Matt Watches 1989 AJPW/1986 NJPW on a Treadmill

[odessasteps]

I thought that was poo pooed in many of the Sid obits. 

[Matt D]

1/4/88: Saito vs Fujinami: Just ten minutes here. Not a ton to say about it. They match up well obviously. Saito seems to have Fujinami's number for the most part but he can't keep him down. When Fujinami fights back in the stretch, he gets a Saito Suplex out of nowhere and even the prison lock. Fujinami floats over on a later suplex for the three though.

1/11/88: Inoki/Takada vs Williams/Owen Hart: Frustrating match. Look, when you think about it, the point here was to shine Inoki back up after some of what happened. Doc is a beast. He's scary. He's a great person to stand tall against when in the end Owen could probably take the fall or lose the offense. Owen in 1988 just DID NOT HAVE IT. He didn't. Anyone who said otherwise hasn't watched this stuff or isn't watching with an eye for coherence. He could hit amazing spots. He was sharp. He was poised. He had great execution. He was innovative. His stuff was entirely meaningless. There's a point in the middle of the match where they'd taken over on Owen and Inoki was about to drop back with an Indian Deathlock Toehold onto Owen. Doc is threatening to come in. Inoki points at him. It is by far, without a double, unquestionably, the most important part of the match. It's Inoki posturing and daring Doc to do it. He drops back into the hold. Takada follows up with one of his own. And then Owen gets up and just walks around like it was nothing. Selling is always important, sure, but when it's tied to the most important moment of the match, that's when to overshoot and do too much, not too little so you can just go back to trading tombstones or whatever with Takada.

 

[Matt D]

Little bit (lot) of sickness at home has slowed me down. I have a feeling it's going to be a bit before I'm really back on track. But we keep going when we can.

1/11/88: Fujinami/Kimura vs Vader/Saito: It's the match we were supposed to get previously. The commentators said that young boys were already big fans of the Vader helmet, or something like that at least. This started with Fujinami and Saito, who matched up well as always, but it was all building to Vader coming in. When he did get in, Fujinami just bounced off of him. Eventually he crashed into the corner and Fujinami hit an enziguiri to get him over the top. So he grabbed a table and started tossing it around. Good stuff. He came back in, piefaced and punched Fujinami and did a lifting choke. He's not fully formed yet but he does get across a lot of the big points. They shifted to Kimura vs Saito and Kumura held his own, then Fujinami, but Saito was able to turn it around and get Vader back in there. Fujinami and then Kimura tire to chip away at him but he did a pumping press slam to Kimura. just no chance. Amusingly, Fujinami did get him down and go for a Scorpion, but come on. They made one last flurry on Saito but the Inazuma Leg Lariat put him right into his own corner and he tagged Vader in and that was the end. He took down Kimura with a corner charge and shoulder power slam.

1/11/88: Choshu vs Buzz Sawyer: If Choshu turned, this was his first match post-turn. Sawyer is a pretty formidable first opponent. Glad he's on this tour.  This goes maybe seven. Lots of maniacal laughter from Buzz. Pretty back and forth with suplexes and high impact crashes. Some stuff on the outside with Buzz using a chair. Nice little stretch with Choshu hitting a lariat but Buzz hitting the power slam, but Choshu getting another belly to back and lariat and winning it. Not bad but didn't quite live up to the potential.

1/11/88: Funaki vs Yamada: These two match up well. Some dropkick silliness early with them tit for tating and crashing into each other but it became pretty spirited and focused on the mat. They throw everything they have into holds. There was a Yamada camel clutch which was almost electric in its on way. Speaking of electric, Funaki's corner dropkick is probably the best move in the whole promotion. Yikes. Eventually, Yamada caught him and hit the shooting star press though.

1/18/88: Fujiwara/Yamazaki (c) vs Fujinami/Kimura: So something happened here where Choshu and SSM were supposed to challenge but Choshu couldn't go. This might have been his home town too. So Fujinami and Kimura stepped up. This was very good as you'd expect. Some great Fujiwara/Kimura stuff early where Kimura let him break clean in the corner and Fujiwara just blistered him in return when he cornered him. Yamazaki had come a long way and could stand up to Fujinami with the kicks. A lot of chippiness in the moment where they'd catch something but the other guy would keep going. That sort of thing. Kimura had a hot comeback where he hit the leg lariat out of the corner. Pretty back and forth overall. I'd say that Fujinami and Kimura had slightly better teamwork but it wasn't a huge thing. Finish played with expectations a bit by having things spill to the floor but not end up thrown out. Then Yamazaki had a flurry including a German only to have Kimura roll him up out of nowhere for the title change. This was good.

1/18/88: SSM vs Steve Williams: Apparently Doc is going to be teaming with Vader? They said SSM as Choshu's general wanted to do well in his home town. This was a solid hossfight. Big crashes, big throws. We come in with Doc press slamming SSM (not a small guy) into the ring through the ropes from the floor. At one point there's a great fight over a suplex that SSM wins. Super struggle. Doc hits the stampede but SSM gets his foot on the rope. They go hard down the stretch but Doc moves out of the way (he had crashed himself earlier) and hits a low German for the win. Post match he wants to keep fighting.

[Matt D]

1/18/88: Inoki/Takada vs Vader/Saito: It's important to note that Vader isn't there yet. He has flashes. There are cool moments. The Vader Attack IS there and hits hard. The punches aren't quite there yet. He's not sure exactly how much to give, which is complicated by him being in there with Inoki so much, I think. On the way out they now say both boys AND girls love the Vader helmet. Some early posturing where Takada has to convince Inoki to let him in first, and Vader just squashes him. He does better once Saito gets in there including hitting the spinning back kick and the spin wheel kick. That sets up the first Vader vs Inoki encounter. Inoki goes with the low kicks. He tries for the pumphandle again but this a tag match and Vader just scoots him into his corner. Inoki and Saito do some solid mat stuff before it becomes Vader squashing Takada again. Eventually, Takada gets Inoki back in who hits a few enziguiris and locks on a partial Octopus. It feels like a big moment but Vader just stands up and walks around with it.Takada gives it one alst try and gets power slammed and press slammed to the floor. They basically throw out the match and Vader tries to kill Inoki before Fujinami comes out to even the odds. Feels, again like a big moment of them coming together after NEW vs NOW.

