Genichiro Tenryu & Jumbo Tsuruta v Stan Hansen & Ole Anderson (GCW, 2/28/82) - FUN
This was the semi-final of a one-night tag tournament, after both teams had already worked another match on the show. It was never destined to be the lengthiest affair. Hansen getting to match up with his future tag partner was a pretty interesting thing to look back on at least, assuming you find that sort of thing interesting. Jumbo spent much of this on the apron looking like a man who could not be less arsed -- someone who knew his job was to come in for two minutes, have some back and forth with the big Americans, hit a high knee that Hansen was unlikely to sell for more than four seconds, then tag out again. Tenyu's bump off the lariat at the end was a corker though, let me tell you.
Okuma! What a ridiculously fun rapscallion. All he really did here was throw headbutts, some to the recipient's forehead, some to his neck, some to his face, but it was everything you would want Okuma to do in this very situation. What a lumpy sensation that man was. Tenryu/Khan wasn't as spectacular as what they'd do in the April title match, though this wasn't the occasion for that. They did clonk each other with chops and knees, however. A bit too back and forth to be anything more than a fun addition to this feud, but you can't go wrong with Tenryu v Khan and certainly not while Matoshi Okuma is running around headbutting people in the literal face.
Genichiro Tenryu & Jumbo Tsuruta v Killer Khan & Super Strong Machine (All Japan, 7/10/86) - GOOD
Khan's pre-match attire here is a wonder. The big black robe, the big bell-shaped hood, couple that with his size and general presence and he feels like an Elden Ring boss that would have you throwing your controller off a wall. He's got some face paint going as well, which makes him look even more screwball. This had an overall structure that really worked for me, even if what they did to fill the time within it wasn't necessarily amazing. Still, these guys in third gear will basically always have a high floor. Khan and Strong Machine spent a goodly amount of this beating on Tenryu, never being above throwing cheapshots or using underhanded tactics to maintain the advantage. It felt more like the kind of heat segment you'd see in America, like Tenryu was going full Tommy Rogers, crawling over to his corner and being inches from making the tag only for Strong Machine to cut him off right at the last. The end stretch was more of the same, just ramped up a bit as Khan and Strong Machine tried to lynch Tenryu around the fucking ring post! That they don't appear to have had another singles match after this is unfortanate.
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