fire and used the chain in a simple, but creative way to make Valentine suffer. Too bad the finish was too "simplistic" too, despite being perfectly fine: with a better ending, this is among the best matches of all time ****1/4
  9. tcg91
    Great blowoff atmosphere here, but unfortunately the match was short and also JIP, so we only got to see 8 minutes of it. It ruled anyway, obviously. Such a nice non-nonsense brawl between these two and it was perfect for the feud to finish in the cage, where it all started the previous Xmas day. Nuclear heat for Hayes using his tape to choke Kerry, like they were squaring off in jail. The KO punch finish was simple and effective, especially with the revenge of the cage headshot, but the cameras kind of missed both the cage bump and the pinfall, doing a terrible job. A satisfying spectacle and blowoff, but not an all time bout ***1/2
  10. tcg91
    This is JIP, as the first 4 minutes were not broadcasted. It was not as good (or famous) as the best von Erichs vs Freebirds stuff, but it was still a damn good spectacle, even on a B or C show. I usually hate the referee involvement stuff, but the addition of the second official and the double DQ elimination was well done here, as the brawl got out of control. David got to play the rare part of the surviving brother (usually reserved for the pushed Kerry or the experienced Kevin), he overcame the odds and managed the use the claw to tame Gordy. The "reverse claw" to stop the giant from behind was very creative ***1/4
  11. tcg91
    This was such a simple, but well worked match. The crowd made it so easy, as they played their respective roles perfectly and the fans couldn't wait for JYD to get the upper hand here. Even the pre match staredown meant something. I liked the simple segments of Reed using the chain to enhance a headlock, or JYD bruising Reed's belly before his headbutt. It all made sense, even the overbooked finish, which still led to a satisfying pinfall from Dog. Very fun spectacle, this was a blast for the whole 10 minutes ***
  12. tcg91
    Very nice contest. The limbwork was solid, I liked Tenryu trying to limit DiBiase's punches by working on his arm, even though DiBiase was a bit inconsistent with his selling, especially in the second part of the match. However, the last 10 minutes of so were a blast in terms of action and drama, there was a fun finishing run between a hard hitter like Tenryu and DiBiase's smart ring awareness. The non-finish was a bit of a letdown as usual, but at least it put over the fact that the gaijin was a smart cookie and that Tenryu's bombs were a big threat ***1/2
  13. tcg91
    There is a lot of mystique around this match, as it originated the original Hell in a Cell concept and the footage was only released a few years ago, but this was good and not great. It was a nice spectacle and a fun brawl, that got bloody, despite resulting a bit redundant at times. Rich put on a convincing performance, selling and then coming back with heavy punches of his own. My problem with this match was probably the "my turn, your turn" dynamic, as some parts didn't feel organic and the finish also wasn't the strongest one for a blowoff match. Still, a very intense brawl that didn't overstay its welcome ***1/2
  14. tcg91
    This was a very good match and a master performance by Roberts. The only issue I had with this bout were some dragging sequences at the beginning, as it took them almost 10 minutes to finally get to the point, but it made sense as Wayne desperately tried to keep Roberts away from his bad knee and got him distracted with his armwork. Jake had the most unorthodox but awesome limbwork and Wayne was selling the leg big time, triggering the crowd's response. This also got bloody and so even more dramatic, it looked like Roberts was ending Brett's career. I loved the finish of the towel and even Buzz Sawyer getting worried about his brother, despite being a heel ***3/4
  15. tcg91
    This was an enjoyable mix of the two Joint Promotion classic schemes: a respectful fight between 2 babyfaces or a rough heel (especially Break or Rocco) dominating the contest; it started as a clean and solid fight, then gaining heat along the way and turning into a snug bout when Rudge was getting frustrated about Singh's success. Singh didn't hold back either and they both got public warnings due to the lack of rules and sportsmanship, a huge contrast compared with the first 2 rounds. I really appreciated the pinfalls sequences, as some UK 80s finishes don't age that well, but it wasn't the case here ***1/2
  16. tcg91
    Pretty decent match with some horrible booking: not only a heel champion should never be the one to tease a countout with (shouldn't he just stay out of the ring and retain it?!), but the finish was very weak and it made both of them look quite bad. It was a shame, because the action itself was fun and Parsons brought a different dynamic to the typical NWA Title matches. Race was mean and violent, but Parsons got put over as a threat and even stopped Race's patented headbutts with some of his own. A bit of fresh air, because usually the von Erichs would be the ones to face the touring champions ***
  17. tcg91
