Lurker > Bidoof

Bumping this because I finally got my moment to watch these matches again. My apologies on slipping up on the already loose schedule here; just had a ton of different things going on that kept me from being able to give these matches the proper focus.

Anyways, thoughts should be posted soon.

Bidoof's Match of the Week Recommendation

Tyler Breeze vs. Tyson Kidd vs. Sami Zayn vs. Adrian Neville (c)
WWE NXT Takeover: Fatal 4-Way (9/11/2014)
Match Link: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x4is242

This was only a little over six years ago. Ponder that for a moment.

It was also the main event for the second-ever NXT Takeover. I don't believe at the time anyone could have predicted what NXT was to become over the next few years but this was kind of the starting point for the "super indy" period. It starts off as a pretty typical WWE multi-man but I feel the storytelling is better done here than it is with most especially when it comes to giving moments for each participant to shine. Kidd, the one who honestly felt like he needed the most, got it in this match and showed some great aggression as he worked over Zayn while keeping the other two out of the ring. Oddly, I feel like the champion Neville might have had the least shine of all four but that kind of helps add to the story of him being in over his head as a champion trying to fend off three challengers. It all culminates to the moment everyone remembers the most about this match - Neville, in a moment where it looked like Zayn had Kidd beat, yanking the ref out of the ring. Neville's face sold it all so well, a combination of "I can't believe I did that" and "I can't believe I had to do that".

Remember when watching NXT, you were seeing what could be the future of the WWE rather than another cog in the machine? Remember that hope you had watching performers like Zayn, Neville, and even Breeze going out and delivering on these shows? Remember when you used to get excited when it was announced someone had signed an NXT deal? I could go on forever about how much was squandered in this match alone. Instead of getting another angry rant about how much WWE sucks these days, I'll just leave it there.

Eddv posted...

I was taken aback by just how quickly this one becames a grapplefest. Grappling always looks so intimate. Matwork this feels so foreign at this point - like for as much as we praise it when ZSJ and Bryan do it - its a novelty. Its not the bulk of the work of the match. So this was an interesting throwback in that way.

Vader gasses out repeatedly in this match too, which I would say is the main thing that holds it back but Takada is a fucking master of this craft. There's one point though where Takada basically puts HIMSELF in a headscissor which I sort of laughed at.

I have to comment though that SURROUNDED by high quality mat work like this, a spot like the Powerbomb just JUMPS off the page. Perhaps it was simply on the mind after this weeks Dynamite where cage did like 10 or 11 powerbombs to Darby Allin but really sometimes less is more with this stuff.

Takada trying like hell to take the advantage and repeatedly getting mauled by the bear that was Vader made for a great match story - even as the crowd came life eating up every single hope spot.

I also have to comment that the ten count thing was done right and done well here - I like it a lot because it produces a winner that actually wins the match. No banana peels here.

Anyway this was pretty awesome.

In a way, I think Vader getting blown up at times helped the story of the match. And I'm not just saying that as a Vader fan. Takada is a ****ing machine and it's to his benefit to keep the match going as long as he can. Vader, however, is a great big bear of a man who only needs to get that one, good shot in and it's done. Vader getting tired at points was likely legit (350+ lbs. is a lot of weight to be moving around like he does) but I think they worked the match well enough to not make it a deterrence like some other matches where a guy gasses early. Plus, when he needed a moment to explode at Takada, he still did well.

But the powerbomb spot here is what every wrestling fan needs to see. Takada doing everything he can to not get powerbombed was cool but the real interesting bit is how the second Vader hit it, everyone in the building knew the match was over. Vader, the ref, the audience, and even Takada himself. The last minute of him struggling to even stand is like something out of Rocky, it's a last act of defiance against the man who just beat him. You don't get this sort of moment anymore in wrestling so it's a treat to see it happen.

Eddv posted...

For what its worth it was a contender for the WON award but this is actually NOT one of sarges two wins in that category. But i actually think this match with Sheikh is better than his match with Pat Patterson that actually won.

Well, Sheik probably contributed more to this match than the Patterson one which I have to imagine is the equivalent of "great wrestler vs. broomstick". I might look that up sometime.

I couldn't remember when WON started doing the awards either. I know I tried seeing if Vader/Takada was in contention but I don't think Dave did a breakdown of different nominees for that issue like he typically does. Plus, as good as UWF-i could be, it wasn't what people were really paying attention to in Japan in 1994.

Eddv posted...

Welcome back to Board 8's Match of the Week where me bidoof and iceman extend each other's wrestling horizons - and perhaps yours as well.

This week is our final topic of the year which always brings to mind one of my favorite subject - the year end awards. If you haven't voted in Board 8's version yet head on over and do so now. But to me its an exciting time to look back and take stock of the year that was.

So now we take advantage of matches that were once named Match of the Year to go back and take a snap shot at some of the best wrestling of yesteryear, at least according to the wrestling fans of that day.

Without further ado, come with me back to 1984 WWF.

Sergeant Slaughter vs The Iron Sheikh in The Boot Camp Match
(June 16, 1984, WWF Madison Square Garden Show)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBAIbpNnQYI

For some quick background let me set the stage - it's 1984 and Hulkamania is in its infancy - he had only just arrived in the WWF a few months prior to this matchup and Vincent Kennedy McMahon's vision for the territory was slowly coming to life. This feud between Slaughter and Sheikh arguably was the first of those moving parts by Vince. In late 83 and early 84, Backlund had been feuding off and on with the villainous and dastardly Drill Sergeant Slaughter in some months and the tricky and sleazy Iron Sheikh of Iran in others. The two had a stare off and a few words passing each other between matches and Sarge began his face turn as the patriotic military babyface with over the top mannerisms and such that fit in perfectly alongside the about the debut Hogan. It helped that it being 1984, the US was in the midst of the Iranian Hostage Crisis and the fans were hungry for a patriotic hero to take on the Iranian Iron Sheik. In the midst of Sheikh and Sarge's feud Sheikh actually upset Backlund and then promptly lost the title to Hogan which set up this situation where Sheikh was feuding with Hogan on one circuit and Sarge, as the new #2 babyface in the company, on the other.

This match was the culmination of a series of wars in which the Sheikh and Sarge's hatred for one another spilled out all over the place - complete with modern staples like brawling all over the arena and the brawls being so wild that the referees had to keep tossing the matches out. It all came to a head here - the Boot Camp match. Everything goes, everything is legal, falls count anywhere, there must be a winner by pinfall.

This match begins with a nice amount of pomp and circumstance with the band playing the Marine Corps anthem and Sarge comes running out to the ring decked in his combat helmet and just fucking nails Sheikh with it. You won't find any chain-wrestling or high spots in this one, but it is a fascinating snap shot into the way that early 80s plunder brawls went down. These guys are getting tossed all over, taking off their belts and whipping each other, they're using completely non-gimmicked chairs with fucking padding on them. Monsoon and Gene Okerlund are losing their shit on commentary and the way its shot honestly feels a lot more like a CMLL show than what we have come to expect from even classic WWF. The crowd is going bonkers and it feels like the fans are right on top of Sheikh and Sarge and exploding at every dramatic turn the match takes.

There's a little bit of silly stuff - they are obsessed with this loaded boot gimmick - but the brawl is intense and bloody and absolutely stands up to today's standards in spit of a bit of that 80s cheese permeating the whole affair. Definitely worth the watch, especially if you've never seen either of these men work in their primes like this.

This might be the only time Sheiky Baby ends up in one of these weeks unless we do something ironic.

Well. This match had some surprises. Sarge not looking like a potato, Sheik bumping, a fiery crowd at a WWF show, people cheering All-American babyface types. Definitely the 80s!

