Genichiro Tenryu vs. Kensuke Sasaki (NJPW, 1/4/00)

Can’t beat watching these two big boys lobbing knuckles at each other. When Tenryu tries backing Sasaki into a corner, Sasaki straight up pops him with a couple of shots, knocking him on his ass. The referee’s like “what the fuck did you do, Kens-kay?” and Tenryu tries firing back with his old man jabs but Sasaki pops him again. He stays on him with punches in the ropes, throwing in a couple of chops, but Tenryu finally jabs and chops Kensuke down before collapsing himself. Tenryu puts him back in the corner and goes to town on his chest with more chops before it’s bombs away -- a spider German suplex, a powerbomb, a snap brainbuster. Tenryu even tries to get fancy with a frankensteiner but Sasaki slams him down and delivers a frankensteiner of his own. When they’re throwing bombs, they’re smacking each other around in these ugly bar fight exchanges but Kensuke proves in the end that his bombs are a little bit bigger, as he drops Tenryu with not one but two Northern Lights Bombs to win the title.

Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Masahito Kakihara (UWFi, 5/10/91)

Going back to one of my favorite scrappy shitkickers in Masahito Kakihara – who faked like he was going to just grapple with Tamura before he unleashes his traditional little flurry of strikes. Tamura shows off some skill on the mat but again, Kakihara’s hands are all over him like fly swatters. When he does get some breathing room, Tamura’s in-ring awareness shines through, as he’s constantly grabbing limbs, settling into holds and avoiding the bigger blows from Kakihara to get a takedown. When Kakihara misses the big spinning heel kick, Tamura stays on him with knees to the ribs and a nasty shot to the face. When he starts swinging for the fences, missing wildly, Tamura coolly takes him down with a belly-to-belly slam. Kakihara finally grazes him with another spinning heel kick and follows up with another that squarely hits the mark. He then applies a front necklock, deadlifting Tamura with almost a brainbuster. The exhaustion faction plays into the finish of the match, as Kakihara is sluggish, trying to trade kicks with Tamura, and Tamura catches a leg for a takedown. Kakihara’s able to counter with a leglock of his own, but Tamura re-counters and Kakihara taps out. A cool little match-up.

Osaka Pro "Osaka Pro Legend Story" (1/4/00)

Naohiro Hoshikawa vs. Takehiro Murahama

What a trip seeing everybody’s favorite DDT referee Yukinori Matsui in there officiating. As far as debut matches go, I can’t think of one much better than Takehiro Murahama’s debut against Naohiro Hoshikawa, boxing gloves and all. The progression of heated strikes from round to round was incorporated really well into the structure, and while there were a couple of muddled exchanges, Murahama looks like a naturall. In the first round, they land some good hard kicks and Murahama connects with a flurry of punches but they really unload in the second round, with Murahama taking out Hoshikawa with a right hook. He dumps him with a backdrop suplex but Hoshikawa immediately retaliates with a pop-up German suplex throw. In the third round, Hoshikawa lands some stiff kicks and knees while Murahama’s still lobbing jabs. After a belly-to-belly suplex, Hoshikawa maneuvers into an armbar, forcing Murahama to the ropes...but that just sets Murahama off, as he promptly pummels Hoshikawa’s face in, taking him back down with another barrage to end the match. Really good stuff.

Super Delfin vs. Dick Togo

Super Delfin has always had some of the crispiest takedowns in pro-wrestling, and Dick Togo’s no slouch himself. I liked the tempestuous back-and-forth open, with Delfin pulling out perdy little tilt-a-whirl headscissors in and out of the ring. Of course, the match can only stay untainted for so long with Togo’s crew lurking on the outside, and after some shenanigans, Togo gets a hold of a chair and injures Delfin’s leg after a diving double stomp from the apron. Togo’s legwork is grunty and somewhat effective but in the end, felt like filler as Delfin doesn't really sell it and it’s quietly forgotten in the back half. At one point, Delfin tries countering with a rana but Togo turns it into a crab hold > STF, and when he starts to heat up, someone throws a chair at him while he’s on the top turnbuckle. The leg stuff goes away as Delfin fights back for a diving body press to the outside. Back inside, he calls for the tornado DDT but Togo’s able to roll through the attempt and Liger Bomb him for two. Togo builds momentum, delivering the Pedigree into the diving senton, which should've been the finish, but when he tries to double dip on the sentons, he misses, which allows Delfin to drop him with a brainbuster and a shitty tornado DDT. He follows up with back-to-back shoteis, missing the third but correcting himself with a stunner to set-up the third and final shotei for the win. A pretty good match with some cool moments but it was all over the place and the finish sucked.

