[1994-06-03-AJPW-Super Power Series] Mitsuharu Misawa vs Toshiaki Kawada

[PeteF3]

I have to come down on the side that Kawada was not yet ready to pin Misawa for the TC here. Even after winning the Champion Carnival and taking him to a draw on the same tour. He was simply jobbed out too much towards the end of '93, with his team falling to DiBiase & Hansen and then him putting over Kobashi in the RWTL finals, he just hadn't recovered enough that he could go straight to the top singles belt. He needs to pin Misawa probably sooner than later, but preferably in a tag match or Carnival match first.

 

It's hard to beat the Hokuto/Kandori tag in terms of telling an overcoming-the-odds story, just because that one was so unique. But these two manage to pull it off. The action is great throughout of course, but once Kawada gets a ridiculous hang-time kick to nail Misawa coming off the turnbuckle, things get nuts. Misawa gets the shit beaten out of him with about every big move Kawada has in his arsenal, but weathers the big bombs and gets just enough openings with his elbow smashes to make the comeback. This match's greatness is pretty self-evident, as all great matches should be, but having knowledge of Kawada's knee problems and the effectiveness of Misawa's elbow and the length of time since the first Tiger Driver '91 adds a great deal. I'm starting to dig big, epic puroresu tag matches over big epic singles matches, I think--so I don't know if this has MOTY locked up or not. It will be a close three-horse race with the May tag and the Queendom tag.

[JerryvonKramer]

I'm very disappointed in this thread's steadfast refusal to actually review and analyse this match. Two pages of talking about who should have gone over?

 

This is the problem when things become hyper canonical, it's like the thing has got to the point where no one feels they actually need to review it.

 

One of the few times I've felt let down by PWO. AJ Excite coming later on tonight.

[jdw]

 

The other top promotion in the country where they drew well when the belt came off Hash.

John

So, Kawada winning would have helped business in the long term because New Japan drew well when the belt came off Hashimoto? They both seem like short term business decisions to me.

 

 

The 5/95 Hash-to-Mutoh title change wasn't a short term business decision. I was told the month before it happened of the plan by a NJPW employee. He also told me what they planned after it, from the G1 winner to the next champ at the Dome in January and after that. The title changed happened as planned. The G1 happened as planned. Then...

 

Then you have a real short term business decision: Takada dropped in their laps, with the chance to make a lot of money, and they went with that. They actually didn't take the belt off Mutoh in that first match as if anything fell through, they could go back to the original plan. It didn't fall through, Takada was co-opperative with what they came up with, and New Japan made a crap ton of money.

 

So, no... taking the belt off Hash wasn't a short term business decision.

 

 

The best solution would have been to change the dates of the 6/3/94 and 6/9/95 matches so that the 6/95 match took place on 6/3/94 and the 6/94 match took place on 6/9/95. I think that would have worked in terms of Kawada going over.

 

 

6/3/94 was Kawada vs Misawa because Kawada won the Carny, while Misawa was "injured" during it. The point of Carny was to set up Kawada and Doc as the next challengers. The tag match between the teams was a lesser match, hence being at Sapporo earlier in the series... and Kobashi getting the drop on Taue in it.

 

6/95 would have been Misawa's first defense after winning the belt back from Hansen... 14 days earlier. When lifting it from Hansen, Misawa would have been going off on his second run as the Ace with the promotion's #1 title. Baba-think is that the first run established the Ace, while the second run re-establishes that he really is the Ace rather than the title bouncing around all over the place.

 

Baba's second Int'l run in JWA: 06/27/68 - 12/03/70

Jumbo's second Int'l run in AJPW: 10/21/86 - 03/27/88

 

Everyone already knew Baba was the Ace in All Japan even before he got the PWF Title, but he still did the same thing after his first reign ended and it bounced around between Kamata and Billy and Abby for 8+ months:

 

Baba's second PWF in AJPW: 02/10/79 - 10/26/82

 

Baba was never going to have Misawa's second reign be 14 days long with him dropping it to his top native rival. That's why when we talking about Misawa being "ripe" to lose the title, it wasn't until the following year that he was truly ripe in Baba's mind to drop it.

 

 

If Kawada had won in June '94 and they'd transitioned from Kawada to Williams to Misawa again then I don't see how that would have made much difference even in the short term.

 

 

They wouldn't have gone Misawa --> Kawada --> Williams --> Misawa. The job of putting Williams as a/the top gaijin via jobbing the belt was the Ace's, not Kawada's.

 

 

And if they'd waited a year to have a singles rematch on 6/9/95 and Misawa went over then that pretty much ends the feud no matter how long they continue to drag it out for.

 

 

Jumbo and Tenryu exchanged pins. It didn't end the feud. Dittos Jumbo and Hansen. It's All Japan: feuds don't naturally end via wins and losses.

 

 

Misawa would have won in most people's eyes.

 

 

Misawa was always ahead in people's eyes anyway. It never really was about "winning the feud". Not really how things worked in All Japan. Frankly it wasn't how things worked with their peers over in New Japan either where they traded wins left and right.

