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Post by nintendologic on Aug 18, 2021 13:18:06 GMT -5
Randy Savage vs. Tito Santana (WWF, 4/22/86)
The commentators keep blathering about the possibility of certain things drawing a disqualification, but make no mistake: this is a no-DQ match. Before the match, Savage shoves Santana and hides behind Elizabeth when Santana tries to retaliate. What a fantastic scumbag he was. He then blindsides Santana while still wearing his shades and bandana after feigning heading to the floor. He goes up top for a diving double axehandle, but Santana catches him in the breadbasket on the way down. Savage rolls to the outside for a breather, but Santana tosses him over the guardrail and rams a chair into his face. He then tries to send Savage into the ringpost but gets sent in himself. Savage goes to work on offense and shows why he's one of the all-time greats in that department. His punches are world-class as expected from a guy who cut his teeth wrestling in the Memphis region, and he also has a nice array of suplexes and flying moves. For those who are unaware, one longstanding criticism of Gorilla Monsoon as a commentator was that he would do things to get himself over at the expense of the wrestlers like criticizing them for not hooking the leg on pin attempts when the house style called for them to only do so on the finish. I don't know when that supposed edict came into effect, but Savage hooks the leg on several pin attempts here. Amusingly, Gorilla criticizes him for being so focused on hooking the leg that he neglected the upper body. Savage dumps Santana to the floor and tries to clobber him with a chair, but Santana rams him into the seat of one of the chairs at ringside. In a clever spot, Savage plays possum on the apron and then slugs Santana when he tries to roll back in the ring. A knee lift sends Santana back to the floor, where he narrowly misses having his head taken off by a wild chair swing. Savage drops the chair and goes up top for another double axehandle attempt, but that backfires as Santana drives the abandoned chair into his midsection. He tried to work it to make it as safe as possible, but still, ouch. Back in the ring, Santana's fiery Latin temper gets the best of him as he pulls Savage up to inflict more punishment instead of pinning him. Savage tries to head to the locker room, but Santana cuts him off. Savage is able to block a figure-four attempt by raking Santana's eyes and again rolls to the outside to establish separation. They brawl on the floor, and Savage gets busted open after being sent into the ringpost. We get a pretty epic punch exchange back in the ring, and Savage slugs the referee after raking Santana's eyes. Santana hits the flying forearm, but there's no ref to make the count. He comes to in time for Savage to steal the win by rolling Santana up with a handful of tights.
Tier: 4. It's increasingly apparent that the bottom of my list will consist mostly of matches that don't necessarily have a lot of depth but are compact and action-packed with strong transitions. This match fits that description to a T as they make excellent use of the no-DQ stip without making it an all-out garbage brawl. Savage in his prime is a joy to watch.
Ted DiBiase vs. Dick Murdoch (Mid-South, 12/31/85)
Murdoch jumps DiBiase before the bell, but DiBiase fires back and lands his awesome powerslam. Murdoch rolls to the outside to regroup and remove his ring jacket. He gains control with a knee lift after returning to the ring and works over DiBiase's midsection, but DiBiase lands a right that Murdoch sells like he bit into an ice cube. Murdoch heads to the floor again, where he takes over after jumping over the guardrail and nailing DiBiase when he tries to give chase. He then starts working over DiBiase's neck to soften him up for the brainbuster. I especially liked how he rammed the back of DiBiase's head into the turnbuckle. A big right from Murdoch sends DiBiase to the floor, where Murdoch busts him open by ramming his head into the timekeeper's table. He then stomps on DiBiase from the apron as DiBiase tries to make it back into the ring. Murdoch whips DiBiase into the ropes, but DiBiase ducks the elbow and lands a big punch of his own. However, Murdoch recovers first and goes on the attack with punches that DiBiase probably barely felt even though it looked like Murdoch was potatoing him. He fires some kicks into the midsection, but DiBiase grabs the leg and lands a right and then a fist drop that Murdoch does his patented Curly spinning on the floor sell for. They cut to a commercial break with both men on the floor, and when they come back, Murdoch is bleeding as well. DiBiase works over the cut with punches and biting, but a missed fist drop gives Murdoch a necessary breather, which he extends with an eye rake. DiBiase tries to load up the glove while the referee is admonishing Murdoch, but Murdoch sends him to the floor with a knee to the back. He guillotines DiBiase on the guardrail and then jams a chair into his neck. That's some Fuchi-level violence. Murdoch whips DiBiase into the turnbuckle and follows with calf branding. He takes a moment to exchange words with the fans at ringside before going for the pin, which enables DiBiase to kick out. He manages to load up the glove, and when Murdoch goes for the brainbuster, he flips out and nails him with the loaded glove for the win.
Tier: 4. When I started this project, this match was just on the outside looking in. After revisiting it, though, it ended up bumping Jumbo/Martel from the likely #100 spot due to more hatred and better selling. For those keeping track, that's three matches that were on my list at the beginning that have been knocked off. The only thing that's for sure about my list (other than 6/9/95 being #1) is nothing's for sure.