So, let's get it out of the way. This is not anything like a lot of the matches that have been recommended so far in this project. Slaughter was a fine brawler in his day but he's not regarded as one of the best ever and Sheik is, uh, Sheik. Despite the limitations, both of these men delivered a fun bell-to-bell brawl with little downtime. In some ways, this was easier for me to get through than McGuinness/Aries. From a "spot commentary" standpoint, there's not a ton to say. It's a lot of brawling, lots of work with the loaded boots, but I really enjoyed the final spot involving it so the build-up was effective. Is this a Match of the Year contender for 1984? In WWF, it could have been the best match in the company that year. Elsewhere, I think it still holds up to some of the competition. It's not a Flair or Tsuruta workrate masterpiece but this wouldn't be out of place on a Memphis show where Jerry Lawler was tearing down the house doing similar matches. Definitely worth a watch especially with it being so different from other matches being recommended for this.

NBIceman posted...

Along with my match here, I want to remind everybody that I'm keeping a running archive of all the matches in this topic in case anyone ever wants to go back to watch missed ones or something.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1VXMwXb2uwSjPwWNR0BUhh9xNa68amq8dMeXwS_sY5h4/edit?usp=sharing

And with that...

Iceman's Match of the Week

Nigel McGuinness vs Austin Aries
Ring of Honor
Rising Above - December 29, 2007
Match Link: https://www.bilibili.com/video/av28429779/

Oh, how quickly the tides can turn in pro wrestling. Nigel McGuinness, the conquering hero who got an absolutely huge pop and a big-time celebration when he finally put Takeshi Morishima down to win the World Title, was already beginning to fall out of favor with some ROH fans just a couple months into his reign, which in this match sets up what is very often a huge strength of old-school Ring of Honor matches: atmosphere. The crowd is split and hot from the very beginning, and it gives this title challenge that oft-touted big fight feel right off the bat.

But the really cool part is that its also the impetus for the spot that makes this match pretty singularly infamous. Nigel almost immediately gets into a recurring shouting battle with some front-row fans, which Aries takes offense to first in the form of a bitch slap and then, shortly thereafter, a high-speed dive that sends his unfocused opponents forehead straight into the barricade. Its ugly; the champion is legitimately knocked loopy here, and he very clearly has no idea where he is for a decent part of this match.

Youd think thatd be a recipe for disaster but, at least match-quality-wise, thats not the case. This is the best defense of one of my all-time favorite title reigns. Ariess predilection for focusing on the heads of his opponents jives pretty well as a story component with the shoot injury (especially since hes actually pretty careful with his head shots for most of the match when you look close). Its very much a car-crash-you-cant-look-away-from kind of thing thats just the right amount of uncomfortable and unpredictable.

Look, I know we all hate Aries, and he comes by that honestly, but there werent many years in the 2000s where you couldnt make a compelling argument that he was a strong contender for the title of best wrestler in the world. And his performance is awesome here. He takes two absolutely wicked bumps to the outside floor, not to mention the one on Nigels last lariat that all but decapitates him.

Nigels performance is obviously the impressive one, though. Its gutsy and stupid in equal measure, and really, is there a better combination of words to define pro wrestling?

Took longer than expected to recover from the holidays and my job so my apologies.

2007 is generally not one of my favorite years for ROH. I kind of consider it the point where Gabe has gotten bored/ran out of ideas with the promotion and so you get this odd period where he tries making it proto-DGUSA with factions like the No Remorse Corps, Vulture Squad (ugh), Age of the Fall (UGH), The Resilience (I can't believe I even remember this one), and so on. While you do still get the indie gem here and there this year, it feels like there's less of them than previous years and, even then, the build to the matches usually isn't very good.

I was struggling to get into this match at the opening. Aries is a fantastic wrestler and, by this time, he had it all figured out. Nigel, on the other hand, I could see why people were turning on him. He's not the Nigel people look back on fondly (in terms of personality) yet, but he's still a fine wrestler. I don't know, but the way they worked those first couple of minutes had me checking the time bar to see if I was going to need to prepare myself for a 45 minute marathon. And then Aries guillotined Nigel on the barricade with that dive. Holy crap. It's weird how one scary spot that actually messed a guy up for a period in the match ended up turning everything around. Aries does a great job keeping the match together while Nigel is getting his bearings and limiting the amount of strikes he does to Nigel's head (just wish ROH cameramen wouldn't zoom in on period where Aries is clearly pulling his shots but everyone's improvising at that point).

There's still some clunkiness throughout the match even after Nigel somewhat gets his senses back. Particularly after that corner dropkick spot where Aries was going to dive but Nigel stayed down longer. It helped with the set-up to that dive counter but, if I were watching back in 2007, I would be worried about allowing Nigel to continue. Aries, however, works his ass off to give Nigel the great showing he needed at this point. It's unfortunate that Nigel got messed up so early because a significant portion of the match is a one-man show and that man isn't the one walking away with the belt. Great Austin Aries match and a fine Nigel one for the parts where he was there.

Taichi's issue wasn't the lack of ability or know-how, it was laziness. For years, he had the rep of being the laziest guy in the company. But for whatever reason at the age of 40, the dude decided to start giving a crap about his work and now he's looking like he could be taking Suzuki's spot. Maybe part of it was just not caring about his spot as a junior? I don't know. It's been weird kind of getting excited for matches with a guy I wrote off nearly a decade ago.

"Vehicle for Kong" with the Nightmare Collective? I guess in the sense that she was obviously the big match for that crew but it's really a Brandi vehicle more than anything. Just like the Nightmare Sisters were, just like this Jade Cargill thing was supposed to be, and so on. Like, half the stuff we've seen with Shaq hasn't even been about Cody/Shaq; it's been about building a Brandi match. The reason I had the Nightmare Collective so high on my list is because it's there to get Brandi over and she's doing nothing for me in AEW. Her angles/storylines are bad, her matches are worse, and I don't like her promos where she bounces from likable to detestable from line to line. If I end up not seeing her onscreen again in 2021 then that's swell.

I think what really helped Dragon Gate gain some momentum in the later part of 2020 is their new focus. You get the feeling that they used the time off to take a hard look at the booking, decide who needs to be elevated, and then commit to this new direction hard. Where a lot of promotions this year feel like they're in a holding pattern or are holding things back for the sake of wanting that crowd reaction, Dragon Gate is pushing forward. Fans got a lot of progression from them in a year where they ran only about half the year. Still, you had:

• Eita coming into his own as the top heel of the company.
• The return and coronation of Shun Skywalker, who looks to be one of the future pillars especially after forming his own group Masquerade.
• The elevation of a lot of the younger guys, including Kaito Ishida, Kota Minoura, HipHop Kikuta, and especially SB Kento.
• The wrapping up of the multi-year "generations war" story.
• A heartbreaking conclusion to the story of Toryumon itself with the R.E.D. vs. Team Toryumon Loser Must Disband match.

That's a lot of meaningful progression for such a short period of time and it leaves me excited to see what Dragon Gate is going to do with 2021. This was a company I had given up on a couple of years ago and now I think I'm looking forward to their year the most.

Should have thoughts posted later today. Sorry it's taken so long. Work has been brutal this week.

Okay, this might be the most radically different set of matches we've had in this so far.

Bidoof's Match of the Week Recommendation

Super Vader vs. Nobuhiko Takada (c)
UWF-i Pro Wrestling World Tournament Finals - 8/18/1994
Match Link: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x7g9ir

Confession time - I'm disappointed in you, Board 8. I saw the rankings for Steiner's Top 100 Wrestlers project. I even did some of the write-ups for it. Where you guys put Big Van Vader, one of wrestling's greatest monsters and in my opinion wrestling's greatest hoss, was shameful. You people had him below Kevin Nash, dammit. So, it's time. It's ****in' Vader time.

Let's begin with a quick introduction to UWF-i. This is actually the third iteration of Japan's shoot style promotion that aimed to present people a more realistic, hard-hitting style than what they were getting from the larger promotions. The matches may have still been predetermined, but they all felt like and were treated as fights. Last topic, I presented a wild brawl. This time, I'm giving you a more scientific bout between a man and a monster.