 

I don't see the evidence of Kawada being anymore than a Tenryu who takes the belt off Jumbo and loses it back to him.

 

 

Misawa was the Ace. No one is saying that Kawada was going to win the belt and go off on a June 1994 through May 1996 run with the belt similar to Misawa's first reign. It always was going back to Misawa.

 

That doesn't mean other people can't be strong or draws, or have runs on top.

 

 

It's a short term booking plan and doesn't solve the problem of Misawa's health being poor

 

 

A strong company and stronger roster of stars allows a wrestler to take time off.

 

Fujinami was gone for more than a year, and Inoki was phased "away" (for lack of a better word). New Japan did fine, and they didn't even have to push Choshu as the only big star. They got the younger wrestlers over in increased fashion, and mixed things around. Heck, Vader held the belt through most of that stretch of Fujinami being out anyway.

 

The company also weathered stretches of Mutoh being out hurt, and Chono.

 

All Japan weathered their Ace going out... forever. Why? Because Misawa had been well elevated over the court of the prior two years. The plan wasn't for Misawa to have a two year run with the belt when he won it from Jumbo: it was just a short turn run before it went back to Jumbo in early 1993. Misawa's Acedom was still a ways off. But when Jumbo went out, Misawa was strong enough to run with it.

 

A smarter All Japan would have had a strong Kawada. They weren't terribly smart about it.

 

 

or any of the other compounding factors that led to the company's decline. They needed a new Misawa, but they'd cut that avenue off.

 

 

They didn't need a new Misawa in 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997... frankly at any point before the split. To a degree, Kobashi was as ready for a run as Ace in 2000 as he was in 2003.

 

The problem in the late 90s and 2000, beyond just that Misawa and Mrs. Baba didn't get along?

 

They didn't have the next generation of wrestlers who could challenge Misawa and Kawada and Kobashi. Not to be the Ace in 2000, but simply challenge them similar to those three pushing the Ace Jumbo.

 

They had Jun, but he had limits as every one saw in NOAH.

 

* * * * *

 

I've always said that for what Baba wanted to do (put over new top gaijin Doc), the "right person won" this match: Misawa was the one to put over Doc after he ran the table again with Kawada.

 

For the long term health of the promotion, what was more important: put over Doc at that moment as the new top gaijin or put over Kawada to create a stronger #2 in the promotion?

 

Put over Kawada.

 

It's even more obvious in hindsight given the Narita Nightmare killing the elevation of Doc in less than a year.

[jdw]

I'm very disappointed in this thread's steadfast refusal to actually review and analyse this match. Two pages of talking about who should have gone over?

 

This is the problem when things become hyper canonical, it's like the thing has got to the point where no one feels they actually need to review it.

 

One of the few times I've felt let down by PWO. AJ Excite coming later on tonight.

 

 

El Clasico is probably the single most played discussion in puroresu. Loss, Ditch, MJH and Pete have probably all written or discussed or debated the match at length several times in the past decade. I first wrote about it in the WON in 1994, and have loads of times since then.

 

El Super Clasico is the same thing. Looking at the discussion of it, I only got into "reviewy" mode for something specific that Loss talked mentioned. The general review type of discussion of the match is probably something that feels pretty been-there, done-that for most of the folks in these specific threads. :/

[JerryvonKramer]

Thanks for pointing that out. It's not like I understood it already. So cheers.

[ohtani's jacket]

I'm not sure what's more remarkable here: John responding to a post that's over three years old or Parv's odd disappointment with PWO. Anyway, analyzing 6/3/94 hardly seems paramount unless somehow has something new to add.

[jdw]

I saw Parv's and was going to respond to it. Then I noticed your post, which I hadn't responded to back when various of us were talking about when Kawada could / should have gone over Misawa. It warranted a response in the discussion, so I responded in order of the posts: your's than Parv's.

[jdw]

Thanks for pointing that out. It's not like I understood it already. So cheers.

 

I think I was explaining it a little differently that you were:

 

Parv: "This is the problem when things become hyper canonical, it's like the thing has got to the point where no one feels they actually need to review it."

 

jdw: "That folks talking about the match in this thread did their review/discussion of it a decade or two ago."

 

I'm not sure if Greil Marcus feels the need to actually review Self Portriat today if someone asked him about it. He did it back in 1970. The album and his comments about it have probably come up to him so many times over the decades sense, and he's had to hash them out with people again, that it's beyond played out. So...

[Loss]

My dilemma wasn't so much that I had talked about it a great deal before, but more that I had no idea what to say without parroting existing takes on the match. Every thought I had, be it the little kid at ringside going crazy, the significance of Misawa working over Kawada's leg for the first time, the nature of the finish, Kawada focusing on Misawa's bloody ear ... it was already articulated elsewhere. I can understand how that would be frustrating for someone who wasn't on line through the first, second and third waves of discussion about this match, though. At the very least, maybe we could link to some of the best reviews of this match that are out there.

[BAMptb]

I watched this match last year with (no joke) zero knowledge of the historic nature of it. It was just on a YouTube playlist of matches and I watched it. Whatever praise that has been lamented on this match now, or a decade ago is truly deserved.