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Post by nintendologic on Aug 19, 2021 19:20:15 GMT -5
Steve Austin vs. Kurt Angle (WWF, 8/19/01)
How fitting that this match would come up on the 20th anniversary of it taking place. They brawl on the entrance ramp before the bell rings, with Austin neutralizing an early Angle advantage with a thumb to the eye. Once they make it into the ring, Angle takes Austin down with a double-leg and goes into ground and pound mode. Austin works the leg for a bit, which serves no real purpose other than to allow Angle to do an ankle lock reversal. However, Austin shows why he's one of the all-time greats by doing what he can to make it far more than a throwaway segment. First, he hobbles to the floor and nails Angle with a clothesline when he tries to give chase. Then, he backdrops a charging Angle to the floor to give him additional time to walk off the damage to his ankle. He brings Angle back into the ring and starts hitting vertical suplexes, which again serves mainly as a setup for Angle's rolling Germans. Again, though, Austin salvages the sequence with his attention to detail. After hitting a superplex, he sells the damage to his back and needs to use the ropes to pull himself to his feet. When he makes it up, he hits a stunner. Angle kicks out, so Austin does the logical thing and hits a second stunner, the impact of which sends Angle to the floor. Austin follows, and Angle blades after Austin rams him into the ringpost. In one of the most shockingly brutal sequences in company history, Austin repeatedly sends Angle into the post like he's trying to break open a coconut. He then places Angle against the apron and pummels him with a Bill Dundee-esque series of rights and lefts. This is by far the best selling performance of Angle's career, and the way he crumples to the ground after the punch combo is especially amazing. At this point, JR observes that the crowd is almost in a hushed silence. Normally when a commentator says something like that, he's trying to cover for a dead crowd. However, the audience here genuinely seemed in shock at the ass-beating they were witnessing. They popped huge for all of Angle's comebacks, so it clearly didn't take them out of the match. Angle finally gains some momentum when he shoves Austin over the barricade and then catches him in an ankle lock when he tries to climb back over. Angle dragging Austin back into the ring by his ankle with Austin desperately grasping at the ring steps with his fingertips was incredibly badass. When Austin heads to the outside after making the ropes, Angle hits a belly-to-belly suplex and then a back suplex on the floor. Back in the ring, Angle hits the moonsault but can't make the cover. He eventually manages to drape his arm over Austin, who lifts his shoulder. Austin locks in the million dollar dream after reversing a slam attempt. Angle tries the Bret Hart counter, but Austin kicks out. When Rock employed the counter at WM17, Austin had to release the hold. Here, he maintains the hold while avoiding the pin. A rare example of WWF learned psychology. Angle eventually breaks the hold by sending Austin to the floor. Both the hold and blood loss have taken their toll on Angle, so he's a sitting duck when Austin returns to the ring. He hits a third stunner, but Angle kicks out again. When he goes for a fourth stunner, Angle reverses into an Angle slam. Austin yet again shows his brilliance by rolling onto his stomach so Angle can't drape his arm over him like he had previously. After returning to his feet, Austin slugs referee Earl Hebner. Angle hits a DDT, and Mike Chioda comes down to make the count. After Austin kicks out, he hits Angle with a blatant low blow and then hits Chioda with a stunner. When Tim White comes down, Austin decks him with the championship belt. Angle hits another Angle slam, which brings out Alliance referee Nick Patrick. Rather than making the count, he calls for the DQ. This is one of the few screwjob finishes that actually enhances a match because it makes you really feel Austin's desperation. He was so flummoxed by Angle's refusal to quit that he went to absurd lengths to get disqualified.
Tier: 3. If this isn't five stars, it's right on the cusp. This for me is what Eddie/JBL is for some of you as it has that match's best qualities (gritty bloody brawling, top-notch character work) and none of the flaws (endless downtime, unfortunate racial undertones). The opening minutes are marred somewhat by Angle needing to get his shit in, but everything from the first stunner on, from Austin's offense and heel mannerisms to Angle's selling and extended Misawa-esque comeback, is pitch-perfect.
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Post by elliott on Aug 19, 2021 23:54:07 GMT -5
Steve Austin vs. Kurt Angle (WWF, 8/19/01) Tier: 3. If this isn't five stars, it's right on the cusp. This for me is what Eddie/JBL is for some of you as it has that match's best qualities (gritty bloody brawling, top-notch character work) and none of the flaws ( endless downtime, unfortunate racial undertones). The opening minutes are marred somewhat by Angle needing to get his shit in, but everything from the first stunner on, from Austin's offense and heel mannerisms to Angle's selling and extended Misawa-esque comeback, is pitch-perfect. Have you rewatched Eddy vs JBL since I pointed out your memories of the actual match structure and endless downtime are either totally wrong or exaggerated? gweproject.freeforums.net/post/9942/thread
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Post by nintendologic on Aug 20, 2021 9:01:59 GMT -5
I have not. It's something I've been meaning to do, but I keep putting it off. There's no time like the present, so I'll move it to the top of my to-do list.
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Post by elliott on Aug 20, 2021 13:09:21 GMT -5
Do it do it do it! Love this thread
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Post by nintendologic on Aug 21, 2021 18:28:35 GMT -5
Rick Rude vs. Ricky Steamboat (WCW, 6/20/92)
After that brief detour, it's back to business. Apparently, the Steamboats are the First Family of WCW. Rude tries to force the issue with Richie still in the ring, to which Ricky naturally takes umbrage. The first seven and a half minutes are a total one-sided ass-kicking with Steamboat zeroing in on Rude's ribs. There was probably no wrestler in America at this point better at working over a body part than Steamboat nor was there one better at selling an injured body part than Rude, so it's a match made in heaven. Jesse Ventura even compares Steamboat to Dr. No, which I found hilarious. The amazing thing about Rude's selling is his ability to project pain without coming across as sympathetic, which is a tough tightrope to walk. The tide turns when Rude catches Steamboat coming in with a knee that drops him like a sack of potatoes. That kind of thing happens in real fights all the time, but it feels cheap and unsatisfying in traditional pro wrestling. The beauty of the Iron Man gimmick is that it allows for unorthodox falls without ripping off the fans. Rude rolls Steamboat up with a handful of tights to go up 1-0 and then hits the Rude Awakening to go up 2-0. We see the debut of the heel getting intentionally disqualified to solidify an advantage when Rude comes off the top with an illegal diving knee drop. The DQ narrows his lead to 2-1, but the extra damage done to Steamboat makes it worth it, especially when he follows it up with a small package to go up 3-1. Rude goes in for the kill, but Steamboat fends him off by going after the injured ribs. Rude thus decides to basically play prevent defense. He applies a camel clutch and prevents Steamboat from making the ropes by dropping his weight down on Steamboat's back. He then does his classic "tries to swivel his hips but can't because he's injured" spot. He reapplies the camel clutch, but Steamboat this time reverses into an electric chair drop. Rude hits a swinging neckbreaker, which I don't really care for as part of his arsenal since it's too similar to the Rude Awakening. Regardless, it leads to an incredible series of near falls as Rude really presses down on Steamboat's shoulders. Steamboat fights out of a chinlock, but Rude cuts him off with a kitchen sink. Rude hits a piledriver but is too fatigued to make an immediate cover, so it only gets two. He then goes for a tombstone piledriver, which is actually really smart since he can simply fall onto his opponent for the pin after hitting it. However, he ends up being hoist by his own petard as they do the WCW tombstone reversal spot. Steamboat hits the tombstone and collapses onto Rude for the pin to make it 3-2. It's notable that two of Steamboat's three pins in this match consist of him simply falling on top of Rude, which really gets over the exhaustion of both men. There's an unfortunate misfire when Rude illogically goes up again for no real reason other than to set up a Steamboat superplex. Apparently, coming off the top is legal if you remain in continuous physical contact with your opponent the whole time. At least, that was the explanation Mid-South used for why calf branding was legal. After a double clothesline drops both men, Rude kind of awkwardly moves on top of Steamboat for a pin attempt. Steamboat bridges up and turns it into a backslide to tie things up. He then goes for a rapid-fire series of pin attempts, but Rude shuts him down with a jawbreaker. Rude goes for another Rude Awakening, but Steamboat reverses into one of his own (these were the days when finisher theft was mostly unheard of). Rude protects his finisher by putting his foot on the ropes rather than kicking out. Rude locks in a sleeper with a little more than four minutes remaining and holds onto it for most of the remainder of the match. Submissions of that length are usually a huge turnoff for me, but the clock counting down makes it seem extra dramatic. It helps that they work the hell out of it. Steamboat tries to escape by ramming Rude into the turnbuckle, but Rude holds on like a pit bull. He then tries to make the ropes, but Rude knocks his arm away with his leg. Of course, in the real world Steamboat would have suffered permanent brain damage from being deprived of oxygen for so long. But that's the magic of pro wrestling. The referee drops the arm with less than a minute remaining, but Steamboat comes back to life. He climbs the turnbuckle and falls back on Rude's injured ribs for the pin, going ahead 4-3 with a little more than 30 seconds remaining. Now Rude is the one who goes nuts with pin attempts, but they're to no avail as Steamboat holds on.