Daisuke Sasaki vs. Shiori Asahi (K-DOJO, 10/15/17)

Simple but smart junior heavyweight wrestling is the best junior heavyweight wrestling, in my opinion, and Daisuke Sasaki is one of the unheralded wizards of the style. This isn't a match that is going to blow many away and that's okay, that's not what they were setting out to do. But it had a little bit of everything, including a great counter-based approach, a couple of high risk spots, and a little comedy with the ropes shenanigans, Asahi's cobra strike, and the ref bumps. Shiori Asahi has a lot of the right tools, especially in his counterwork, but he tends to try to do too much in his matches. He was more grounded here (sometimes not by choice) but he's got a lot of neat touches to his style, like his simple counter to a side headlock. Sasaki goes after the neck early on to set-up for his crossface hold, and like Asahi, he's wrestling more of a grounded approach, though he does pull out his great diving elbow drop to the outside. I thought the octopus hold merry-go-round was fun, and I loved Asahi's answer to the backslide struggle by slipping through the legs into a swanky pin attempt. He's able to slip out of the crossface holds a few times but when Sasaki finally catches him, he uses the crossover version and Asahi quickly taps. An easy, breezy watch well worth your time.

Fuminori Abe vs. TORU (GUTS World, 6/20/17)

GUTS World, where have you been all my year? With the demise of NicoPro's paid-subscription YT channel, the wacky world of GUTS and HEAT-UP return to the wellspring of puro for my viewing pleasures. Now Fuminori Abe is a young guy I like a lot when he pops up in AJPW and BJW. He's technically Sportiva-affiliated but GUTS World seems to be his wrestling home-away-from-home. Back in June, he faced another impressive young guy I'm less familiar with in TORU (not to be confused with TARU). This was quite the little exhibition match-up between these two, and an easy watch/recommendation. Abe is a very emotive performer, in his movements and expressions, which can become rather annoying (see Kenny Omega/Will Ospreay) but Abe works in that Munenori Sawa/Keiji Mutoh vein, which is good by me.

The match itself tells a simple story of basic limbwork and movez but the execution of it all is what makes it worthwhile. For starters, Abe tries to do this big running attack on TORU outside of the ring and TORU overhead suplexes him onto the floor to set-up his subsequent backwork. He delivers a gnarly looking backbreaker, sold well by Abe, before landing a double stomp and locking in a Scorpion Deathlock. Abe chooses to focus on the arm, keeping it locked up through TORU's escape attempts and breaking it down with good stiff kicks. When he tries for his wind-up punch, TORU clocks him with a big elbow but Abe is able to rally back with some more big kicks, knocking him flat with a high kick and following up with a PK. Abe's selling off the German suplex is terrific, which leads to TORU hitting a Shining Wizard and a dragon suplex hold for a nearall. After catching Abe with a brutal flip-over knee strike to the back of the head, he's able to put him away with a brainbuster. Fun stuff.

Jushin Liger vs. Owen Hart (NJPW, 4/28/91)

Having not seen a lot of Owen Hart in Japan, he comes off as a good fit and a natural heel, shooting off a slap early on. After some of that early 1990's junior chain rasslin', Liger teases some matwork before Owen takes over on offense. I guess I never realized Owen was such a suplex machine, but he busts out plenty of pretty ones here, including a gutwrench, a German, a belly-to-belly, and a double arm. After Liger no sells a tombstone piledriver, he hits a superplex and the Liger Bomb for three. A cool exhibition and showcase for Owen, who took most of this match, aside from a last minute win by Liger. I'd love to see more of Owen Hart in Japan.