1/24/88: Fujinami vs Orton: This is Orton's first time back in Japan in 3 years. He looked good here. He had ways of hitting things clean and straightforward but in ways you don't expect, like a reverse calf branding where he puts his knee on the front of the face. Or some of his suplexes. Totally valid stuff but they have his mark on them. Fujinami, like Inoki, matches up well against a lot of the Americans. (The difference is that Fujinami can match up more interestingly against the UWF styled guys too). Finish on this is a bit weird as Orton gets himself DQed and they protect him big after the match with the two of them really causing an issue. He wasn't someone who felt like a top guy in Japan 3-4 years earlier, not like Murdoch, Adonis, Orndorff, etc., but maybe beggars can't be choosers as much and he's both credible and talented. We'll see if he makes much out of this run. It was building to some bigger stuff from this match alone though.

We get just seconds of the next few which feels like a proto J-Cup kinda

1/18/88: H. Saito vs Kobayashi: I bet this was good. Ah well. We come in to backslides. Saito tries for a sunset flip but Kobayashi turns it back over for a pin. 

1/18/88: Hase vs Johnny K9: What the heck is Taras Bulba doing in a juniors deal? Anyway, Hase puts his foot up on a corner charge, hits a missile dropkick and hits his northern lights belly to belly for the win.

1/18/88: Owen vs Koshinaka: We see Owen hit a tombstone and a diving headbutt, but Shiro kick out. Then later, Shiro tries to suplex him in but Owen rolls him up deep for the win. Feels like an upset but they really did push Owen relatively.

Couple of WON notes: the UWF guys all negotiated as a unit in 86/87 and had their own brand and merch at shows, but that's over with Maeda gone. Dave HATED Takada eating a pin from Vader. I just laugh. Perspective, 1988 Dave. Perspective. Also the Island Death Match won a poll from Japanese TV viewers from the best match of 1987 and Dave said he still hated it. And the no ropes Saito vs Inoki match came in #2. Great stuff.

Edited October 28, 2024 by Matt D

[Matt D]

1/25/88: Choshu/Saito/Hase vs Williams/Sawyer/Owen: It's interesting Choshu and Saito are teaming because they seemed to be on opposite sides Re: Vader, but then Doc is teaming with Vader soon and he's fighting Saito so who knows. Dave was pointing out how weird it would be they'd be at odds since one was the best man of the wedding of the other. Choshu's theme feels like it though be the music for a NES game like Rygar or something. We don't get a ton of time on this. Less than ten minutes. Buzz just laughs all the time. I guess it's effective but I know what he's capable of and maybe it's a little weird. Doc and Saito matching up is a good thing as they're like two tanks crashing into each other. There's one Hase vs Owen bit in the middle which feels like a requirement but also a little out of place. You kind of knew Owen was taking the fall here but they protect him a bit by having a nearfall on Buzz.

1/25/88: Koshinaka vs Yamada: This was at the very bottom of the 80s set, in the 140s, and I'd love to know why. It's better than almost every Koshinaka singles match I've seen so far. Maybe one of the Takada handhelds were better. Yamada's great here. He's always great, but he's starting to feel a bit more like Liger. He takes over by going through the legs and hitting a German and never looks back. It was a spectacular spot. Popped just right, more on execution than theory. After that he took over on the leg and he was brutal, taking off the boot and just really working it. Koshinaka would get a little hope here and there but would get jammed by Yamada. He sold, for the most part, enough I'd say. If the match did poorly, maybe it's because the finish comes out nowhere. Koshinaka is able to push him into the corner and they do a couple of go behinds before he hits a surprise German for the three. Banana peel but that showed off Koshinaka's desperation and toughness. I'm fine with it.

Here's what our good friend @ohtani's jacket said about it in 2009(!) so we're not going to hold it to him now but it's an interesting take:

Spoiler

"Personally, I didn't think there was anything good about the matwork or the roles they were playing. The matwork was pointless because in the end it was a typical juniors finish. Yamada was crap at working the leg and kept shifting positon and doing those crappy Takada leglocks and Koshinaka can't sell for shit. It took Yamada forever to take off his boot and the ref just let it happen. It didn't get any heat whatsoever and the buzz for Koshinaka's comeback was the same sort of heat juniors always got for their highspots."

 

[ohtani's jacket]

That was a long time ago. I really hated Koshinaka and Takada back then. FWIW, I totally agree with your take on early Owen. 

[Matt D]

I have some strong feelings about Takada relative to Dave never shutting up about him in 86. I don't think he's a top guy in the company at all even if he's generally fine. I also find Koshinaka frustrating but I did like that one. Takada vs Koshinaka is probably my least favorite pairing in 1986-7 and we have that match a lot. 

Anyway, trying to keep pushing forward here. Catching up on a few cycles on the treadmill.

1/25/88: Takada vs Yamazaki: This is a match that really crystalized that view actually. Because Yamazaki seems more organic and natural and passionate and driven than Takada here. Granted, he was winning, which was a big surprise. I think this was set up so that whoever won it might go to the finals of the Juniors thing, but I'm not 100% sure. Both guys still had UWF on their kickpads so Dave was wrong about that.  Yamazaki just wore the struggle on his face better. There was something not necessarily stoic but more..sleepwalking about how Takada worked sometimes and I'm not surprised Dave missed it because he was far more focused on what was done than what was behind it. This felt like a big upset overall and had the usual exciting finishing stretch but it was just striking to see these two next to each other.

1/25/88: Vader vs Hoshino/Takano: You kind of feel for Takano. There was a sense he might have gotten a push after he lost the Cobra match but he just didn't have the charisma (as of yet at least) and ended up more the guy who could lose in tags. This went over ten minutes which was probably a little much. Vader absolutely had the Vader Attack down at this point but some other things were still developing. It was tag rules and he dominated of course. Eventually they were able to double team him to the fans' delight but He press slammed Hoshino (who was quite good in bumping around and making faces of getting demolished in this one overall) to the floor, taking him out of the match completely and then he squashed Takano. I do think he's getting over week by week even if the start was shaky.