Tier: 3. I used to think the number of falls in this match was excessive, but I've come around on that. You have to build drama by giving Steamboat a deficit to overcome, and anything more than a two-fall deficit would have been overkill. You also need the intentional DQ spot to get over the strategic aspect of the match, so your only real choice then is to have Rude go up 3-1. You could hardly ask for a better mix of action and psychology in a 30-minute match built largely around holds. This could've been tier 2 if Rude had sold an atomic drop.
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Post by nintendologic on Aug 23, 2021 15:02:27 GMT -5
Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin (WWF, 3/23/97)
This is a match that surely needs no introduction. Austin tackles Bret to start, and they brawl on the floor and into the stands. Extended crowd brawling pretty much always sucks, but it didn't last long enough here to be truly offensive. It also has a satisfying payoff as Austin tries to piledrive Bret onto the concrete but gets backdropped, prompting him to turn tail and return to the ringside area. They brawl on the floor some more before returning to the ring, where Bret takes control by countering a back body drop attempt with a swinging neckbreaker. He then goes to work on Austin's injured leg. Austin's selling is perfect for his character as he flails around like an animal caught in a bear trap. He tries and fails to fight through the pain because he's too stubborn to acknowledge he can hurt to that degree. Austin catches a break when he dodges a butt splash on his leg and then hits a stunner. He can't get the win with it since there are no pinfalls, but it gives him time to recover. However, it proves to be only a temporary respite as Bret kicks his leg out of his leg after he struggles to his feet. Even though I've probably watched this match dozens of times over the years, I still made some new observations on this recent viewing. For example, I just noticed that Austin tried to go for Bret's eyes when Bret was kicking at his leg. That's the kind of messy action you'd expect to see in a bar fight. After the famous ringpost figure-four, Bret goes to retrieve the ring bell but then thinks better of it and decides to Pillmanize Austin's ankle instead. He places the bell on the apron (hey, you never know when it might come in handy) and grabs a chair. Another detail I just picked on is that Bret initially grabbed a Wrestlemania-branded chair but discarded it in favor of a plain steel chair because the Mania one had padding on the back and seat. Bret goes up after placing the chair around Austin's ankle, but Austin recovers in time to clobber him with the chair as Jerry Lawler cackles "It's Wrestlemania, baby!" After walking some feeling back in his leg, he shows off his submission game as he applies an Octagon special of all things and then a Boston crab. He goes for a sharpshooter, but Bret rakes his eyes. Austin dumps Bret to the floor, but Bret whips him into the guardrail, busting him open. Note the change in Austin's demeanor at this point. His selling in the early going was rather exaggerated and heelish, but now it's far more sympathetic, particularly when Bret jams the chair into his leg. Austin blocks a sharpshooter with an eye rake of his own and then fends off Bret in the corner with a low blow. JR declares "Austin's a stud" as he whips Bret into the turnbuckle and stomps a mudhole in the corner. If it wasn't clear before, there was no doubt by this point that Austin was going to explode into a megastar. He tries to strangle Bret with an electric cord, but Bret nails him with the ring bell, which indeed came in handy. He locks in the sharpshooter, and you all know how it ends. One of the keys to this match is that Austin never seems to be on the verge of victory. This is a story of defiance in the face of impossible odds, which makes it an ideal catalyst for a turn because it's something just about everyone can relate to.
Tier: 1. As I've said several times in the past, this is the match I've watched more than any other as well as the one that had the most influence on what I look for in a wrestling match. I can't imagine this ever falling out of desert island status for me.