Yuji Nagata vs. Kazunari Murakami (NJPW, 1/4/06)

This didn't quite hit the same highs as their 2002 match, but it was still fun for the most part, especially in the back half. It's kind of a mess to start as they scramble around until Nagata's able to fire off an Exploder after dodging a penalty kick. Nagata's kicks and knees look good, and he's able to bust Murakami's mouth with a knee on the outside...but on the flip, some of his strikes look weak as hell. Of course, it wouldn't be a Murakami match without blood and the image of it dripping out of his mouth is rather frightening. Nagata unloads on him in the final few minutes, hitting a brainbuster and a head kick. Murakami's gassed at this point, desperately swinging for the fences and missing, which allows Nagata to hit a nasty backdrop, followed by the backdrop hold for the pinfall.

Yuji Nagata vs. Kazunari Murakami (NJPW, 12/12/02)

One of the most interesting aspects of any Kazunari Murakami match is watching how his opponents manage his rabid dog-style in the ring, and for the most part, the strategy is predictable: let the dog tire himself out and then sink in a submission hold. Yuji Nagata, IWGP Heavyweight Champion, uses the same approach, absorbing Murakami's wild swings and stomps before taking control of the situation with a suplex and finding some leverage on the ground. Of course, when jerkface Murakami's able to get an armbar takedown, he refuses to let go in the ropes, which leads to some shenanigans on the outside.

When Nagata's returned to the ring, he's a red mess and Murakami continues punishing him on the mat, at one point, licking Nagata's blood from his forearm because why not? Nagata dripping blood while Murakami's wrenching back with the facelock is quite the visual. Nagata's finally had it and he lays into Murakami with some good looking knees and starts disarming him with his patented reverse armbar, breaking it down in between holds with armbreakers on repeat or stripping the elbow pad and stomping away. In one final act of desperation, Murakami tries to sneak in a sleeper hold off the interference, foaming at the mouth (not literally) as he tries to defeat Nagata. But Nagata dumps him with a belly-to-back suplex, then using the armbreakers to set-up three consecutive wrist-clutch Exploders to put down Murakami. Pretty great match.

Hideki Suzuki vs. Josh Barnett (IGF, 12/31/11)

On the English HDNet broadcast, one of the commentators referred to the matwork as "dirty grappling", which fit well here, considering these two grunty dudes trying to manage the opposing bulk -- opposing bulk well-versed in the same catch-as-catch-can approach. Between the leg jockeying and the back-and-forth for arm control, Suzuki and Barnett conveyed the struggle of not only applying the holds, but keeping them locked on, and exhaustion of throwing around that weight working against them. This was my first exposure to Hideki Suzuki and it was clear to me early on that there's a lot to love from him as a worker. The fact that he just reaches in and coolly slaps Barnett across the face says a lot. He had a good grasp of selling with subtly, which he did here with the leg Barnett kept going after. I haven't seen much of Barnett's pro-wrestling career but I like that he's scrappy and rough-edged. He'll boot Hideki in the face before applying the single leg before transitioning into a brutal-looking STF. The powerbomb and suplexes were an awesome component of this match to establish itself as "strong style pro-wrestling" but within that, there were cool touches, like Barnett going back to the arm after each suplex, or Hideki using his weight as a counterweight to Barnett's throws. Barnett destroying Hideki with the Northern Lights Bomb from seemingly out of nowhere was the cherry on top of it all. Awesome match that only gets better on re-watch.

Jinsei Shinzaki, Super Delfin & Gran Naniwa vs. Great Sasuke, Sato & Shiryu (Michinoku Pro, 2/4/94)

I adore Super Delfin in the 1990's with his awesome 90's get-up and he was a definite highlight of this six-man tag. As for the match itself, it was a total blast, with good comedy, creativity, pacing, and placement of spots. You had Delfin and baby Dick Togo snapping off arm drags and hitting all the highs of that crisp mid-1990's junior chain rasslin'. The veteran no-nonsense Shinzaki beating the crap out of Sasuke, walking the ropes, and of course, Sasuke being an ass, jaw-jacking with the referee. And while Naniwa isn't the best wrestler, he provides probably the biggest laugh of the match when Delfin inadvertently gives him an arm wringer on the ropes, and Naniwa storms off...only to be brought back after a convincing kiss on the lips from an apologetic Delfin. Incredible. With six-mans, there's always a bit of slop and disorder but I really liked the continuous build to the dives, which culminates in everyone taking to the skies. F_U_N_FUN!

