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Purotopia General Discussion: 2017!


Kevin Wilson

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27 minutes ago, Michael Sweetser said:

Question: When/how did Iizuka stop being a straight wrestler and become.. y'know, Iizuka?

well jokingly I was going to say when Scott Steiner dropped him on his head at WrestleWar. but by the mid-00s, maybe even earlier - he was a concussion wreck, which explains why he just does not take a single bump ever. Inoki tried to push him as a legit sambo guy (LOOOOL) but it didn't work so he changed his gimmick in 2008 to what we have now but he was on that path for a while. sure he's 51 but I've honestly never seen him even take a proper breakfall drop from a strike.

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10 minutes ago, sevendaughters said:

well jokingly I was going to say when Scott Steiner dropped him on his head at WrestleWar. but by the mid-00s, maybe even earlier - he was a concussion wreck, which explains why he just does not take a single bump ever. Inoki tried to push him as a legit sambo guy (LOOOOL) but it didn't work so he changed his gimmick in 2008 to what we have now but he was on that path for a while. sure he's 51 but I've honestly never seen him even take a proper breakfall drop from a strike.

Thanks for the info, and that makes sense.  Bumping sucks - I'm personally lucky I came out of my career as well as I did, especially considering some of the utterly stupidly stiff ref bumps I took early on, and my back and neck still bother me on a daily basis.  I can't imagine how some of these guys still work at their age.

I love Iizuka.  When it's just a few guys doing gimmicks like his, they stand out in a good way.  

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Surprisingly good numbers claimed for that AJ show, too (2000+).

When did Kea stop doing the surfing suplex and his original Hawaiian Smasher? Both looked legit painful, so I’m not surprised he doesn’t do ‘em anymore.

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Iizuka had his brain smashed in by Mitsuya Nagai and missed a whole shit ton of time and when he came back was just another guy. Then the Tenzan angle happened and he became the wacky psycho he is now and evolved more over time with it.

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The knee strike he took from Nagai in that injury match is worth the bajillion bumps he never took afterward upon his return. 

Also not sure when exactly Kea switched up his moveset but he got another significant pin today. Also TAJIRI and KAI are winning all their matches in under 5 minutes. KAI is the hardest guy to figure out in the Japanese freelance scene. Went from junior daredevil goof to half-assed Tanahashi clone to random heel-ish generic indie guy. This tournament is loads more interesting than it's sister tournament currently going on in New Japan. 

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"Big Match" Suwama is one of the best things in pro wrestling, period.  At the very least, I would like to see him be invited to the Tokyo Dome before he starts breaking down, so yeah, preferably sooner than later.  I have realistically low expectations of that, though.  

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Yeah I was thinking of that one, too. Him and Ishii in the Dome would tear the place apart. 

EDIT: Or him and EVIL. Or even Goto, or, like, Elgin. I think he still "owes" Tanahashi a job for the 2008 Carny final, no? That would be a hell of a rematch ten years after the fact. 

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What Belgian Waffle is referring to is a significant example of the All Japan/New Japan working relationship, that being Tanahashi's 2008 Champion Carnival run, which was AMAZING due to Tanahashi going full-fledged heel, essentially doing what Cena has still yet to do, if only briefly.  The Suwama-Tanahashi match was an absolute blast to watch, really nasty and heated, or at least it seemed that way at the time.  Worth a look.  

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1 hour ago, Beech27 said:

I thought Tanahashi was in the middle of contract negotiations with New Japan at that point, and as such was technically a free agent?

Wow, interesting.  I had never heard that before until now.  Surprising to think New Japan would let that happen, but then again, 2008, and the mid-2000s in general in Japan were quite a bit wacky in that regard.  

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7 hours ago, Curt McGirt said:

It must be a complete blindspot for me. What were some prominent matches?

Well, that Sasaki/Kawada non-Title Dome match happened:

 

 

 

I should probably get around to rewatching that Dr. Death/Norton match from the same card, since I don't remember it.

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