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Post by nintendologic on Aug 24, 2021 16:43:19 GMT -5
Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk (WCW, 7/23/89)
Flair might be the only wrestler who can go from making his way to the ring in a sequin robe with eye candy on each arm to brawling in the entranceway without missing a beat. Funk engages in all sorts of histrionics while fleeing Flair's early assault, including jumping the guardrail and riling up the fans at ringside. Flair's aggression finally backfires when Funk catches him coming in with a body blow and rams him into the ringpost. He rains down stomps and punches from the apron before bringing Flair back in the hard way with a suplex. Flair manages to suplex Funk to the floor, and after duking it out for a bit, Funk regains control with an eye poke. He goes for a piledriver to follow up on the angle that set this match up, but Flair backdrops him back to the floor. Out there, he decides to pay Funk back for trying to break his neck with neck work of his own. He targets the region with cranks that Funk rather absurdly sells by pointing to his neck and making a face like he stepped on a Lego. He further targets it in the ring with knee drops and a piledriver that Funk does a Curly spin sell for. After a second piledriver, Funk tries to crawl to the back on his hands and knees, but Flair cuts off his escape. He brings Funk back to the ring and locks in the figure-four since he's made his point and he doesn't get paid by the hour. However, Funk whacks him with a branding iron while Gary Hart has the referee distracted. Flair is busted open, and Funk naturally starts targeting the cut with punches. He finally hits the piledriver, but Flair saves his championship by just getting his foot under the ropes like a football that barely breaks the plane. He didn't even have the strength to put his foot on the ropes, which gets over how devastating the piledriver really was, especially with Flair's injured neck. Funk decides to raise the stakes by pulling back the protective mat and trying to piledrive Flair onto the concrete. It always gets me how dispassionate Bob Caudle is when he says "Not on the concrete floor! No, sir!" He sounds like he's responding to a Starbucks barista who's asking him if he wants whipped cream on his latte. Flair manages to avert disaster by countering the piledriver with a backdrop, but Funk continues the assault on the neck in the ring with swinging neckbreakers. He exhorts Flair to submit while doing so, an obvious setup for the I Quit match. He again tries to employ the branding iron with Hart distracting the referee, but Flair hits a knee to the groin and uses the branding iron himself. Now Funk is bleeding as well, which Flair exacerbates by ramming him into the ringpost. He pummels Funk with punches in the corner but misses a jumping knee, enabling Funk to apply a spinning toe hold. Flair trips Funk up and goes for another figure-four, but Funk reverses into a small package. However, Flair manages to grab Funk's left leg on the way down, which enables him to reverse into a small package of his own for the pinfall victory. Muta hits the ring after the match and blows mist in Flair's face, leading to a legendary post-match brawl that also involves Hart, Sting, and WCW head of security Doug Dellinger. Flair with his face covered in blood and mist promising to wear Funk's Texas ass out is the perfect exclamation point to a match like this.
Tier: 3. I'm slightly lower on this match now than I had been in previous years. This time, I thought Funk's goofiness in the opening minutes was a bit too over-the-top. Regardless, this is an incredible brawl and perhaps the most un-Flairlike of Flair's great matches.
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Post by nintendologic on Aug 25, 2021 10:25:08 GMT -5
Jerry Lawler vs. Terry Funk (Memphis, 3/23/81)
Lawler comes to the ring in an all-white wrestling outfit, so you know right off the bat that this is going to be a bloodbath. This is unfortunately another Memphis clip job, although we do get the vast majority of it. We pick things up with Funk on the apron and Lawler trying to go after him. Funk heads outside after taking a bump into the turnbuckle and gets tripped up in the restraining rope. I like that spot because it's buffoonish enough that you can have a laugh at his expense but not so much so that it takes the edge off him. After some clipping, Funk forces Lawler into the corner and drops him to his knees with an elbow to the back of the neck. After dumping Lawler to the floor, he hits more elbows and then an atomic drop (the only actual wrestling move of the match). When Lawler returns to the ring, Funk lands a ridiculous punch combo ending with a massive left hook. Funk misses a fist drop, enabling Lawler to come back with a body blow, an uppercut, and a back elbow. After dodging a Funk haymaker, Lawler stings him with jabs that send him to the floor. He follows Funk to the outside and busts him open by ramming his head into the ring bell. Lawler goes for the pin after hitting a fist drop, but Jimmy Hart breaks it up by whacking him with a cane. Hart disappears under the ring after Lawler gives chase, and Funk regains control with a body shot that may have caught Lawler below the belt followed by a headbutt. He continues the assault with JYD-style crawling headbutts and shrieks like a madman as he gnaws on Lawler's bloody forehead and spits the blood in the air like Kabuki mist. He nails Lawler with his amazing lefts, and Lawler's punch-drunk selling is magnificent. He dumps Lawler to the floor, where Hart gets in another cheap shot. Funk keeps pounding away, but Lawler starts to feel it, and the crowd explodes as he drops the strap. A series of right hooks and uppercuts sends Funk to the canvas, and Lawler hits the diving fist drop. Hart tries to break up the pin with a chair, but Lawler snatches it away from him. However, Funk grabs the chair while Lawler is preoccupied with Hart and uses it to take out Lawler's right leg. He jams the chair repeatedly into Lawler's leg before applying a spinning toe hold (the only actual wrestling hold of the match). When Lawler punches his way out, Hart hands the chair back to Funk to do more damage. He swings the chair so hard that it pops out of his hands when Lawler rolls out of the way, which enables Lawler to grab it after staggering Funk with an uppercut from his knees. Turnabout is fair play as Lawler destroys Funk's leg with repeated chairshots. Funk crawls to the floor, where Lawler inflicts more damage before returning to the ring to win by countout. That has to be the greatest countout finish of all time because hobbling your opponent to the point where they're unable to stand is a decisive victory in my book.
Tier: 3. I'm increasingly leaning toward this as the greatest pure brawl in wrestling history. These two work in punches the way other artists might work in oils or clay. I suppose Lawler could have done a better job of selling the leg, but that's a minor complaint.