    Very good bout, but the Portland crowd wasn't as loud as they used to be for the big matches, so this didn't feel like a big deal despite being a very important match. Dynamite was at his best at the beginning and Rose made him look great with impressive selling. They attempted to add some drama with the blood, but they kind of gave up at one point, which was a shame. I liked Rose's comeback, even though the last fall was too short for me, and the fact that Dynamite won "luckily, but smartly" like Flair would do, as at least the match got a true finish ***1/2
  18. tcg91
    This was an incredible brawl and such a fascinating bloodbath. MS-1 did prime heel work by blooding Chicana even before the bell rang and just punishing him without mercy, while the tecnico showed plenty of charisma and Ricky Morton level selling. Suddenly, he finally hit one single punch in the second fall and the crowd exploded like they couldn't wait for this to happen. There was such a dramatic spot where Chicana had to dive and risk his neck to get a countout decision, as just a few minutes before he looked doomed. They were both bloodied in the last caida, it was such a great brawl and some of the best exhaustion selling ever was displayed. I never understood the submission finish when no limb work was done at all, but it made sense for MS-1 to pay for trying to copy Chicana's dives ****1/2
  19. tcg91
    A solid and fine bout, but I wasn't mad about this or anything they did. MW2 did a fun dancing spots at the beginning, that looked quite silly, but it was clear that his crowd support wasn't as near the one given to other main eventers in town. Reed also looked a bit clumsy at times, but generally things got better when he was the one attacking MW2. Long chinlock with little heat, but I liked how they used a leg injury towards the end and how that caused the sudden finish **3/4
  20. tcg91
    Another good chapter of the von Erichs vs Freebirds feud, but this kind of paled in comparison with the six men from that July. Really nice control segment of the champions on Kerry and then also Kevin, who was awesome as the angry big brother, but then got isolated as well. The segments with Robert's protective helmets were also funny and made sense. The finish was a bit chaotic and not the best one, even the camera work wasn't done properly ***1/4
  21. tcg91
    Insane crowd reaction for Terry's original retirement match. This was not the best match ever, especially by All Japan standards, but the fans made this so much better. Hansen and Terry were great together, as usual, Terry got colour and sold everything big time. The parts with Dory and Gordy were fine, but the gap with the other pairing was quite noticeable, even though Dory played a good babyface in perils. Terry stole the show, whether he was punching the heels or selling for them. I am usually all for the person that is leaving to lose the bout, but Terry's roll on Gordy felt so good and the fans loved it ****
  22. tcg91
    Pretty good Junior Heavyweight match between 2 very capable and solid workers, surely different from what the division would go through the following decade or even towards the end of the 80s. It almost seemed like a showcase at times, but a satisfying one anyway; Fuchi got to look good and got plenty of offence, especially over the champions' shoulders, while Chavo looked resilient at all times. Very cool nearfall on a german suplex for Chavo, the flashy pinfall was a fine ending to confirm Fuchi's worth and growth within the company ***1/4
  23. tcg91
    Good TV match, but I had memories of this being great and it just wasn't the case. I liked the fact that this was nothing like a Flair formula match, the Naitch had to get his hands dirty and fight against an aggressive race, that was continuously aiming at the challenger's face. Race's headbutts were persistent and he always seemed to have the last word. Good piece of storytelling, as Flair couldn't get the figure four locked no matter what during the match, so Race had his lackeys interfering when Flair actually managed to apply his finisher. This made sense and led to Starrcade, so well done ***1/2
  24. tcg91
    This was a fun brawl. They definitely didn't hold back and, after just a bit of stalling at the beginning (Heenan was great), they started hitting each other in a very stiff way. Bock was always a master on the mat, so it was fun to see him having to compete against Wahoo on a physical standpoint, as he was trying to hit as hard as the challenger. The mayhem outside the ring was fun and realistic too, without going too far, but the lack of consistent selling and the clumsy finish didn't do this justice ***1/4
  25. tcg91
    Pretty great brawl right here. I liked the little touch of starting the match while the poor announcer was still trying to do things normally, as you could feel the hate and tension between the competitors. They managed to entertain and please the crowd with such a simple, but effective, story and the good use of the turnbuckle as a weapon (it wasn't that overdone, at that time). Even the finish was simple but great, the crowded exploded when Duggan knocked DiBiase out with a punch and pinned him. Very fun and easy to follow, with a nice crowd and a bloody slugfest ***1/2
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