Jump to content
Pro Wrestling Only

NWA On Demand


Recommended Posts

Gino/Chavo: just a few thoughts.

 

Really liked this match. It was so nice I watched it twice. Great seeing Thesz here.

 

Gino kicks the piss out of a fan, here come the cops and Boesch, That's how you get heat.

Really liked Chavo's offense, his submissions looked painful.

The crowd reactions are fantastic throughout especially at the end. I wanted Thesz to hit Gino.

 

Overall a enjoyable main event with a great crowd, It doesn't get any better than that. And to think this isn't the last time we'll see these two.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 2.3k
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Top Posters In This Topic

I wanted to comment last night but I waited until Pete because I didn't want to spoil him on anything.

 

I absolutely loved the entire package of Gino/Chavo. Obviously we're a couple of matches into their feud but we know more than enough about both of them to get what's going on. Gino was such a heatseeker and the crowd going after him at the get go was just awesome 1981 wrestling. The guy's buddy with the hat was about as stereotypical as it comes.

 

For the match itself, I'm not even sure I've ever seen a front facelock sequence done like Gino did it, with the lifting. It was a bit sloppy but gritty as hell. Chavo with his suplexes and throws as a means of getting out was way before his time, and Gino just basically continued to fall on him to keep control. Then Chavo's control sequence with all of the tricked out submissions was a total joy, especially hearing Boesch call them. He did as good a job explaining the re-positioning of lucha submissions as I've ever heard an announcer do.Gino's heat in the second fall wasn't long but it was nasty. He was just all over Chavo, brutal stuff. Then, just as Boesch sort of wrote him off, Chavo came back, keeping the momentum into his revenge in the third fall, until they do another little bit of heat, a lucky bit of positioning for Chavo after the elbow drop and a call back of both the Russian Leg Sweep and the tights pull for the win.

 

I think the crowd was actually a little shocked by it. They went nuts but it was slightly delayed. Then came the post match and I wanted Thesz to absolutely kill Gino too. When Chavo finally made it up, though, I thought the crowd was going to mob him in joy.

 

This is the first main event we've gotten in a while and I think it's one of the best total packages we've gotten on the service so far. I can't wait to be able to put it in context with the matches around it. 81-82 Gino, working with the Southwest talent, was something truly special.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sometimes when you watch these matches (especially the 70s ones), you see something and wonder why someone isn't doing it every week now. Gino's front facelock, both the lifting and the way he used it to keep control while continuing to sell, is definitely one of those things.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Tiny Tom vs Cowboy Lang

 

The chain wrestling early on is done really well. Cowboy Lang working WOS spots. Some fun comedy spots. A totally entertaing match.Lang uses a lot of leverage spots. Lang with a vertical suplex. Boesch laughing his ass off his subperb. 3*

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah, the first four minutes of this was sans comedy for the most part, just good wrestling. Then the comedy kicked in. Lang is someone we've seen before, including on the AWA set, and he's very good at what he does (and even at some things you wouldn't think him to do). You could tell how much fun both Boesch and the crowd were having. Tiny Tom looked like he could have been Hunter's mini from 1995 between the hair and the nose.

 

I thought the tag was really strong, too. Casey is the perfect Southwest mid-card face. He's so good in that role. The stuff with Mansfield and Tom felt like we'd seen it a dozen times before but it's still always enjoyable. A lot of that was due to Lang's timing but also Mansfield's ring awareness. He was so good at running away from Casey and just missing his grasp without it looking staged. The heat on Lang was very, very good, I thought, with Mansfield cutting Lang off from the outside and Lang playing FIP perfectly, constantly fighting back against the odds. Things sort of fell apart and got too lax after the hot tag. In that regard Lang almost was too good a FIP since he wanted me to see Casey get his hands on Mansfield and really pummel him in what was ultimately a comedy match.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I like to think that Paul loved the midgets so much he booked on the fly and added them to the Casey/ Mansfield match.

 

Not to ruin your line, but this was illuminating in that regard.

 

There are a lot of early 80s Houston shows where they have singles matches and then either a mixed tag or a six man and I always wondered if that was something made within the show or just listed out on the card that way as a feature. We've either gotten the singles matches or the tags but rarely both up until now.

 

Here, Boesch said clearly in the singles that they'd also be in the tag later.

 

So that's one mystery solved.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Tony Atlas vs Jerry Brown

 

We start off with an Atlas promo. Atlas' Ladies walk on my chest shirt is so great based on the stories. A Gino challege. This leads to a Gino/Atlas confrontation in ring. A fight ensues. Gino takes a powder, and Jerry Brown attacks. Atlas makes a comeback. Atlas shows flashes of athleticism like the arm drags, and flying head scissors. I've always loved Atlas's jumping head butt.Loving Jerry Brown using joint manipulation , digging the trunk pulls. His heel work is solid. A little sloppy was that rope running spot. Solid stuff, decent filler match.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Estela Molina vs La Pantera Surena (Houston 8/22/80)

 

So far this has been amazing. Estela is getting serious heat . What a great heel. Pantera's comeback with the arm drags are tremendous. The fake hug spot was tremendous. Then the payback slap was a hell yeah.

 

2nd fall and Estela is just beating on Pantera. We see Pantera do a rana from a handstand position. Estela is now biting at the fore head. The one-two combo by Pantera was nasty. Super fun fall.

 

3rd fall and Estela is working the crowd. Big back senton by Pantera. Pantera with big time punches. A fun finish to a fun bout. 3 1/4*

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So I finally bit the bullet and signed up for this. I haven't been keeping up with this thread, so I apologize if this has been covered before, but is there any kind of consensus on five or ten must-see matches as a starting point?

Don't have much time but off the top of my head:

 

Harley Race vs Andre

Gino Hernandez vs. Jose Lothario: Texas Death Match Inside a Cage

Jose Lothario vs. Hector Guerrero: Mexican Death Match

Nick Bockwinkel vs. Ricky Morton

Pretty much every Guerreros tag match (Hector & Chavo)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ric Flair vs. Wahoo McDaniel - both matches

Nick Bockwinkel vs. Wahoo McDaniel

Nick Bockwinkel vs. Dusty Rhodes

Nick Bockwinkel vs. Bruiser Brody

Bruiser Brody vs. Dusty Rhodes

Mil Mascaras / Tito Santana vs. Super D / Masked Superstar

Bull Curry vs. Johnny Valentine

Boris Malenko vs. Paul Boesch

Jack Brisco vs. the Spoiler

Wahoo McDaniel vs. the Spoiler

Jose Lothario / Al Madril vs. Guerreros

 

and the list goes on and on!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Spoiler is so good at using leverage moves. Turning into a brawl. Both guys using chairs. A good solid 1st fall.

 

2nd fall and it's a slugfest.Spoiler teasing the claw and Brody is fighting it. Another tease of the claw. He gets it. Brody is struggling. Spoiler to the top with a forearm. Some back and forth. Spoiler gets the claw for a 3rd time. He uses the knee to trap the claw.

 

The 3rd fall and another brawl. Over hand shots from the Spoiler. Spoiler to the top with a big elbow. They take it to the outside. I really got into this final fall. Brody using the mic cord as a weapon was really nasty. It was an all action brawl. I loved Spoiler going back to the claw, only for Brody to have an answer for it. Loved the finish. Actually loved the finishes of all 3 falls. I liked how it took each guys finishers to win each fall. 3 1/2*

 

Then we get a fun Brody promo.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Loss unpinned this topic

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.


×
×
  • Create New...