[2002-07-07-Toryumon] CIMA & Don Fuji & TARU vs Maasaki Mochizuki & Ryo Saito & Dragon Kid vs Magnum TOKYO & Genki Horiguchi & Darkness Dragon

[Loss]

Talk about it here.

[Ditch]

Crazy MAX vs M2K vs Do Fixer, trios titles, Toryumon July 7th 2002

 

Background: The second of the three-way trios matches gets the honor of headlining the company's annual supershow in Kobe.

 

Why I think it's underrated: As with the 2001 match, this didn't get attention based on Toryumon's perceived status as a second-tier promotion at the time.

 

What it deserves: Top 100. I put this ahead of the rematch a week later by virtue of the rematch's repetition; I credit the original over the sequel every time.

[Superstar Sleeze]

UWA World Trios Champions Crazy Max (CIMA, Don Fuji, TARU) vs Sekigun (Maasaki Mochizuki, Dragon Kid, Ryo Saito) vs. M2K (Magnum Tokyo, Darkness Dragon, Genki Horiguchi) - Toryumon 7/7/02

 

Crazy Max comes into the annual Trios Squared match with the titles again, but will they retain them. CIMA has dumped SUWA for another Caps Lock fiend, TARU, who is a scary looking muthafucka. Big Fuji is no longer Big. Instead he is a Don with the slick black hair, which I dig. The other change-up is that Mochizuki and Tokyo have switched sides, which I think better suit their personalities. Mochizuki was too bland to be a heel, but as a babyface he fits right in with Dragon Kid and Saito. The cocky Tokyo can use his flash to really draw the ire of the fans. I have decided that it is is the nine men that really ruin the flow of the match. Whenever, two teams are building some sort of rhythm all of sudden you have another team getting into the fray and it is jarring rather than chaotic. Most of the heat was between Dragon Kid and M2K, but Crazy Max would keep ruining the flow. Really I felt like Crazy Max did not have much to offer in this match in terms of the storytelling of the match.

 

The 2002 incarnation of this match was much more action packed the 2001 match and for that reason I enjoyed more. I liked spots like Horiguchi playing up his surfer past by riding the "waves" on the back of two opponents. My favorite spot was when sworn enemies Darkness Dragon and Dragon Kid team up on TARU. Only for Darkness Dragon to turn on Dragon Kid. The Fuji chopfest where his six opponents chopped him and he chopped each one of them was also cute. All the suplex stuff was not as fun. I liked Tokyo fucking around with Dragon Kid and wish that it was just M2K vs Sekigun because I think that would be a badass match. Dragon Kid spikes someone with a hurricanrana, but Darkness Dragon swipes his mask and in the shock he is pinned. Great first elimination and sets up the mask vs mask blowoff. Again, I didn't think the finish run was all that strong, but then again the heat was not really between Crazy Max and M2K. CIMA wins with one of his slams (Schwein, maybe)

I am still waiting for Toryumon to really knock my socks off. ***1/4

[dawho5]

I remember watching this. but I guess I never posted anything. 4-way is better as spotfests go. Honestly I never look at Toryumon or DG as something I need a coherent story to enjoy the match. It's not like NOAH where it's supposed to be a big, serious wrestling company. But then, I don't rate Toryumon very high when it does get a vote, so there are drawbacks to that as well.

[Graham Crackers]

Fun match, just like the one that came a week later. The gimmick hides some of the flaws of the style/wrestlers but it still isn't my cup of tea. When it comes to lucharesu, make mine Michinoku.

[Tenese Sarwieh]

This was a fun one with cool spots and working that face pace style that these guys are known for. 
 

[dawho5]

I tend to agree with Graham Crackers in that these matches hide a lot of the flaws of both the style and the workers.  You just watch the crazy spots and as long as there is some vestige of a story towards the end and the right people double-cross each other it works.  When you get to one-on-one or two-on-two things tend to not work as well.