Annoying in that the special ended mid-match and the conclusion didn't appear until the following episode of TV. But it was good enough to be worth the editing effort. Jumbo seemed liberated in the first 10 minutes, finally killing guys after a month as everybody's whipping boy. He and Tenryu had Dibiase on the verge of a pin, when damnit, Jumbo missed a lariat into the corner. So he was right back in hell, with a useless right arm and two vicious sharks tearing at it. Hansen and Dibiase made the attack on Jumbo's broken wing look particularly nasty, with Stan even lariating it at one point. Tenryu desperately tried to save his fallen partner but the hot tag, yearned for by the crowd, never came. I really liked the overall story of Jumbo seeming reborn only for Dibiase and Hansen to rediscover his Achilles heel. They took me on the ride, so this one deserves a nomination.

 

Ginnetty 1985 TV Discs 20 & 21

Jumbo Tsuruta/Genichiro Tenryu vs. Stan Hansen/Ted Dibiase

 

This is pretty much as strong a nomination as you can get. It was too easy to just sit back and watch these beat the crud out of each other. If you like hoss dudes punching each other, then brother this is for you. Stan and Ted pick on Tenryu a bunch (loved Tenryu hitting the enziguiri on Hansen but it sends Hansen into the Dibiase tag), but then Tenryu makes the hot tag to Jumbo and he CREAMS Dibiase with a clothesline. I mean just blasts him with one. Stan and Ted are smart though and just start finding new and awesome ways to pick apart Jumbo’s arm. The first 13 minutes are on included here, and it finishes in the next TV. So that’s really annoying. I’m not sure if it’s unedited elsewhere. Either way, this is getting a STRONG NOMINATE!

 

AJ TV 8/31/85 + Special, DVD #20 (and 21)

Genichiro Tenryu & Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Stan Hansen & Ted Dibiase (8/31/85)

- Ted chopping and slapping Tenryu was the first time I thought that Ted really looked like he belonged in Japan, if that makes sense. I like how Hansen saves Dibiase by just grabbing Tenryu and throwing him out of the ring to break the hold. Good team work by the Americans. Nice spot where the Americans give Tenryu a double shoulder tackle but on a 2nd try, Tenryu adjusts and wraps Ted up in a small package. I am not used to Stan giving so much to the natives so him getting pounded on was a pleasant surprise. I love when Jumbo’s arm was being sold, he charges Dibiase in the corner, misses and Stan rams his arm on the turnbuckle… leading to Ted attacking the arm in the ring. I LOVE THAT SHIT!!! Damn, that end was getting sloppy knocking this down when Ted and Stan were not communicating, including a phantom ground lariat. However, Jumbo finally giving up because the pain on the arm was too much made me smile. I’ll give it a nomination but the awkward run at the end knocks off some points.

PWF Tag Titles: Ted DiBiase & Stan "The Lariat" Hansen © vs. Genichiro Tenryu & Jumbo Tsuruta (8/31/85)

 

Jumbo now has a black bandage around his elbow but it's still open for attacks. This had good back and forth action to start before the gaijin got an advantage working over Tenryu who took some punishment before tagging in Jumbo. Jumbo was hyped up here but still favored the arm although he fought through it. DiBiase would hang tough here as well against the natives putting in a good performance on both offense and defense while Hansen was giving the natives more than he ever gave them before maybe because Brody wasn't there influencing him. Jumbo would nail DiBiase with a lariat then a backdrop driver for a real close nearfall before missing one in the corner where he hit all turnbuckle. The gaijin then viciously worked over the right arm although there were some communication issues with them regarding how to work over Jumbo's arm. Hansen would eventually get an armbar while DiBiase fought off Tenryu and Jumbo would finally submit. This was a damn good match and this moves forward easily.