ohtani's jacket

I think there's more of a catch-as-catch-can influence to Inoki's matwork whereas the NWA style is more about grinding away at a hold and wearing your man down. I don't think anyone is going to confuse Inoki with the great catch exponents, but I generally find the catch style to have a greater display of speed and skill than the NWA stuff.

Schmidt is the first guy to drop who's really piqued my interest. Of course it helps that he was a Tim Cooke pick and I've always been fascinated by Tim's takes on pro-wrestling. Watched Schmidt vs. Kowalski and really enjoyed it. Will definitely be watching more.

I still agree with this guy ^ The 8/94 elimination tag is a bout I've never been that high on. I watched it twice over the past few days. Once when I was having some drinks and again in the cold light of day. I liked the early part where Kansai and Hokuto got into it but sadly that felt like the height of their exchanges. I can understand why Kansai and Hokuto were kept apart in singles, but it feels like someone, somewhere missed the boat on a Kansai/Hokuto singles match. After some early strike exchanges and some fairly average submission work, this turned into a typical workrate tag. Some of it was good, some of it was bad. There was a bit too much Hotta in peril, but she was in the midst of a singles push and All Japan wanted to put the spotlight on her. She sold about as well as she could. It was kind of average but didn't detract from the bout or anything. At the same time, a compelling selling performance would have made this more than just a Joshi workout. Even Hokuto didn't dig that deep and it was supposed to be her match and her countdown. I guess my main criticism of the bout was that they didn't milk the drama for what it's worth. There wasn't the strong narrative focus of a Southern style tag and the individual personalities and match-ups were drowned out by cutesy double team spots and a clip of nearfalls. Aja's elimination felt gimmicky and wasn't set up well. The stretch run felt academic instead of exhilarating and one thing I noticed was that as good a seller as Hokuto was, and as capable as she was at creating drama out of her backstory and persona, she no-sold stuff at the same rate as any other girl going. Not sure why she gets a pass on that. I was always kind of down on 1994 Joshi and that hasn't changed much. The bloom had fallen off the rose after a full on '93.

The 8/94 elimination tag is a bout I've never been that high on. I watched it twice over the past few days. Once when I was having some drinks and again in the cold light of day. I liked the early part where Kansai and Hokuto got into it but sadly that felt like the height of their exchanges. I can understand why Kansai and Hokuto were kept apart in singles, but it feels like someone, somewhere missed the boat on a Kansai/Hokuto singles match. After some early strike exchanges and some fairly average submission work, this turned into a typical workrate tag. Some of it was good, some of it was bad. There was a bit too much Hotta in peril, but she was in the midst of a singles push and All Japan wanted to put the spotlight on her. She sold about as well as she could. It was kind of average but didn't detract from the bout or anything. At the same time, a compelling selling performance would have made this more than just a Joshi workout. Even Hokuto didn't dig that deep and it was supposed to be her match and her countdown. I guess my main criticism of the bout was that they didn't milk the drama for what it's worth. There wasn't the strong narrative focus of a Southern style tag and the individual personalities and match-ups were drowned out by cutesy double team spots and a clip of nearfalls. Aja's elimination felt gimmicky and wasn't set up well. The stretch run felt academic instead of exhilarating and one thing I noticed was that as good a seller as Hokuto was, and as capable as she was at creating drama out of her backstory and persona, she no-sold stuff at the same rate as any other girl going. Not sure why she gets a pass on that. I was always kind of down on 1994 Joshi and that hasn't changed much. The bloom had fallen off the rose after a full on '93.

Things were so messy and political in New Japan that it's hard for me to judge his work from the point of view of an aging ace stepping back and letting a heir take over. Whether he jumped to the UWF or not, he was still going to be the top star of a thin roster. It's not a defense of him because the situation was a result of his own politicking and fraudulent business activities, but I have a hard time judging his work against the smooth transition of Baba to Jumbo. To me that's more an issue of booking and infighting and backstage politics. From what I've seen thus far, Inoki began declining physically as the 80s loomed and moreover the type of worker coming out of America and Europe had changed dramatically. Not only that but the roughhouse style had been popularised by that stage. I mean I'd rather watch Pat Roach vs. Inoki than Brody vs. Inoki but the scene had changed.

Rip Rogers.

Tim, recommend some Hans Schmidt.

The Gotch footage jumps around a bit. Looks like something went wrong with the conversion as it's sped up. Pretty cool bout. Inoki's never going to be a popular worker around these parts, but I think if you're judging him on the 80s set then it's a bit like judging Flair on his 90s work. That 80s stuff really ought to be seen as post-prime footage where every decent match is a bonus ala Fujinami in the 90s. Post-coup at any rate. He's not a very theatrical or dramatic worker, and his matches get weaker when he has to work that style, and he's not the most pure technician either, but he has a distinct brand of charisma and a singular focus to strong style that makes him interesting to watch. And even though he's not wildly expressive when he cocks that fist you know he means business.

