Posted July 19, 201015 yr comment_5453272 2/6/88 (taped 1/28/88 ) Masa Fuchi vs. Pete Roberts (5:06 of 18:06 aired) - It's a shame this was such a small portion of the match, because Roberts delivered some top-notch armwork and Fuchi a strong rally to close it out. Genichiro Tenryu/Ashura Hara vs. Hiroshi Wajima/Great Kabuki (10:00 of 16:44) - JIP with Tenryu and Hara working over Wajima's bloody forehead. Kabuki was just awesome after Wajima made the tag, ripping Tenryu and Hara with uppercuts and superkicks. The stretch run featured non-stop action between all four guys, with the crowd going berserk. Again, Kabuki was the star, keeping his team in the match with beautifully timed counter kicks. Finally, Tenryu fought through his fire and took him out with a powerbomb. Seven minutes is a big cut, but this was a hell of a lot of fun, so I want you guys to take a look. I'd say an extra at worst. Yoshiaki Yatsu vs. The Assassin (3:34 complete) - Assassin started the match with a double-fisted chokeslam and tried to bull Yatsu around with power offense. But Yatsu endured and slapped on his submission finisher. Jumbo Tsuruta/John Tenta vs. Abby/TNT (10:28 complete) - Reviewed on Classics. 2/13/88 (taped 1/29/88 ) Footloose (Kawada/Fuyuki) vs. Mighty Inoue vs. Takashi Ishikawa (5:52 of 20:42 aired) - They only showed the stretch run, which is a shame, because it featured tremendous action. Hiroshi Wajima/Great Kabuki vs. Pete Roberts/Paul Harris (7:29 of 11:44) - Roberts contributed his usual solid matwork, but this one didn't leave a strong impression. Genichiro Tenryu/Ashura Hara vs. John Tenta/Isao Takagi (8:32 complete) - Takagi seemed to tap the inner bastard in both Tenryu and Hara and as always, Tenta was fun to watch when he got to tossing the natives around. But this came off as a pretty easy win for the higher-ranked team. Jumbo Tsuruta/Yoshiaki Yatsu vs. Abby/TNT (10:50 complete) - I was surprised how many kicks Jumbo ate from TNT, who was really the offensive star of the match. But the future Savio Vega stayed in a bit too long and got caught in Yatsu's leg hold after Jumbo floored him with a lefty lariat. This was a good, brisk match; it just lacked the real standout moments that might have led to a nomination.