[Zenjo]

A match that (nearly) all viewers enter with the highest of expectations, and it's still as great as it ever was. Supreme pacing throughout. They have plenty of interesting things happening in the first half without going overboard as they might in future years. Dangerous K just so happened to target the head. You only normally see ears like that on the Rugby field. The leg selling from Tosh was the first awesome moment. There were many more. The final 15m or so was completely insane. No wonder the commentator was delirious! The challenger gave all that he had, but Misawa was just too resilient. The champion fought back and they were both layed out flat, completely spent. From somewhere they summoned the energy for one final push. Wrestling doesn't get any better than this. The picture perfect Tiger Driver '91 was the ideal finisher.

 

Should Kawada have won? I wouldn't want to risk changing anything about this. It's not perfection, but I'd rate it 99/100. MOTY and top 5 for the decade.

[GOTNW]

Watched this with a friend who's seen zero 90s All Japan (only Misawa match he's seen is the 2003 one vs Kobashi and that's because I made him watch it). I was quite interested to see how this would hold up for me and how someone unfamiliar with 90s All Japan like him would react to it (he basically only watches modern wrestling). I had it at ****, he at ****1/4 and we both agreed it's nowhere near the *****/all time classic conventional wisdom says it is.

 

 

A lot of this stuff is the type of wrestling I watched when I first got into japanese wrestling and the ratings I gave out then aren't nearly as accurate as the ones I give out now since I wasn't nearly as familiar with its tropes as I am now. I liked this match a lot-but philosophically I really don't think it's inherently that better than a type of modern spotfest like Dragon Lee/Kamaitachi. It isn't a terribly creative match. The beginning isn't very interesting-it's not that it's slow, it's that nothing's going on. This doesn't have the awesome stalling and gauging you might see in a Hashimoto match, it's just consciously slow in a way that is neither natural nor pays off in the context of the match like it does in, say, last year's G1 final. It's strengths are the strengths of the 90s All Japan style in general-incredible stiffness, unpredictable sequences that don't have getting your shit in just for the sake of doing so and instead have interesting blocks and counters, smart use of rope running and irish whips, constant struggle etc. But this lacks the type of transcendent performance I was expecting from this type of match. At no point before the finish did I feel like either Misawa or Kawada were in danger of losing. Misaawa's blood year was a great visual but it was more of a "oh yeah....that happened too" moment than it was used as some huge momentum shift or transition. The enthusiastic crowd helped a lot but I can't help but note how disappointed I am how few interesting ideas I come across when revisiting this stuff. Yes-the work is great-but I'm not a tape trader in 1994, I've seen wrestlers stiff each other and do headdrops a million times already. Much like the 1996 RWTL tag how much you like this is a referendum on how much you like All Japan tropes. I'm also not nearly as high on Kawada's selling and acting as I used to be. It was more "I'm trying to make this spot feel big" rather than "I'm great at selling so this spot feels big".

[Microstatistics]

This match. Maybe the most hyped match ever and still manages to easily live up to the hype for almost everyone.

 

The main talking points are pretty famous: Kawada throwing everything at Misawa, Misawa attacking the knee for the first time ever in pure desperation, the work on Misawa's injured neck, the bloody ear, tons of cool counters because of how well they had each other scouted, an all time great crowd, the most exciting color commentary ever, the legendary finishing stretch and maybe the best finish ever. El Clasico it is. **** 1/2

[jdw]

El Clasico it is.

 

Yep.

 

Just watched it again on Wed when looking for something else.

 

There isn't anything that can match picking this up in June 1994 at the Japanese video rental store in Little Tokyo, grabbing some teriyaki to go at the restaurant a few doors down, popping the tape in the VCR, and watching the two AJPW 30 episodes while stuffing my face and being blown away. First times are first times.

 

But...

 

The shit holds up. 22 years later it remains compelling, has me "rewinding" to watch spots again, has me tossing out regular "nice", "cool" and "sweet" at the tv, makes me laugh my ass off when the Misawa fan loses his shit right on que, makes me dig Kawada's "what the fuck do I have to do to beat this fucker" look as Misawa is pulling his shit together on the floor, or enjoy Misawa's best ever Hulk Up moment even though I'm still "rooting" for the Other Guy.

 

Nice to remember what I love about wrestling, which this match captures a lot of.

[JKWebb]

#7 - placetobenation.com/countdown-top-500-matches-of-the-90s-50-1/2/

 

We recently had a thread on the board regarding your MOTD. This was my choice for MOTD at that time. So, I was excited to watch this again today with that in mind. Also, knowing that there are 6 more matches ahead of this match on the countdown has me looking forward to the comparison of the top few matches of the 90's according to Loss. There are quite a few moments in this match that I love, so I'll just name a few:

 

-Misawa in the crab eats a vicious kick to the face from Kawada's free leg

-Kawada kicking at the messed up ear of Misawa while Misawa is firing back at his left knee

-Misawa taking that killer jump kick from Kawada from off the top

-possibly my favorite moment - The headbutts from Kawada that lead to some of the most hate-filled elbows from Misawa I've ever seen

-The kicks from Kawada demolishing Misawa in the corner

 

These guys take the time that it takes to let the moments sink in and deliver a masterpiece. I like that someone brought up the commentary too. Even though I did not understand it, I felt it. At this point, this is still my MOTD. This is one of the greatest matches of all-time IMO. *****

[bradhindsight]

As part of Dave Musgrave's trek through all of Dave's ***** matches (and actually, as Dave M notes, Meltzer changed this to ****** - yes 6 - earlier this year), I would, somewhat obviously, have to agree with the universal praise and 5-star rating . As someone with little knowledge of the two going in outside of name/historical sig, I still picked up the story, and it ruled. One of the best matches ever.