Takada at the time of this match had been the UWF-i champion for 696 days. He fought against all manner of opponents in that time, from other disciplined shooters like Kiyoshi Tamura (man, I should find stuff from him for this) to big collegiate wrestler types like Gary Albright. He even had fought Vader the year prior and came very close to losing it then. You can see in his face from the start of the match how worried he is about having to face this beast of a man again and especially how he's unsure about trading strikes with the guy. While Takada has Vader beat in sheer technical skill, Vader's power is terrifying. Takada needs multiple hard shots just to get Vader stumbling but Vader only needs one blow to make him crumple.

Vader, of course, plays the perfect monster. His blows are hard (then again, I don't think anyone has ever accused Vader of being a light worker), he's fast for a guy his size, and his selling is wonderful. He gives Takada enough to make him look like a badass and he seems to bump at exactly the right time to really get the crowd fired up. I especially love the subtle heel work he gets in like nailing Takada with a closed fist to get out of a hold. There's maybe two spots like that in this match but, like with his selling for Takada, it's just enough to let the people know who the "hero" is here. Vader even gets to show off some mat work of his own, not as polished as Takada's but it doesn't need to be. Unlike Takada, he's not looking for a submission - he's looking for a knockout blow.

The last couple minutes of this match are just incredible, especially as you listen to the crowd explode when Vader starts looking to powerbomb Takada. I think you guys will enjoy this and I believe you'll see why I love Vader so much from this. Happy holidays!

LiquidOshawott posted...

Really feel like he would maybe be in the bottom end of my top five but Kota feels robbed of that wrestler of the year nod

The problem I have with considering Kota is that while his matches were generally some of the best of NJPW this year, I feel like there's been people who have been more impactful than him this year. And yes, it sucks saying that about the guy who won the G1 Climax but he proceeded to lose the briefcase to Jay while also still somehow getting a title shot. Man, this was not a good year for NJPW creative.

That said, given that one of them had a brief (due to COVID, I think) but fun tag run with Tanahashi and the other feuded with Yujiro, maybe Kota should have been considered before Okada this year. I still wouldn't have voted for him (just like I didn't vote for Okada) but I do think Kota is the better alternative for NJPW if you aren't voting Naito. Maybe it should have been brought up when composing the ballot but, at least from my perspective, the only guys in NJPW who felt like Wrestler of the Year were Naito and kind of Hiromu.

System Shock 2, please.

Ballot submitted.

NBIceman posted...

Santo vs Casas vs Dandy
First of all, thanks for the writeup, Bidoof. Definitely added to this match to understand some of those details you tossed out there.

I guess it's pretty well known at this point that I'm not much of a lucha fan and likely won't ever be, and while this match did feature some examples of a few of the reasons why (awkward spots here and there, points where there wasn't much flow from place to place), it also managed to avoid a whole lot of those pitfalls. Violent lucha, generally speaking, tends to grab me a little better than high-flying lucha, because there's usually such a stronger feeling of authenticity to everything. And that pattern definitely holds here. There's venom behind every strike thrown, which makes for a whole match full of great visuals, especially when mixed with all the blood that shows up later. Hard to believe Santo's even wearing the same gear at the end of the match as he was at the beginning for how different the color looks.

I know the meat of the match was always gonna be in the 2-out-of-3-falls section and all, but I would have liked to have seen the beginning sections go on a little bit longer. I was enjoying the interplay between the three where the Dandy/Casas alliance threatened to explode a couple of times before they got refocused on their plan, and it just would've been nice to see a little more Casas in general. I'm also just not a huge 2-out-of-3-falls fan in general. But again, I understand why those first parts had to be slightly rushed in favor of the latter.

Random additional thoughts: very good crowd, liked Santo's submission work a lot, the diving headbutt was brutal, really enjoyed the bits where Dandy was just tearing at the mask. Can't say I loved this match - my small issues with the structure and flow hold it back some, as does the fact that I just don't have enough investment in these guys to really get drawn all the way into such a personal, story-based bout - but for something that kinda had to fight against my typical taste as a wrestling fan, it was quite enjoyable. Certainly something I'd never have watched if not for this topic, which is exactly what makes the series so fun.

Triple-posting because I have no concept of board etiquette. <_<

Don't worry too much about not getting enough Casas here. He's a name that will come up from me more as this series progresses. Especially at this time, Negro was on fire and was a tremendous worker. Heck, he stayed a tremendous worker for years. He's another one of those lucha guys who somehow didn't completely fall apart as they got older.

Even though it was a deeply personal feud between these men, part of why I went ahead with recommending it is because I felt like their work could tell you how personal their issues were. You don't bloody a man so badly that you change the color of his clothes over nothing. I also thought it was fun to show this off because of how great Dandy was in his segment with Santo. Dandy is one of those names that has some respect with long-time lucha fans but to wrestling fans, he's kind of a meme because of a Bret Hart promo. Watching this match and seeing how smooth his work is as well as the height he gets on a couple of those bumps to the floor, I can actually buy that Bret would totally have wanted to work with the guy. For someone who never gets mentioned as one of the great luchadors of this era, he more than holds up his end on this match.

El Hijo del Santo has his own odd problem where he is largely held as one of the best of his generation, but he doesn't get discussed much by anyone outside of the lucha fanbase. You're lucky if the average fan has even seen the tag match he had with Octagon against Art Barr and Eddie Guerrero from When Worlds Collide and that's easily his most well-known match to the US fans. I think it's a combination of no real body of work outside of Mexico (he did nearly come to WWF in 1996 but backed out when Vince wanted him to drop his mask) and that he's not in good standing with either of the major Mexican promotions right now. Anyways, I'm glad you liked his submission work here as I loved the struggle he had to put the camel clutch on Dandy. Actually, I love a lot of the struggles they had with the submission work here as it helped sell that this was a fight. El Hijo del Santo is a guy I want to show off more in coming weeks and I hope he gets some more fans out of this.

Eddv posted...

Black Tiger II (Eddie Guerrero) vs Wild Pegasus (Chris Benoit) Super J Cup, First Round Match 4/16/1994
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6drjk

Inspired by Voices of Wrestling's Rich Kraetsch's discussion this tournament on an episode of his retro series regarding Best of the Super Juniors, I did myself a major solid and checked out the original Super J Cup from 1994. It was a legendary one night tournament show and if you've never seen it, do yourself a favor and make time to correct that. As our resident guy who focuses on American fan favorites this match caught my eye as a candidate for this topic.

It's super short at just 11 minutes and features icons Eddie and Benoit back in their early years and under weird pseudonyms and gimmicks. Hell Eddie is under a mask. Neither was yet anything resembling a star, though Benoit was already developing a reputation among the tape traders for the speed and intensity of his work and this tournament would earn him his first five star match. But I assume most people have seen Wild Pegasus vs Great Sasuke by this point, so I figured I would go for a deeper dive.

This match presents an excellently executed match that is built around the clash in styles between Black Tiger's aerial maneuvers and Wild Pegasus' penchant for the ground game and chain-grappling. The result is fast and furious and serves as showcase for Black Tiger's athleticism, including a glorious springboard rana that was truly innovative in 1994.

I guess that settles the lingering Benoit question. Not like I'm rushing to recommend his body of work because I imagine it's still awkward to some fans, but he does have some things that are worth showing off. The man legitimately was one of the finest technical wrestlers the business has ever had and, even today, his matches hold up. There's so much people can learn from Benoit but I don't know how many workers these days are able to remove themselves from his actions to take something from his matches. It's a shame.

Also a slight correction on Eddie's star status. By 1994, he was a star in AAA tagging with Art Barr and in his big program with El Hijo del Santo. Insiders more or less figured out that Eddie was going to be a star the moment he got into the ring and it's this year that things are really about to take off with him as he has the tremendous tag match on When Worlds Collide later in the year. It takes a bit longer for Eddie to become the total package but, as a worker, he's there.