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Post by nintendologic on Aug 27, 2021 12:28:03 GMT -5
Barry Windham/Dustin Rhodes vs. Steve Austin/Larry Zbyszko (WCW, 2/29/92)
The Dangerous Alliance members try to get the jump on Windham and Rhodes at the opening bell but are rebuffed. Windham and Larry Z end up brawling on the outside, so Austin and Dustin start out as the legal men. Flip flop and fly from Dustin knocks Austin onto the entrance ramp, where Windham clotheslines him back in. Windham tags in and and shoves Austin into his corner so Larry can come in. They end up back on the entrance ramp, where Windham backdrops his way out of a piledriver attempt. He hits the lariat back in the ring but pulls Larry up from a pin so he can inflict more punishment. Surprisingly, Dustin and not Windham is the one who goes after Larry's hand. Windham goes for a piledriver of his own, but Austin breaks it up with the first of what would be many clotheslines. When Dustin comes in to protest, the DA dump Windham over the top rope onto the floor. Windham takes some big boy bumps on the outside, including being crotched on the guardrail. Windham goes over the top rope again when he crashes and burns on a lariat attempt, where Larry again sends him into the guardrail. Unfortunately, they can't maintain that intensity for the remainder of the match. When they make it back in, it becomes more of a textbook tag match with the DA working Windham over with moves like suplexes and neckbreakers. As Austin applies a chinlock, we get an example of JR at his worst when he mentions that Austin's father played for Rice in the Cotton Bowl. I have no idea if that's true or not (my extensive research consisting of checking Austin's Wikipedia page didn't turn up anything), but even if it is, who gives a shit? Jesse Ventura has had enough as well, so he takes a shot at JR's beloved Oklahoma Sooners by saying they're the only players who take a pay cut when they go to the NFL. Larry applies a sleeper, and Windham does an awesome job of selling being on the verge of being put to sleep before escaping with a jawbreaker. One thing I really like about Windham is how he takes advantage of his height by falling backwards to make a tag. Dustin is a house of fire, and when Larry breaks up a tag, he and Windham end up brawling on the entrance ramp again. Dustin counters a reverse roll-up by grabbing the ropes, but Austin levels him with a clothesline that he does a 360 bump for. Austin does lean a bit too heavily on the chinlock during this part of the match, but they never lose the crowd due to Larry keeping them riled up. Also, he does a much better job of working the second one by putting his feet on the ropes for leverage (with Madusa shaking the ropes the throw the referee off the scent). There's also the recurring theme of Dustin being shut down by Austin's clotheslines, my favorite sequence being when Dustin ducked a pair of clotheslines and hit a crossbody only to be decked by a third clothesline just when it looked like he had it figured out. Like any other sport, if there's a play you know your opponent has no answer for, you keep running it until they prove they can stop it. There's a great visual pinfall when Austin cheapshots Windham on the apron and Dustin rolls him up with a small package while the referee has Windham detained. What made it so great is that Austin was making a continuous effort to kick out. Otherwise, it can be justified as the wrestler simply conserving his energy because he doesn't hear or feel the ref's hand slapping the mat. Dustin finally solves the puzzle of Austin's clotheslines when he ducks one and nails Austin with his own stun gun (unfortunately undershooting him so his face hits the top rope rather than his neck). Windham's right hand is heavily taped due to the Enforcers slamming it with a car door, and he uses it like a cudgel with straight rights and backfists when he comes in off the hot tag. Larry fights off a superplex attempt, but Dustin shoves him off the top turnbuckle. Windham comes off the top with a lariat to get the pin.
Tier: 4. The first six minutes or so are among the best opening minutes of any US tag match ever. Again, though, the intensity dips quite a bit from there, although they do maintain a brisk pace throughout. Some more viciousness from the DA in control and shaving a couple minutes off the Dustin FIP section would have made this the best tag match in WCW history going away.
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Post by nintendologic on Aug 28, 2021 16:19:10 GMT -5
Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Toshiaki Kawada (AJPW, 7/24/95)
This match begins with perhaps the greatest sequences I've seen in a wrestling match. They have to be seen to be believed because a play-by-play won't do them justice. I can't think of a better example of exchanges that were complex, hard-hitting, and smooth without feeling choreographed. The first exchange ends in a stalemate, and the second ends in a boot to Misawa's damaged orbital bone followed by a koppu kick that sends him to the floor. When Misawa returns to the ring, Kawada zeroes in on the orbital bone with kicks. Misawa heads to the outside again, but this time Kawada follows him to powerbomb him on the floor and follow with a knee drop from the apron. Misawa blocks a powerbomb attempt back in the ring and staggers to the corner after Kawada kicks him in the face. Kawada continues to target Misawa's face with kicks in the corner, but Misawa shows why he's the ace as he hulks up and drops Kawada with an elbow barrage. Now Kawada's the one who has to head to the floor as Misawa takes a knee to recover from the punishment he's absorbed. We get some classic Kawada selling after he returns to the ring when he collapses mid-run after Misawa whips him off the ropes. We get another example shortly afterward when he pops up after a German suplex only to collapse and roll to the floor. Misawa rolls him back in, and when he goes up for a frog splash, Kawada counters by rolling to the other side of the ring. Misawa instead applies a facelock which forces a rope break. Kawada blocks another German by grabbing the ropes, and he regains control by chopping Misawa's neck and then hitting his old standby of a rabbit lariat. He applies a sleeper but then turns it into an illegal choke, which is just about the only way to get heat for submissions by this point in All Japan. Misawa fights off a stretch plum attempt, but Kawada shuts him down with a drop toehold followed by another kick to the face. After demolishing Misawa with a pair of backdrop drivers, Kawada goes for the powerbomb again. Misawa reverses into a back body drop, but that puts Kawada in the perfect position to lock in the stretch plum. Awesome transition. That leads to a "wrestler passes out in a hold so his opponent goes for a pin that gets two" spot, which is one of my least favorite things about 90s All Japan. I think the idea is that the referee has no authority to stop a match unless a wrestler verbally submits, so if he passes out in a hold, all his opponent can do is attempt a pin. Of course, that makes no sense, but at least they're consistent. Misawa now knows the risks of the back body drop counter, so when Kawada attempts another powerbomb, he makes the ropes and then knocks Kawada away with an elbow. Kawada recovers first and dumps Misawa on his head with a German suplex. He finally hits the powerbomb, but it only gets two. He hits a second one after a bodyslam and soccer ball kick, but that only gets two as well. A third powerbomb would surely be too much for even Misawa to take, but Kawada can't get him up because he's dead weight. He instead goes for another backdrop, but Misawa makes the ropes and then reverses into a crossbody after Kawada breaks his grip with an enzuigiri. Kawada recovers first and hammers Misawa with mounted punches in frustration. The two trade elbows, and after Kawada switches to kicks to the face, Misawa responds in kind. Those kicks stun Kawada enough that Misawa is able to hit a rolling elbow. I have to say, I don't really get the logic behind Misawa's kicks being more effective in that situation since Kawada is the kicking specialist and Misawa is the one with a broken orbital bone. In any event, after kicking out of a pin attempt, Kawada stops Misawa with a leg kick and then hits another backdrop driver. However, he's too wiped out to fully capitalize. When they both return to their feet, Kawada again goes for Misawa's face, but Misawa ducks an enzuigiri and drops Kawada with an elbow. Kawada manages another brief flurry, but that whiffed enzuigiri was his last real shot at turning the tide. Misawa obliterates him with suplexes and elbows and gets the pin with a running elbow.