Mitsuharu Miswa vs. Jumbo Tsuruta (AJPW, 4/18/91)

This was a perfectly solid rematch, although I don't think it quite lives up to its predecessor due to some of the clunky transitioning throughout. I like that Misawa shows more confidence and fire with his elbows, not allowing daddy Jumbo to punk him early on, before the match settles into a slower, back-and-forth struggle to maintain control. I love a good spat and when Misawa keeps pounding on Jumbo, Jumbo's finally had it and he lays into him with hard slaps and quick knees and then that big jumping knee to hype up the crowd. Then it's back to that slower pace of Jumbo working the leg and Misawa being aggressive with his elbows. I thought Jumbo's almost haphazard way out countering Misawa's offense was pretty great. At one point, Misawa starts heating up and the crowd is buzzing loudly for him but the decision to not hit the dive onto Jumbo on the outside really killed the momentum and the buzz. Misawa's able to score a big two count off of the German suplex hold but when he can't deliver the tiger driver, Jumbo dumps him with a brutal backdrop and follows up with two more to put him away. A good match, with a few great moments, but the pacing and transitions hurt the overall quality.

Jumbo Tsuruta, Masa Fuchi & Akira Taue vs. Mitsuharu Misawa, Toshiaki Kawada & Kenta Kobashi (AJPW, 4/20/91)

This match rules -- easily my favorite six-man tag in All Japan up until this point. Kenta Kobashi’s babyface stellar babyface in peril performance, the Taue/Kawada hate still bleeding into this match, Fuchi being a dick, and of course, the rivalry between Jumbo and Misawa continuing to unfold. Taue himself is quite the dick early on as he keeps harasses Kawada on the apron until Kawada finally kicks the shit out of him while Taue’s laid back in a cross armbreaker. Violence ensues, with Kawada pummeling Taue into the canvas with his little shitty headbutts. Jumbo and crew are such good heels here, especially Jumbo, who goes from playing to the crowd to either piledriving Kawada on the floor or just stepping on his face. Fuchi’s the dirty daddy crass technician, immediately working Kawada’s neck with the headscissors after he and Taue double teamed him with a second piledriver on the floor. Kawada’s finally able to get some revenge on Jumbo with his face kicks – I love that when Jumbo tries to hulk up, Kawada puts him right back down and continues pelting him with those shitty face kicks.

The young guns control for a while, isolating Taue, with Misawa launching Kobashi with a top rope plancha onto Taue outside the ring. Fuchi spoils the fun by getting the tag and immediately starts destroying Kobashi’s knee with great stomps and a knee crusher onto a chair. Terrific selling from Kobashi as he desperately tries to fight back but his knee is fucked and Fuchi takes advantage of it, using an STF and then just rolling back and cranking on the leg. Loved the look of intensity on Jumbo’s face as he’s wrenching on the single leg crab. They milk the teased tag outs by Kobashi with the crowd wanting nothing more than Kobashi to get the hell out of there but Jumbo and crew are absolute bullies, especially Fuchi, who ties Kobashi’s knee in the ropes and cheapshots him with punches. Kawada at one point enters the ring and kicks Jumbo, trying to help Kobashi out, but it ain’t happening. Kobashi FINALLY tags in Kawada, and while he and Misawa go at it with Fuchi, Fuchi’s such a badass that he fights off both and puts Misawa on the rocks against Jumbo. The final fews minutes of the match are incredible, with terrific nearfalls, a super hot crowd, and a hell of a pin break up by Kawada after the chokeslam from Taue. Once the ring has been cleared, Misawa’s up and he’s able to pick up the win with the tiger suplex hold. Fantastic!

Hideki Suzuki vs. Hideyoshi Kamitani (BJW, 11/1/17)

This marks Hideyoshi Kamitani’s second shot this year against Suzuki. During the first match, Kamitani easily wrestled his best singles performance since his MOTY against Yuji Okabayashi last year. But we’ve all seen how Suzuki treats those he’s defeated before (for reference, see the Kawakami title match). This was perhaps Suzuki’s most heel performance to date, although “heel” may not be the right term, as he’s colder and more calculated here, making Kamitani look like a young lion. The opening sets the stage perfectly, as Suzuki coolly side-steps Kamitani’s hot-headed rush. Kamitani looks nervous and hesitant in there, his takedown attempts almost timid, seemingly knowing that Suzuki is such a matwork master that there’s about a 0.00002% chance of outwrestling him.  He comes off like a child at times, an example being Suzuki’s drop down and Kamitani delayed reaction, which elicits giggles from the Korakuen crowd. Then, as if feeling sorry for him, Suzuki lays down…only to further taunt Kamitani on the mat. Kamitani awkwardly climbs on with headlocks or choke attempts but Suzuki’s able to counter each, attacking the arm with a vicious European uppercut.