2/1/88: Choshu vs Bob Orton: Shocking moment here as Orton hits an inverted atomic drop and they call it a Manhattan Drop. For some reason I thought that like the Kitchen Sink was an invention of 00s video games. Orton got a lot of this. He was very protected on this tour and I have no idea why. If he was going to be in the stable with Vader, that'd be one thing. Some of this was good though, as Orton's stuff tended to be imaginative but not contrived, little twists on normal moves to create damage in the moment. Choshu fired back at times but would get cut off. Eventually Orton tried to pile drive him on a chair but Choshu reversed it. He hit the lariat but then started on Orton with the chair and got DQed. So protected again.

2/1/88: Inoki/Sakaguchi vs Vader/Saito: This was set up a bit by Sakaguchi saving Hoshino and Takano post the Vader 2 on one, so they're trying really. We've seen Vader vs Inoki a little too much at this point maybe. They did have a nice exchange where Inoki went for the pumphandle, Vader got out and press slammed him, and then Inoki got his knees up on a splash. There was a little bit of a sense of clash of the titans with Sakaguchi and Vader. Sakaguchi did his usual fighting in and out of the corner bits. Vader was probably a bit too giving when it came to knocking him down but no one could keep him down too. We haven't seen a ton of Sakaguchi vs Saito in this run but they do match up well. AT one point Inoki and Sakaguchi put double arm submissions on Vadera t the same time before Saito broke it up. But then Vader was right back up and dominating. This got thrown out when people went over the rail. Just keeping things simmering overall but Sakaguchi was a good addition and amazingly after the 87 matches, there was still some meat on the bone with Inoki vs Saito; just a real testament to both of them.

2/1/88: Hase vs Koshinaka: A fresh enough match still, and this had implications on the finals of the proto J cup thing. Shiro would have flashes of humanity, especially when he acts like a jerk but they were too few and far between. Thjis did have some of the same that we'd seen, the sort of spots you'd expect from a jrs match (Koshinaka hits a belly to back out of nowhere, but Hase is able to side step him rope running and hit a plancha, then bodyslam him on the floor; ah! But Koshianka comes back a minute or two later with a tombstone and locks in a headscissors) and it's fine but there's not a real throughline or interesting attitude or contrast. It's just some of the details are differnet because of Hase's style. Finish was ok. Koshianka came back with the butt butts and at a tapitia on, but Hase got a backslide out of nowhere and reversed a belly to back with a body press and hit the Northern Lights. Sometimes you watch the jrs and just list off moves, which is why Dave loved them of course because that's his way of reviewing wrestling. you can't blame Hase much as he's still so early into his career.

I have another Takada vs Koshinaka match ahead of me next. Ah well.

[Curt McGirt]

Just remembered the thing that always bothered me about Takada, and that's his lack of emotional expression on his face all the time. It's almost a form of no-selling with him. And guess who had that until he turned heel and always bugged me too? Okada. 

[Matt D]

I think Curt has it right with the expressiveness or lack there of. That's what stood out in the Yamazaki match. Yamazaki felt so much more alive in the moment.

Anyway, good news everyone: there are four 2/4/88 matches so I don't have to watch Takada vs Koshinaka yet.

2/4/88: Kido/Fujiwara/Yamazaki vs Vader/Saito: Now we've got a 3 on 2 handicap match against the UWF guys. I barely remember Kido in this match. Yamazaki started against Vader and got bowled over. Then Saito threw him to the corner and we got Saito vs Fujiwara which was cool. Fujiwara immediately went for the arm bar but Saito was in the ropes. He got it later, but Saito made it to Vader. Vader vs Fujiwara was much as you'd expect. Vader tried to headbutt Fujiwara on the floor and it didn't work but then he just manhandled him into the apron and smashed him. This built to Yamazaki getting some kicks in on Vader but Vader just crushing him with a lariat. Fun thing I learned here! The Victory Driver! is when you toss someone off the top rope but apparently it's also any other press slam. Oh yeah, I remember what happened to Kido. He tried to interfere on a pinfall so Vader crushed him with his tree of woe corner charge. I do think these dominant handicap matches helped Vader get over. Beating 3 UWF guys 3-on-2 is no small thing!

2/4/88: Inoki vs Choshu: This was for the IWGP title and was, as you can imagine, very good and iconic. I wonder what it got on the 80s set. Let's see. 74. I can see that. Crowd is behind Inoki to start. Choshu hits him out of nowhere with a dropkick and two lariats but Inoki rolls out. Choshu dominates for a while, including slamming Inoki's head repeatedly into the metal connecting the turnbuckle pad to the ringpost. But the ref gets in his way at one point as Inoki's on the apron and that lets Inoki hits a couple of enziguiris outside in. Then he takes over. He hits a bunch of knuckle arrows and opens Choshu up huge. He goes for a cobra twist but Choshu hits a belly to back. Choshu gets the Scorpion on but Inoki survives and fires back.He gets the Octopus but Choshu survives. Choshu gets another belly to back and they're really struggling here. Inoki gets one. Choshu survives and puts on an octopus of his own for a second. Choshu goes for the lariat but Inoki kind of crumbles and then takes his leg out. He gets one final Octopus and Choshu gets his hand to the ropes but can't get his hand around it so it's not a break and after a while of this, the ref calls it off. Just weighty, moody, powerful stuff down the stretch. Two masters who knew how to play off one another. The fans love all the dirty stuff Inoki does like always. He is a cruel and unforgiving god.