Tier: 4. The first ten minutes or so of this match is virtually perfect pro wrestling. After Kawada took control for a second time, though, things fell off for me quite a bit. It was all well-done structurally and mechanically, but it didn't really connect with me as much as I would have liked. Also, this is a prime example of King's Road being increasingly dominated by head drops and the use of strike exchanges as transitions. If that's the route they're going to go, though, I'd rather it be in a relatively lean and compact match like this one than a 40-minute epic. Perhaps more than anything else, this is a texbook example of maximizing the impact of a handful of moves by emphasizing the struggle in the application.
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Post by nintendologic on Aug 29, 2021 12:14:30 GMT -5
Eddie Guerrero vs. Brock Lesnar (WWE, 2/15/04)
Brock asserts his dominance from the get-go by shoving Eddie to the mat off lock-ups. When Eddie refuses to stay down, he escalates to forcing him into the corner and stomping a mudhole. The next few minutes consist of Brock ragdolling Eddie, including a back body drop that practically sends him into orbit, and cutting him off with knees when he tries to fight back. In other words, basically post-UFC Brock in embryonic form. Eddie rolls to the floor after a belly-to-belly sends him all the way across the ring, and they play king of the mountain for a bit. He finally catches a break when he manages to catch Brock with a shoulder to the gut and then guillotines him on the top rope. From there, he tries to take out Brock's leg. Brock fights with all his might to avoid being dragged into the corner (another textbook example of building anticipation through struggle), but Eddie finally succeeds and slams his leg into the ringpost. However, a wounded Brock is still dangerous, as he demonstrates when he pulls Eddie into the post with his good leg. The match has been virtually flawless up to this point, but then a lengthy Brock sleeper slows things to a crawl. The eventual payoff is at least rewarding as Eddie escapes by elbowing Brock's injured leg. Brock attempts a gorilla press, but Eddie slips out and drops him to his knees with a low dropkick. When Eddie comes off the ropes, though, Brock shuts him down emphatically with almost a three-point stance clothesline. Brock struggles to his feet (he could very well have the best selling of any big man in history, particularly of a body part) and lands a German suplex. He goes for a jumping knee in the corner, but Eddie dodges and Brock takes an insane Slaughter-style bump to the floor. Eddie hits a plancha, and they both sell on the floor for a bit. Back in the ring, Brock cuts off Eddie's rally with a stun gun. He then stands over a fallen Eddie and lays on the badmouth. Heel trash talk leading to a babyface comeback is one of my least favorite aspects of modern WWE, but Eddie locking in an STF from the position he was in was a pretty amazing piece of technical wizardry. When Brock breaks the facelock part of the hold by pulling Eddie's arms apart, Eddie gives the hold up and drives Brock's leg into the mat. They fight over a figure-four, showing once again how struggling for a hold or move makes it all the more rewarding when they finally succeed. After Brock makes the ropes, Eddie applies a different variation of the STF, but Brock powers out. After Eddie kicks out of a pin attempt following a spinebuster, we get another lengthy Brock sleeper to drag things down. Eddie escapes by driving Brock into the turnbuckle, bloodying Brock's nose in the process. After Eddie crashes and burns on a missile dropkick, Brock goes back to killing time on the mat, which is made even worse by some more lame WWE trash talk. I don't know who first had the idea for WWE heels to deliver extended soliloquies during their matches, but whoever it was belongs in prison. Eddie eventually headbutts his way out of a waistlock and hits the three amigos after Brock misses a corner charge. He misses a frog splash, though, which leads to Brock hitting the F5. However, referee Brian Hebner gets taken out in the process, and it doesn't take a crystal ball to figure out what's about to happen. Brock goes for the pin, but there's no referee to make the count. He then rolls to the outside to retrieve the championship belt. Before he can nail Eddie with it, Goldberg runs in (making this the greatest match he has ever been involved in) and lays him out with a spear. Eddie covers Brock, and when Hebner comes to, he continues the family tradition of blatantly telegraphing the kick-out with an exaggerated slow count. Eddie then tries to use the belt as a weapon, but Brock kicks him in the gut and picks him up for another F5. This time, though, Eddie counters by DDTing Brock onto the belt. As Eddie goes up top, the crowd starts to come alive as they start to sense that he might actually win this. Sure enough, he hits the frog splash and does the impossible.
Tier: 3. No two ways about it-going 30 was a mistake. This is paced nearly perfectly for a 25-minute match, but there were several moments where they were clearly struggling to fill time. It's a testament to how brilliant the rest of the match is that those interminable Brock submissions are minor annoyances rather than dealbreakers. Eddie winning the title and the post-match celebration are among the greatest moments in company history, if not wrestling history.
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Post by nintendologic on Aug 30, 2021 16:40:53 GMT -5
MS-1 vs. Sangre Chicana (EMLL, 9/23/83)
First fall: We're thrown right into the action as the footage picks up with Chicana getting his ass kicked in front of his mother at ringside. MS-1 pummels him with kicks and stomps and draws blood by ramming his head into the apron. MS-1's punches frankly leave quite a bit to be desired (like Makabe, he does them Abyss-style where he clubs his opponent with his wrist), but they're mitigated by Chicana's selling. In fact, his sell job is by far the highlight of the match. Just about everyone who has written about the match has praised it in the highest terms, and I'll join in the chorus of praise. Throughout the match, even when he gains an advantage, he's unable to sustain it for long because he's constantly on the verge of passing out from blood loss. He frequently has to punch himself in the forehead to remain conscious, and he even headbutts the apron at one point in the third fall. After the beating he has sustained here, Chicana is stumbling around ringside like a drunkard who's been tossed from a bar, so MS-1 hoists him up and rolls him into the ring. MS-1 gets the pin with a top rope splash with Chicana not even managing token offense. If this fall were a standalone match, it would lead to someone being written out of a territory. MS-1 adds insult to injury by booting Chicana from the ring after the pin.
Second fall: A woman (possibly another relative) wipes the blood from Chicana's forehead before MS-1 can continue the assault. This fall begins in much the same vein as the first with MS-1 brutalizing Chicana with punches and kicks and ramming him into the apron. At one point, he get a shot of Chicana's mom watching the match and smoking a cigarette. It obviously isn't her first rodeo as she seems rather nonplussed by the sight of her son being beaten to a bloody pulp, like it's just another day at the office for her boy. Just when all seems lost, we get one of the all-time classic transitions when Chicana ducks a punch and sends MS-1 to the canvas with a huge left hook. Chicana is just the right mix of triumphant and vulnerable as he does a Hoganesque finger point while wobbling in a semi-concussed daze. MS-1 plays his role perfectly as well as he sells like he has no idea what hit him. After wiping MS-1 out with a tope, Chicana barely beats the count back into the ring and wins the fall by countout. I can't think of a better possible ending to the fall because a prolonged Chicana comeback wouldn't have been believable.
