Champions Carnival
Champion Carnival 1991 Block B Match: Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Toshiaki Kawada - AJPW 06/04/1991
Kawada pre-Holy War Theme is scary to think about. Looks like a badass but has a total pretty boy theme - not a fit at all. Jumbo absolutely dwarfs Kawada which fits the whole underdog dynamic of the match. The crowd chants for Kawada at the start, totally being behind him and against the long time ace of the promotion. Jumbo dominates early on, nailing a nasty kitchen sink knee which looked gut-turning. There was an awesome transition from a knee bar into an STF, after Kawada attempted to counter it. Kawada counting an attempted move after Jumbo sent him in the ropes with a headlock and was a great segway or Jumbo getting pissed and getting more aggressive with Kawada. Which then lead to Jumbo smashing his knee on the table outside. Kawada getting more and more on Jumbo as the match went on was great, Jumbo would sell for him well before regaining control. The crowd doing the classic stomp their feet once Kawada got a hope spot was pretty cool, as per usual. The closing stretch was pretty good. The sequences of the struggle for the powerbomb by Kawada to Jumbo hitting the high knee was great. Ultimately Kawada went down but it was a great fight from beneath by Kawada. Jumbo was a force on top, beating down Kawada and selling well when Kawada made his comebacks.. ***3/4
Champion Carnival 1991 Block A Match: Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Stan Hansen - AJPW 06/04/1991
Looks like this was JIP a few minutes in the match. Hansen sticks to mat work, keeping Misawa grounded for the most part with Misawa having to rely on strikes to get some ground. The match doesn’t really have much energy to it though and is a bit boring, if I’m honest. Hansen works his usual snug spots which keeps you interested and Misawa sells well but it lack that wow factor. Even the finish seems flat. **
Champion Carnival 1991 Final Match: Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Stan Hansen - AJPW 16/04/1991
Similar to the January match but Jumbo is way more consistent with the arm work and brutally works on it. Great back and forth wrestling with a nice extra stiffness behind the strikes. Hansen goes wild after losing which is also great. You could argue that for a Champions Carnival final, it lacked the drama that a match with these stakes should have but it is still a really good match. ***1/2
Kenta Kobashi vs. Dan Kroffat- AJPW 18/04/1991
This was a fun 10 minute match where Kobashi got to showcase his great underdog skills. ***
Akira Taue vs. Toshiaki Kawada - AJPW 18/04/1991
Now that's a finish I wasn't expecting. The match had some decent storytelling with Kawada attacking the arm of Taue to trying to stop Taue from delivering his powermoves and Taue working on the leg of Kawada to trying to stop the kicks. All decent enough selling, nothing spectacular. I liked it when Kawada went straight in on Taue's cut early on. And the aforementioned finish. I liked this for many reasons. One, they put over how dangerous the mats was and put it over as something that'll take out anyone. And two, Taue knowing straight away that he won after that, getting back in the ring and "relaxing" on the ring mat. Really good match, the crowd was a little subdued but they chanted for both wrestlers at times in the match. Very good match between Kawada and Taue. ****
Triple Crown Title Match: Jumbo Tsuruta (c) vs. Mitsuharu Misawa - AJPW 18/04/1991
This was a great way to follow up on their prior matches. There is much more assurance in their opening match routine, more oomph to it. More violence with a great strike fest that felt more bitter than anything prior to this match. The finishing stretch was excellent. Jumbo surviving the barrage of Misawa bombs he'd throw only for the tide to begin the turn when he hung him on the ropes. From then on, Misawa, who still was on offence, began to slowly fade and start losing control after Jumbo began hitting his biggest shots. A great match for the feud. ****
Fan Appreciation Day
Super Generation Army (Kenta Kobashi, Mitsuharu Misawa & Toshiaki Kawada) vs. Tsuruta-gun (Akira Taue, Jumbo Tsuruta & Masanobu Fuchi) - AJPW Fan Appreciation Day 20/04/1991