[silverwidow]

I've been re-watching a lot of the holy grail classics lately.

 

This one, more than any of the others, felt like the GOAT when it was over.

 

Fukuzawa's voice was just about gone by the end and with good reason - the near falls were the most thrilling I have seen in my life.

 

If it's not the GOAT, it is so damn close. The only other matches in the same conversation for me are 12/6/96 and Hokuto-Kandori.

[Tetsujin]

Rewatched this yesterday and I'm kinda shocked about one thing: this is no longer one of the greatest matches of all time for me. Hell, it's not even my MOTY anymore (Kong/Hotta).

It's still holy fucking great, one of the best matches of the 90s and one of the biggest performances from both legends, but not top tier material for me. What I think this match needs to be top tier material, the thing other king's road masterpieces have, is the in ring work being trascendent. The stuff they do is amazing in terms of action and emotion, but not very important in terms of storytelling. Yeah, Kawada is very focused and closer than ever to reach the top of the mountain, and Misawa manages to look like the biggest final boss in pro wrestling history while at the same time making you feel that his reign is in true danger for the first time; but the transitions are kinda poor, the legwork and the bloody ear meant nothing, there was no strong cohesion between the different phases...

Maybe I'm overanalyzing it, but this match has the reputation of being one of the greatest matches of all time, if not the greatest one. With that reputation, I believe you should have a highly demanding test.

[Superstar Sleeze]

Triple Crown Champion Mitsuharu Misawa vs Toshiaki Kawada - AJPW 6/3/94

I am writing this part after I have written my review. I think what makes this match so special is that build to the First Powerbomb I rave about below. I think the whole pro wrestling business, wrestlers & fans alike, have been chasing that Nearfall high for 26 years now. I have not seen this match in 7-9 years. I remembered three things: Misawa's Insane Elbow Barrage, Tiger Driver '91 and that Powerbomb. That Powerbomb had Hydrogen Bomb Heat. You will see the very first people to ever chase that Dragon were Misawa & Kawada  when Kawada after a couple more moves hit a second Powerbomb. Didnt have the same heat, brutha. Only mistake in the match. They chased the Dragon. They didnt need to. Ever since the Japanese style has been imported to America, Americans have been chasing that Dragon, man. Let me tell you something, no one is coming close to that Powerbomb. 

The Greatest Match Ever? I have seen this probably ten times over the course of 2006-2011. I dont think I've seen it 9 years and definitely not in 7 years. It has a huge reputation and I just watched 5/21/94. Lets fucking go!

They trade bombs to start. Kawada catches with Misawa with his famous Spinning Heel Kick, but Misawa counters into a Back Drop Driver. Kawada is left clutching his head on the apron. Kawada decides to slow the pace down with an arm bar. Sensible given that he could have lost the match with that Back Drop Driver and so I understand being tentative. Misawa clocks him with an Elbow. Misawa is decidedly more offensive-minded. Perhaps he was spooked by Kawada taking him to a draw in April and that Kawada almost pinned him on 5/21. This plays against Misawa who sends Kawada packing. Misawa is on a fast break. When he dives off the apron and Kawada nails him on the chin! A common Misawa transition that I believe at the time is novel. We saw this in April. Kawada trucks him with a Lariat on the outside. Kawada focuses on the neck and head. Lots of various kicks to Misawa's face and wicked & nasty. I missed the kick that caused it but as Misawa takes a powder, you see Misawa's ear is bleeding. Kawada was blasting him. Kawada just keeps kicking Misawa and finally Misawa has enough starts kicking the shit out of Kawada's knee. From a kayfabe standpoint, very smart as it takes away Kawada's best weapon and you could tell he was pissed about how much he was getting kicked. From a non-Kayfabe perspective, very smart because Kawada is absolutely sublime at selling the knee. 

Misawa locks on a Single Crab and in a great moment Kawada kicks him right in the mush with his free leg. Talk about body control that was unbelievable. Still Misawa stays on top of him. There's a great almost Super Tiger/Fujiwara like spot from Misawa where Kawada is so tentative on the stand up that Misawa just fucking picks him apart with a three kick combination that leaves Kawada laying. It is the closest thing I have seen from All Japan shoot style. Genius. Misawa is living Kawada's head rent-free. The best part is Misawa just walks away as if to say. Count his ass out like if it was a shoot fight. Misawa looks for single leg pick up and Kawada cracks him in the back of the head/neck to level the playing field. Seems like a good time to take a break from the review. I dont agree with people that say Misawa was desperate in this match. I see a Champion that's cool as a cucumber. The Misawa-Jordan comparison is so apt. They are just two champions of supreme confidence. I didnt see the knee work as desperate. I saw it as STOP FUCKING KICKING ME YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE! He was more pissed than anything else. I see Kawada's action as far more desperate. Thats the difference between the two. It is not talent. It is what is going on between the ears. Being able to maneuver behind Misawa and deck from in his weak spot was genius and shows Kawada still has his wits about him. I remember the finish stretch quite well, but it is murky how we get there so lets see what happens! 