Third fall: After taking the necessary time to regain his bearings, Chicana heads to the floor to give MS-1 a taste of his own medicine. One thing I just noticed this time around is that MS-1 tries to use a ringside photographer as a human shield to launch a sneak attack but gets shut down. When both men return to the ring, they're bleeding buckets and selling like they're almost dead, to the point where even basic moves feel like potential match-enders. Unlike a lot of lucha hair/mask matches, they don't make the mistake of working the third fall too evenly or placing too much emphasis on near falls. To my mind, the final outcome of an apuestas match should be as decisive as possible. You settle a grudge match (which is what matches of this type are) by leaving your opponent broken in a heap, not by catching him off-guard with a tricky pinning combination. MS-1 does go for a fancy cradle at one point, but it worked for me because it felt tinged with desperation, like he just wanted to get this shit over with. That's perfectly acceptable for a rudo as long as it isn't successful. There's a particularly clever near fall when Chicana punches himself in the forehead so hard that he accidentally knocks himself out. MS-1 hits a tope but crashes and burns on a second. When they return to the ring, Chicana summons the strength to send MS-1 to the floor with a dropkick and then hits a second tope of his own. I will say that the ending fell a bit flat for me. MS-1 attempts another top rope splash, but Chicana rolls out of the way. After kicking out of a pin, MS-1 goes up again and misses again. This time, Chicana applies a stretch muffler/armbar combo and gets the submission. I don't know why they wouldn't just have Chicana slap on the submission after the first missed splash.
Tier: 3. MS-1's punches and the wonky ending will keep this out of the upper echelon for me. Also, both men arguably recovered too quickly from the topes in the third fall when it had been presented as a killer move in the second. Even so, they execute the apuestas match formula to absolute perfection. By distilling the hair match down to its most basic and essential elements, this has completely ruined all other lucha brawls for me (with one exception which I will reveal in due time). Matches that adhere to the formula feel like lesser imitations while ones that deviate from it fail to capture the essence of what makes this match so great.
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Post by nintendologic on Aug 31, 2021 14:18:00 GMT -5
Brock Lesnar vs. AJ Styles (WWE, 11/19/17)
In most of Brock's post-UFC matches, his opponent will try to rush him at the opening bell, which never seems to work out well for them. AJ, on the other hand, tries to stick and move. But that isn't any more effective as Brock catches him with a kick to the midsection and forces him into the corner. There's just no way to gain the edge on Brock in the early going. He's not only a final boss, he's an SNK final boss. The first seven minutes are total one-sided domination as Brock alternately tosses AJ around like a ragdoll and hammers him with knees and clubbing blows. His offense is far more varied than in a typical Suplex City match (in fact, the first suplex only comes two minutes in). At one point, he drags AJ by the hair like a caveman and and pulls him into the corner. At another, he toys with AJ by beckoning him to start fighting back and easily dodges his haymakers. AJ then tries to throw a kick, but Brock catches the leg and swats him down. It should come as no surprise that AJ bumps his ass off for all of Brock's slams and suplexes. His more understated selling is brilliant as well as he looks like he wants to fight through the pain but his body won't let him. After one German suplex, he even does a Kawada-style sell where he tries to stand up and then collapses. The tide finally turns when Brock goes for the F5. AJ slips out and stumbles into the corner. Brock goes for a jumping knee, but AJ dodges. He then takes out Brock's leg with a low dropkick and follows up with a DDT. A wrestler attempting a finisher too early and Brock missing a corner jumping knee, of course, are both well-established transitions. When they make it to their feet, take note of how Brock covers his face with his hands to guard against a knockout blow, leaving him open to leg kicks. That's some Vader/Tamura-level psychology. Unfortunately, things go off the rails a bit shortly afterward. Brock catches AJ on an Asai DDT attempt, leading to a really ugly sequence that ends in a failed tornado DDT. Thankfully, they get things back on track in a hurry. AJ hits Brock with a Pele kick and goes for a phenomenal forearm, but Brock grabs him and hits a German suplex that turns AJ inside-out. Brock struggles to his feet and limps over to AJ in the ropes, still selling the leg, but AJ sends him to the floor. He then hits a plancha forearm and further damages the leg by shoving Brock into the ring steps knees-first. With Brock hobbled, AJ hits him with another forearm off the steps. AJ's flying offense is just the right mix of graceful and violent. Also, it's roughly 50/50 whether his moves will connect or Brock will catch him out of the air, making it feel like true high-risk offense rather than mere acrobatics. Back in the ring, AJ hits a lionsault and then a springboard 450. Brock kicks out, so AJ goes for the Styles Clash. Brock reverses into an F5, but AJ reverses that into a calf crusher. One of the greatest things about Brock at his best is ability to sell exactly as much as the situation demands. Earlier in the match, when AJ managed a punch flurry, Brock sold like an annoying insect was buzzing around his head. Here, he sells like his tendons are being shredded. I'm sure hardly anyone in the arena really thought Brock was going to submit, but his ability to have them believing in the possibility is nothing short of incredible. His escape from the hold is just as amazing as he grabs AJ's head and repeatedly slams it into the canvas like he's dribbling a basketball. AJ escapes an F5 attempt by grabbing the ropes and landing on the apron. He finally hits the phenomenal forearm, but Brock kicks out. AJ removes his elbow pad and goes for a second forearm, but this time Brock intercepts him in midair. After stumbling around a bit like his leg is on the verge of giving out, he hits the F5 and gets the win. He clearly respects the hell out of AJ because he continues to sell the leg after the match and has to be helped to the back. He also protects AJ by leaving it an open question whether his most powerful moves (the Styles Clash and the phenomenal forearm minus the elbow pad) would have felled him.
Tier: 4. Unfortunate botches aside, you could hardly ask for more from a 15-minute match between a giant suplex machine and a much smaller high flyer. I just wish I was able to enjoy matches without sound because listening to the commentators bicker over Brand Supremacy is borderline unbearable.