When Kamitani taps into that raw manchild power, scoop slamming Suzuki and throwing his baby fat around with elbow drops, the fans finally give him something in return. But Suzuki continues to bite. As champ, he wrestles like he doesn’t have time for anyone, the way he kicks Kamitani over for a pin attempt. He cuts off Kamitani’s momentum with a big top rope front suplex and when Kamitani decides to sling elbows and headbutts, Suzuki slings the strikes back even harder. Kamitani staggers him with some big boy slaps and catches him with a low enziguri but when he tries for the lariat, Suzuki goes from octopus hold > full nelson > German suplex > dragon suplex hold, which sees Kamitani immediately try to escape since Suzuki can use it as a submission. The problem with Kamitani is that his offense doesn’t look all that impressive, aside from some of his clobbering blows and his backdrop finish. At one point, he hits a lariat and then goes into a shitty crab hold…why?

Suzuki’s able to elbow out of the backdrop attempt, spiking Kamitani with a scoop slam tombstone, then cracking him with his deadshot elbow. He uses a running knee he probably learned from Shuji Ishikawa and then goes into a front necklock. Poor Kamitani tries to muscle out but Suzuki clenches down, forcing him to pass out before he’s castoff in disgust. The look on Hideki’s face as Daichi Hashimoto checks on Kamitani is the look of a man who gives zero fucks. The final image of Suzuki chilling up on his throne in the corner while Hashimoto’s desperately trying to get at him was awesome. I’ve said it before but Big Japan has done such a terrific job of establishing Suzuki as the ultimate final boss, and while I wouldn’t necessarily call the match itself great, I thought Suzuki’s performance re-iterated that.

Toshiaki Kawada vs. Akira Taue (AJPW, 4/18/91)

I loved this match. These two have such fantastic chemistry together and I love that Kawada brings out Taue's shitkicker scrappiness. Kawada is the bigger shitbag of the two, whipping Taue around by the arm to maintain arm control and when Taue tries to work the arm, Kawada bleeds him with nasty boot scrapes to the face and adds insult to injury with those dirty little kicks of his. Watching Taue bulldoze Kawada with sumo slaps and fall out of the ring was a definite highlight of the match. Taue takes advantage of the outside element, suplexing and powerbombing Kawada on the floor, or lariating him over the guardrail. Kawada's so good at peppering his selling with subtle nuances, like flailing in the single leg crab, but his in-ring awareness is also on point, as he's able to counter the chokeslam attempt with the armbar, bringing it back to his opening armwork. He's able to catch Taue with a back kick that knocks Taue into the ref, and when he hits the powerbomb pin, the ref is slow to make the count. In the end, Taue wins by countout after chokeslamming Kawada...on the floor. Of course.

KENTA vs. Ricky Marvin (NOAH, 10/15/09)

This has to be the best sub-3:00 match, right? I mean, they managed to pack a 25:00+ minute main event into two minutes and some change. Ricky “Livin’ La Vida Loca Extreme” Marvin, really wants to win this, hitting the John Woo dropkick, the powerbomb, the thrust kick, before KENTA no sells it all to obliterate Marvin with a rolling lariat. For the most part, Marvin has answers to KENTA’s big offense, countering the first Go 2 Sleep attempt with the rana, but the second attempt connects and KENTA blasts him with the punt kick to win.