Ah, the 1994 Super J-Cup. This is one of my favorite tournaments in wrestling and the whole thing is worth going out of your way to watch. Don't be surprised if we have more matches from it recommended over the course of this project as there's a number of them worth showcasing. The moment I saw this match recommended, I knew I had to go in the direction I did for my recommendation because I knew there wasn't much else I could pull off my short list that was going to make the technical abilities of Benoit and Guerrero. These men, even in 2020, feel like they are on another level from everyone but the very top guys of the industry. The funny thing about this match, to me, is that it kind of becomes their template for all the matches they have with each other moving forward in their careers (like how the first Sting/Flair match was largely the formula used for their future matches). When they first appear on Nitro together, they basically work this same match and it was awesome there but with a somehow more vicious powerbomb from Benoit. I think perhaps the best thing I can say about this match is that even after giving you so much here, you still feel like there's more there for when they wrestle again. Excellent match even with the somewhat abrupt ending.

NBIceman posted...

Iceman's Match of the Week

Ayako Hamada & Ayumi Kurihara vs Madison Eagles and Sara Del Rey
SHIMMER Volume 43 - October 2nd, 2011
Match Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eClN6zJQ0gs

Fun fact: Roughly a decade before Stephanie McMahon invented women's wrestling, a little indie promotion sprung up in Chicago for the express purpose of putting a spotlight on something that very closely resembled it.

Sarcasm aside, SHIMMER is a pretty cool part of modern American wrestling history. A good portion of the most popular women wrestlers in the world today spent at least some time there at one point, including Becky Lynch and Bayley. We kinda take it as a given these days that there's just a lot of good women's wrestling out there, but in the early days of the promotion, it was a pretty big deal to have a company whose selling point was, "Hey, we've got a bunch of ladies who just have really good matches."

And this is one of those really good matches. Most of the names in this match are probably at least somewhat recognizable to the folks in our little community: Hamada from her TNA days, Del Rey for being a big-time coach in NXT now and arguably the single biggest reason that women's wrestling in WWE has become what it is, and Eagles from my occasional rants in the Discord about how great she is. Kurihara may be an unknown, though - she's actually married to one YOSHI-HASHI, and make no mistake about it, she's easily the better worker in that relationship. She plays her part very well in this bout, as do the others.

There's nothing particularly revolutionary about this match, but it's such an easy watch. A hot start leads into some very solid heel work from the challengers, and then once they hit the halfway point, they're off and running, with basically no downtime until the end. It's a shining example of why indie wrestling was so popular among the portion of the fanbase that it was during this period; in a time where WWE was still calling their women "Divas" and running their top programs with such luminaries as Eve Torres, Maryse, Melina, Jillian, and the Bella Twins (long before people started pretending they were Kobashi and Misawa reincarnated, even), Dave Prazak and Allison Danger just put four of the world's best female workers in the ring and told them to go kill it.

So, I've got a confession to make - I'm not really a big fan of most women's wrestling. Ironically, it's for some of the same reasons Iceman has given for not being into lucha (awkward spots, bad match flow, questionable striking and so on). This match definitely had some of those things in it but I still really enjoyed the work of the women in this. It's a shame that Kurihara isn't active today because she would be a big star somewhere and, like most tag matches I've seen with her in them, I think she was my favorite worker in the match. Kind of like how it is with the men, there's a polish with women who endure the dojo system in Japan that women coming up through other systems tend to lack. For more information on what that is like, check out the somewhat infamous GAEA Girls documentary from years ago (it's on YouTube). Del Ray was also really impressive and WWE should be thankful to have gotten her as a trainer because their women's division would be so much worse without her training.

Honestly, my biggest problem with the match was Bryce Remsburg. God, he annoys me so much as a ref. He's not technically inept like a Todd Sinclair but he is incapable of blending into the background like how I believe a good ref should. He wants attention and he wants to be a part of the story of any match he's in, even when it's uncalled for like this one. All the stuff involving him keeping Hamada in the corner for the first half of the match was obnoxious, especially since it kept him from paying attention to things like the tags between Eagles and Del Ray that he misses (and never addresses) or the times Kurihara is in a submission hold or being pinned (I think Eagles had to call him over on a couple of these). Take all of that and his exaggerated gestures or wacky facial expressions while looking right at the camera, he's a constant distraction and I can't believe he's been around for so long without someone telling him to knock it off.

Remsburg gripes aside, the match was good but I think it falls short of great. It's right on the edge but all the minor issues couple with one major annoyance take it to about ***3/4 for me. Good recommendation and I'm happy that we're getting such a good mix of matches on these open-ended weeks.

Bidoof's Match of the Week Recommendation

El Hijo del Santo vs. Negro Casas vs. El Dandy (Mask vs. Hair vs. Hair)
CMLL Super Viernes - December 6, 1996
Match Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ga7GQP0R8U0

I've been wanting to share this match since the second week of this project but between themes and just wanting to differentiate things, it kept getting pushed back. This one's for you, Iceman.

So, this can be a little difficult to follow at first if you don't speak Spanish and are unfamiliar with CMLL, so part of this write-up is going to be explaining what's going on here. Basically, the guys who lost the first two falls of this match would be the ones who wrestled each other to determine who would be the one to lose either their mask (Santo) or their luxurious locks (Negro, Dandy). Given that both men had their issues with him in 1996, Negro Casas and Dandy team up at the start to make sure no matter what that Santo has to put up his mask. It's pretty genius and plays perfectly into a longer story that eventually gets paid off on the next year's anniversary show. Then Dandy and Negro Casas wrestle each other where Negro Casas takes out Dandy's knee and makes him tap to a Sharpshooter, allowing him to escape El Hijo del Santo (but not without one more cheap shot) and cut a cocky promo on the way out.

From then on, you have a two out of three fall war. Part of why I was so interested in sharing this is because this is not the kind of match most think about when "lucha libre" is brought up. Crowd brawling, stiff strikes, and both men left absolutely bloody messes as the ref struggles to keep any semblance of order. This is what a grudge match should be. You'd assume that these men hated each other but I'm not aware of any real heat between the two. And the best part of it all is that you still have a potential face-off with Negro Casas to look forward to! As far as violent lucha brawls go, I believe this one of the best and I look forward to hearing what others think of it.

Eddv posted...

Eddv's Match of the Week
The Big Boss Man and Stan Hansen vs Kenta Kobashi and Mitsuhara Misawa
AJPW 7/9/1993
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fApSzZLQ7KI

This match is the source of a fairly famous gif, the one that gets shared every time people want to talk about Boss Man's unusual athleticism. Curiosity led me to view the whole thing and well - its an AJPW match featuring two of the four pillars. So yeah its naturally pretty good. But what this means is that I have cast The Boss Man as my star for this writeup. It is interesting to see him in this context He's bumping like a boss, he's coming off the top rope and he's working with some serious workrate.

It becomes easy I think to not appreciate work like this from Boss Man in light of guys like Luchasaurus and Brian Cage to see him going like that but he sort of comes off as like a second Hansen and while he does take the fall here he acquits himself well and hits a silky smooth counter-boss man slam.

In the scheme of AJPW tags this is nothing truly special but I have always had a soft spot for the boss man.

Ray Traylor doesn't feel like he gets enough appreciation from modern fans. For a guy of his size, he was so athletic and it felt like he could perform well with a variety of opponents. Though he's the worst worker in this match, he holds his own in there and has a couple of moments where he shines. Oh, and the other three men in this match are on most people's shortlists for all-time greats.

As you said yourself, this isn't anything special or memorable in the realm of AJPW tags. Still, it's a very solid tag match that the crowd absolutely loved. The way everyone lit up any time Misawa entered the ring is a reaction that I don't think anyone in modern wrestling can get (even if we weren't in COVID-land). Finishing stretch is very well done but I feel like I could say that about any AJPW tag from this era. I guess the main fault I have against it is that it's just a pretty good tag match in a company where you're used to seeing the best.

NBIceman posted...

