Shinya Hashimoto v Riki Choshu (New Japan, 6/15/94)
What a match. There is nothing complicated about this. If you know anything about their rivalry then it'll probably resonate with you a little more, probably make everything come off a little richer in its execution, but even going in cold this is not a difficult match to follow. Partly because the simplicity is in how much they absolutely smash each other to bits. There are only like three actual transitions as well, each of which being examples of them smashing each other to bits. The tie-ups to start are Hashimoto v Choshu tie-ups, like two bulls butting heads. Then Choshu starts throwing kicks to Hashimoto's leg so Hash completely obliterates him. He just punts him up and down the place. This is Hashimoto's house now and Choshu's trying to use some of his wiliness but you will fucking not be pulling that shit tonight, my friend. I can only assume Hash had a leg injury at some point in the lead up to this because Choshu finally manages to take over by just clubbing Hashimoto's knee as the latter goes for a wheel kick. Ordinarily that wouldn't seem like a spot to shift momentum so drastically, especially given Hashimoto's dominance up to that point, but Hash sold it like it had totally ruined him so maybe there's something else there. Either way Choshu goes right to what brung him and about decapitates Hash with a lariat. And well, Choshu trying to lariat Hashimoto into oblivion as Hash refuses to give an inch is one of those things in pro-wrestling that just feels right. It's pure. Like Lawler and Dundee trading haymakers or Tamura and Han fighting over limbs. They're not the only ones to have done it, but there's something about THOSE guys doing it that nobody else can quite capture. Hashimoto's selling is so good as Choshu unloads bombs, the way he grimaces knowing how much this next lariat is gonna suck, the way he struggles to stay upright, the way he sells the cumulative damage of each blow. Choshu going through progressive stages of denial or disbelief as Hashimoto keeps kicking out ruled as well. After his last attempt he's almost shocked into a state of immobility, but it ends up costing him as Hash comes roaring back out of nowhere with a monster roundhouse. Even as you get the sense it's only a matter of time you still wonder if Choshu has one trick left in the bag. And then Hash crushes him with the nastiest middle rope elbow you ever did see. That this might not even be a top 3 iteration of this match-up is sort of staggering.
Thursday 26 September 2019
Friday 20 September 2019
90s New Japan Heavyweights (part 4)
Hiroshi Hase v Kensuke Sasaki (New Japan, 6/26/92)
Apparently this is Sasaki's return match after a hiatus (maybe through injury, though I couldn't tell you one way or the other), going up against his former tag partner and mentor with something to prove. I'm a fan of matches where the understudy tries to prove they've caught up, only to bite off more than they can chew and the old head put them in their place. That's pretty much what we got, with Sasaki being super aggressive going for the choke (and Hase selling it great, letting us know it might not always have been a legal hold), practically ragdolling Hase around at a few points. Hase coming back with nasty headbutts cutting Sasaki open ruled and pissed off Hase is always a fun time. You try to raise them right, to lead them down the righteous path, but I guess some lessons need to be learned the hard way and Sasaki clearly convinced Hase this was one of them. The string of uranages leading to the finish was quite unique and the whole thing came off as a cool piece of storytelling (which may be one of those cliche buzzwords in 2019, but if the shoe fits...).
Shinya Hashimoto & Riki Choshu v Hiroshi Hase & Kensuke Sasaki (New Japan, 10/21/92)
I guess Hase and Sasaki have put behind them that whole business where they tried to kill each other for a minute there and now turn their attention towards the Super Grade Tag League. This had a few stretches of really good to great stuff, with longer stretches that were leaning more towards okay. Hashimoto and Choshu going semi-rudo and running continued interference was my favourite thing about it, as the crowd got on top of them every time and yet neither made any bones about drilling someone in the back of the head if their partner looked to be in some trouble. In a cool evolution from the 11/90 tag, this time it was Hase and Sasaki who looked like the more well-functioning unit. Hash and Choshu mostly bulldozed their way onto level footing, but I guess if you can bulldoze like those two then who needs sharp teamwork? The Choshu lariat straight into Hashimoto DDT ruled and I especially loved the moments where one of them would just come storming in and boot an opponent off the apron. At one point Hase was taping up his knee in the corner, doing so with some urgency as Sasaki was being worked over in the ring, then Choshu came rushing over from his own corner and floored him. Just cleaned him out. It's a spot I love pretty much any time it's done, but Choshu doing it is always great because it always seems so unnecessary. Like, maybe if Sasaki was inches away from making the tag. It'd still be a dick move but desperate times call for desperate measures. Sasaki wasn't really close when he did it, though. It was just...what was the need? I guess I'd have liked the finish run to last a little longer, but this was mostly good stuff. And early 90s Sasaki was way more fun than I remembered.