Jun Akiyama vs. Masao Inoue (NOAH, 4/23/06)

A polarizing match but one of my favorites for sure, as Masao Inoue truly excels at making the most of his in-ring limitations, putting in the underdog heel performance of the year – yeah, he’s a blatantly classic heel but the crowd favorite against Akiyama. Before the streamers can even fly, Inoue lariats Akiyama and immediately dumps his ass with a cobra clutch suplex! Of course, Akiyama quickly gets the situation under control, wearing Inoue down with a front necklock for an Exploder but Inoue bails before Akiyama can hit what would be the first of…well, many, many knees. When Jun rolls him back in, Inoue promptly rolls back out to avoid him, remaining patient on the outside until he finds an opening to attack and he does so in the shittiest (I say that with love) way possible, scouring Jun’s face with taped wrists and forearms, running it along the ropes, then along the apron. This pisses off Akiyama, who in turn, dirty rubs his forearms across Inoue’s face…and gets booed for it! Loved how sloppy Inoue’s figure-four on the rampway is but the purpose behind it more than makes up for the execution, as he’s trying to get Jun counted out.

When Akiyama finally puts Inoue in his place, calf branding him from the apron into the guardrail and piledriving him onto the floor, the fans continue to shit on him, which is awesome, as Inoue’s clearly the sympathetic dirty dog here. Inoue tries to build a little momentum, trying a couple of flash pin attempts, but when he goes up top, Jun cuts him off with a super Exploder…and the look on Inoue’s face is incredible. Inoue manages a few last gasps, including the torture rack and a powerbomb, but Akiyama slips out of the backslide and hits the first successful running knee. After an Exploder, the knee party really kicks off, but Masao’s not going down, not rolling over, stiff-legged. After ten knees (the number of completion), Akiyama delivers another Exploder for a big nearfall but the wrist-clutch variant is the final nail in the coffin for Inoue.

Toshiaki Kawada vs. Jumbo Tsuruta (AJPW, 4/6/91)

The story of big daddy Grumbo Tsuruta having to deal with all these fucking younguns runnin' around his house in 1990-1991 is one of my favorite things. Probably the most insolent prick of the bunch of Toshiaki Kawada. Jumbo shows his dominance early on, with Kawada bumping like a maniac for Jumbo's kitchen sink knees, and while Kawada hacks out Jumbo's leg with kicks and overexerts himself with a single leg crab, Jumbo's soon tossing him around and busting his knee on the timekeeper's table. He keeps working Kawada over with the single leg crab, at one point, transitioning into a side STF. Desperation mode Kawada has to sacrifice that injured leg to connect with a gamengiri and the selling by both men in that moment is amazing. After an lariat to the back of the head, Kawada continues being a shithead on the outside by repeatedly stomping Jumbo's head. The powerbomb tease is great but when he starts in with the shitty face kicks, Jumbo's had it and smacks him absolutely silly. Kawada survives the powerbomb but falls after two consecutive backdrops. A solid effort from Kawada, showing off the tenacity that makes him so lovable.

Jun Akiyama vs. Minoru Suzuki (NOAH, 3/5/06)

Minoru Suzuki’s rocking the pure white, a clear indication that he’s gone good, and I loved the teased confrontations, knowing that Suzuki is going to turn heel within the match at some point but initially, he’s wrestling clean with some reluctance. Then he locks on the jujigatame and refuses to let go, the bastard, and the referee nearly throws himself atop Suzuki to break it up. Having shown his true colors, Suzuki uses a hanging sleeper on the ropes and it’s sold like straight death by Akiyama – in fact, Suzuki grabs him, yells “wake up!” and slaps him in the face. He’s nasty with his boots and chokes, shoving the intervening referee out of the way, but Akiyama equally as nasty with his knees and likewise tosses the ref out of the ring! Akiyama’s weakness in the taped ribs is exploited in the dirtiest of fashions by Suzuki, and throughout, you get the impression that Akiyama is legitimately hurting here. I can’t recall ever seeing a top rope octopus hold but Suzuki pulls it off, cackling like a Batman villain before double stomping Akiyama. He tenderizes him with snug kicks before really working that octopus hold, digging the elbow in, stretching him on the mat, then toe punching the ribs. Really good selling from Akiyama as always and when Suzuki tries to sneak in with a sleeper hold, Akiyama quickly backdrops to set up a little run of offense. But again, Suzuki is able to exploit those ribs, ducking a running knee and blasting Jun with a knee to the midsection before spiking him with a delayed Gotch-style piledriver.