Okay, sorry for the delay, folks.

Iceman's Match of the Week

Chris Sabin vs Katsuhiko Nakajima
AJPW Pro-Wrestling Love In Ryogoku Vol. 3 - August 26, 2007
Match Link: https://www.dailymotion.com/embed/video/k34tJU2QWitz68w2oTb

The "familiar face" in this one is, of course, Sabin making a rare singles tour of Japan, but for a lot of fans, Nakajima, who has spent more than a decade now as one of the most enduring and consistently good members of NOAH, could probably also qualify, especially considering he's walking in as the champion.

Sabin earned this challenge by winning AJPW's Junior League over such names as TAKA Michinoku and, many years before his dick kicking and garrote wiring escapades, Dick Togo, including a victory in the finals over Shuji Kondo, who had just recently held this title for an almost-500-day reign. Sabin was doing some of the best singles work of his career at this point, and his booking everywhere he went reflected that.

If you're not familiar with Nakajima, suffice it to say that he was a prodigy in every sense of the word. He's 19 years old here and already in his fourth year as a pro. And considering he was good from the time he first stepped in the ring, that's a great combination. And that puts Sabin in a fun position; he was no grizzled vet by this point by any means, but he got to work like one, punishing every mistake his overaggressive opponent makes and showing some great smarts by targeting the leg and trying to take away his brutal kicks.

Brutal kicks still abound, though. Oh, do they ever. This match is much more violent than you may expect, with some of the best looking strikes you'll ever see coming from both guys. It's fast-paced and exciting and, for two guys that have had careers in which AJPW was pretty much just a blip on the radar, it's a hell of a hidden gem.

Oh hey, Chris Sabin with knees! I had forgotten what that was like. Man, that made this a treat to watch after years of seeing him in his current condition.

If any of you haven't seen Katsuhiko Nakajima before, this is a great introduction to him and his style. He loves his kicks and his kicks look amazing. He hasn't changed that much from his younger years but he also hasn't really needed to. His stuff is great and he's stayed healthy. I just wish he'd spend more time in promotions that weren't circling the drain. <_<

I think what I really loved out of Sabin is that it was clear he came into this with a game plan. He was going to work that leg, try to take away Nakajima's offense, and hopefully that will leave him in a position to be able to get a Cradle Shock for the win. Sabin showed off some really great submission offense and impressive quickness with his ability to keep slipping Nakajima up whenever Nakajima seemed like he was going to take control back. That dive spot where Nakajima nailed him with a perfect high kick was excellent.

I guess my final thought on this is how much it sucks to be Chris Sabin. At this time, he was a part of the conversation for being one of the best juniors in the business. However, the back-to-back ACL tears completely derailed him and I feel as though he's never been able to adapt to it. It's a shame that so much of his career is tied to TNA where they never really used him or Alex Shelley to their fullest and we didn't get more performances like this.

Eddv posted...

Ah damn Ive been slacking

At least you're not alone. My week has been insane but I'll do my best to watch these recommendations soon.

Bidoof's Match of the Week

The Undertaker vs. Jinsei Shinzaki
Michinoku Pro: 4th Anniversary - 10/10/1997
Match Link: https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV11V411d7bu?from=search&seid=17002893024923378383

Alright, let's start with the easy part. Why is this happening? Well, Jinsei was killed by the Great Muta in a previous match and, since The Undertaker exists between life and death, Jinsei Shinzaki must defeat him in order to return to life. Makes perfect sense.

This match is part Undertaker showcase as the Deadman goes through all of his signature offense on a barely responsive Shinzaki to the Japanese fans. Shinzaki is dead, remember? But along the way, we see him begin to revive and that's when the match really begins as Jinsei fights back against the insurmountable power of the Undertaker. We get some great demonstrations of both men's athletic abilities and some solid selling from Taker when Shinzaki finally gets some ground on him. It's not a very long match but it's a pretty fun ride and probably one of Taker's better matches from the 90s given that he spends a good chunk of the decade wrestling various stiffs in crap gimmicks. Enjoy!

Eddv posted...

I always find it hard to have takes on matches involving talent I don't know. Doi looked much better here than he did in singles action.

That's kind of how Doi is in general. I think it's hilarious that you were able to see this after so little exposure to the guy's work and seeing him from two different stages. He's only in his fourth year as a wrestler in my tag match whereas in the Danielson match he's nearing a decade and is the top guy of the promotion. Doi is a really good wrestler as a singles but I feel he really shines in tags to the point that I would argue he's one of the top 20 greatest tag wrestlers.

NBIceman posted...

Shisa/Doi vs Milano/YOSSINO
As much as I will forever hate that he brought the Paradise Lock into existence, it's always been easy to see what everyone saw in Milano Collection back when. (Side note: One of my favorite little pieces of super obscure wrestling trivia is the fact that he trained in my hometown of San Antonio for a while, randomly.) The man is smoothness personified, even more so than a lot of DG guys and that's saying something. Blend that with all of the creativity he exhibited and it was just impossible not to have at least some fun when you watched him wrestle. Injuries have derailed a lot of promising careers and he's no exception.

And all around, this is just a light, breezy good time of a match. Yoshino is one of my all-time favorites, Doi is a top-five all-time tag worker, and Shisa always seemed to do stuff that you'd never see anywhere else. None of these guys save for maybe Shisa were anywhere near what they would become in the future and there's only so much you'd do on an undercard tag anyway, but nevertheless, an undercard tag in a Toryumon style at any point in history is a pretty safe bet to bottom out at "good." Lots of good stuff here for sure and no wasted time whatsoever in its short run.

It's not the best Toryumon/Dragon Gate undercard tag match you'll ever see, but as I said in my original post I feel like it captures exactly the sort of spirit you'd want from their tag matches. It's always a treat to see Milano again before he left for America and got fat on Pringles. Shisa is kind of a guy who never did a whole hell of a lot in his career but he always holds his own in these sorts of matches.

Eddv posted...

Dean Malenko vs Scotty Too Hotty, Backlash 2000 April 30, 2000
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3bid0s or use the WWE Network, it's easy to find.

This is one that came onto my radar via the Voices of Wrestling patreon where Rich Kraetsch recommended it to a fan of Dean Malenko's. I just watched it and it fucking rules.

You have Malenko here at the height of his heel powers and Scotty Too Hotty coming down from the hottest bit of his Too Cool run. The match starts with Scotty Too Hotty showing his speed and athleticism as Malenko, in full bastard mode attacking the leg methodically, keeps cutting him off and working him over. Malenko sometimes truly lacks ring charisma, but this is not one of them. He has the crowd in the palm of his hands building the support for Scotty to a near fever pitch towards the end. As an aside, I love WWF Attitude Era crowds and have missed them.

A lot of the way this match is worked will feel familiar, it's a pretty typical match formula for today, but was pretty innovative for the time. It is a hell of a showcase for the way Malenko worked. Scotty for his part actually sells the leg well and it builds logical and fun little story.

Only took a couple of days to get back to this. <_<

As I said before, I liked this match. Malenko basically worked a WCW match with Scotty and, with this being around the peak of Too Cool, Scotty was a great face to throw in there for him. Iceman did have a point that you never feel like Dean is losing this but it didn't really bother me too much. It's almost what you need to do if you actually want Malenko to mean anything. Too bad he never really does in the WWF.

Bump. Will be posting more detailed thoughts on Scotty/Malenko after work but I liked it. Well wrestled match and it's probably the most personality I've seen from Malenko outside of his infamous feud with Jericho in WCW. It's also helped by this being around the peak of Too Cool.

NBIceman posted...

Iceman's Match of the Week Recommendation (Week 4)

Eddie Edwards vs Timothy Thatcher
Beyond Wrestling, Greatest Rivals Round Robin - September 26, 2015
Match Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oa1IcmHekU

This is... Somewhat far afield of the sort of match I generally enjoy, I suppose you could say. I'm rarely a Beyond Wrestling fan. I'm only sometimes a Tim Thatcher fan, because I think he needs the right opponent that both really jives with his style but also has enough of a difference in his work that he keeps Thatcher from some of his worse tendencies.