Apparently this is Sasaki's return match after a hiatus (maybe through injury, though I couldn't tell you one way or the other), going up against his former tag partner and mentor with something to prove. I'm a fan of matches where the understudy tries to prove they've caught up, only to bite off more than they can chew and the old head put them in their place. That's pretty much what we got, with Sasaki being super aggressive going for the choke (and Hase selling it great, letting us know it might not always have been a legal hold), practically ragdolling Hase around at a few points. Hase coming back with nasty headbutts cutting Sasaki open ruled and pissed off Hase is always a fun time. You try to raise them right, to lead them down the righteous path, but I guess some lessons need to be learned the hard way and Sasaki clearly convinced Hase this was one of them. The string of uranages leading to the finish was quite unique and the whole thing came off as a cool piece of storytelling (which may be one of those cliche buzzwords in 2019, but if the shoe fits...).
Shinya Hashimoto & Riki Choshu v Hiroshi Hase & Kensuke Sasaki (New Japan, 10/21/92)
I guess Hase and Sasaki have put behind them that whole business where they tried to kill each other for a minute there and now turn their attention towards the Super Grade Tag League. This had a few stretches of really good to great stuff, with longer stretches that were leaning more towards okay. Hashimoto and Choshu going semi-rudo and running continued interference was my favourite thing about it, as the crowd got on top of them every time and yet neither made any bones about drilling someone in the back of the head if their partner looked to be in some trouble. In a cool evolution from the 11/90 tag, this time it was Hase and Sasaki who looked like the more well-functioning unit. Hash and Choshu mostly bulldozed their way onto level footing, but I guess if you can bulldoze like those two then who needs sharp teamwork? The Choshu lariat straight into Hashimoto DDT ruled and I especially loved the moments where one of them would just come storming in and boot an opponent off the apron. At one point Hase was taping up his knee in the corner, doing so with some urgency as Sasaki was being worked over in the ring, then Choshu came rushing over from his own corner and floored him. Just cleaned him out. It's a spot I love pretty much any time it's done, but Choshu doing it is always great because it always seems so unnecessary. Like, maybe if Sasaki was inches away from making the tag. It'd still be a dick move but desperate times call for desperate measures. Sasaki wasn't really close when he did it, though. It was just...what was the need? I guess I'd have liked the finish run to last a little longer, but this was mostly good stuff. And early 90s Sasaki was way more fun than I remembered.
Thursday 19 September 2019
90s New Japan Heavyweights (part 3)
Shinya Hashimoto v Vader (New Japan, 7/19/91)
You know what you're getting out of these two and this started exactly how you'd want, with much clubbering and potatoing and so forth. It's not often Hash comes up against a bigger bruiser than himself so this match-up has a cool dynamic already built in. First five minutes ruled and probably made up my favourite stretch of the match. There was a point where Vader was just peppering him with soup bones, throwing jabs, raining down holy hell, and as Hash comes up for air he's spitting blood like "okay so we're doing this, are we?" I don't think there's ever been anyone better at conveying defiance in the face of insurmountable odds than Hashimoto. Misawa had the stoic resilience, where you figured he always had one more big comeback in him even after he'd run through his nine lives and more. You knew Lawler was dropping the strap and someone was taking a whipping when he did, but there's a human element to Hashimoto that you can't really get in America. Something understated. You see him struggle through every comeback and you know by looking at him that he's a man who will not be denied. My favourite moment of the match came towards the end as Vader was - for about the fifteenth time - just hammering him about the head with shots. He started throwing nasty fists to the cheek bone and wound up for what probably would've been a knockout blow, but Hash raised both arms to block it and reeled off about six rapid punches to Vader's jaw. It was an incredible spot, one where you knew the man of honour had been pushed past his breaking point and was willing to stoop to Vader's level. Beyond the brutality I liked how they added in a layer of arm work. Vader clotheslines the ring post initially to give Hashimoto an opening and for the most part I thought he sold it well throughout. It was Hashimoto's inroad and he spent a good while using it to chop down that big tree in front of him. There was a point where I thought they'd dropped it and I started wishing they'd done more with it, but they came back to it again in the back half and used it to build some real drama. Hashimoto doing a fucking rolling armbar would've been sensational on its own but the fact it played into the larger narrative was even better. They did sort of meander for a couple minutes in the middle, with Vader going to a kneebar and Hash maybe flirting with going after the leg himself, but before long they went back to beating the brakes off each other and as a central theme it worked pretty dang well for them. You know what you're getting out of these two. This was all of that.
