[1999-06-19-Michinoku Pro] Taka Michinoku & Shoichi Funaki & Tiger Mask IV vs Shiima Nobunaga & Sumo Fuji & TARU

[Charles (Loss)]

Talk about it here.

[Charles (Loss)]

Pretty good match, and I like seeing Taka in an environment where he means something again. Him working as the vet against the Crazy Max guys is a good dynamic, and there's a cool old vs new vibe to this. I don't think it quite measures up to the best previous MPro matches of '99, but it's still very good. All of the pairings are interesting and fit what they're aiming for in the big picture very well. MPro wasn't consistent anymore, but I like that something this good could pop up every few months.

[tim]

Even when an MPro tag isn't really exceptionally good it's still a lot of fun to watch. Until the end stretch this wasn't great or anything but it was still enjoyable, the MPro style was just so good when done right. The end stretch though was really great, CIMA and Taka have a really great segment and everyone really kicks up the pace and does some cool stuff. Ending was really good with Taka intercepting a move with a springboard dropkick and following up with the Michinoku Driver for the win. I really like CIMA here in general.

[Tim Evans]

While a step down from the matches earlier on the set, this was still good. Taka is the best guy in the match but Cima's not to far behind. Liked Taka doing a springboard dive onto the stage which looked like it wasn't very far. Nice to see young Taru of Voodoo Murderers fame.

[soup23]

Agree that I liked seeing this on the set because while it wasn't great, it still was a lot of fun and really good which shows kind of the baseline around this time. Taka looked refreshed and ready to prove something and him being a dick to the young ins' always entertains me. It may have been the lack of SUWA that made this dip a bit in quality but it was fun seeing someone else get mixed into the fray with TARU. The Japanese indies are all bringing something different but entertaining to the table right now. ***1/2

[PeteF3]

Yes, it's a step down, but the match-up is fresh--TARU's in for SUWA and it's interesting to see Tiger Mask 4 and the two Kaientai guys teaming together, as though they're dealing with a bigger, incoming threat. It had the decency not to wear out its welcome, also.