Then the match shifts gears…and perhaps, that shift is a little too discordant for some, I hear you. But come on, they basically work in their version of the infamous Kobashi/Sasaki chop exchange…but with face slaps. They slap and slap and slap themselves silly, with Suzuki heating up, then Akiyama with the spicy mustard, slapping to the point of exhaustion. Akiyama finally abandons the slaps for the knees, taking Suzuki down. Suzuki’s selling is terrific here as he crumbles to the canvas, screaming defiantly in Akiyama’s face when he Jun picks him up, only to get shhhhhmacked and finished off with the wrist-clutch Exploder. This is probably a polarizing match for some as the first half of the match is hunked out the window in exchange for endless slap action but I loved Suzuki’s character work.

Rick & Scott Steiner vs Hiroshi Hase & Kensuke Sasaki (NJPW/WCW Supershow, 3/21/91)

STEINERZZZZZAAAAARRRRGGGGGHHHH!!! Hey, I love a good suplex and the Steiners know how to toss a few. This was about 80% Steiner domination over poor Hiroshi Hase with shitty matwork but you ain’t paying the Steiners to paint the canvas – no way, baby, you get tiger drivers, suplexes, superplexes, and superduperplexes. When Hase hits the uranages on both Steiners, the crowd loses their collective shit for the Kensuke Sasaki hot tag! They work a little magic, with Sasaki superplexing Hase onto Rick and Hase executing that beautiful Northern Lights suplex of his. But alas, our heroes fall to the best meatheads after a double team bulldog and the Scott Frankensteiner.

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kota Ibushi (NJPW, 11/5/17)

I both love and hate that Hiroshi Tanahashi still primps his new haircut like the lion's mane that once so beautifully adorned his head. I can't remember if this match was better than their G1 Climax bout...at the very least, they were quite similar in structure. A lot of "your good, I'm better, no, wait, I'm the best"-ing around to open before Tanahashi settles into to working Ibushi's leg in classic Tanahashi fashion. You know, lots of legwhips. One area that was a marked improvement from the G1 match-up was Ibushi's selling. When he tries to get fresh with his standing moonsault, his leg gives out on the landing when Tanahashi rolls out of the way. Tanahashi, working that veteran ace style, does a good job of cutting off Ibushi's momentum by targeting the injured leg but Ibushi gets his comeback in the form of a somersault kick that stuns Tanahashi, allowing a run of offense that includes a lawn dart in the corner and a swan-dive German suplex. Unsurprisingly, the highlight of the match for me was that pissy slap, palm thrust, boot exchange, with Ibushi seizing Red Shoes' wrist and continuing to snap off kicks at Tanahashi in the corner like a shithead. Alas, Tanahashi survives the Last Ride powerbomb and alludes the final knee strike, planting Ibushi with a slingblade and a dragon suplex hold before putting him away with back-to-front High Fly Flows. A simple story with good selling, a few fiery exchanges, and enough big spots to satisfy without becoming too self-indulgent. Good stuff. 

Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Takeshi Morishima (NOAH, 3/5/06)

I'm back from my honeymoon and back to revisiting Pro Wrestling NOAH, in all its glory. Baby Huey is such a loveable hangry mess here and old man Misawa bumps like crazy for him, making the clobberin’ slop look like absolute barbarism. When Misawa pops him in the schnozz with an elbow, Morishima snaps, lobbing elbows and rocking him with back-to-back-to-back lariats. Look, finesse isn’t a part of Morishima’s repertoire but that’s part of the charm, as he’s vicious with his clubbing forearms in the corner and flattens Misawa with a nasty lariat on the outside, just dominating the legend. Misawa gets a little reprieve with some snug elbows and a big tope suicida through the ropes but the big baby takes over again on offense, powerbombing Misawa. Knowing Misawa’s fate, this is a cringeworthy match for sure, considering the amount of physical abuse both guys endure, and at times, it’s hard to watch Morishima continually fold him up with backdrops and a gnarly uranage. And of course, Misawa tiger driving Morishima’s big ass off the fucking ring apron. Morishima’s nose is a bloody mess but that doesn’t deter Misawa from elbowing the shit out of him in the corner and on the ground, the ref hopelessly trying to intervene only to get shoved back. At one point, Morishima challenges Misawa to fire off more elbows, which isn’t the smartest idea, and after running and rolling and more grounded elbows, Misawa puts him away with one final lunging elbow shot. Brutal warfare.