You know what you're getting out of these two and this started exactly how you'd want, with much clubbering and potatoing and so forth. It's not often Hash comes up against a bigger bruiser than himself so this match-up has a cool dynamic already built in. First five minutes ruled and probably made up my favourite stretch of the match. There was a point where Vader was just peppering him with soup bones, throwing jabs, raining down holy hell, and as Hash comes up for air he's spitting blood like "okay so we're doing this, are we?" I don't think there's ever been anyone better at conveying defiance in the face of insurmountable odds than Hashimoto. Misawa had the stoic resilience, where you figured he always had one more big comeback in him even after he'd run through his nine lives and more. You knew Lawler was dropping the strap and someone was taking a whipping when he did, but there's a human element to Hashimoto that you can't really get in America. Something understated. You see him struggle through every comeback and you know by looking at him that he's a man who will not be denied. My favourite moment of the match came towards the end as Vader was - for about the fifteenth time - just hammering him about the head with shots. He started throwing nasty fists to the cheek bone and wound up for what probably would've been a knockout blow, but Hash raised both arms to block it and reeled off about six rapid punches to Vader's jaw. It was an incredible spot, one where you knew the man of honour had been pushed past his breaking point and was willing to stoop to Vader's level. Beyond the brutality I liked how they added in a layer of arm work. Vader clotheslines the ring post initially to give Hashimoto an opening and for the most part I thought he sold it well throughout. It was Hashimoto's inroad and he spent a good while using it to chop down that big tree in front of him. There was a point where I thought they'd dropped it and I started wishing they'd done more with it, but they came back to it again in the back half and used it to build some real drama. Hashimoto doing a fucking rolling armbar would've been sensational on its own but the fact it played into the larger narrative was even better. They did sort of meander for a couple minutes in the middle, with Vader going to a kneebar and Hash maybe flirting with going after the leg himself, but before long they went back to beating the brakes off each other and as a central theme it worked pretty dang well for them. You know what you're getting out of these two. This was all of that.
Wednesday 18 September 2019
90s New Japan Heavyweights (part 2)
Keiji Mutoh v Vader (New Japan, 8/10/91)
Man, this was badass. I've seen it before and I remember liking it then, but this time it felt like a top 5 Mutoh match and maybe top 10 for Vader. "Prototype for Vader v Sting" is the easy shorthand description of this, made by countless people in our goofy corner of the internet, but it totally is. Vader is at his best as a mean bastard bully and he was all that and more, clubbing Mutoh across the face with some disgusting forearms, closed fist punching him in the eye as the crowd got more and more irritated. Look at the size of him. Why does he even need to do shit like that? He could clearly win without it, yet he does it anyway and then revels in it to make matters worse. Mutoh's offence came in bursts, though sometimes a man has to get primitive and that meant belting Vader across the face in return. The stretch run managed to feel epic without being particularly long and it was probably helped by the fact people were buying nearfalls from about the midpoint of the match. There were a bunch of great moments towards the end, like Mutoh's handspring elbow out on the floor followed by Vader's counter to it back in the ring with a sort of German suplex/uranage combo. I liked the finish itself a lot as well. Mutoh was only going to get so far trying to trade bombs with a guy like Vader, so the small package reversal was a nice bit of trickery to offset brute force.