Enter Eddie Edwards, who I'm always a fan of. If you want to see a match where every move matters, this one should strike your fancy. You won't see a whole lot of impact moves in the way we tend to think of them today, although there's certainly one or two of those, but these guys do a fantastic job of making every chop and well-placed kick seem like it's a hair's breadth from absolutely wiping out the other man.

Aspects of this bout probably aren't for everyone, but it's also the kind of match that will appeal to most fans in at least some way. It's quick, it's violent, it's well worked with a simple story, and the finish is great.

I brought this up in the Discord server, but watching 2015 Eddie Edwards just makes me hate his last couple of years in Impact so much more. THIS is the Eddie I want now - crisp, hard-hitting, "never say die" Eddie Edwards not this weird ECW character that calls himself Eddie Edwards. I can kind of get why Eddie might feel like he needs to distance himself from his American Wolves self, but his hardcore crazy guy stuff isn't the right move.

As for the match, sorry. I still don't like Thatcher but this match was one of the more bearable ones because of how short it is. The time helps keep him from dragging it down and, well, Eddie's refusal to let Thatcher turn it into a grapple****fest. Eddie isn't really known for being Mr. Personality but I thought he was very engaging throughout the match and that also helps this out since you know Thatcher isn't going to do it. Good stuff.

Bidoof's Match of the Week Recommendation (Week 4)

Super Shisa and Naruki Doi vs. Masato Yoshino and Milano Collection AT
Toryumon: Feliz Ano Nuevo 2004 - 1/31/2004
Match Link: https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1Zs411P7mY/

Man, Dragon Gate is getting more representation in this than I thought it would. I originally had a different match in mind but it's just hard to recommend a match that only goes about five minutes, even with this format. It's a great five minutes and if this gimmick makes a return then maybe I'll use it.

Anyways, welcome to Toryumon! For this exciting bout, you'll be watching a tiger man team with a baseball player to take on two dastardly fake Italians. Anyone who has followed Dragon Gate over the last few years might recognize a couple of the names here as both Doi and Yoshino have been pillars of the company for over a decade. But I'm mostly recommending this because of Milano Collection AT, who I don't feel gets talked about much anymore outside of being LIJ's announcer in NJPW. Milano looked and felt like such a future star at this time, kind of sucks that he never quite got there. This match is an example of what I feel is the best of an undercard Dragon Gate tag - good pacing, solid technical work, fun comedy spots, and it doesn't drag. I hope everyone enjoys it!

Steiner posted...

Steiner's Match Recommendation (Week 3)
Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi & Toshiaki Kawada vs. Jumbo Tsuruta, Masanobu Fuchi & Akira Taue
All Japan Pro Wrestling, April 20 1991
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaO3Y1RXofo

I'll start by noting: this match is kind of long. The video is 53 minutes. In my own watchthrough of AJPW in 91, I saw the time on this 6 man tag and strongly considered skipping it. I forgot all about that a few minutes in - forget about how you feel about long wrestling matches in 2020, this is a perfect hour long drama, where each interaction between different pairs of competitors is their own story. I've been excited to recommend this match since I came up with the concept and I'm gonna have to watch it again to be able to discuss it properly here as it's probably about a year since I saw it, but boy am I excited at that prospect. Hope you all enjoy this as much as I did!

Well, I can confirm that the second half of this match is good. <_<

While I can name a few 45+ minute matches I loved, I'm one of the first people to tell you that it's generally best to cap matches at around 35. They often lose the crowd, have repeated sequences, or are purely self-masturbatory (some of Chris Hero's long matches, that damn Triple H/HBK HiaC match that I thought would never end). This was not any of those. These guys made the most of their time and, by the end, I don't feel like there was any real waste to this match. Nobody is grabbing a headlock and laying on the mat for two minutes here.

I'm kind of at a loss as to where to begin here. I'll say that I didn't find the beginning to be very special. Felt like a typical AJPW tag opener other than Taue slapping Kawada so hard he took a bit of a nap on the outside (about the only negative I have to this match are the shots of Kawada selling being knocked off the apron). As I'm settling into this being your standard good six-man from AJPW, Kawada takes to the ring and gets into a ****ing fight with Taue. From then on, they have my undivided attention. Kawada's striking is so good and he works a good chunk of this match trading off between Taue and Tsuruta. I was happy seeing that Jumbo has his fans on the board when following the Greatest Wrestler Ever topic and this is another classic performance from him. He's totally keeping up with his younger opponents and it feels like he's still the same Jumbo I saw from a match in '83 I watched not too long ago (for. . . reasons that we might get to for this series). I did notice that Fuchi was largely a nonentity for the first half of this six-man, but he becomes a bigger presence in the second half with some tremendous heel work.

Misawa, to me, is the perfect embodiment of what most expect of a traditional Japanese wrestler. Crisp, athletic, and so stoic. He doesn't really emote much in this match but that kind of makes it more meaningful when you see him huff in frustration or breathing hard as he really works a hold. It also helps that he's got the ultra charismatic Kobashi on his team. If you love Tanahashi, go out and find more young Kobashi. Different styles of work but both are masters of playing fiery babyface.

Perhaps the biggest compliment I can give this match is that it ended exactly when it needed to. Like I said before, there's no wasted motion in this match and every sequence, every pairing felt significant. They managed to go 53 minutes and still perfectly hit the peak for the ending. Excellent match and I'm happy I found the time to watch it.

Kind of been a lazy week for me. I'm sorry about not doing my part to produce any discussion for these matches.

NBIceman posted...

Iceman's Match Recommendation (Week 3)
Bryan Danielson vs. Naruki Doi
Dragon Gate USA, Open the Untouchable Gate - September 6, 2009
https://www.bilibili.com/video/av7554969/

A short-lived logistical nightmare and perhaps a little too ahead of its time to be a truly successful venture, DGUSA nonetheless will always be one of my all-time favorite promotions. Dragon Gate, as one of the most consistently great promotions in recent memory, crossed over with the American indies at arguably the height of the output match-wise, all with an inspired Gabe Sapolsky at the helm? It'd be hard to craft a company more perfectly tailored to my particular tastes. Johnny Gargano put himself on the map there. The Young Bucks learned much of what they know there. But before any of that, Daniel Bryan Danielson had one of his last indie matches before reporting to WWE there.

If you're wondering just how beloved American Dragon was in the minds of hardcore wrestling fans around this time, you need look no further than this match. In an age where even the most popular indie stars were relentlessly booed and mocked and had sellout chants directed at them for signing on the dotted line with WWE, Danielson still has the whole crowd behind him here. And I gotta tell ya, I always forget how much I miss indie AmDrag until I watch one of his matches. Everything he does is so purposeful and intense and violent. Just like all of his bouts around this time, it feels about half as long as it actually was because you just get completely sucked in. It's not even that he does anything especially unique; he just does it all so damn well.

But I don't want to undersell his dance partner. When the dust settles on Naruki Doi's career, for a lot of reasons, he'll probably be remembered first and foremost as a tag wrestler. When he found the right opponent for a singles contest, though, he could go with the best of them. Even more so than many of his company contemporaries, he always did a great job of merging the fast-paced Dragon Gate style with the more technical indie style of the time, and that's on full display here. Perfectly placed spots, high-impact moves that always look fantastic, and a lovely job of letting crowd hero Danielson get a lot of babyface shine without being an outright heel.

There's something for everyone here, and it's a real window into what DGUSA could've been had some things broken a different way. Here's the kinda funny part: this isn't even my favorite match on the show - the one that slightly edges it out involves a guy who's already shown up in a prior match for this project, though (and who's likely to show up often in the future if it continues long enough), and I'm trying to spread the wealth a bit. Besides, I'm the minority opinion there, considering a good number of folks would be inclined to call this the best match the company ever put on. Hope y'all have fun with it!