 

 

Edited November 13, 2024 by Matt D

[Matt D]

(New small batch of 87 NJPW HHs maybe happening in the next week - watch this space)

2/4/88: Hase vs Yamada: Yamada has this sharpened iron thing to him for having faced all the UWF guys. He's a very confident wrestler even before becoming Liger. He starts this out by slapping Hase right in the face and it's great and I wish I could clip it without it getting taken down by TV Asahi. I like how these two match up in general but I will say that there was a Yamada arm focus > Hase stomach focus thing throughout which was a little unfortunate because it really didn't go anywhere. You learn to just sort of accept this stuff and make the best of it but it's an issue. Lots of cool specific things, like Hase handspringing up and kicking the leg out to get out of a hold. He has a lot of ideas. I'm not sure things resonate enough though. Hase tried to turn things around by knocking Yamada out at one point and Yamada just pile drove him on the floor and he was back in and suplexing him a minute later. Finishing stretch was spirited with Yamada putting on a chicken wing and hitting a tombstone and Hase getting a victory driver and belly to belly but it ultimately ended with a Yamada superplex after which Hase got a roll up out of nowhere. So lots of flaws but the intensity and drive tends to be so good that it's at least worth watching and finding things to enjoy about. It just doesnt' stand up against actually good matches.

2/1/88: Fujinami/Kimura vs Owen/Buzz Sawyer: I think Owen has a lot to offer if he's not in there with juniors doing junior things. Just working chain wrestling with Kimura and Fujinami is very solid stuff. Buzz comes in and immediately works a rope running bit with Kimura, barely getting over him, getting dropkicked and then just absolutely flying out of the ring and banging his own head on the barricade. Larger than life. Then he bites Fujinami in the side while doing matwork. Owen is uneven as always. He eats a mid match izamura leg lariat (why mid match?) Then Kimura tries to press his neck into the rope and push him back to the mat but he does a back handspring and dropkick and hits a plancha the next second. Super impressive. Impressively dumb. Fujinami gets to put him in the bow and arrow at least. Then Buzz comes in and hits some great looking stuff. His Powerslam is amazing like always. He just catches people out of midair. Finish is chaos but Fujinami tosses Owen off the top and hits a belly to back for the win. Buzz was great in this and Owen was the usual good and bad.

----

2/4/88: Takada vs Koshinaka: Let me put it this way. I'm feeling the run in a big way having gone way faster than usual trying to make this match go away. It's like a magic eye. Now that Curt pointed out Takada's expression, I can't not see it. If you really yank on his face in a camel clutch (like Koshinaka did here) then he'll show some emotion because you're making him by yanking on his face, but otherwise, forget it. It's not even stoicism. He's not making it theatrical like Shibata or anything. He's just sleepwalking through these and hitting things clean when it's time to. They did a bunch of stuff. No one ever got an advantage for long, even when Koshinaka took out the leg (or Takada landed on the ropes). Koshinaka opened things up relatively early with a dragon but Takada was fighting back into it a minute later so who cares right? I liked Koshinaka going for the butt butt in the corner but it didn't work out for him. That'd be a good spot to transition if he used it once every ten matches though. This ended after a fairly exciting stretch with pin attempts with Takada hitting a jumping kick awkwardly into Koshinaka's gut off the ropes and both guys just laying through the ten count. They went through a lot but it didn't feel earned that Takada would stay down.

[Matt D]

SECRET HANDHELDS

Spoiler

4/27/87: Fujiwara vs Murdoch: Not sure if this was part of a tournament or not. Not going back to look. We come in a little JIP but very near the start. Let me put it this way. Murdoch wrestled this match completely self-aware of who he was wrestling in a way that is rarely allowed either in Japanese wrestling or in 80s wrestling in general. It's like we got to go back and time and suggest some spots to him. Murdoch starts by eating a headlock and lifting Fujiwara onto the top rope. Then Fujiwara returns the favor onto Murdoch. They're both so alive and funny in small ways for this. The brunt of the match was Fujiwara trying to put the armbar on and Murdoch avoiding it. That meant front facelocks and trying to get one of his own on, etc. They build it in a more single minded and less "shooty" and more "pro wrestley" way than almost any other match I've ever seen Fujiwara in and it's delightful, guys. It really, really is. It's mostly sportsmanlike but of course things boil over into strikes. The first few times Fujiwara goes for the headbutt, Murdoch gets his hand up to catch it, because of course he does, because he's wrestling this match self-aware for us almost 40 years later. But Fujiwara eventually gets it as they start to move towards a finish. Murdoch goes tumbling over the top. Fujiwara headbutts him, Murdoch goes tumbling over the rail and it's comedic in how disappointing it is, because the match is self-aware. They're 20 minutes in but Fujiwara is very.. "Urgh, really?!" in a way that only he could be. Then Murdoch makes a huge deal out of forcing the ref to raise both their hands. Delightful. Just fucking delightful. I'm going to watch this match twenty times in the next year or two. Look, I wish we could have just gone back a couple of years so I could have shown this to Dean. That's all. 

Akira Maeda vs Ron Ritchie (EDIT: THIS IS ANGEL OF DEATH AND 9/6) (NOT 11/14/87): Not much to say here. It was a kind of cool outdoor setting with trees behind. Cagematch says this is actually 11/13 and at the Ounoyama Gymnasium in Naha, Okinawa, Japan but it doesn't look like a Gymnasium to me. Honestly I can't make sense of any of these cards relative to what's on cagematch so forget it. This wasn't long and it's notable for being so soon to Maeda leaving after the choshu incident. This is one of his last conventional matches (THIS WAS WRONG) and it's very conventional. Irish Whips and all that. Ritchie is fine and holds his own but I wouldn't say he was a compelling opponent for Maeda. Maeda misses a corner charge and hits the spin wheel kick for the win.

Sakaguchi/Fujiwara vs Choshu/SSM (9/6/87): This was ok. Not quite to the level I would have wanted after the 4/27 match. It's fun though, in as Sakaguchi and Fujiwara really go heel in peril on SSM, especially screwing with his mask. House show stuff. Eventually he fires out of the corner on Sakaguchi and they take over on him and work the leg. Things spill out and we get the DQ over the rail just as things were getting good. We had a little bit of choshu army double team but I don't think it ever really left the low gears.

9/7/87: Choshu vs Murdoch: again my expectations were too high. This was good, perfectly good, perfectly fine. At times great even. Murdoch lifted Choshu up to the top early but Choshu just whacked him a lot to return the favor. There was some good stuff around the leg. There were some nice parallels overall. Murdoch got the enziguiri early. Choshu got it later. Choshu hit a big lariat out of the corner and Murdoch cut him off with one shortly thereafter, that sort of thing. Murdoch hit calf branding. Choshu got the belly to back. They beat on each other well. It just couldn't live up to the focus of Murdoch vs Fujiwara, right? Anyway, after they teased a countout by having Murdoch ram Choshu's head into the post with a running power slam position, of course they tumble off screen to do the double dq.

