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Post by mrjmml on Sept 3, 2023 13:19:05 GMT -5
Satánico & Atlantis vs MS-1 & Tierra Viento y Fuego (Hair & Mask vs Hair & Mask ) 9/22/89 EMLL
What a match, three of the best mexican wrestlers ever face each other, Tierra, Viento y Fuego is just one of the dumbest names in wrestling history, he’s outmatched by every other wrestler in that ring, I just love the dynamic of this particular match Satánico is an underrated babyface, he’s truly a legend, if you’ve been reading my lucha reviews you may be aware of it already, when I wrote about 1984 his name was unavoidable, at that time he was a heel and the leader of the legendary trio Los Infernales, MS-1 was his partner at that time but they eventually split up, that’s why this feud came to be, Satánico turned face and now he’s teaming up with Atlantis, you may remember the match between them of 1984 if not it’s here, a very young Atlantis faced off against prime Satánico, a lucha classic I recommend but that was 5 years ago now they have a common enemy MS-1 and Tierra, Viento y Fuego, both the masks and the hair are at risk in this match because it’s the 56th anniversary of EMLL, the main event deserved its spot in the card, it was great despite of Tierra, Viento y Fuego having no business being there, he just isn’t nearly as good as the other three but to be honest those three are lucha gods so I can’t blame him, it’s extraordinarily difficult to be at that level, anyway the match started with a pretty cool control segment by the heel team that ended when they eventually won the fall, the second fall was another story entirely, Sátanico and Atlantis rallied back and got the fall but not without suffering, Sátanico was almost submitted by MS-1, the third and final fall was completely dominated by the heels but Sátanico came clutch with a package for the win.
This is not wrestling related but I just wish Pecco Bagnaia a great recovery after what happened in Montmeló.
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Post by mrjmml on Sept 4, 2023 12:09:07 GMT -5
Genichiro Tenryu & Takashi Ishikawa vs. Hiroshi Hase & Tatsumi Fujinami WAR Great History 02.14.1993
We start Fujinami’s 1993 with a banger the kind of match you’d expect out of these four, they delivered an amazing bombfest but I have to say that the match lacks a clear structure instead we got a lot of violent exchanges between these four, I don’t think it balances out, Tenryu is made for these kind of matches and his performance alone makes the match a lot more enjoyable but everyone else while not being bad they weren’t convincing either, I still appreciate Fujinami’s effort to keep his character fresh, he’s still a technical wizard but in matches like this one he proved he is way more than that, the role of Ishikawa and Hase during the match was very simple it’s a master and apprentice relationship with their partners and it works, Fujinami and Tenryu were always the focus of the action with the other two trying to steal the show, it’s clear that both WAR and NJPW were slowly preparing for a passing of the torch, their rivalry during this time is legendary and a lot of people love it and this match is one of the greatest the whole feud had to offer, the other great contest its known for is the elimination match two days later I’ll probably write about tomorrow, as I said before this match doesn’t have a clear structure, if you’ve read my Rock ‘n’ Roll Express reviews you’ll know that for me the most important part of a tag team match is its structure so I’m not the biggest fan of this match, it just isn’t for me, if you are into japanese indy bombfests you’ll enjoy it, everyone did their job pretty well, I don’t have any problems with the individual performances but the result was disappointing.
Fujinami proved he could keep up with the best wrestlers in the world once again.
