soup23
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Everything posted by soup23
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Not a bad 10 minute match at all, just not the classic these guys probably could have had at this point. Kid winning confused me and him doing cheap tactics felt odd. The dives and some of the mat work was beautiful if inconsequential in the long run. Kind of a weird start to this disc with 2 out of the 3 matches having huge talent but disappointing results. **3/4
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Awesome match. Every match felt dynamic to me even Kikuchi and Ogawa. Ogawa's tights were something to behold. The KObashi/Misawa/Taue/Kawada interactions all delivered and I think 93 is when Taue made that leap from competent #2 for Jumbo who had a great feud with Kawada to someone that could hang with a variety of opponents and bring something to the table and in many instances be the standout. We have seen some good AJ 6 mans this year, but this was on another level. ****1/4
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Agree that this match was disappointing given the talent involved but fine overall. I wanted more brutality from Bull/Aja as that is a hellacious tag team together. *** I know joshi is a banner year in 1993 and maybe 1993 should have been extended overall but I must say at this point it is up there with 1997 as my favorite year to go through and the match quality has been super. I have enjoyed the joshi highlights we have seen and look forward to watching some supplemental stuff.
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I have always found it humorous that this was one of the first AJ matches Ditch saw as it could really throw you off. I have always appreciated this match for its novelty as a one off and for the Misawa vs. Kobashi feud continuing. Taue and Kawada had no problem firing off on one another either. Taue takes the pinfall here at the end and this was a great match with Kobashi/Kawada making a good makeshift tag team. ****
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Much like the Guerrero match felt like a reward for Flair's character work, we have this match here which is very good and featured some old Flair standbys and interesting work including his open handed palm strikes and the work around the leg. I really appreciate the long matches that have taken place on Thunder lately and it was a trend that should have continued. Benoit is a good face to play off of Flair. I don't remember how long this Flair/DDP partnership lasts. ***1/2
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This match I hope gets praise like the Toshie 97 GAEA match. It is incredible piece of wrestling and provides the ultimate 1-2 punch to their January 96 match. Great mat work starting out with Otani being confident but ferocious. Him raising his hands after attacking the leg was great as he pumps his fist in the leg lock. Samurai feels like someone that time has passed him by and he is out to prove his worth here. His arm work on Otaini was done brilliantly and with precision that was amplified by Otani writhing in pain. This certainly was not a subtle sell job by Otani but he is a wrestler who first and foremost emotes so it felt true to his character arc. Any little opening in this match can change the momentum. Samurai is ever so slightly slow in getting up after a rope break and otani does a swift leg sweep to regain control. Otani allows Samurai to get back in the ring and he immediately takes over with a nice submission attempt. I really appreciated that in RINGS like fashion, all of the submission attempts felt like they could be the finish and absolutely nothing was taken for granite or earned easily. The match cranks into another gear with the bootscrap that catapults Otani out of the ring. Otani selling the arm after the senton on the outside was choice selling. Samurai responds with a dive but takes even more damage on his leg. Back inside he skips to the top rope and delivers a missile dropkick and headbutt for a really good nearfall. Dramatic ending with nearfalls, slap exchanges, and hate and desperation between both men selling the fatigue of the beating they have inflicted. Otani at one point has to be awaken by the referee and his facial expression is amazing. Otani gets his missile dropkick and suplex and can grasp victory but Samurai says no. He decides to go back to the leg well and Samurai has a great sell job just gyrating in the ropes from the pain being inflicted. They exchange some roll ups which gets over the desperation but honestly may be my least favorite sequence of the match. Samurai wins me back with a stiff slap to Otani and a reverse DDT for another nearfall. Otani shakes the cobwebs and looks for a suplex to secure victory. Samurai clinches the ropes for all he can but in a sudden movement, Otani hits a powerbomb for a nearfall and covers again as time expires. What a beautiful piece of pro wrestling. ****3/4
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Fun, energetic match but nothing too complicated but crowd pleasing all around. It isn't a surprise this ends in a cluster and we get the Higher Power revealed to Austin and he sells it wonderfully. Certainly hotter than the WCW stuff from this point. **1/2
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What a mess all around this is. The commentary is awful and Tony feels pretty much defeated by now. Bobby has been there for a while. Nash is a woman is I guess what Savage wants to get over but what does that mean. The women run in and clean house on Nash. A we want Nash chant fires up which again amazes me that people didn't really shit on this live even though it obviously drew horrendously. Well I didn't think anything would be a worse match of the year than the finger poke of doom but I think we have a strong contender right here. DUD of all DUDS.
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DJ Ran took exception to Curts comments the previous week so Curt as a rebuttal recruits Bobby Duncam and they provide a little diddy themselves. Wonder how many people did they draw in the Astrodome on this night. Konnan and Rey come out and we get a bit of a scuffle. This does have racial undertones throughout but Curt had been so aimless for so long that it was refreshing to see him doing something interesting here.
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NJ World needs to be a dear and release these matches in full. This felt great with Liger having more desperation to him since Kanemoto has a victory now. Kanemoto is great as always standing on Ligers head and being a prick while going for the ankle lock in multiple opportunities. That palm strike leading into the ankle lock by Liger was nasty and rewards with him winning. We get about half of this and it looked amazing. I think Liger, Kanemoto and Otani all had a good claim to being top 5 worldwide based on what we have seen in 1999 so far.
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The stills from OTE was effective in showing the title change. Austin delivers a good venom scorned promo vowing some revenge. Taker throws up a rebuttal and says that Austin will be presented to the Greater Power. I must say that Taker vs. Austin has happened way too much since SummerSlam the previous year but both Austin and Taker were so committed to their characters around this time and the crowds were so hot that it still worked and didn't feel nearly as dated and sad as the Nash vs. Savage stuff.
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I am intrigued by this feud as it looks like the Dudleys may have someone to go toe to toe with them and we can get some intense brawling. This was a good start that had some effective brawling in the crowd and some advanced violence even for ECW standards with the burning thumbtack table that got a huge reaction from the crowd. The Dudley's all in all have probably been my favorite characters in ECW history while watching these years. ***
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