Devil Masami
Nov 7, 2019 6:53:57 GMT -5
Post by elliott on Nov 7, 2019 6:53:57 GMT -5
I've wanted to do a thread for Devil for a while but I'm not quite sure exactly what to say. "Top 5" Joshi wrestler doesn't seem to mean much these days. Only 4 Joshi workers made the GWE top 100 and none finished better than 49. I'd probably rank Devil in the 15-20 range if we were to do that list again. She has the top tier matches to compete with anybody in history and a longevity as a top tier worker the other Joshi greats (Hokuto, Nakano, Chigusa etc) don't really have. I know people tend to hate Super Heel Masami and to be fair, I haven't watched that stuff in basically 20 years. But we have a long stretch from 1980-1993 where she consistently looks like one of the best wrestlers on the planet (when that meant more than it ever did in terms of footage). She doesn't have 200 long matches on tape from that era like Flair, Lawler, Jumbo or Hansen. But we have more than enough great/all time classic matches that we can tell its more of a footage issue than her not cranking out great shit. She's more like El Satanico than Ric Flair. Not as many matches as you'd like in a perfect world, but more than enough to be able to confidently say "yeah, this person is clearly an all timer."
Devil was one of the best Joshi workers in terms of the basics such as working holds, simple strikes and offensive moves. She also had all of the great high end offense that made early-mid 80s AJW stand out. Where Devil really separates herself from her direct peers is her pacing, psychology and structuring. Devil could work the crazy pace that Jaguar/Chigusa/Lioness/Angels were pushing, but Devil added depth and grit to those matches. She forced those women to slow things down just enough to give things a greater impact
Where Devil really separates herself from practically everyone in the history of wrestling is her acting and facial expressions. Devil is to facial expressions as Lawler is to punching or Volk Han is to matwork.
She was blessed with an interesting face in general for a wrestler, but she is so expressive and shows such a depth of emotion. Its something that always stands out no matter what part of her career you're watching. If its a mid 80s tag match against the Jumping Bomb Angels, you might be impressed by Devil's athleticism and execution. In the early 90s you'll find yourself praising the "veteran touches" shes adding to matches while the rest of the Joshi scene is all fast paced matches. But the facial expressions always stand out. Whether she's selling pain or staring down a younger worker she's always on point and knows exactly how to play it. She is able to really add a high level of drama other's are simply unable too. Its similar to the effect that Mayumi Ozaki has. Only Devil was better at everything than Ozaki (and I LOVE Ozaki). Really Ozaki was sort of the next generation junior version of Devil.
In terms of must see matches, I would drop everything and immediately run out and watch these if you haven't or haven't watched them recently:
w/ Jaguar vs Crush Gals 6/28/84
vs Chigusa 8/22/85
vs Chigusa 4/15/87
vs Kandori 7/14/88
vs Itsuki Yamazaki 8/30/91
vs Nakano 4/18/93
All time great. Probably the most underrated wrestler ever.
Devil was one of the best Joshi workers in terms of the basics such as working holds, simple strikes and offensive moves. She also had all of the great high end offense that made early-mid 80s AJW stand out. Where Devil really separates herself from her direct peers is her pacing, psychology and structuring. Devil could work the crazy pace that Jaguar/Chigusa/Lioness/Angels were pushing, but Devil added depth and grit to those matches. She forced those women to slow things down just enough to give things a greater impact
Where Devil really separates herself from practically everyone in the history of wrestling is her acting and facial expressions. Devil is to facial expressions as Lawler is to punching or Volk Han is to matwork.
She was blessed with an interesting face in general for a wrestler, but she is so expressive and shows such a depth of emotion. Its something that always stands out no matter what part of her career you're watching. If its a mid 80s tag match against the Jumping Bomb Angels, you might be impressed by Devil's athleticism and execution. In the early 90s you'll find yourself praising the "veteran touches" shes adding to matches while the rest of the Joshi scene is all fast paced matches. But the facial expressions always stand out. Whether she's selling pain or staring down a younger worker she's always on point and knows exactly how to play it. She is able to really add a high level of drama other's are simply unable too. Its similar to the effect that Mayumi Ozaki has. Only Devil was better at everything than Ozaki (and I LOVE Ozaki). Really Ozaki was sort of the next generation junior version of Devil. In terms of must see matches, I would drop everything and immediately run out and watch these if you haven't or haven't watched them recently:
w/ Jaguar vs Crush Gals 6/28/84
vs Chigusa 8/22/85
vs Chigusa 4/15/87
vs Kandori 7/14/88
vs Itsuki Yamazaki 8/30/91
vs Nakano 4/18/93
All time great. Probably the most underrated wrestler ever.