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Post by mrjmml on Sept 5, 2023 12:10:30 GMT -5
Tatsumi Fujinami vs Genichiro Tenryu (NJPW - 4/29/1996)
A match as packed as you’ll ever see, Fujinami and Tenryu go back and forth in an absolute classic with iconic images that will last in your brain forever, this match is spectacular in every sense of the word, it’s incredibly violent as well, I personally think it’s the most violent match Fujinami has had so far in his career, considering I’ve covered almost 20 years that’s quite a feat, Fujinami isn’t known for being especially violent but the last five matches of his I covered have been pretty rough, not what I expected going into this, I came here for his technical skill but I won’t complain because violent Fujinami is as good as technical Fujinami and he isn’t young anymore so losing some of his quickness on the mat is perfectly understandable, the change from the late 70’s to 1996 is very impressive he never fails to surprise me and this match is no exception, the WAR vs NJPW feud is over but there’s still some resentment left in both Tatsumi and Tenryu, around this time Tenryu was involved in a feud with the ace of UWF-I Nobuhiko Takada, they had a legendary trilogy in 1996 spanning two promotions (WAR and UWF-I) but I’d say this match is better than any Tenryu vs Takada, Tenryu’s specialty is beating people without showing any emotion whatsoever while Fujinami’s is his facial expressions and they shine even brighter in brawls like this one, this match is famous for an especific moment, Tenryu busted Fujinami’s nose for real in one of their heated exchanges which resulted in Fujinami having a bloodied nose for the rest of the match, absolutely worth watching, a masterpiece, two veterans beating each other up, it can’t get better than this.
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Post by mrjmml on Sept 6, 2023 12:10:36 GMT -5
Shinya Hashimoto vs. Tatsumi Fujinami (NJPW - 6/5/1998)
In the last match I wrote about Fujinami was brutal, working with someone like Genichiro Tenryu may have inspired such a violent contest but this match is different, this time his opponent is the best NJPW musketeer Shinya Hashimoto, his career isn’t short of matches like the one I covered yesterday but this time Fujinami got him in uncharted territory, Tatsumi tried to make this one a strictly technical contest and he pretty much succeeded, Hashimoto is famous for his stiff striking, his greatest matches came against wrestlers with a similar style like Vader, Genichiro Tenryu or Nobuhiko Takada, I’d say this match is the exception to the rule, Fujinami and Hashimoto are like night and day but that was what made it particularly interesting, the premise of this match was enticing to say the least, how a striker will adapt to submission specialist, it was a common situation in early MMA history when most of the fighters were pretty much one dimensional, the strikers had no idea of what to do in top mount while a submission specialist would do everything in his power to take you down to avoid striking exchanges and that’s what happened here, Fujinami took the striker and tried to submit him for around 25 minutes, it’s quite a spectacule if you’re a Pancrase or Pride fan, to be fair it resembles more a Pancrase fight than a Pride one but we aren’t talking about MMA, this is pro wrestling and in pro wrestling the underdogs prevail, in pro wrestling people chant out of passion and excitement, Fujinami had the crowd on their feet throughout the match, if you’ve been reading my Fujinami retrospective you’ll know he’s one of the greatest babyfaces Japan has ever produced, he always draws a reaction out of the people in the stands, his age doesn’t really matter, he never fails to surprise me and exceed my expectations he’s that special.
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Post by mrjmml on Sept 7, 2023 12:34:11 GMT -5
Tadao Yasuda vs Tatsumi Fujinami (NJPW - 7/19/2002)
We’re getting closer to the end of Tatsumi Fujinami’s career, the match I‘m going to write about today is a far cry from 70’s Fujinami but as I said in previous reviews it isn’t necessarily a bad thing, this match is pure Inokism, the MMA-like presentations and the structure of the match itself looks like something out of an early PRIDE main event, in pro wrestling it works, it’s a short match, in fact, it’s the shortest match I’ll review in this project, it hardly goes 5 minutes considering that one and a half minutes are spent convincing Tatsumi Fujinami to put on his MMA gloves, you know his match against Inoki in 1988 the opposite, in this match Fujinami looks like an old man that has no idea how a shoot style bout works and that’s amazing, he’s from another generation and playing with that was a very intelligent choice made by NJPW creatives, I think it’s the first time I praise them in this project, as you could expect they went at it hard, they didn’t waste a second both wrestlers did a great job selling the sense of urgency, they are trying to finish each other as quickly as possible, no sportsmanship either, I love how Yasuda looks an asshole heel the whole way through, he had a better performance than Fujinami, he had the night of his life against one of the greatest wrestlers in the company’s history, he should be proud of this match, he looked like a million bucks, this is without a doubt my MOTY of 2002 just for it’s uniqueness alone, probably the match that resembles this one the most is Daisuke Ikeda vs Takeshi Ono (Futen - 9/26/2010) but that one was just two dudes hitting each other very hard, in this one there’s a clear narrative with Fujinami not being able to keep up with younger talent, the word I’d use to describe this match is necessary, time passes for everyone.