 

Edited November 20, 2024 by Matt D

[Matt D]

MORE SECRET HANDHELDS

Spoiler

Brief note: In the last post we had the date/match wrong and it was Maeda vs Angel of Death instead. It really doesn't matter.

Don Arakawa vs Daryl Peterson (10/6/87): This was a blast actually. We so rarely get 80s NJPW comedy matches. They never made TV and we have so few Arakawa handhelds. I think a lot of it was all focused in him. Here he bounces off of Peterson and hits him with a bunch of goofy strikes and it's all very funny. A bunch of missed moves and what have you until he tries to slam Peterson and Peterson falls on him. I actually this as an ice breaker to someone in wrestling who cares a lot about comedy yesterday and it was well received so it more than served a purpose decades later.

Steve Williams vs Barbarian (10/6/87): This, I sent to Naylor. It's exactly what you'd expect. Hosses hossing. There's an 86 match between them that isn't great but Barb is more developed by this point. Just clash of the titans stuff. I wouldn't say it was great or anything but it gave you and the crowd exactly what you wanted in this situation. Doc had the UWF belt here, by the way, so he definitely wasn't losing. 

Black Cat/Don Arakawa vs Daryl Peterson/Eli the Eliminator (10/12/87): Still fun but not as fun. Part of this is because Black Cat worked most of the match with Arakawa just mainly being an annoyance from the outside. He was good and had some particularly slick stuff but I wanted more of the comedy from the singles match. 

Choshu/SSM vs Muto/Takada (10/12/87): This was very good. Muto/Takada attacked with dropkicks right from the bell then hit a spike piledriver on Choshu and didn't look back. At one point someone tried to headlock him and he was able to hit a belly to back and get SSM in there. Takada was more able to come back from things than Muto, but SSM still absolutely spiked him with a German. They hit their share of Choshu's army double teams (Spike Piledriver/Slaughter Cannon) but Muto and Takada were able to come back for a hot finish including Muto hitting the moonsault on Choshu only for SSM to break it up. Finish was Choshu getting another belly to back off of a suplex into the ring attempt by Muto and then getting him with a lariat. Though he tried to jump so he got him in the belly which was weird. Good lost match for the Muto/Takada team that Dave loved so much.

 

[Matt D]

Last batch this time around.

Spoiler

2/5/87: Rey Cobra/El Canek vs Don Arakawa/Kim Su Hong : Cobra is the future Coco Negro but he's described on Puro sites like this: "He was a masked wrestler who had only come to Japan once for New Japan Pro-Wrestling, and was a C-class wrestler who also competed in the local circuit in Mexico, but he came to Japan at the arrangement of his best friend, Black Cat. However, his lack of skill was unbearable, and he lost every fight. He never came to Japan again."And yep, that tracks. Cool cobra jacket. Terrible everything else. He seemed lost half the time and just went along with things the other half. Arakawa was funny as ever, slapping hands instead of shaking, throwing over the top strikes, trying to attack from the outside in or kicking to the outside when he was being held. Canek mostly did ok but he had to carry a big load. I don't have much to say about Kim Su Hong but boy was the match mad when he was in there with Cobra. Maybe the worst 80s NJPW match I can think of? But Arakawa was still fun especially post match as he ran around celebrating.

2/28/87: Koshinaka/Hashimoto vs Yamazaki/Takada: Obviously the appeal here is seeing baby Hash vs these two. Also nice to see Yamazaki in the mix vs Koshinaka I guess. This had some fairly long momentum shifts and then a longish uneven finishing stretch. At times Hashimoto seemed a little green but mostly he did well. He was too much of a threat early. They could maybe contain him with holds but he was big and capable. They took over on him after he missed a spin wheel kick. That included Koshinaka getting in and running right into a tombstone. Eventually, Yamazaki missed a kneedrop and got powered over with this brutal looking suplex slam by Hashimoto. Some good belly to bellys in this one. Takada had a flurry of throws at one point. Koshinaka got a tombstone of his own (a particularly nasty one), but the finish had Takada drop him with a fujiwara arm bar and then a long Scorpion as Yamazaki held Takada at bay. Glad I saw it once, will never go back to it except for maybe to clip a power move or two from Hashimoto.

 

[Curt McGirt]

I thought the Cobra vs. Don Arakawa was a miracle match on the '80s set, even though nobody liked it. Arakawa was completely unknown to me, Takano sucked, and it was just great stuff. 

[Curt McGirt]

Arakawa/Daryl Peterson was a fun bit of comedy. It's interesting that NJPW even had comedy considering the only other match I can recall, besides Yano's stuff, is the exoticos showing up on the '80s set (which you absolutely must see, just for Fujiwara's imitation fruity jump over a dropdown alone). Peterson is an enormous guy, with a very, say, early Bundy or Moose Cholak look about him, not fat but thick, very tall, singlet. Definitely a pro wrestler. Don is built basically like Kantaro Hoshino or Gran Hamada to give a New Japan comparison. Junior size. He immediately starts giving Peterson shit and it's amusing because Peterson acts kind of incredulous to the bullshit. I don't remember it all but it was pretty funny. Seemingly Arakawa's only real move was a falling tree splash which in and of itself is comedic. They do strength spots where Arakawa is basically Mighty Mouse or Scrabby Doo running against the cat's hand or whatever; we get the attempted bodyslam from littler guy and that ends it as Peterson just falls on him for the pin. A fun 7 minutes that the crowd was into. 