They meander a bit after this until they get to this point when Misawa pops off his first Elbow! Down goes Kawada! Down goes Kawada! Then theres this cool moment when Misawa dropkicks Kawada, but he doesnt get all over it, it is more like a shove than a strike. Kawada rebounds off the ropes and SMOKES him with a boot to the face. He follows it up with a Jumping High Kick and Misawa is out! Down goes Misawa! Down goes Misawa! Kawada even checks him. Picks up his head and Misawa slumps back down. Kawada covers for two. Then begins one of the most epic struggles in history to hit a move. Kawada tries for the next 5 minutes or so to hit a fucking powerbomb. Misawa does everything in his power to avoid this powerbomb. It is such great pro wrestling. Kawada first attempt, his knee is still fucked. He who hesitates is lost. Misawa back drops out. Kawada responds with a dropkick to a Misawa who is on his knees. Misawa just goes full dead man's float on us. For the first time, since I have started my All Japan re-watch Misawa looks fucked. Like I have no idea who is going to overcome. Great selling by both men after Kawada's knee drop. Kawada goes to town on Misawa's neck with chops still only two. Kawada goes for the powerbomb a 2nd time still nothing doing. Kawada Kicks Misawa and rifles him with a Cowboy Kick. Frustration is building in Kawada. Goes for the Powerbomb  a 3rd time, Misawa double legs him and STOMPS him in the head. Very similar to the attack on Kawada's knee. This screams to me STOP KICKING ME IN THE FUCKING HEAD, YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE! They have a big stand up fight. Looks like Kawada has more left when Misawa snaps off a kick to the face ala Kawada and he is bleeding from the ear more profusely but the Ace is back in charge. Now it is Misawa turn to be thwarted bot for the Tiger Suplex and Tiger Driver. Kawada goes for his great equalizer the Jumping High kick and Misawa blocks with his arms. Great Dropkick to the mush and it is Misawa, NOT Kawada that lands the first big bomb. A Tiger Driver for 2. Now a Frogsplash for two. Has Kawada choked the match away? Misawa FACELOOOOOCCCKKKKK. Misawa releases. Kawada just rolls out to the floor because he is spent. Misawa sends him back in. Then...

As Misawa is coming off the top rope, Kawada leaps up and hits that signature Jumping High Kick, his version of the Roaring Elbow. It took everything Kawada had to hit that.  Misawa still wont go up for the Powerbomb. Punch to the face. Misawa comes back with a freakin' elbow. Kawada has to FIGHT THROUGH MISAWA'S VAUNTED ELBOW BARRAGE to finally STEAMROLL him with a Lariat. WOW! EPIC! DAAAAANGGGGGGEROOOOUSSS BACK DROP DRIVER! KAWADA THROWS MISAWA DOWN WITH A MASSIVE POWERBOMB! 1-2-NO! The greatest nearfall in the history of pro wrestling. The way they built to it in this match and playing off 5/21 where Kawada had Misawa beat with the Powerbomb, but Kobashi saves together makes this the best nearfall. That nearfall is why this is a ***** classic. That nearfall embodies everything great about 90s All Japan. 

My complaint is here and it is super nitpicky, but they kept Kawada on offense. There was no way they could recapture the magic of that powerbomb. Misawa should have started his comeback immediately and in America, he would have had. In All Japan, they can go a little long. A couple more Jumping High Kicks, A WICKED German, a second Powerbomb and Stretch Plum none of it feels as heated as the first Powerbomb. It is a all great work. Misawa bump on the German is amazing he just goes limp and lands on his head. Then sells it like a million bucks. Awesome work! Stretch Plum is so logical given the head/neck. It is super nitpicky but I think Misawa needs to go back on offense sooner. I think you do a second Kawada finish run after the Kappo Kicks. 

Misawa starts rattling off those elbows. Spinning clothesline. He is getting into that groove. He feels like a Tom Brady-led Patriots squad driving down the field with two minutes left ready to break the heart of the opposing team. German Suplex! Kawada is folded in half. Kawada is just a deer in the headlights. It's happening. Brady will break you. Tiger Suplex 1-2-NO! Even Tom throws an incompletion now and then. Misawa is not too worried as he fixes his Elbow pad. Loved Kawada's desperate struggle to avoid the German suplex, chop to the neck, KAPPO KICK! The Kappo Kick popped me huge in Dr. Death match and it did so again here. There's life in Kawada! Kappo Kick again! Misawa rolls to the outside. Misawa looks fucked. 