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Post by mrjmml on Sept 10, 2023 14:27:34 GMT -5
Hart Foundation vs. The British Bulldogs (09.23.1985) This match is pretty fast-paced by 80’s WWF standards, both teams were outstanding at their roles, The Harts as heels and The Bulldogs as babyfaces, Jimmy Hart guarantees fun every time he’s near a wrestling ring and this match was no exception, Jim ‘’The Anvil’’ Neidhart looked really good as a monster heel while Bret looked a bit worse but overall an amazing showing by both teams.
Valentine/Beefcake vs Bulldogs 3/1/86 The Bulldogs face off against one of the most iconic tag teams of WWF’s golden era The Dream Team, at least Greg Valentine was good, what hasn’t been said about Brutus Beefcake already, he’s a terrible worker and he didn’t fail me in this match, he was as bad as he has ever been, The Bulldogs were solid enough with their offense and selling, I see what the big deal was but they are just that different.
Ax & Smash vs. Davey Boy Smith & The Dynamite Kid 10-07-1988 If they performed badly in matches where they were carried by a much better team imagine what would happen when they face off against Davey Boy Smith and a declining Dynamite Kid you’ve guessed it a snoozefest, again the best thing about Demolition’s performance was their strategy while everything else was pretty unremarkable, these kind of matches are the reason why they aren’t a Top 25 Tag Team Ever.
Danny Kroffat & Doug Furnas vs. Davey Boy Smith & Dynamite Kid 05-12-1989 A fantastic match by the British Bulldogs’ 1989 standards, in fact, I found this match to be actually impressive, Dynamite Kid didn’t participate much in the match but I think that was for the better, I don’t like the last year of the British Bulldogs’ WWF run and I expected something like that but impressively the Can-Am Express did an amazing job making them look good for 20 minutes.
British Bulldogs vs Rock n Roll Express 02-02-1989 Believe it or not it took place in Central States you know one of the worst territories if not the worst, anyway the match is great, something to be expected considering the teams involved, this is the opposite of their match against The Dream Team, here we have no nonsense wrestling, the R’n’R Express is my favorite tag team ever, the only problem this match had was the finish a time limit draw, a pretty strange ending for a southern tag.
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Post by mrjmml on Sept 11, 2023 7:00:09 GMT -5
Damon Scythe vs Robby Lance - Ironman Match - ECCW 06/29/02
Are you familiar with these wrestlers? Me neither, they put together a performance for the ages, as compelling and intense as any other Ironman out there, I had heard many people praising this match but I didn’t expect it being this good which is impressive considering that I couldn’t even tell who was who until the halfway point so this match really deserved its status among hardcore wrestling fans, the way the match was filmed was also a big reason why I liked it so much, it feels like we aren’t supposed to be watching it, it’s like one of those found footage movies like Cannibal Holocaust but instead of watching five jerks in the jungle you come across a grappling masterpiece, the only thing that I genuinely dislike of this match is the crowd especifically their lack of engagement, you get the impression that they didn’t know what they were looking at, if the people that were there had any idea about professional wrestling they would’ve cheered throughout the whole match but I guess it wasn’t anyone’s fault certainly not the wrestlers’, the intensity shown and dexterity because having a 30 minute wrestling match is hard and at the pace they were going it’s even harder, I just couldn’t look away from the match, there was no point where they lost my attention, very few wrestlers can do what these two ‘‘no names’’ did that day, both of them surely earned my respect and the respect of the wrestling community as a whole, there was also very little downtime, this match truly deserved the Ironman name, their grappling skills were at full display, they showed how mat wrestling should work, this particular match has a rare quality nowadays, every move really felt like it could result in a fall and that’s so difficult to accomplish.