There aren't 150 people who post about old-school wrestling on PWO. This thing obviously got bigger through Twitter and the podcast networks. It wouldn't surprise me if the final results are now less PWO-oriented than if only the forum regulars had voted. The wider pull of voters is similar to what happened in 2006 when people were invited from outside Smarkschoice to participate and a better snapshot of 2016 vs. 2006 than a smaller turnout would of been. But yes, Flair is in danger of not finishing #1.

Next up is the Kyoko match from Big Egg Universe. I've always maintained that his show was a disaster and there's probably a bit of bias against it creeping into my thoughts, but really this was the most generic Kansai match imaginable. Perhaps it had to be that way to play to such a large audience, but for the discerning film critic type at home it wasn't up to snuff. I did wonder if I would have enjoyed it live. I mean I hated the giant swing on the ramp just as I hate all ramp spots, but if I'd been there live I probably wouldn't have had a bug up my arse about it. In any event, their Thunder Queen II match was way better.

Watched the Chigusa match from '95. Decent Queen Bitch battle between two workers cut from the same cloth. A bit too slow paced and deliberate at times, and Kansai's selling was overly theatrical at points, but it was the type of bout where they tease a bunch of finishers and try to stretch out the drama. The constant shoot kicks were repetitive after a while and borderline masochistic. It was nice that there was a winner, but the match taking place on Kansai's home soil made the result uber predictable, and the fact they'd used Chigusa so often to put over their talent made the win fairly meaningless.

He said it was uncomfortable to watch. He didn't say Hotta was directly responsible. Plum died because she didn't visit a doctor.

The Cutie Suzuki matches were fun. There was a clear and obvious dynamic between the pair that was similar to the matches Kansai had with Ozaki. In fact, they aped a lot of the stuff Kansai did with Oz (or vice versa.) I'm not really seeing a problem with Kansai as a singles worker. She's formulaic, and repetitive in the sense that she always uses the same spots, but she's killer on offence and great at projecting her character. I realised watching this stuff that the selling issues don't matter to me. I care more about the ebb and flow than an adherence to selling and so I can live with quick switches from defence to offence if the stuff they're doing is cool. And I think in most bouts there's an overall selling of fatigue toward the end and all the emotions that come with that. The selling issues that bug people about Joshi bug me more about men's styles that are pushed as more fundamentally sound than women's wrestling but veer into the same territory, but I think that's a kneejerk reaction. Two things I do agree about with Dylan is that she had a short peak and she didn't work a lot of classics. My two favourite Kansai singles matches ('96 vs. Oz and '97 vs. Fukuoka) are matches that would no doubt be divisive in terms of whether people think they're four stars let alone a classic, but when you factor in the tag stuff she has to be top 10 for the 90s boom years. Possibly even top 5.

I got a kick out of watching Inoki wrestle a potbellied Akram Pahalwan under the rounds system in 1976. Worth it alone to see the fashions Pakistani gentlemen were wearing in the 1970s and the subtle heeling from Inoki's camp.

I actually have a question about what's going to happen to this part of the board after the results are revealed. Is it going to be locked? Should we start using the Microscope, etc. to talk about candidates instead of the nominee threads?

I really liked the Robinson/Inoki match. If I'd made a list, I would have put serious consideration into voting for Inoki in the lower half of the ballot. He simply had too many good matches from 1969-75 to ignore. And it wasn't a case that he was in there with the best talent of his day. I genuinely believe he added something tangible to the bouts through his presence and his fundamental knowledge of holds. I don't think he was ever truly great, but I sat through three broadways and didn't get bored which has to count for something.

I stumbled upon quite a short match she had with Bison Kimura in '96. The strike exchanges were as good as you'd expect and it had one of the most badass finishes I've seen in a long time, but I did notice this time that Kansai's early control section was kind of bleh. Not sure an 11 minute match needed the half crab. She'd also put on a lot of weight between 1993 and '96 and her rope running, which was never that graceful to begin with, looked pretty bad. Awesome transitions, though. Creative use of the tassels on Bison's costume and a brilliant finish that was as good as anything I've seen a strike based wrestler do during the entire length of this project.

It's the one from Ohio and I saw it on YouTube, so yes and yes.

