Loss Posted July 11, 2013 Report Share Posted July 11, 2013 Talk about it here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loss Posted September 13, 2013 Author Report Share Posted September 13, 2013 A match we will see quite a few times as we close out the decade. I thought this was excellent for Awesome's highflying heavyweight spots going against Tanaka's stiff shots. They definitely swing chairs around and go through a table or two, but this isn't as weapon-intensive as usual FMW matches. There are spots like popping up after a release German that annoy the fuck out of me and are still part of the landscape in modern Japanese wrestling. They aren't a good idea in 2013, and they weren't in 1997 either. There's also the annoyance of taking so long to set up table spots. I don't think either guy really ever peaked as much against anyone else as they did against each other. Whether you like everything about their match or not, this looks like it might be the best version of that match, warts and all. I can overlook a lot of the stylistic things that I hate about this to point out that at the time it worked, and that it's pretty cool that they managed to carve out their own little niche and take it overseas over the next few years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FLIK Posted September 13, 2013 Report Share Posted September 13, 2013 I don't think either guy really ever peaked as much against anyone else as they did against each other. Love their series and Tanaka is def Awesome's best opponent ever but at this point i'm not sure if Awesome is even a top 10 best opponent for Tanaka anymore. He's had much better rivalries with a large # of ppl. Btw, it's not on the set but Tanaka/Awesome had a match in March 97 that's just as good as anything else they've ever done together, ppl should track that down too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ditch Posted September 13, 2013 Report Share Posted September 13, 2013 To me this is one of the least matches in the series. I think they did a better job with keeping the tempo up later on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Ridge Posted September 26, 2013 Report Share Posted September 26, 2013 I do enjoy their matches. With the no selling of suplexes, I felt like the AJPW guys would at least have a grimace on their face when getting up or do the delayed sell after. Tanaka took one on his head like it was an armdrag. Those tables are too small for the big spots. Near the end Awesome gets power bombed from the ring to a table on the outside. He barely grazed the table and had very little to help break his fall as he landed hard on the floor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soup23 Posted March 15, 2014 Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 Two beefy dudes throwing bombs and having a fight for 15 minutes. The powerbomb Awesome took to the floor was legitimately frightening. I did think things tended to get a little excessive here but this was a great slugfest match that didn't overstay its welcome and did feature some selling. Can't wait to see the rest of this feud develop since its been a while since I revisited. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteF3 Posted February 6, 2016 Report Share Posted February 6, 2016 This was enjoyable, and I look forward to seeing more of these two. I get what's being said about it taking excessively long to set up tables, and that's a criticism I've made in past Yearbook matches, but intentional or not I thought the final table spot set-up worked here: Awesome takes too long, and his big power bomb from the ring to the table backfires on him in a major way. So they had a bit of psychology to go along with the big bombs, all of which showed some awesome execution. And a simple and well-done finish, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superstar Sleeze Posted January 19, 2019 Report Share Posted January 19, 2019 FMW Double Champion Mike Awesome vs Masato Tanaka - FMW 9/28/97 The semi-main event for the big Kawasaki Stadium show headlined by Onita vs Kanemura. Awesome vs Tanaka is one of those feuds that just links these two together throughout history. You can totally see why Paul E made sure to get both of these guys in ECW sooner rather than later. This match is tailored made for ECW and is a step above the average ECW match. It is too bad no one ever taught Awesome psychology and gave him a push. He had all the raw talents. Seeing him with face pain here as The Gladiator, I am thinking a Road Warriors like tag team called The Gladiators in the late 90s with a strong heel manager could have been great in WWF. The Hardyz vs Awesome & Another Beefy Dude (maybe Bradshaw) would have crushed. Anyways enough fantasy booking if you have seen one Awesome vs Tanaka match you have pretty much seen them all. There is all the fixins: Tanaka getting brained, horse collared by chairs, table obliterated over his head, HUGE dives, Powerbombs galore, Tanaka's fighting spirit and roaring elbow. I like how economical they are. There is no bullshit. It is just we are going to just kick ass and hit all our highspots. I really liked the Awesome sitout powerbomb from the apron through the tables. The spot that puts this over their ECW matches is Masato Tanaka avoids being hurled over the top rope onto a table set up on the floor and instead he picks up the HUGE Mike Awesome and javelin throws him over the top rope onto the table on the floor! That was insane! It is an Awesome vs Tanaka spotfest. Dont think just enjoy it because they are highly enjoyable matches. **** Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.