I want to get my negatives out of the way with this.

1. I've never been high on Doi as a singles guy. Unlike Tim Thatcher from the first week, I've never been able to exactly put my finger on why he never does anything for me. He's a phenomenal tag wrestler (he's part of my two favorite DG tag teams), he's charismatic, his matches are typically good-to-great, so why is he among my least favorite Dream Gate champions ever? Rewatching this match, I think I have at least one reason it doesn't work well for me - Doi's finishers have zero credibility. If you're a long-time DG fan, you know that the Doi 555 or the Bakatare Slide Kick are never putting anyone away on the first use (sometimes not even after the third or fourth and maybe not even when used sequentially). At least Danielson didn't kick out of the Muscular Bomb but I've seen Doi having to hit that multiple times in matches as well to put guys away. Doi's era of DG is particularly notorious for finisher spam (part of why so many guys there have so many) but it feels like he gets it the worst.
2. Relatively minor one here but this was also a reminder for why Lenny Leonard never gelled with me as a commentator. Lenny is really good at naming moves but awful at telling the narrative of the match. There's stretches of this match where he's just shouting moves and I guess I'm supposed to be excited by his tone, but he never conveys why these moves should be so important. That said, I'd take Lenny over anything on WWE television or the AEW Dynamites where JR is particularly checked out.

Now that I've got those points out of the way, go watch this match. Especially if you're only familiar with Daniel Bryan in the WWE. This is easily one of the best matches of his indie career. Hell, it might be a contender for one of his best matches ever. You never see Bryan work like this in the WWE with the exceptional, unique limb work and the crazy pacing. It's kind of a shame we didn't get too much more of him working with Dragon Gate guys because it's kind of a perfect pairing of styles. All of the higher end guys could easily match Danielson's pace and his style can keep them from falling too heavily into some of the problems people can have with watching Dragon Gate. Other than the issue I mentioned before, Doi was tremendous here and more than held his own. Only complaint I really have against him is that he isn't Danielson, which doesn't feel like too much of a knock against a guy to say he isn't one of the greatest ever. I'm so happy that this got shared because I had kind of forgotten how incredible Danielson can be when he's not hamstrung by the environment. Highest recommendation.

Don't know about the AJPW six-man but I'm pretty confident about being able to watch Doi/Danielson tonight.

I was wondering when someone would dip into DGUSA. Excellent pick that I look forward to seeing again!

Bidoof's Match Recommendation (Week 3)
Samoa Joe (c) vs. James Gibson for the ROH Pure Championship
Ring of Honor, New Frontiers - April 5, 2005
Match Link: https://www.bilibili.com/video/av82676795/

Now that we're back to no themes, I can recommend a match I was originally considering for the second week of this great experiment. And with ROH bringing back the Pure Championship with their return to running shows, it feels like a good time to showcase one of the best matches in the original run of the belt.

For those unfamiliar with the Pure Championship, it was the original secondary singles title of the promotion. Unlike the IC or the US title in WWE, this belt had a specific set of rules all matches were contested under.

• The Code of Honor must be upheld. Each match started with a handshake between the opponents. Not really a rule unique to this belt as that was supposed to be how all Ring of Honor matches started but still worth mentioning.
• Wrestlers had three rope breaks in a match. After that, you could no longer break your opponent's submissions or pins on the ropes.
• Closed-fist punches to the face are not allowed, only slaps or chops. Should you haul off and punch your opponent in the face, you are deducted a rope break as a penalty. If you are out of rope breaks, you're disqualified.
• Title could change hands on a count out.

The idea is that these rules would allow the wrestlers to work a different style of match and give them new tools to work into the structure. In my opinion, it was kind of a mixed bag (especially when they started having Nigel McGuinness exploit the rules for cheap finishes) but I appreciated the attempt at making something different. We'll see what happens with it this time around.

Anywho, as I said before, this match is one of the strongest contests for the belt. Samoa Joe had just won the belt and was looking to establish it as equal to the world title. James Gibson joined ROH in February and was eager to show everyone that he was greater than his push in WWE. On paper, the match is already a good one but the Pure rules added another layer to their match while also not really taking anything away from it. You didn't feel like their hands were tied by the stips like what we've gotten from so many gimmick matches these days. I look forward to seeing what everyone else thinks, particularly if you've seen some of the other Pure matches from ROH.

You used a match I recommended for Tanahashi in Greatest Wrestler Ever.

I'm just teasing, man. It's a tremendous match and I like seeing it recommended everywhere.

NBIceman posted...

Iceman's Match Recommendation (Week 2)
Katsuyori Shibata vs Kota Ibushi
NJPW, G1 Climax 25 - July 29, 2015
Match Link: https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1Hs411W7UA?from=search&seid=16498732861684611450
NJPW World Link: https://njpwworld.com/p/s_series_00333_7_07#

I had two matches in consideration for this week, and the other one was posted by Bidoof. Glad to end up with an easy decision after all!

At least I know you and Steiner weren't eyeing my backup. I'll be holding onto that match for a future week. =)

This is the only singles match these two ever had, and though they couldn't have known that then, they sure worked like they had nothing to leave on the table for the future.

That's kind of the beauty of Shibata's style. Outside of the occasional match you could tell was cut short for event timing (like his match with Goto at the Tokyo Dome one year), you never feel like he's holding anything back. There's no lingering sense of "oh, he's saving something for the rematch"; Shibata is a very in-the-moment kind of wrestler. We all know where that eventually went, but at least we will always have wonderful matches like this.

One of my favorite things about this match is that you could tell the crowd had no idea what they were going to get with this match. Ibushi was a former junior finding his place in the heavyweight division, which hasn't always been a successful endeavor (hi Wataru Inoue). Shibata was also a guy trying to establish his spot and earn the respect of his peers backstage. What you got was a really crisp, real fast strike battle between two guys who seemed to feel that they had nothing to lose. I can definitely see why you were thinking about either this or Sasaki/Takayama as they are very similar matches. Personally, I prefer the type of brawl you get from Sasaki/Takayama as it feels more novel today but this match is still great. Another strong recommendation.

Steiner posted...

Steiner's Match Recommendation (Week 2)
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi
NJPW, G1 Climax 23 - August 2, 2013
Dailymotion: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x7sy1iz
NJPW World: http://njpwworld.com/p/s_series_00211_1_10

Like everyone else, I did decide to travel back to somewhat before the NJPW boom - not as far as Bidoof, but slightly further than Iceman. And then I have chosen two wrestlers who everyone, by now, is intimately familiar with and expects this sort of performance from in the G1. But, in August 2013, people didn't expect this from Ishii. this is Ishii's first great New Japan match - and set the tone for the rest of the decade for him.

This is a new to NJPW, underestimated, undersized Big Tom vs. Peak Powers, God King Tanahashi. And Tanahashi absolutely plays that up, working as an arrogant dickhead from the outset. Two days later Ishii would go on to have maybe my favourite match of all time, but this is wonderful setup for it that showcases two of the best workers in the G1's history, playing their roles to perfection

I see what you did here. >_>

This has got to be one of Tanahashi's finest performances. Ishii already had a rep going into this G1, but it was this match that really made him to the wider NJPW audience. The most impressive thing to me about this is just how incredible Tanahashi is at reading the crowd and adjusting his performance to perfectly match their expectations. The people in Korauken this night were rabid for Ishii and not happy about potentially seeing him lose to the Ace. So, what does Tanahashi do? He turns himself on the spot and works the match as a cocky asshole. Ishii, for his part, is a great defiant babyface who is taking everything Tana throws at him while giving it his all in the hope of catching the biggest win of his life. And, boy, does Ishii throw everything at him going through every finishing move he had at that point before finally getting the win.

I recommended this match for people to see why Tanahashi is the greatest of all time and I still believe this to be one of his greatest masterpieces. In one night, he made a guy and created a narrative that carried Ishii through the rest of the G1. He may have finished at the bottom of the block, but with every match you had the feeling that he could pull off that upset. This is still one of my favorite matches and I can't recommend it enough to everyone.