I watched two Kansai matches I never really cared for in the past -- vs. Yamada (10/93) and vs. Inoue (11/93). The Yamada match was WAY better than I remember it being. That change in perspective is probably due to a change in taste but for whatever reason I found the strikers' duel utterly compelling this time round. In fact, I'd go as far as to say it was one of the better non-shoot style striker vs. striker contests I've seen. Even the submissions, which I thought would be blatant down time, were short and focused. They didn't have any epic narrative in mind. They weren't going to the end of the line where both women gave it their all; it was a competitive singles bout that played to both their strengths and was well sold compared to Joshi stereotypes. The only critcism I had of it was that it was too short. Other than that, I thought each beat was great. Kyoko Inoue wasn't a pure striker, but the pair had a great match based on what you might call "flash counters." You could run the rule over the bout and find instances where they didn't sell right, but it was the most engrossing styles clash I've seen in ages. The Inoue bout felt like Kansai was taking on a peer at her level regardless of the fact that Inoue couldn't kick or strike as hard as Yamada. There was a certain predictability to the finish of both bouts compared to other 90s Japanese bouts, but despite immersing myself in Joshi and getting back into the rhythm of the bouts, I found myself enjoying this bout more than any men's stuff I'd reviewed for the GWE. Kansai is such a brilliant seller, for example, that I was more engaged in these bouts than anything I saw from Muto, Chono or Hase. I'm not trying to upset anyone with that comment. I just got into a proper groove watching this stuff, and I think Kansai was a stellar pro-wrestler in singles and in tags.

I've been watching some Inoki matches from the 70s and it's been interesting to say the least. I watched a 1979 match against Bob Roop that was a bit too grinding when it came to the matwork and featured a lot of BS with the outside manager, but that was close to the 1980 cutoff where I think it ought to be expected that he's not that great. The Destroyer bout from '71 was disappointing but thatwas a pretty average performance from Beyers. Watching Inoki try to have a scientific title match with Ernie Ladd was interesting. I'm not sure how much of a success it was, but it was interesting. He had a neat catchweight bout with Hoshino in the late 70s and I thought his match with Sakaguchi in '74 was good. I don't think he was ever a "super worker," but he was far from a dead weight. The simple answer is that he was Inoki, but I think that means something different in the West than in Japan.

Man, this took me back to the days when I was buying tapes and even when I first came to Japan and rented them from Champion. These two were such favourites of mine when I was young that I was kind of afraid it wouldn't hold up, but I'm pleased to say it held up pretty well. There are things Ozaki does where she's just not big enough for them to be believable (a lot of her strikes lack any real force, for example), and they could have trimmed the fat a bit here and there, but I liked the way that both women sold. Ozaki was always brilliant at selling, and i thought rolling herself into the fetal position (or a little ball) to guard herself from Kansai's kicks was a nice visual. She also did a great job of contorting herself when she went for submissions on Kansai. That wasn't any real surprise, though. What surprised me was how good Kansai was. It seems that she was a better seller than I remember. The Fujiwara armbar sell that was mentioned above (and the awesome counter) was a great piece of selling, but she was solid all round on offence and defence. The layout was a bit "samey" in that they repeated the same sequences over and over. Some of the submission parts were well worked and others felt like restholds. I didn't much care for the stuff outside the ring but it was kind of necessary to keep things rolling. There was a risk that the match could have been choppy with all the moving about they did, but there were a lot of cool spots and I found it engrossing for such a long bout. I don't think it had a big enough arc to call it a great match, and I'd probably call it more solidly good than brilliant, but I liked it a lot.

Fun match. Felt like a superior version of an early UWF-i main event. Ogawa's awkwardness prevented it from being better, but like Chad said, he still managed to appear as a threat to Hashimoto. This was a match Hash couldn't afford to lose and Ogawa came across as the world's most dangerous banana peel.

It's available via RealHero's account This is their 2013 WNC match and not the 2007 MUGA bout I was really after, but at this point I'll take anything. Nishimura is such a joy to watch. Aside from Fujiwara I can't think of any Japanese male workers who bring me as much joy as Nishimura. This match with Taijiri wasn't all that great in terms of what you'd expect from other workers in similar circumstances, but I could watch Nishimura working holds all day long and Tajiri was game enough to make it worth my while.

So, I watched Kansai vs. Hotta for the express purpose of deciding who was the better worker in *that match (not overall), and I think it was pretty clearly Kansai. The match itself is not that long, but it builds to a decisive finish and you get to see both women on offence and defence. Kansai is so much more expressive, which makes her offence more interesting and her selling better. Hotta tries to sell in the bout, but she's not very good at it and the best you can really say is that she tried. Kansai had a few awkward moments, particularly on transitions, but she came across as a much more dynamic performer who knew how to sell better than Hotta even if it was face to canvas stuff. But y'know, face to canvas is a better way to sell than back to canvas if you can't make awesome facial expressions. Kansai didn't really sell beating the count in a great way, but it was effective enough, and she was just more engaging all match long.

What's the difference between this thread and JvK reviews pimped matches from late 90s-10s? They appear to be totally different beasts as far as I can see: Apart from jdw that once, I don't recall anyone coming in behind me with contrasting reviews in that thread. I'm not complaining, but it does account for me being increasingly tetchy in this one. But in that thread you write contrasting reviews of matches that have generally received a lot of praise. So how can you get tetchy about someone doing the same thing to your reviews? My focus in this thread was always on Hase and clearing up what I think about him as a worker. I'm not going to spend a couple of weeks taking a half hour out of my night just to have a go at another poster. Anyway, I will steer clear of this sort of thing in the future.