Shinya Hashimoto v Masa Chono (New Japan, 8/11/91)
Hashimoto with the long hair and beard is one of the coolest looks in wrestling history. Like the wayfaring hero returning home after several years off the beaten path. A man who's seen too much. A man you know better than to cross. This started out fine with some okay matwork, but I generally don't find your standard New Japan matwork all that interesting so I'm usually going to need more of a hook. Chono picking apart Hashimoto's leg was a pretty good hook and that it led to Hash trying to kick him to bits in response was gravy. I haven't seen their match from a couple days previous, but by the way Hash favours his leg in this (and Chono gives it a little kick early on to suggest there's something extra there) I'm wondering if it isn't a story point from the rest of the G1. Either way Chono is focused in going after it. I actually thought Chono was really good in this, not just from an offensive standpoint but also in how he sold Hashimoto's strikes. Pretty soon it became a story of Chono trying to win through strategy and technique with Hash opting for raw savagery, and Chono reacted to Hashimoto's onslaught like it was something to be feared. It also didn't hurt that Hash was completely fucking murdering him with kicks. I mean sweet Jesus a few of these were vile. There was an awesome moment where, after a handful of blows to the midsection, Chono just crumbled off an Irish whip and for a second there I wondered if they weren't going to do a stoppage (despite having seen this before and being 99% certain who was winning). Final few minutes were super dramatic with Chono doggedly going for the STF and Hashimoto being defiant to the death. As a match it went from alright at the beginning and kept building to something excellent, with one of the best Chono performances I've seen. Hashimoto, though. A truly wonderful pro wrestler.
Shinya Hashimoto v Masa Chono (New Japan, 8/11/91)
Hashimoto with the long hair and beard is one of the coolest looks in wrestling history. Like the wayfaring hero returning home after several years off the beaten path. A man who's seen too much. A man you know better than to cross. This started out fine with some okay matwork, but I generally don't find your standard New Japan matwork all that interesting so I'm usually going to need more of a hook. Chono picking apart Hashimoto's leg was a pretty good hook and that it led to Hash trying to kick him to bits in response was gravy. I haven't seen their match from a couple days previous, but by the way Hash favours his leg in this (and Chono gives it a little kick early on to suggest there's something extra there) I'm wondering if it isn't a story point from the rest of the G1. Either way Chono is focused in going after it. I actually thought Chono was really good in this, not just from an offensive standpoint but also in how he sold Hashimoto's strikes. Pretty soon it became a story of Chono trying to win through strategy and technique with Hash opting for raw savagery, and Chono reacted to Hashimoto's onslaught like it was something to be feared. It also didn't hurt that Hash was completely fucking murdering him with kicks. I mean sweet Jesus a few of these were vile. There was an awesome moment where, after a handful of blows to the midsection, Chono just crumbled off an Irish whip and for a second there I wondered if they weren't going to do a stoppage (despite having seen this before and being 99% certain who was winning). Final few minutes were super dramatic with Chono doggedly going for the STF and Hashimoto being defiant to the death. As a match it went from alright at the beginning and kept building to something excellent, with one of the best Chono performances I've seen. Hashimoto, though. A truly wonderful pro wrestler.
Tuesday 17 September 2019
90s New Japan - the Heavyweights!
I've watched a bunch of Hashimoto v Choshu matches over the last few days. It's an awesome match-up, one of the best in New Japan's history, but then we already knew that. It did get me thinking about the New Japan heavyweights in a broader sense, though. I first got into New Japan through Liger and the juniors, as I imagine a great many of us who are now in our 30s did (it's kind of surreal that there's a whole generation of folk out there now who got into New Japan through guys like Tanahashi and Okada and the guys like Liger and Hashimoto and even Muta played no part at all in their interest. I am evidently no longer a young lad). The New Japan heavyweights were never talked about like the All Japan crop were. You bought New Japan tapes (or DVDs, as I started down this road in the 00s) for the juniors, All Japan tapes for the heavies. There were exceptions obviously, but that was generally how it felt to me, at least when I first started getting footage.
Since then I've worked my way through as much of the 90s All Japan stuff as I can really be bothered with. I tried ages ago (like about fifteen years in some cases) with the highly praised stuff from the New Japan heavies, but I never could take to Mutoh or Chono or most of the other prominent heavyweights there outside of Hashimoto (and Tenryu, if you want to throw him in there as he was around New Japan for chunks of time). Now I guess I'm giving them another shot or something? I don't know, I got the itch so I'll see where it takes me. I won't bother including the WAR/New Japan feud in this because I already know that's great and watching more Tenryu isn't really the point of this. I'm also not all that bothered about seeking out any obscure gems or whatever -- I kind of want to revisit the highly pimped stuff I couldn't get into in the past, or the highly pimped stuff I never even got around to, featuring the prominent New Japan heavyweights of the 90s. So there'll be lots of Hashimoto, a decent chunk of Hase, as much Chono and Mutoh as I can stomach, some Choshu, and then wherever else I end up. We'll see how long I go before moving on to something else. I give it six days.
