American vs. Japanese tag matches

Rather than comparing matches or wrestlers, I'd like to compare match types. I should note that I'm referring to Japanese men's heavyweight tag matches since junior and joshi tags are a different animal. Anyway, American and Japanese heavyweight tags are often lumped together since they're both centered around the heel team working over a face in peril to build to a hot tag. However, there are some subtle but important differences that are often overlooked. Like, if you compare Midnight Express vs. Rock & Roll Express to Misawa/Kobashi vs. Kawada/Taue, there are clear differences in structure and emphasis. Of course, not every match will contain all these elements, and matches from one style having elements from the other style is hardly unheard of. Still, I think these work as generalizations.

-Lengthy babyface shine where the heels are humiliated but not necessarily placed in peril

-One FIP segment

-Referees are stricter, so double-teams and other illegal maneuvers require a ref distraction

-Strong emphasis on hope spots and cutoffs

-Finish usually comes shortly after the hot tag

-Both members of the face team usually play FIP, often with a heel-in-peril segment in between

-Referees are more lenient; double-teams and the like take place openly and in plain view

-Hardly any hope spots; the first attempt to tag out is usually successful

-When an attempt to tag out is unsuccessful, it's usually because his partner has been taken out

-Lengthy finishing runs

But more than specific elements, I'd say the key difference between the two is the idea they're trying to get across. In an American tag, the faces have a clear advantage in a fair fight, so the drama comes from their attempts to overcome heel skulduggery. In a Japanese tag, the heels are worthy adversaries, so the faces prove their mettle by withstanding the beating the heel team inflicts.