Fujiwara/Murdoch was interesting. After watching the AEW PPV last night you wonder if a modern audience would have the patience for it, because it's so slow and is mostly just front facelocks and grappling through other holds, but if the individual personalities shined through -- and these are big personalities -- it might've worked. As I said they mostly work basic stuff on the feet at first. Here's where the 'meta' vibe that Matt referred to kicks in: Murdoch basically tells via gesture for Fujiwara to work his right arm instead of his left (or, "Hey man, I'm not a damn luchador"), then they lock up and Fujiwara immediately goes back to the left for his armbar, haha. On the ground Fujiwara is obviously more comfortable and goes for a couple armbars. Then they stand up again and it's time for Dickie to Dickie. He blocks Fujiwara's headbutt by grabbing his head with BOTH HANDS twice and that clearly pisses Fujiwara off because the next couple aren't his typical big wind-ups but short, stiff and to the point. Murdoch goes for the brainbuster a couple times, throws an okay dropkick, but busts out an absolutely awesome elbow drop that reminded me for some reason of Ted Dibiase (which is funny considering Dick's part in Ted's face-turn blood angle in Mid-South). They brawl to countout to go home and Dick insists on both of them getting their hand raised and faces it up for the crowd, who had chanted for a restart but Dick nixed it out of fairness and good sportsmanship and all. I bet this being filmed at ringside where you could see their facial expressions and hear it better would have elevated it a lot but as is it's great stuff. 

Edited November 24, 2024 by Curt McGirt

[Matt D]

2/5/88: Hase vs Takada: Got to admit, I've found the Top of the Super Juniors tournament a little tedious but this was exceptional. Takada came out and slapped Hase immediately, slapped him so hard that he almost got knocked out. Hase, now playing Takada's game, went and slapped him in the ropes. That opened Hase up for a huge Takada kick and that was almost the match. He recovered enough to beat the count but was behind for the next many minutes until he was able to slip behind and hit a German. Then he controlled for a bit until Takada came back and they went into a finish. Finally, Hase hit the Northern Lights but Takada got his foot on the rope. They both tumbled out and hip tossed each other over the rail for the draw. Takada had been a point beneath Hase in the ratings and this caused Koshinaka to come out pissed at Hase. Very good because it wasn't just 50/50 but instead had an underlying impetus in a way many of these junior matches just don't.

2/7/88: Vader vs Inoki: This was overlaid by english commentary from after Inoki's death by Kevin Kelly and we lose the crowd noise and boy would I have rather had the crowd noise. Inoki is cautious. Vader gets an early advantage with the Vader Attack. Inoki tries the pumphandle which has worked in the past but Vader is learning and gets to the ropes. Vader dominates but Inoki hits the enziguiris staggering him. They both tumble out. Vader gets him and charges him into the post though. Then a masked ninja dude comes out and actually attacks both of them. Inoki gets the better of things and Vader staggers over the rail. Kelly just assumes it's Tiger Jeet Singh. It wasn't in 87. Don't think it is here.

Edited December 3, 2024 by Matt D

[Matt D]

2/7/88: Fujinami/Kimura vs SSM/Choshu: Good title match tag here, like you'd expect. Fujinami goes right after Choshu to start and they control for a bit but then SSM gets involved and they take over first on Kimura and then on Fujinami. Long stretch but it's compelling. There was one bit where Choshu had to grab the arm to turn the Scorpion over which you don't see often and I thought was worth noting. Fujinami's able to get over on Choshu's bandaged up leg though and he and Kimura really work it over. Choshu finally fires back and SSM crushes people but Fujinami and Kimura have the momentum overall and Fujinami's able to win with the Dragon Sleeper which they call by name but I swear I haven't seen much in the footage as of yet.

2/7/88: Koshinaka vs Hase: Top of the Super Juniors finale. Transitions could have been better but this was solid overall. Hase takes over early with a slap to the face basically. There's a moment of Koshinaka hulking up which was kind of awesome to be honest, but he gets cut off. Koshinaka takes over and seals it with a tombstone and then he's up for a bit. Hot finishing stretch. Hase dodges a second butt bump and hits the Northern Lights  but they're too close to the ropes. They trade suplex attempts but Koshinaka gets the dragon for the win. I think no title changed hands so they can go back to Hase vs Koshianka as a hot undercard title match now. 

[Matt D]

Tragic news. The Treadmill is broken. The tread shifted to the side two nights ago and got caught under the edge on one side and ripped. Not sure what the plan is. We can get a new tread and try to retread it or I can try something else like an inexpensive rowing machine. If I do that, I'm not entirely sure what I'll do with cellphone to watch things yet. I'll need some kind of set up. 

Also had various things to catch up on (including this cool Misawa vs Vader match from 2000: https://youtu.be/f8pJBnwyGos

But I have seen three matches, so let's go with them.

2/29/88: Inoki/Murdoch/Koshinaka vs Choshu/Saito/Hase: this felt like one of those big old fashioned 83-84 Choshu Army six-mans. Lots of beating on Koshinaka. Hase lost the offense for his side too. It's interesting to see Hase with these guys because he's very different as a singles. Koshinaka got do his Hulk Up on Hase again which is always a good time. Inoki was really into it from the outside. At one point after a big comeback, Murdoch tagged into Koshinaka so he could hit his butt bump on Hase and then he had to scramble hilariously to get out of the way. I posted some of those bits below. Koshinaka went for the butt bump again against Choshu. That did not go well for him! He lost.

https://bsky.app/profile/mattd-sc.bsky.social/post/3lcokhtfnlk2l

2/29/88: Fujinami vs Jerry Grey: Big thing here is that yes, the Dragon Sleeper IS new and they're making a big deal out of it. Grey didn't quite know how to take it but he took it nonetheless. He took a decent amount of this short match. They said he was only 24 but his has to be where his career peaked. Ah well.

Fujiwara/Kimura vs SAMURAI WARRIOR/Ray Candy: Samurai Warrior is NOT the masked samurai pirate guys. Those are either Bob/Barry Orton or eventually Nitron and someone else. It's blurry. Samurai Warrior is a big dude that Hiro Matsuda or someone found. He does seem a bit like a what if as he's super green but has a lot of throws and suplexes and moves and Fujiwara does really let him look good for a lot of this. Masterful stuff from him. Not much to say about this overall past that. There was one or two scary bumps off things that are not usually scary thanks to Samurai Warrior but Fujiwara won abruptly with the armbar in a way that felt unrelated. Weird to see him tagging with Kengo.