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Post by mrjmml on Sept 11, 2023 9:22:15 GMT -5
Akira Maeda vs Masakatsu Funaki (UWF - 10/25/1990)
If the date sounds familiar is because it happened in the same show as the legendary Yoshiaki Fujiwara vs Nobuhiko Takada, this match was actually the main event of that show, in hindsight it wasn’t the right choice but who could blame them having the ace of the company facing off against a young up and coming Masakatsu Funaki, both matches were very good, in fact, I feel like this match is overlooked even by the most hardcore shootstyle fans, Akira Maeda has the ability to look like a jerk in every match he’s in mainly because he is in real life so it’s easier for him, Funaki in the other hand is the outmatched underdog the crowd is rallying behind and he performed pretty well in that circumstance, he’s a striker so Maeda targeted his left leg to limit his movement and efectiveness, that gameplan worked well for him during almost the entirety of the bout there were times where Funaki threatened an armbar but Maeda escaped unscaved every time, Maeda had the counter for everyone of Funaki’s moves, Maeda looked like the most intimidating figure in the UWF roster after such a win, his opponent was helpless, it gave me the impression that the match lasted 18 minutes because Maeda wanted it to last that long, you leave the match thinking that it could have lasted way less time if Maeda just wanted to win but he had higher aspirations he wanted to give everyone in the company a lesson and he did exactly that in a way very few wrestlers can or could ever replicate, Funaki was like one of those Lou Thesz opponents that had no chance of winning but won a fall, Funaki here is basically what Cyclone Anaya was in 1950, a victim of an unstoppable force nobody knows how to stop.
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Post by mrjmml on Sept 14, 2023 13:51:16 GMT -5
Mariko Yoshida vs Megumi Fujii (ARSION, 2003-05-24)
I’m pretty familiar with Megumi Fuiji’s MMA career, in fact, against popular opinion I think she is the women’s MMA GOAT, his wrestling career on the other hand is a mystery to me, I didn’t know she had a stint in pro wrestling, not only in ARSION, her run in the more obscure japanese indie scene is also remarkable, Mariko Yoshida’s wrestling career started in 1988, the year she graduated in the AJW dojo, if you’ve heard of this promotion’s training habits you’ll know it was no easy task especially during the 1980’s considering just how many women competed for a few roster spots, her most acclaimed work came as a part of the ARSION roster from the late 1990’s to the early 2000’s, this match took place in 2003 so we can assume she was in her prime at that time, ARSION is a shoot style promotion but it wasn’t like RINGS, UWF-I or PWFG this one was a joshi promotion that adapted their style to the rules of women’s MMA at that time, this means that the matches consisted of 3 rounds each lasting 3 minutes, if you want to know what was the state of women’s MMA at that time I highly recommend Megumi Fuiji vs Erica Montoya, Megumi dominated her in a grappling masterclass but now let’s go to the wrestling match, Mariko Yoshida was the ace of the company while Fuiji was making her pro wrestling debut, it’s evident she was held at a high regard but it’s still surprising nonetheless, Mariko Yoshida was right, Fuiji looked like the real deal even with the annoying clipping involved (an annoying feature of many ARSION matches), that aside this match was a great experience, it was the kind of match whose predictable ending didn’t take away any enjoyment whatsoever.
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Post by mrjmml on Sept 15, 2023 20:09:50 GMT -5
Terry Rudge vs Marty Jones (Joint Promotions - 12/4/1976)
This match was the first World of Sport match I had ever seen and what a way to start my english wrestling journey, I consider both wrestlers to be wrestling gods, I love Terry Rudge’s run in Germany, the style of Joint Promotions was so unique, the sports-like presentation is so appealing to me, professional wrestling being presented as a sport is fascinating, most people reading this are probably familiar with how these matches worked, they had a round system where matches were usually 5 5 minutes rounds with a minute to rest after each round so yeah it doesn’t get more sports-like than this, Marty Jones has a reputation for being incredibly inconsistent luckily he was the best version of himself that day, Terry Rudge made everyone perform as good as they can which is one of the best attributes any pro wrestler can possess, his technical wizardry helped Marty Jones look like the future of british wrestling but british wrestling got progessively worse since 1980 because of people like Big Daddy being considered main event talent while neglecting the lightweights that made Joint Promotions stand out, the french promoters also made a similar mistake during the 1970’s and 1980’s, as bookers their job was to put people in the stands but their in-ring product suffered as a result, this match took place in 1976 so I’m getting ahead of myself, this match is one of my favourite draws in wrestling history, a 30 minute epic like this one are so special and made tape, I love how the rythm escalated since the 4th round began, it wasn’t a sudden change either, it felt natural, a feat not every wrestler can reproduce but Terry Rudge did it consistently throughout his career, he’s truly a legend.