Keiji Mutoh & Masa Chono v Hiroshi Hase & Kensuke Sasaki (New Japan, 11/1/90)
This was pretty good overall, probably really good by the end, but for a match often talked about as one of the best New Japan tags of the 90s I've never really liked it anywhere close. It's only around seventeen minutes, so even if the first half is sort of back and forth, both teams having little runs of offence before control bounces back across, they at least don't piss around with meandering matwork. I mean I like Hase as a mat worker fine, but I don't have any interest in watching the other three do it so I'm glad they never even went there. I guess you could say they kind of established some roles in the first half as well. Mutoh and Chono are the clear favourites because they're the obvious future stars. They have moments where they work a few double teams and maybe operate better as an actual unit. I guess it felt like they'd tag in and out because it was natural to them, whereas Hase and Sasaki mostly did it when they needed to. Sasaki was my favourite guy in all of this. I don't usually care about him one way or the other, but I thought he was a super fun bruiser intent on clobbering and throwing folk around. He hit a great early powerslam on Chono, smacked him about the mouth, had a few impressive spots where he got to show off his athleticism, etc. The heat segment on him was also probably the strongest part of the match prior to the finishing run, though it was helped by the awesome crowd as the work itself wasn't particularly special. Last few minutes are where things pick up big. It gets super hot when Mutoh hits a dragon suplex on Hase and Chono comes flying off the top with a knee to stop the Sasaki intervention, then it hits boiling point when Hase kicks out of the moonsault. Sasaki blootering Mutoh with a lariat before hitting another huge powerslam on an onrushing Chono was a great little segment, and even if Hase was maybe up and about a little quick after the moonsault the place went straight bonkers for him hitting the northern lights suplex. Everything they did was fairly compact, they never wasted time with dry or perfunctory matwork, the crowd was red hot...I don't know, man. Putting it like that it sounds like I'm underselling it, but there are about ten WAR v New Japan tags alone I like better. Still, this was good. There.
Since then I've worked my way through as much of the 90s All Japan stuff as I can really be bothered with. I tried ages ago (like about fifteen years in some cases) with the highly praised stuff from the New Japan heavies, but I never could take to Mutoh or Chono or most of the other prominent heavyweights there outside of Hashimoto (and Tenryu, if you want to throw him in there as he was around New Japan for chunks of time). Now I guess I'm giving them another shot or something? I don't know, I got the itch so I'll see where it takes me. I won't bother including the WAR/New Japan feud in this because I already know that's great and watching more Tenryu isn't really the point of this. I'm also not all that bothered about seeking out any obscure gems or whatever -- I kind of want to revisit the highly pimped stuff I couldn't get into in the past, or the highly pimped stuff I never even got around to, featuring the prominent New Japan heavyweights of the 90s. So there'll be lots of Hashimoto, a decent chunk of Hase, as much Chono and Mutoh as I can stomach, some Choshu, and then wherever else I end up. We'll see how long I go before moving on to something else. I give it six days.
Keiji Mutoh & Masa Chono v Hiroshi Hase & Kensuke Sasaki (New Japan, 11/1/90)
This was pretty good overall, probably really good by the end, but for a match often talked about as one of the best New Japan tags of the 90s I've never really liked it anywhere close. It's only around seventeen minutes, so even if the first half is sort of back and forth, both teams having little runs of offence before control bounces back across, they at least don't piss around with meandering matwork. I mean I like Hase as a mat worker fine, but I don't have any interest in watching the other three do it so I'm glad they never even went there. I guess you could say they kind of established some roles in the first half as well. Mutoh and Chono are the clear favourites because they're the obvious future stars. They have moments where they work a few double teams and maybe operate better as an actual unit. I guess it felt like they'd tag in and out because it was natural to them, whereas Hase and Sasaki mostly did it when they needed to. Sasaki was my favourite guy in all of this. I don't usually care about him one way or the other, but I thought he was a super fun bruiser intent on clobbering and throwing folk around. He hit a great early powerslam on Chono, smacked him about the mouth, had a few impressive spots where he got to show off his athleticism, etc. The heat segment on him was also probably the strongest part of the match prior to the finishing run, though it was helped by the awesome crowd as the work itself wasn't particularly special. Last few minutes are where things pick up big. It gets super hot when Mutoh hits a dragon suplex on Hase and Chono comes flying off the top with a knee to stop the Sasaki intervention, then it hits boiling point when Hase kicks out of the moonsault. Sasaki blootering Mutoh with a lariat before hitting another huge powerslam on an onrushing Chono was a great little segment, and even if Hase was maybe up and about a little quick after the moonsault the place went straight bonkers for him hitting the northern lights suplex. Everything they did was fairly compact, they never wasted time with dry or perfunctory matwork, the crowd was red hot...I don't know, man. Putting it like that it sounds like I'm underselling it, but there are about ten WAR v New Japan tags alone I like better. Still, this was good. There.