[Curt McGirt]

On 12/12/2024 at 9:02 AM, Matt D said:

I'll need some kind of set up.

I got you almost immediately: a sheet music stand. If you can get one high enough, maybe put it on a box or something. 

Murdoch was such a treasure. Man, that Hulk-Up was OVER, too.

[Matt D]

We have this dumb step thing. It's not really a step climber. It's pretty cheap and small but you can pull on two cords as you take your steps and I used that yesterday. Still think I need the rower, but we'll get there. 

3/3/88: Fujinami/Kimura vs Choshu/Saito: Now Choshu gets to try with Saito. They still talk about Fujinami's dreaded Dragon Sleeper. Choshu always surprises me by just how much offense he takes. Here he starts on the leg but it gets turned around on him and he ends up in a Scorpion. Even when he gets the Belly to Back, he gets cut off and eats an Inazuma Leg Lariat. Saito gets in there and does his stuff but he gets swept under by Fujinami and the Sleeper goes on only for it to get broken up. Finish has Kimura in the tree of woe. Fujinami fights his way back against Saito on the floor but then gets dragged under himself 2x1. Choshu won't stop attacking Kimura in the corner though and draws the DQ and a chaotic post-match. Kind of anti-climactic. Probably would have been better to trade the titles back and forth than this finish.

3/3/88: Antonio Inoki vs Billy Gaspar. This is confusing, even now. Let me read what the WON has to say about this. That was a headache. Lots of dumb stuff about how Sawyer's character work was getting in the way of Owen's cool moves and how Hase had invented so many moves (Dave lists them all) so he'd be a lock for one of the best wrestlers of 88. BUT Billy Gaspar is Bob Orton and the other Gaspar is actually Tyler Mane. They're pirates with cool splatter type masks with hockey masks over them for pre-match. And swords. This has Murdoch getting involved early in the pre-match to even the odds but he gets sworded to oblivion and gets carried out. Orton really works the throat here, a lot of grounded stuff to it. You can tell it's him by how sharp this stuff is, elbows, knees, a great punch to the throat. It builds to Inoki blocking a standing elbow shot with his hands in a very cool way and starting to fire back. He has to work a bit more at it and reverse a suplex but it's a great moment and when he has the Octopus on the other one rushes in (obviously) and Murdoch, bandaged, comes roaring back to make the save. I don't imagine this did box office but it kept Inoki away from Vader for a while at least.

[Matt D]

3/3/88: Keiichi Yamada/Masakatsu Funaki vs Kazuo Yamazaki/Yoji Anjo: This was shot from ringside and I did like it a lot. Yamada is the X factor here and he drove things, an ambush at the start, a pile driver on the floor soon,a crazy moment I'll describe in a minute, leading the double teams that eventually got them the win as much as anything else. I guess I have a little bit better sense of Funaki and Anjo now but mainly it's Funaki's explosiveness and dropkick that makes him standout. So the crazy moment was Yamada being in a hold and just deciding to take a bite out of Yamazaki's ear. And then Yamazaki bit back and then Funaki bit right into his side! Maeda's fired and they're all eating each other. Crazy stuff. This had a raw, violent feeling I liked more than..

3/4/88: Takada/Yamazaki vs Hase/Kobayashi: I liked the assault by the beginning as Kobayashi brought out something in Hase, reminding him that he is a Choshu guy and the finish was good with Takada dodging a top rope move, hitting the spin wheel kick and winning with a beautiful dragon suplex to make himself another viable challenger to Hase. But these juniors matches are such a slog when I'd rather see Inoki, Fujinami, Kimura, Fujiwara, Super Strong Machine, Choshu, Saito, Sakaguchi, Vader, Buzz Sawyer, etc. etc. One out of six will have a great underlying story or entry point or really good transitions and they all have hot finishing stretches but mostly they're just big moves and meaningless transitions and they really grind you down after a while, especially as right now they feel like almost half of the footage. Hase's arrival has helped as he's a different, unique sort of wrestler, but it's still frustrating.

[Curt McGirt]

Here is proof of the Vader/Inoki riot

[Matt D]

Treadmill is back online. The 22 year old and I (he did most of the heavy lifting to be honest) worked it out for the most part. We'll see how long it lasts. Some of these I watched a while ago so let me try to get my memory going.

3/11/88: Inoki/Murdoch vs Fujinami/Kimura: EDIT: Went back for this one quickly. It was a rematch of the finals from December (and a way for Inoki/Murdoch to get their win back). I think this was non-title. Fujinami/Kimura attacked Murdoch to begin with a double dropkick and controlled for a few minutes. Murdoch tried to fight out of the corner but kept getting swept under until he reversed a whip and hit an early calf branding. They went back and forth for a while including a very good Inoki vs Fujinami lock up that felt like a big deal. Eventually they took over on Kimura's arm. He got a hot tag to Fujinami and they tossed Murdoch off the top when he went for calf branding again. The dragon sleeper and then inazuma leg lariat both got broken up by Inoki and Murdoch ended up getting a roll up out of nowhere for the win. Good, larger than life stuff.

3/11/88: Takada vs Hase: The best juniors matches from 87-this point in 88 start with an ambush of some sort at the bell. Here it was Hase nailing Takada at the bell and then killing him with a clothesline. Remember, he was avenging a loss here. Takada working from underneath was some of the most emotive I've ever seen him and it all leads to a huge moment where he just smacks the hell out of Hase off the ropes. Great stuff. And it doesn't really look back from there either. Them having such a heated (and one-sided) beginning means that you can do the momentum shift and then build to a comeback where things are finally even and it worked great with Hase ultimately surviving after both guys missing off the top. This was one of the better juniors matches of this era. I clipped a few key moments below.

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https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:lb2j4sijdt7a2hvzw2l67lkw/post/3lediyyxcws27

3/11/88: Choshu/Saito vs Billy/Gary Gaspar: Gary is Tyler Mane. Billy is Bob Orton. Gaspars had cool red lightning bolt like lines on their masks here. They charged the ring to start but Saito and Choshu had their number early. Billy finally made the save for Gary and they took over. They took over on Saito for a bit. Choshu saved him. Honestly, this went back and forth like that for a while. Orton's stuff all looks great like usual. Mane is clunky but game. Choshu and Saito have their doubleteams, which gives them the edge, and have them set up for the win before the Gaspars use their swords to destroy Saito and Choshu makes the save.