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Post by nintendologic on Sept 2, 2021 14:59:24 GMT -5
Mitsuharu Misawa/Yoshinari Ogawa vs. KENTA/Naomichi Marufuji (NOAH, 4/25/04)
The juniors know that their chances against Misawa in a fair fight are slim at best, so they get the jump on him before the opening bell. Marufuji takes out Ogawa with a superkick, allowing him and KENTA to double-team Misawa. He goes for sliced bread, but Misawa fends him off and knocks him to the floor with an elbow when he ends up sitting on the top turnbuckle. That leaves Misawa and KENTA as the legal men, and Misawa takes control in short order. Ogawa tags in and whips KENTA into the guardrail after dumping him to the floor. KENTA tries to fight his way out of the corner, but Misawa shuts him down with a back elbow. Ogawa rolls through a sunset flip attempt and applies a Boston crab, but Marufuji gives him a taste of his own medicine by breaking it up with an eye poke. Misawa and Ogawa land a vicious-looking elbow drop/double foot stomp combo followed by Misawa crushing KENTA with a senton. KENTA escapes a sleeper, but Ogawa trips him up with a drop toehold. He points out Marufuji to the referee to prevent him from running in to aid his partner and then knocks him off the apron with a cheap shot. That's some quality heel work right there. Misawa tags in and applies a camel clutch, bending KENTA in half like he's Manami Toyota. By this point, KENTA has been eating offense virtually uninterrupted for nearly eight minutes, and he's selling like he's on death's door. Misawa and Marufuji interact with each other from their respective aprons while Ogawa suplexes KENTA on the floor. The camera doesn't show what they did, but it was apparently hilarious given the audience's response. KENTA manages a brief flurry when he whips Ogawa and then Misawa into the guardrail. Marufuji doesn't have to worry about being restrained by the referee on the floor, so he finally comes to KENTA's aid. However, it proves to be for naught as Misawa puts him down with a barrage of elbows. Back in the ring, KENTA finally fends Ogawa off and heads toward his corner, but Marufuji is out of position to take the tag due to still recovering from Misawa's elbows. Ogawa weasels it up even more by delivering an eye poke to KENTA and then acting like he's going to knock Marufuji off the apron again only to pull up and taunt him with a Mutombo-esque finger wag. After over ten minutes of abuse, KENTA finally makes the tag after hitting Misawa with a dropkick. Marufuji gets sent to the floor shortly after the hot tag, but he takes out Misawa's leg with a low dropkick after he does his signature flip over the ropes and follows up with a tope con hilo. Ogawa tries to come to Misawa's aid, but Marufuji fights him off with a superkick. However, he again makes the mistake of going for sliced bread too early. After shoving him into the rail, Ogawa drives his groin and then his head into the ringpost. After Ogawa tags in, he suplexes Marufuji on the entrance ramp and cuts off his comeback attempt with an eye rake. We get a classic heel spot when Ogawa grabs the ropes to block a sunset flip attempt only for the referee to break his grip by kicking the ropes, leading to an argument. If only they had gotten into a shoving match and the ref had knocked Ogawa on his ass, it would've been perfect. After a couple more minutes of punishment, Misawa and Ogawa decide to play with their food and unleash a ridiculous string of Midnight Express-esque double-team maneuvers. After Ogawa drapes Marufuji onto the top rope, Misawa sends him to the apron with a running knee lift. Up to this point, nearly twenty minutes in, the juniors have managed next to no offense. But in one of the most incredible momentum shifts I've ever seen, Marufuji stuns Misawa and Ogawa with superkicks and hits Misawa with sliced bread on the apron by using Ogawa's body as a stepladder. Immediately afterward, KENTA comes to life and takes out Ogawa with a busaiku knee. Just like that, we've got a real match. Marfuji and Misawa both make it back in the ring, and Marufuji fights off an emerald flowsion attempt (nearly falling on his head in the process) before making the tag to KENTA. In the ultimate insult, KENTA delivers Kawada-style kicks to Misawa's face, getting a rise out of both the audience and Misawa. He continues the theme by applying a stretch plum and hitting Misawa with a tiger suplex after he makes the ropes. Misawa hits a tiger driver, but KENTA catches him coming off the ropes with a dropkick. We get a simultaneous tag, which I normally hate so much that it single-handedly ruins virtually tag match it happens in for me. In this case, though, I find it tolerable because it serves as a match reset rather than a hot tag. When Marufuji goes up top, KENTA puts Ogawa on his shoulders to set him up for a doomsday-type maneuver. However, Ogawa crotches Marufuji on the top turnbuckle by shoving KENTA into the ropes while Misawa DISTRACTS THE REFEREE. Holy shit. As if this match wasn't already Americanized enough. After Ogawa misses a corner charge, Marufuji puts him in the tree of woe and hits a coast-to-coast dropkick. He goes for sliced bread, but Misawa catches him on the way down in perfect position for the emerald flowsion. Sadly, he drops Marufuji in the process. He picks Marufuji back up and hits a regular one, but it's not quite the same. That spot would have become legendary if it had gone according to plan because we would've been seeing GIFs of it ever since. The referee orders Misawa out of the ring before counting the pin, giving Marufuji enough time to recover and kick out. Ogawa goes for another pin, but KENTA breaks it up with a springboard leg drop. He was quite the athletic marvel in his younger years. Misawa tags in and goes up top, but KENTA stuns him with head kicks, enabling Marufuji to hit a Spanish fly. Marufuji and KENTA again go into double-team mode with Misawa seemingly ripe for the picking, but Ogawa drags KENTA to the outside and disposes of him with a suplex on the floor. Misawa gets the win with emerald flowsion kai.
Tier: 4. This is basically Misawa and Ogawa working as a Southern heel tag team, and it's awesome. Ogawa in particular takes the ball and runs with it as facing a junior team with Misawa as his enforcer gives him the rare opportunity to throw his weight around. The way they were able to pivot from glorified squash to legitimate competitive match at the drop of a hat is nothing short of amazing. In addition to the unfortunate blown spot, Misawa's selling is rather spotty down the stretch. That can be justified as the heavyweight legend going up against young juniors, though. Also, Marufuji's superkicks are an example of thigh slapping done right. He uses it to make his kicks pop rather than slap.
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