The moment where Misawa is standing on the outside and Kawada is on one knee in the ring and they are staring daggers into each others' eyes is just epic. Both men know what they need to do. Misawa looks like a more confident. Kawada BLOCKS the elbow. Kawada bullies him in the corner. Kawada is going all Vader on Misawa but with Kicks. Misawa EXPLODES OUT OF THE CORNER WITH A HUGE ELBOW! ROARING FUCKING ELBOW! HOLY FUCKING SHIT! HOW IS KAWADA NOT KNOCKED THE FUCK OUT! MISAWA WITH AN UNGODLY, UNHOLY ELBOW BARRAGE! MISAWA BLOCKS THE KAPPO KICK! ELBOW TO KAWADA! TIGER DRIVER '91~! FOR FUCKS SAKE!

I still think Tiger Driver '91 looks gnarlier than the Ganso Bomb! How the flying fuck was Kawada still conscious after all that. Misawa was fucking furious! All Japan is so good at working finishing stretches that take you on this roller coaster ride. The build to that first Powerbomb was great. Then the build to Misawa's win was great because those Kappo Kicks came out of nowhere. When they fought, they fucking went after each other. That was the stand up fire fight we wanted to see since they brawled in the middle of that tag match with Akiyama and Fuchi. So is this the greatest match of all time? I dont know. It is definitely a contender. What hurts it is the beginning. I am a big believer in the beginning of the match is just as important as the end. That first 15 minutes is not wrestled at *****-caliber. There are other matches in totality I think are better, but from that build to the Powerbomb to the Insane, Ungodly Misawa Elbow Barrage it is hard to find something better. Definitely going to have a think on this. *****

[WingedEagle]

On 5/2/2020 at 11:15 PM, Superstar Sleeze said:

Triple Crown Champion Mitsuharu Misawa vs Toshiaki Kawada - AJPW 6/3/94

I am writing this part after I have written my review. I think what makes this match so special is that build to the First Powerbomb I rave about below. I think the whole pro wrestling business, wrestlers & fans alike, have been chasing that Nearfall high for 26 years now. I have not seen this match in 7-9 years. I remembered three things: Misawa's Insane Elbow Barrage, Tiger Driver '91 and that Powerbomb. That Powerbomb had Hydrogen Bomb Heat. You will see the very first people to ever chase that Dragon were Misawa & Kawada  when Kawada after a couple more moves hit a second Powerbomb. Didnt have the same heat, brutha. Only mistake in the match. They chased the Dragon. They didnt need to. Ever since the Japanese style has been imported to America, Americans have been chasing that Dragon, man. Let me tell you something, no one is coming close to that Powerbomb. 

 

Love the review as always.  No one needs an excuse to rewatch 6/3/94 but one upside of quarantining is plenty of time for rasslin so with your recent blog I'm going to have to check out all of these classics again.

Really interested in everyone's thoughts on the quoted piece here.  How much does a crowd add to a match and enhance your enjoyment?  Does the absence of a rabid crowd like you'd find here or for Kobashi/Kikuchi vs. Furnas/Kroffat or Hogan/Rock limit the ceiling on a match?  We're often acknowledging how a crowd may enhance a particular match, but why?  How much?  Should it?  Unless you're talking an incredibly small show there's a big difference in how the live crowd will see a match as opposed to those watching on tape and what translates well in one setting may be less effective in another.  I'm not sure how I feel about what the priority should be for those in the ring but am curious what others have thought about this.

[Superstar Sleeze]

That's a very interesting take on what I wrote. It is not what I intended but I see what you mean. I know I am in minority and this is going to sound weird but I can feel heat without crowd. We always talk about crowd heat and all this jazz, but I can feel heat even with a dead crowd or no crowd. Honestly I have found dead crowds to be worse than no crowd. For me two great examples of this have been Charlotte vs Rhea Ripley at Mania. I thought that match radiated heat. I didnt need a crowd to tell me that it was hot. I think Angel Garza vs Kevin Owens where they worked it as a sprint and Garza shamelessly attacked  the knee may have been on the first RAW to have a crowd but I didnt need NXT plants to tell me that match had heat. The workers were working with heat. That Powerbomb would have had Hydrogen Bomb Heat in my eyes regardless of the Budokan's reaction, now the Budokan did confirm and validate my feelings and it added to the moment, but I dont think it would have killed the moment. I see crowd heat as a bonus. I dont penalize great work for dead crowds, but if I do think your work is contributing to the dead crowd, I will call you out on it. 

[cactus]

What more needs to be said about this? I might prefer the first Misawa/Tsuruta, Tsuruta/Tenryu and the 6/9/95 tag over this, but this is an absolute classic. The finishing stretch in this in insane and it feels very modern for 1994. Is this the first time Misawa used the Tiger Driver '91 since the 1991 Taue match? 