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Post by mrjmml on Sept 16, 2023 13:15:59 GMT -5
The Shield vs. Ryback and Team Hell No (WWE - 12/16/2012)
The Shield’s in-ring debut was as great as it gets, they come to this match as the favorites even tough they haven’t wrestled together yet, that’s because their impact in the wrestling landscape was so huge WWE wasn’t going to waste the opportunity to push this new phenomenon to the moon, that’s what they did in a masterclass of WWE style car crash brawling, this match was the beginning of the great run WWE had as company that lasted around two years, their most acclaimed work during the last decade came in this two year span, it includes matches like CM Punk vs Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam 2013, John Cena vs Daniel Bryan at the same event and the most famous of them Daniel Bryan’s crowning as WWE champion at Wrestlemania XXX, as I said before all those things that happened in that span can be traced back to this match, The Shield had heel performance for the ages, every member of the stable had time to shine, each and everyone of the wrestlers involved tried their best to make this match unforgettable and they succeeded, The Shield had potential, I think they could have been the greatest trio in wrestling history if they were given a chance to make that happen, this is a match I couldn’t look away from, there’s always something happening at all times in a compelling way (this isn’t PWG), it all made sense in the context of a TLC 6-man tag team match, it’s a crazy premise but it somehow works, the WWE fanbase also got their first proper taste of The Shield’s offense and they loved it, the crowd is completely into the match and chanting ‘‘ This is awesome!’’ as a way to show their appreciation for what they were doing, just a very special night for the company.
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Post by mrjmml on Sept 17, 2023 4:02:45 GMT -5
AJPW 1983 04 14 Stan Hansen vs Terry Funk
This what comes to mind when someone says great brawling, the intensity here is rarely seen, Stan Hansen is one of the greatest brawlers in professional wrestling, Terry Funk is one of the greatest sellers so we are here for a treat, gaijins hitting each other very hard is one of All Japan’s greatest acts and that’s what happened here, fantastic brawling all around and almost no downtime whatsoever, Hansen was just savage, Terry Funk had an amazing selling performance that I don’t think can be replicated, the fear in his eyes is priceless, Hansen looked like the scariest wrestler in the world, his offense is as stiff as it gets, the roughness in this match can be felt, it’s a great representation of what 80’s AJPW was about, Terry had no chance of winning but he endured through the pain and agony until Dory came in to save him, to be honest the bell alone wasn’t going to stop Stan’s rage and blood thirst, Terry was beaten up badly, he never even hit Hansen throughout what we have of the match, it was cut for tv but I think it’s fair to assume that he didn’t hit Hansen during that commercial break, Terry’s selling masterpiece is legendary, I think this match is one of the greatest brawls I’ve ever seen, it’s got everything I love in wrestling done to perfection, I highly recommend this match to everyone interested in this era of the company, AJPW in the 1980’s it’s so underrated by the greater wrestling community, the main reason for that is the popularity of their 1990’s run that pretty much overshadowed it, no pillar could have replicated what these two did here, this match is that special, Terry Funk had an innate ability to make every brawl memorable and this one is no exception.