Bidoof's Match Recommendation (Week 2)
Kensuke Sasaki vs. Yoshihiro Takayama
NJPW, G1 Climax 2004 - August 8, 2004
Match Link: https://www.bilibili.com/s/video/BV1pz4y1d7h4

I'm sorry in advance for the quality. Get NJPW World if it really bothers you. Heck, just get NJPW World in general.

Watching WALTER/Thatcher is partially the inspiration behind this pick from me. Also, I wanted to recommend something that's VERY different from last week. Instead of graceful, fast-paced junior tag action, I'm giving you a war between two of the hardest-hitting heavyweights in New Japan's history. From the opening staredown, you can feel that this match is going to be special and, by the end, you're going to be feeling it as some of the strikes from these men will be so loud that you might even begin to believe you are there. I hope everyone enjoys this gem from the company's dark ages and I look forward to seeing what Steiner and Iceman suggest this week.

EDIT: As for my vote for last week, I liked Roddy/ZSJ the most between my fellow contributors' picks.

NBIceman posted...

Dragon Gate Tag
I've always loved tag wrestling, and Dragon Gate's always managed to do it better than most. I agree with Bidoof that this match does seem to have been unfortunately forgotten, and a lot of that probably has to do with the talent on the challenger side. The thing about this match is that it was really a big step in the coming out parties of T-Hawk and Eita, but, well... T-Hawk just never really caught on despite the considerable effort put into him - he had to leave DG to become awesome - and Eita, depending on who you ask, has only recently found his legs with RED or still hasn't at all.

They were damn good here, though. The Millenials era, for my money, has been the best run for either guy in the company.

I never really got why DG was so laser-focused on T-Hawk. I always felt he was a good tag guy (and a good Naoki Tanisaki for those who remember that), but his singles matches were always such a drag. Like, if this guy was really the big ace of the company, then two guys as talented as Masato Yoshino and YAMATO should have been able to get so much more out of their matches with him. I don't even know what's been the big change between then and now where in a pre-COVID world he was really getting some attention.

As for Eita, I think the company's focus on T-Hawk and somewhat Kotoka had him coming up short. He had that really bizarre couple of weeks where he joined VerserK and then got kicked out. Then in Over Generation, what I saw in him with The Millennials just kind of vanished. He also has the unfortunate blemish of ANTIAS to him but I think everything has been coming together for him in R.E.D.

Oh, and if there's concern over shitty commentary then maybe I should hold off on some PWG recommendations. <_<

Similar to how Eddv echoed my feelings on WALTER/Thatcher, I'm going to somewhat agree with his thoughts on Roddy/ZSJ. Both men aren't exactly "Mr. Personality" themselves, especially at this point. Zack doesn't really have the fire to be a captivating babyface but Roddy. . . I don't know. He's not exactly a font of charisma either but all the things he does and how hard he goes helps hide it more than Zack and Thatcher's style.

As for the match itself, this is probably the best you could get for a match thrown together at the last minute. Both men are definitely working this match like they know someone from WWE or NJPW is watching. Roderick, in particular, looks like he's trying so hard to rise above the good indy worker rep he'd had for almost a decade by that point. For an exhibition, I thought it was a damn good showcase for both men and I'd probably put it at around 3.75-4 snowflakes. Definitely liked it more than Thatcher/WALTER if only because both men felt like they were contributing to this match being great.

Eddv posted...

This is man vs obstacle here and while Tim plays the role of obstacle well....I dunno he feels like just an interchangeable cog.

The story of a man meeting that seemingly insurmountable obstacle isn't a new one and it can be done well under the right conditions (Omega/Okada in the G1 where Kenny needs the win to make the finals, most of Vader's best matches) but I never really bought Tim as being that for WALTER. He didn't have the physicality to really sell me as being someone who was going to outstrike him nor did the structure of the match make me feel that WALTER was just hopeless in a grapple war with Thatcher (which I can't say bothered me too much since Tim's grapplefests have never been captivating in the past).

Steiner posted...

well, this was f***ing awesome. but kind of similar to your thoughts on Walter vs Thatcher, this mostly served to reinforce what I already knew - Shingo Takagi is one of the best of all time. All of the highlights of this match were shingo based to me, with a few of them coming from the wonderful relationship between him and Tozawa. The communication between tags, Tozawa shouting up at Shingo when Shingo is laid out on the ramp, the hug after a double dive - these are the Best Friends but like, actually kicking ass. And then the traditional hot Dragon Gate closing stretch, highlighted by first the struggle to land the Made in Japan, and then when it's finally hit the 1 count kick out had me losing my mind. Great start to this, 4.5 from me

Shingo, indeed, is amazing but I'm happy to see that Tozawa gets his credit. That Twin Gate run with Shingo and Tozawa was excellent because of how close they were and that relationship is a big part of what makes certain events in Dragon Gate so much more compelling down the road. I don't want to give too much away there because there's some stuff later that I might put up for later weeks.

But as good as Tozawa and Takagi were, I think Eita and T-Hawk went out to show that they could hang. There's a lot of fantastic spots to this match, but I'm still blown away by Eita's moonsault to the floor as T-Hawk had Takagi up in the electric chair position.

I'm going to be a bit unorthodox and start with Steiner's pick since I've been meaning to see what Tim Thatcher can do when he's not boring me to tears wrestling a rando from Catch Point in the middle of EVOLVE shows.

Steiner posted...

Steiner's Match Recommendation (Week 1)

WALTER vs. Timothy Thatcher
Progress, Chapter 62 - January 28th, 2018
Link: https://www.bilibili.com/video/av19282140/

I know in your write-up you said this match helps show why Tim has gotten over in Europe but, to me, the star of this match was 100% WALTER. Not going to lie, when this opened with a grapple sequence, I immediately started getting flashbacks to Thatcher's reign in EVOLVE. Sequences of technically proficient mat wrestling with slick transitions but very little of what makes professional wrestling what it is. Tim's at least got more than one face now but he still ends up working most of this match with a blank expression. It's so difficult for me to get into him because he does so little to get me engaged outside of the aforementioned great grappling and slugging the guy with some nice forearms.

WALTER, however, was the man. What Thatcher lacked in terms of projecting a personality, WALTER had in spades. You could see a story being told from his body language, his expressions of frustration and pain, and his selling in particular for his hand was incredible. Thatcher was hitting just as hard with his strikes as WALTER, but it's WALTER's mannerisms that really help put his stuff over the top. I feel like, if anything, this match shows why one man has been built as the guy wherever he's gone and the other is usually only talked about purely as a good technician. You can be the most gifted ring technician in the world but it only gets you so much. You have have to offer more and Thatcher still seems to struggle at doing that.

To sum up this post of just my immediate thoughts, this didn't really change my opinions on Thatcher as a performer. He's still about where I've always seen him. But this performance from WALTER is another piece of evidence for why he might be the best wrestler in Europe. Very good match.

I've been summoned. Guess I should put something up here.

Bidoof's Match Recommendation (Week 1)

Akira Tozawa & Shingo Takagi (c) vs. Eita & T-Hawk for the Open the Twin Gate Championship
Dragon Gate, 15th Anniversary Kobe Festival, July 20, 2014
Match Link: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x44y7e8

Let's start this with a match that I thought got overlooked during the year it happened and has been forgotten over time. In a promotion that always seems to deliver when it comes to tag team action, this match still stands out in my mind as one of the best Dragon Gate put out in the last decade. You have two established pillars of Dragon Gate in Shingo and Tozawa taking on two men who were being groomed to be the future of the company. While I don't think I ever saw what they did in T-Hawk, this match really got me onboard with Eita (who finally won the Open the Dream Gate Championship last month). I hope you guys enjoy this match as much as I do and I look forward to seeing what everyone has to say about it.