★★★★★

[Makai Club #1]

Oh what I would give to be in that crowd. Even just watching it on my laptop, you could feel the nerve racking tension of the result - it was so palpable. The crowd’s uncertainty of who was walking away the winner is so infectious that you can’t help but get sucked in even 26 years later, you can feel that. And Misawa and Kawada were able to present that story in their in-ring work. The ride matched everything else perfectly. Misawa vs Kawada is a lot of people’s greatest match of all time, it’s a true contender for that for me as well (It currently ranks in my Top 5 personally). There are so many moments in the match that are just of the highest of quality. And not just the finishing stretch either, but throughout the match too. There is a litany of great things that compound together to make this the all time great match that it well deservedly is heralded as. The use of strikes in this match is outstanding and most likely the best use of them you’re going to get out of the style that uses frequent high-risk bomb throwing. Misawa was relentless with elbows towards the end but Misawa also kicked the heck out of Kawada’s need to limit the effectiveness of Kawada’s knee which proved successful for a large chunk of the match. Kawada continued firing off his kicks to soften Misawa up, focusing on Misawa’s bleeding ear and injured neck. The work on the neck was critical to the building of the first powerbomb, and it paid off in a spectacular way with one of the hottest nearfall of all time. But the match doesn’t give up there. Misawa’s journey to making a comeback was equally as compelling as Kawada struggling against it. The aforementioned barrage of elbow strikes (add in a few uppercuts in there too) with Kawada refusing to fall down, the powerbomb nearfalls, Kawada throwing game changing Kappo kicks but being unable to follow up on them, the struggle for the german suplex and finally, the neck crunching Tiger Driver to finish off the match. Such a bombastic finishing stretch to match an epic build. *****
 

[KB8]

It's pretty cool when you can just rattle off the date of a wrestling match and everyone knows exactly which match you're talking about. In pro wrestling circles, June 3rd 1994 means Misawa v Kawada. I think my last watch of this was around 2006 and 2006 me was certainly into different things in wrestling than 2023 me. There was still plenty about it that I thought was good, some stuff that I thought was great, and nothing I can possibly say about it will offer a fresh perspective on the most talked about match in the history of the internet. Yet talk about it I will, for that is what the hallowed halls of Pro Wrestling Only are for. 

I thought the beginning ruled, the way they played up how familiar they are with each other without it being an obvious reversal routine with 2- and 3- and 4-step dance sequences. Those counters and dodges felt genuinely organic, which is a pretty difficult thing to do in a predetermined nonsense like pro wrestling. Kawada about took Misawa's head off with that spin kick and you're thinking Misawa might not have it all his own way this time. It felt significant in my own 90s All Japan re-watch chronology because the last two matches I watched with Kawada and Misawa opposite each other were the '93 Tag League final and the big rematch from May '94. And in the former Kawada was thoroughly outclassed and in the latter he only fared marginally better. And he lost both of them. After the first exchange Misawa responds quickly with a backdrop and you're maybe reconsidering how close this contest might be, BUT Kawada fires back again and shuts Misawa down, firstly off a whip into the rail, then on Misawa's attempted forearm off the apron. It was cool table-setting. As a whole this felt as even as their rivalry has to this point, largely because of Kawada's aggressiveness. He was a pitbull and you got the sense he knew it was imperative to stay on Misawa, to never give him an opening or a chance to recover. Misawa might've been untouchable as the king at this point but the way he started booting Kawada in the leg was an amazing moment. The fact he even needed to go there was maybe the first real chink in his armour, or at least the first chink Kawada has put in it. Compare that to the '93 Tag League final where Misawa was almost derisory in how he *didn't* touch it despite the fact Kawada was hobbled. I don't think I was aware of Misawa's bad neck the last time I watched this, so that's another cool layer. I don't find either guy particularly compelling at working holds, but those parts weren't extensive and Kawada spent more time using brute force to exploit the neck than working the facelock. 

The striking was absolutely world class, which probably isn't a surprise, and my favourite parts were when they were trying to knock the other's head into the bleachers, which probably isn't a surprise. It may not be as harrowing as Battlarts or FUTEN, but the selling really is top drawer and there's the struggle and the blocking and it all makes every strike exchange feel massive. As pretentious as it might sound, it does feel pretty layered and even NUANCED~ if you know their history. Or as nuanced as two people kicking and elbowing each in the face can be and at the end of the day that's where the bread is buttered. The point where Kawada punched Misawa in the jaw was spectacular, really just a perfect fuck off and die outburst, and then Misawa responding in kind a minute later is one of the best "do you actually know who I am?" moments he's ever had, and he's has a whole lot of those throughout his career. He also hit a rolling elbow to the back of Kawada's head at one point that was sort of disgusting. You don't usually see him lose his temper like that, but there were a couple moments where he clearly did; another being when he just outright stomped on Kawada's face. Kawada's enziguri to the nose, his head kicks in the corner after Misawa's ear had already split open, Misawa's forearm and European uppercut combos - basically there were about two dozen incredible strikes in this match. I thought Kawada was really great at showing desperation the longer it went as well, going back to those strike exchanges even though in the long run he'd never win that particular war. Then there were the momentum shifts and the transitions and how they all had the right amount of selling and WEIGHT around them so it never really felt like they were just trading bombs. Even after all this time, that's something 90s All Japan does better than just about anyone ever has. That reset spot leading to the final stretch with Misawa gathering himself on the floor while Kawada glares at him in unveiled contempt - just a perfect visual. You wonder if Kawada realised then, after hitting those powerbombs and not getting the job done, after knowing he couldn't let Misawa regroup at any point just to see it happen there and then, that maybe it had slipped away from him. And then you've got him feebly trying to fight out of the double underhooks, trying to force Misawa back to the corner, knowing what's coming, only to get put on his neck anyway. I guess this is still okay.