Monday 16 September 2019
Like His Guitar Strings, Tenryu Will Always Change His Tune. He'll Swear to what You Want and He'll Promise You the Moon
Genichiro Tenryu v Riki Choshu (JPW, 2/21/85) - EPIC
Somehow I'd never seen this. I always assumed I had, but I guess I'd just read about it and/or seen enough Tenryu/Choshu singles matches that I concluded I'd watched them all. I mean, it seems unlikely that I just forgot how fucking awesome it was, because it might be the best Tenryu v Choshu match of the lot. This was like twelve minutes of bombs and nuclear heat and no down time at all. Straight from the bell Tenryu waylays Choshu with a monster lariat and just unloads the full clip thereafter. He drops him with a DDT, spikes him with a MEAN old piledriver, then gets frustrated because he can't put him away and starts booting him in the face. This was more 1993 Tenryu than 1985 Tenryu, but the Choshu feud really was where Tenryu became great so I guess it's fitting his cantankerous side came out. Choshu's selling through all of this ruled, the way he could barely muster any fight like that early lariat had completely thrown him for a loop. Of course the moment he counters a headlock with a backdrop - Tenryu's legs flailing wildly as he realises he's about to be dropped on his neck - blows the roof off the place. You knew he was getting that revenge lariat as well and boy did he clobber him with it. They really fought over the sharpshooter, really had Tenryu put over the damage by rolling out the ring, then Tenryu coming back with a big apron enziguri set us off perfectly for the last couple minutes. I figured we were getting a double count out as soon as they both wound up on the floor, but they smacked each other around some more, Tenryu launching Choshu into the barricade, Choshu hitting another big lariat, before the awesome backdrop on the apron to save Choshu's bacon. As far as count outs go that's about as satisfying as you'll get. Killer match. It's been a long time since I checked out their other matches from the 80s so maybe there are similarities there, but their 90s matches felt like grittier, more deliberate affairs. This just went pedal to the floor right away with an unbelievable crowd, and for a twelve minute bombfest you can't really ask for much more.
Complete & Accurate Tenryu
Somehow I'd never seen this. I always assumed I had, but I guess I'd just read about it and/or seen enough Tenryu/Choshu singles matches that I concluded I'd watched them all. I mean, it seems unlikely that I just forgot how fucking awesome it was, because it might be the best Tenryu v Choshu match of the lot. This was like twelve minutes of bombs and nuclear heat and no down time at all. Straight from the bell Tenryu waylays Choshu with a monster lariat and just unloads the full clip thereafter. He drops him with a DDT, spikes him with a MEAN old piledriver, then gets frustrated because he can't put him away and starts booting him in the face. This was more 1993 Tenryu than 1985 Tenryu, but the Choshu feud really was where Tenryu became great so I guess it's fitting his cantankerous side came out. Choshu's selling through all of this ruled, the way he could barely muster any fight like that early lariat had completely thrown him for a loop. Of course the moment he counters a headlock with a backdrop - Tenryu's legs flailing wildly as he realises he's about to be dropped on his neck - blows the roof off the place. You knew he was getting that revenge lariat as well and boy did he clobber him with it. They really fought over the sharpshooter, really had Tenryu put over the damage by rolling out the ring, then Tenryu coming back with a big apron enziguri set us off perfectly for the last couple minutes. I figured we were getting a double count out as soon as they both wound up on the floor, but they smacked each other around some more, Tenryu launching Choshu into the barricade, Choshu hitting another big lariat, before the awesome backdrop on the apron to save Choshu's bacon. As far as count outs go that's about as satisfying as you'll get. Killer match. It's been a long time since I checked out their other matches from the 80s so maybe there are similarities there, but their 90s matches felt like grittier, more deliberate affairs. This just went pedal to the floor right away with an unbelievable crowd, and for a twelve minute bombfest you can't really ask for much more.