3/14/88: Inoki/Murdoch vs Billy/Gary Gaspar: Gary looked pretty solid here actually. His strikes aren't great even if he's starting high and swinging low, but he did a lot of other things well. He stared this and had a great test of strength with Inoki who was making all of his best faces, then an elbow off with Murdoch. Then they did heel miscommunication before things settled down to heel control. Another inconclusive finish overall with Inoki having an advantage but Billy coming in with a chair. Murdoch saved the day and made challenges after the match. The gaspars had less interesting hockey masks only for this one. I've got Inoki's test of strength fight below:

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https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:lb2j4sijdt7a2hvzw2l67lkw/post/3lespnll67s2c

3/14/88: Choshu/Saito/Kobayahi vs Fujinami/Kimura/Koshinaka: We come in with them beating on Fujinami. Fujinami fires back but eats a Choshu back suplex. Fujinami makes it to Kimura who tires to box Saito's face only to eat  Saito suplex. Usual stuff from these guys with the double and triple teams in the corner. Kimura catches the foot on a spin wheel kick and Koshinaka comes in. He runs into a foot (but gets the Butt butt only to end up in the wrong corner) and we get the longer extended heat. Kobayashi is definitely working the hardest out of the gusys on his side. Eventually, there's a comeback and Kobayashi accidentally hits his own partner and Fujinami finishes him with the Robinson Backbreaker, which alongside the Dragon Sleeper is the new move for 1988 for him. this was fun as you'd expect.

Edited January 15 by Matt D

[Matt D]

3/14/88: Tanaka/Yamada vs Yamazaki/Takada: Pretty fun stuff to be honest, and a good look at Tanaka. He started against Takada and they got cute. Cartwheels and headstands, mirrored escapes. Stuff you don't usually see with the UWF guys. I wonder if Maeda being gone has changed anything? Tanaka moves so well. I love watching him hit the rope and his soaring dropkick into the corner is probably the best move in the whole company, Hase's northern lights, Vader's hanging corner charge, and Fujinami's 1-2 punch of the Robinson Backbreaker/Dragon Sleeper be damned.  It's impactful and majestic. Yamada controls a lot of this with fun double teams, tandem dropkicks, rolling kappo kicks, and this really great spot where they wait for their opponent to get up and crush him with a dropkick from either angle. Hits a pile driver on the floor too. Takada comes back with an enziguiri though. Finish has Yamazaki eat a missile dropkick from his own partner as he had a full nelson on but then come back with a spin wheel kick and a killer suplex. He had really developed into a total package in the previous year. Not just the kicks.

3/19/88: Choshu/SSM/Saito vs Fujinami/Kimura/Takano: Just 7 minutes with cuts. A lot of Choshu's team beating on Takano and then Fujinami. We haven't seen much of Takano at all. He got a comeback at least. Fujinami hit the Robinson Backbreaker right into the Dragon Sleeper in quick succession but it got broken up. Finish had him saving Takano on a Choshu lariat but then Takano ate the Saito suplex and Choshu lariated Fujinami to stop the save. Just business as usual here given the clipping.

3/19/88: Inoki vs Billy Gaspar: It's insane this was a month of matches for them! It goes from Vader to the Gaspar Pirates with their hockey masks! This was maybe the big blow off, but it wasn't really. Gaspar is obviously Orton. You can tell by how nice the suplex is and his great bump through the ropes. He controlled early but Inoki fought back for the most part. Stuff you'd expect. It got real goofy at the end as Gary Gaspar ended up in the ring after a great ref bump (where Inoki accidentally tossed the ref out of the ring with Billy), and Inoki made short work of the larger, wrong Gaspar and pinned him instead of the guy he was actually fighting. Nice horror movie image as Billy slowly moved towards Inoki post match with the bell. He did some damage but Murdoch made the save. This couldn't have drawn.

[Matt D]

3/19/89: Hase (c) vs Koshinaka: This was really good! Not perfect. But really good. This is the match where I think they institutionalized what I mentioned above, with someone getting swept under early in these Junior matches, giving them a hook and allowing for build to the finishing stretch instead of just moves the whole way through. Here Koshinaka picked up Hase and smashed his shoulder into the post. He followed it up with chinlocks and other things. Eventually they did go back and forth with Hase selling the shoulder a bit on offense before thye moved on but it led to an amazing finishing stretch. They went tumbling out as Koshianka tried the dragon suplex. Hase came flying back in with a body press but Koshinaka stepped back to catch him in a beautiful gutbuster. He hit the dragon suplex but they were in the ropes. Then he went back to the chinlock but this time a body scissored sleeper and everything got pretty dramatic. Hase survived just barely (he's good at that!) got jammed on the northern lights, ate the butt butt in the corner, but when Koshinaka went up for it off the top, he stepped back and caught him and hit him with Koshinaka's own dragon suplex for the win. Good, dramatic stuff. I wish they'd still tighten it up 15% more but this is so much better than a lot of the juniors stuff we were getting in 86-87.

3/19/89: Kobayashi/Honaga vs Takada/Yamazaki: I had posted  this years ago but am only now just seeing it in context. I linked it below for everyone. The best way I can explain it (and i have no idea if this is what they were going for) is that Yamazaki (A UWF guy under Maeda) and Kobayashi (one of Choshu's guys) decided to take the animosity from their mentors and run with it against each other even though it was now moot. Because they just go at it from he start. A lot of this isn't a match but just people trying to hold them back. Kobayashi is a jerk in the best of situations and a hot head and dynamic as hell and he just crosses the ring and smacks Yamazaki, that sort of thing. We didn't get a great look at Honaga here, not really, but he hung well enough from what I can tell. He did lose in the end and post match, Yamazaki stood on the ring and had Kobayashi smack him as he had his hands behind his back and it's pure Inoki BS mixed in with Choshu and Maeda in the best way. NOOJ.

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