[GOTNW]

On 8/2/2016 at 3:53 PM, GOTNW said:

Watched this with a friend who's seen zero 90s All Japan (only Misawa match he's seen is the 2003 one vs Kobashi and that's because I made him watch it). I was quite interested to see how this would hold up for me and how someone unfamiliar with 90s All Japan like him would react to it (he basically only watches modern wrestling). I had it at ****, he at ****1/4 and we both agreed it's nowhere near the *****/all time classic conventional wisdom says it is.

 

 

A lot of this stuff is the type of wrestling I watched when I first got into japanese wrestling and the ratings I gave out then aren't nearly as accurate as the ones I give out now since I wasn't nearly as familiar with its tropes as I am now. I liked this match a lot-but philosophically I really don't think it's inherently that better than a type of modern spotfest like Dragon Lee/Kamaitachi. It isn't a terribly creative match. The beginning isn't very interesting-it's not that it's slow, it's that nothing's going on. This doesn't have the awesome stalling and gauging you might see in a Hashimoto match, it's just consciously slow in a way that is neither natural nor pays off in the context of the match like it does in, say, last year's G1 final. It's strengths are the strengths of the 90s All Japan style in general-incredible stiffness, unpredictable sequences that don't have getting your shit in just for the sake of doing so and instead have interesting blocks and counters, smart use of rope running and irish whips, constant struggle etc. But this lacks the type of transcendent performance I was expecting from this type of match. At no point before the finish did I feel like either Misawa or Kawada were in danger of losing. Misaawa's blood year was a great visual but it was more of a "oh yeah....that happened too" moment than it was used as some huge momentum shift or transition. The enthusiastic crowd helped a lot but I can't help but note how disappointed I am how few interesting ideas I come across when revisiting this stuff. Yes-the work is great-but I'm not a tape trader in 1994, I've seen wrestlers stiff each other and do headdrops a million times already. Much like the 1996 RWTL tag how much you like this is a referendum on how much you like All Japan tropes. I'm also not nearly as high on Kawada's selling and acting as I used to be. It was more "I'm trying to make this spot feel big" rather than "I'm great at selling so this spot feels big".

I'm not sure I'd phrase it exactly like this and point out the same things, but upon rewatching this I have to say I largely agree with what I had to say 8 years ago. The amount of modern wrestling of questionable quality I was watching at the time probably helped a lot with pointing out the stylistic strengths of 90s All Japan which this match greatly represents.

It's understandable why this match is so hyped. It's got a big fight atmosphere, an excited crowd, there's a story to it with Kawada having just won the Champion Carnival and Misawa having reigned for so long that makes it feel this could be the title change. It's worked about as typically as a big 1990s All Japan Triple Crown match could. Hot beginning to start things off>slowing down>picking up again for the finishing stretch. It's got the eye-catching Kung Fu action movie striking and bomb-throwing but it's not ridiculous to the point you could earnestly fault them for being excessive.

That's kind of the problem I have with it. It's all by the book. There's nothing to grab me as something special. Misawa's targeting of the knee might be significant to someone writing a piece on the rivalry, but in the context of the match I didn't find it that significant; proficiency in legwork isn't what I love Mitsuharu Misawa for, and it ended up being just another thing which they moved away from later. The body of the match in particular is just them doing stuff. There's not a lot of filler, their stuff looks good, occasionally there are moment of truly captivating violence (like the face kick to counter the Half Crab and Misawa's brutal Shining Dropkick), but there is never an escalation, nor does it really set up anything in the grand scheme of things.  In a way it feels like Misawa and Kawada played it safe; which is completely fine. But the match doesn't start feeling special until about 23 or 24 minutes in.

The scale of the finishing stretch is something which definitely resonated with me this time, and why I think the match has the reputation it does. It's hard to add much to it at this point. Just an absolute master class of milking heat and dramatizing struggle. My favourite moment of the match was probably when Misawa no-sold Kawada's head kicks in the corner, stood-up and just knocked him down with an Elbow. I've talked about it when describing Hashimoto matches several times, but the beauty of pro wrestling is that it operates outside of logic, much like the real fighting it is (at least vaguely) based on. It's a preposterous spot when you describe it, it's preposterous in execution by almost everyone, but when you're that captivating of a worker and manage to create that magical magnetic atmosphere by using your selling prowress, you can get away doing more. Life isn't fair.

8/10. Even with their flaws, I prefer the 1992 and 1993 Triple Crown Misawa-Kawada matches over this one. The uncertainty of what was going to happen in the 1992 bout (not in terms of the result but in terms of how they were gonna put together the match) and the spectacularity of the 1993 one are more endearing to me than a great execution of a textbook layout.