Complete & Accurate Tenryu
Sunday 15 September 2019
Hashimoto Sunday
Shinya Hashimoto v Riki Choshu (New Japan, 5/28/90)
Everything great about Hash v Choshu. Not quite as epic as 1996, not the same story of pride as 1991, not the struggle of 1997, but at its core it's Hash v Choshu and everything that entails. They really thump each other silly and there are few more consistently awesome slugfests in wrestling history. Choshu was landing absolute jaw-jacker elbows including a knockout blow as Hash charged him in the corner, Hash was kicking him absurdly hard in the midsection, they were trading nasty headbutts, it had all the staples. I just love the struggle you get with all of their matches. Overall this was worked pretty even and generally I like it when someone at least sustains momentum for a stretch, but not one transition felt lazy or like someone just decided it was their turn to go back on offence again. If Hash cut off Choshu he did it with something that'd believably halt your momentum. If Choshu cut off Hash he made damn sure you were buying it. They milked the big moments, they hit with purpose, they didn't need to do a whole lot, and they had everyone on strings. Finish might've come off a little sudden, but I like it as a surprise KO with Hash spotting his chance and going all in before Choshu can recover. This match-up never fails.
Shinya Hashimoto v Michiyoshi Ohara (New Japan, 12/3/93)
Well, it's official. Michiyoshi Ohara has more great matches in 1993 than Bret Hart. This isn't New Japan v WAR, but it IS New Japan v Heisei Ishingun, which seems to make things only slightly less nuclear. Ohara had been teaming here and there with Hashimoto throughout the year, usually against the WAR invaders, and usually he got stomped into the floor by Tenryu as Hashimoto would come to his aid. But now Ohara's thrown his lot in with Koshinaka and his HI brethren and thus turned his back on Hashimoto. Maybe Hash wanted to give Ohara a chance to see the light early on because the first few minutes were pretty tentative. Well, maybe not tentative. Hashimoto's not necessarily someone I'd think of as a GREAT mat worker, but all of his matwork does tend to feel gritty and contested. He rarely goes through the motions so there's always an edge to it, and this had an edge to it. Then Ohara slapped him and that was that. Hash breaking his skull open in response with a headbutt and two closed fist punches was nuts. Our person with the handheld cam was directly behind Ohara when it happened, and as soon as he turned around after the headbutt the blood was trickling. Hash pretty much mauled him for the remainder while Ohara did what he was apparently really good at and that's try in vain to not get slaughtered. Some of the kicks Hash threw were ungodly, a few that would've sent a lesser man's lungs through the sky roof, others that landed right under the jaw and nose. The spin kicks, the overhand chops, the regular chops. Why would you ever want to step to this guy? The last DDT was sickening and who knows how Ohara never got carted out of there on a fork lift. That he just waited for Ohara to stand back up before casually choking him out was such a great finish. Come at the king you best not miss.
Everything great about Hash v Choshu. Not quite as epic as 1996, not the same story of pride as 1991, not the struggle of 1997, but at its core it's Hash v Choshu and everything that entails. They really thump each other silly and there are few more consistently awesome slugfests in wrestling history. Choshu was landing absolute jaw-jacker elbows including a knockout blow as Hash charged him in the corner, Hash was kicking him absurdly hard in the midsection, they were trading nasty headbutts, it had all the staples. I just love the struggle you get with all of their matches. Overall this was worked pretty even and generally I like it when someone at least sustains momentum for a stretch, but not one transition felt lazy or like someone just decided it was their turn to go back on offence again. If Hash cut off Choshu he did it with something that'd believably halt your momentum. If Choshu cut off Hash he made damn sure you were buying it. They milked the big moments, they hit with purpose, they didn't need to do a whole lot, and they had everyone on strings. Finish might've come off a little sudden, but I like it as a surprise KO with Hash spotting his chance and going all in before Choshu can recover. This match-up never fails.