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Post by mrjmml on Sept 17, 2023 6:29:37 GMT -5
Do FIXER vs Blood Generation (Dragon Gate - 07/03/2005)
I think these two trios don’t need a presentation but some of you may not be familiar with their legacy in Japan and the american independent scene especially, Toryumon turned into Dragon Gate in 2005 and this show is their most important of the year, Kobe World Festival, a yearly event that continues to this day, this particular match was the pre-main event, the main event was Masaaki Mochizuki vs TAKA Michinoku, a match that I personally consider to be as good as this one, this trios bout is inherited from Toryumon’s crazy matches with as many as 12 men in the ring at once, this one is pretty unique especially in 2005, nowadays we’re not surprised by their style and antics but you have to enter this match thinking that it happened before Supercard of Honor 2006 so they were unknown in the western world, this match isn’t as good as the Supercard of Honor one but it’s still impressive as a match made to showcase the Dragon Gate style. Today, Dragon Gate is the most famous and successful lucharesu company in Japan but in 2005 they were under pressure to follow Michinoku Pro’s and Toryumon’s so this match was the perfect way to prove their doubters wrong, if you like Michinoku Pro you’ll like this match, I didn’t like the match mainly because the style isn’t my thing but if you’re into that this match is for you, it’s the beginning of their innovative tag formula that still continues to this day, this match is the first of many epics they wrestled against each other, the first few minutes of the match were really good, they wrestled the closest thing to lucha they can do but as time went on the offense got progessively crazier, to the point where it was just moves, very well coordinated ones but just that, the crowd was almost silent for the entirety of the match, when Toryumon had that famous 4 way trios match at least the crowd was into it.
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Post by mrjmml on Feb 9, 2024 0:18:55 GMT -5
Ebessan vs Kuishinbo Kamen (Osaka Pro - 1/2/2003)
I don’t really know how to introduce this match luckily, most people reading this are already familiar with these two unique performers that revolutionized comedy wrestling. This one is clearly not for everyone, in fact, it’s not the kind of match you would show to someone when you’re introducing them to the art form but if you go here with an open mind you’ll be surprised by what they achieve in the squared circle. It’s without a shadow of a doubt the greatest match in Osaka Pro history even better than Naohiro Hoshikawa vs Takehiro Murahama in my humble opinion. The consensus greatest years of the company’s history were 2000 and 2001 and we aren’t far away from its the golden era at all I’d argue that Ebessan and Kuishinbo Kamen hit their peak in this match that’s how special this is, the chemistry between these two is perfect, they understand each other in the ring so well, if it wasn’t the case the match would have been an absolute mess but it ended up being the greatest piece of comedy ever seen in a wrestling ring. This match can’t be rated with the traditional rating system, stars can’t represent the quality of this match accurately because what it does can’t be described by the traditional ways we measure quality with, it challenges our preconceived notions of what makes wrestling great. If you’re searching for an introduction to comedy in wrestling this is definitely the way to go, it doesn’t get any better than this, I love how the comedy mixes with the actual dramatic escalation of the match. It starts being a pretty run of the mill comedy match in the first half but the second half is a complete change of pace that personally took me by surprise and made this match a modern classic. If this sounds good to you go watch it.
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Post by mrjmml on Feb 9, 2024 19:53:37 GMT -5
Great Muta vs Shinya Hashimoto (AJPW - 2/23/2003)
This one is a polar opposite of the last match, Hashimoto and Great Muta did a great job selling the stakes of the match from the very beginning in a way that’s both convincing and entertaining. It’s very similar to Great Muta’s match against Tenryu in WAR 1996, it’s a bit worse than that match but there was a point when I genuinely thought it was going to be that good or even better than that but I expected way more out of the finish. 2003 was a very high end year, it had some of the best matches of the century so far I’d go as far as saying that this year is the most underrated year in wrestling history second to 1986 probably and matches like this make the case for that. I usually find Muta annoying but Hashimoto got the best version of him like Tenryu did seven years before, this version of him is blood-starved, violent and focused. That’s all I want in wrestling if Muta worked every match with the same intensity he would be my favourite wrestler ever, his moveset is the same as always but what changed was the way how he directed his offense, there’s an urgency and a degree of violence we rarely saw during his long career. I think Hashimoto made it possible I struggle imagining a better opponent than him for a match of this nature, I have to thank the AJPW’s creative team in 2003 for making the right call. Hashimoto is awesome here as always, he comes off as an unstoppable beast Muta can’t escape from which is a role that fits him perfectly to his character. If you haven’t watched it yet I’d strongly recommend giving this a chance especially if you like Shinya Hashimoto as much as I do. I watched this match for the first time a few months ago and I love it even more on rewatch.
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