Shinya Hashimoto v Michiyoshi Ohara (New Japan, 12/3/93)
Well, it's official. Michiyoshi Ohara has more great matches in 1993 than Bret Hart. This isn't New Japan v WAR, but it IS New Japan v Heisei Ishingun, which seems to make things only slightly less nuclear. Ohara had been teaming here and there with Hashimoto throughout the year, usually against the WAR invaders, and usually he got stomped into the floor by Tenryu as Hashimoto would come to his aid. But now Ohara's thrown his lot in with Koshinaka and his HI brethren and thus turned his back on Hashimoto. Maybe Hash wanted to give Ohara a chance to see the light early on because the first few minutes were pretty tentative. Well, maybe not tentative. Hashimoto's not necessarily someone I'd think of as a GREAT mat worker, but all of his matwork does tend to feel gritty and contested. He rarely goes through the motions so there's always an edge to it, and this had an edge to it. Then Ohara slapped him and that was that. Hash breaking his skull open in response with a headbutt and two closed fist punches was nuts. Our person with the handheld cam was directly behind Ohara when it happened, and as soon as he turned around after the headbutt the blood was trickling. Hash pretty much mauled him for the remainder while Ohara did what he was apparently really good at and that's try in vain to not get slaughtered. Some of the kicks Hash threw were ungodly, a few that would've sent a lesser man's lungs through the sky roof, others that landed right under the jaw and nose. The spin kicks, the overhand chops, the regular chops. Why would you ever want to step to this guy? The last DDT was sickening and who knows how Ohara never got carted out of there on a fork lift. That he just waited for Ohara to stand back up before casually choking him out was such a great finish. Come at the king you best not miss.
Saturday 14 September 2019
Where There’s Smoke, His Pocket Lighter Sparked the Fire, Where There’s Blue Lights, Just Read Tenryu his Rights
Genichiro Tenryu & Road Warrior Hawk v Isao Takagi & Shunji Takano (All Japan, 3/4/89) - FUN
Perfectly fine five-six minutes. Tenryu v Takagi is always a fun match-up because Takagi will throw his weight around and step to his senior, but of course it's never enough and he usually ends up getting mauled. This didn't end up with Tenryu getting quite as pissed as usual, but your end result was much the same. Hawk is fun in this setting as well even though he doesn't really do much. He mostly comes in, hits a few things and tags back out again, but the things he does hit are visually impressive as he'll get big air on a shoulder tackle and really launch himself into a top rope splash. Also he will clothesline you clean in the face. Cool finish as well, with Hawk having to muster all his strength to military press Tenryu before dropping him across poor Takagi. I dig the Road Warriors working Japan. I just do.
Genichiro Tenryu & Ashura Hara v Tatsumi Fujinami & Masa Chono (New Japan, 7/14/93) - EPIC
Perfectly fine five-six minutes. Tenryu v Takagi is always a fun match-up because Takagi will throw his weight around and step to his senior, but of course it's never enough and he usually ends up getting mauled. This didn't end up with Tenryu getting quite as pissed as usual, but your end result was much the same. Hawk is fun in this setting as well even though he doesn't really do much. He mostly comes in, hits a few things and tags back out again, but the things he does hit are visually impressive as he'll get big air on a shoulder tackle and really launch himself into a top rope splash. Also he will clothesline you clean in the face. Cool finish as well, with Hawk having to muster all his strength to military press Tenryu before dropping him across poor Takagi. I dig the Road Warriors working Japan. I just do.
Genichiro Tenryu & Ashura Hara v Tatsumi Fujinami & Masa Chono (New Japan, 7/14/93) - EPIC
One of my favourite Tenryu performances ever. This was about as outwardly bitter and hostile as we've ever seen him and by this point you know how high that bar is. He had it in for Chono right away and no chance he was forgetting the early kick Chono landed across his ear. Towards Fujinami it was more dismissive scorn, where he'd still wallop him any time they were in together, but otherwise he'd just spit at him or flick sweat his way. Fujinami wasn't the focus of ire today. With Chono he was out for blood and every one of those cheapshots had malice behind it (and there were plenty). My favourite moments were where he'd cut off Chono's momentum with an enziguri from the apron, or even better when he'd just waltz in and full force boot him in the face. There was no need for it -- it was completely unprompted and Hara was in control anyway, but Chono'd pissed him off and if anybody will hold a grudge it's Tenryu. Hara was also throwing his headbutts and potatoes like the lumpy understudy he is. It's kind of strange to think of Chono as an underdog considering he'd won the last two G1s and was clearly one of the company's future stars, but he took most of the punishment for his team and basically played Ricky Morton. Honestly, he usually bores me to tears and I can't be arsed watching him, but he was a fresh face in the New Japan/WAR feud and totally brought it here. This was really at its best when he was getting beat on or firing back, while Fujinami mostly stuck to the peripheries. Like most of the New Japan/WAR tags the finishing run was short and sweet, and the finish was awesome this time, with Fujinami wiping out Tenryu with a tope, scrambling back up to catch Hara with a knee off the top, Chono finishing him off with the STF. I've still never seen the Tenryu/Chono match from later in the year but I doubt it'll suck.
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