SAG vs Tsuruta-gun is simply fantastic. One of the best (if not THE best) six man tags of all time. Fuchi was amazing in this match. He was a great heel in this match, cheating whenever he could and being a slimy hateable dick. He sold excellent when he had too as well. Kobashi was the ultimate babyface, selling his arse off for 15 minutes but making some great comebacks. He gets the crowd behind him so well. In-fact, everyone was fantastic in the match. The only criticism I would have for this match is the length. There are many times where I drifted off and became disinterested but that's gonna happen when a match is 52 minutes long. *****
Super Power Series
Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Kenta Kobashi - AJPW Super Power Series 1991 - Day 6 24/07/2019
Such a shame that this was clipped because you could just tell that they had a great match before it started and they had a great set up. Oh well, the 10 minutes that this was on was outstanding. Kobashi just trying to fight against Jumbo? s offence, not staying down after high knee after high knee. Great storytelling and the fans brought into it with chants of Kobashi that would be prevalent for the next 20 years. If I looked at the 10 minutes as a vacuum, this would be borderline MOTYC imo. ***3/4
‘Dr Death’ Steve Williams vs. Toshiaki Kawada - AJPW Super Power Series 1991 - Day 13 01/06/1991
Doc exploded out of the blocks and took Kawada out with a tackle. There on Kawada was fighting on the backfoot desperately fighting from beneath to get the advantage only for Doc to out wrestle him completely. Doc makes great use of his amateur background, tying Kawada is some great holds. Kawada showed great babyface fire and instinct, using his kicks to create hope spots and the crowd ate it up. The finishing stretch was good but not great. Kawada was a highlight for sure. ***1/4
Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Terry Gordy - AJPW Super Power Series 1991 - Day 13 01/06/1991
The start of the match is rather standard, but a match has to start somewhere? They built off it well, at least. Once Gordy got busted open, the match began to pick up some steam. Gordy dished out some nice offence with Misawa selling well. Gordy really good throughout the match, and I’m not a big fan of Gordy matches until the end. Here he kept up the intensity and stiffness in his strikes, kept on Misawa without resorting to dull holds. Misawa’s brief stretches of offence are tremendous though. The crowd going crazy for the German Suplex and the face hold. Misawa hitting the elbow at the end put the finishing touch to the match. ***3/4
AJPW World Tag Team Title Match: Danny Spivey & Stan Hansen (c) vs. Super Generation Army (Mitsuharu Misawa & Toshiaki Kawada) - AJPW Super Power Series 1991 - Day 17 07/06/1991
I love the entrance for the simple reason that Misawa and Kawada getting mobbed and struggling to get to the ring while Hansen gets through easily with his bull whip. Lol. This was excellent. Kawada was a total killer for most of the match. He was the one getting the advantage for his team, he was the one beating Hansen up when Misawa was struggling. A great switch from what Misawa usually does. Misawa and Kawada showed tremendous team work early in the match when going for Hansen’s arm. Then later Spivey and Hansen also showed why they were the champions and attacked the knee of Misawa using a table. This was a great match. ***3/4
Summer Action Series
AJPW World Tag Team Title Match: Danny Spivey & Stan Hansen (c) vs. Miracle Violence Connection (Steve Williams & Terry Gordy) - AJPW Summer Action Series 1991 - Day 1 06/07/1991
This was quite boring. I never really watched MVC outside of their most famed of matches which is maybe 5 matches max but I hope this wasn’t their usual stuff because this was dull and bland as rice and nuggets. Too willing to sit in holds for too long to silence with not much keeping you engaged. Spivey and Hansen did their thing but it didn’t work well. The finish was banging but yeah, I didn’t care for most of the match. **1/4
Triple Crown Title Match: Jumbo Tsuruta (c) vs. Steve Williams - AJPW Summer Action Series 1991 - Day 12 20/07/1991
This wasn’t any good, like at all. 20 minutes dragged on. It was just a bland, unintresting match w/ a few sprinkles of some quality but not enough. There just wasn’t a ton of heat for Williams as a challenger post entrance. The finish sucked too and the fans let them know. *1/2
AJPW World Tag Team Title Match: Super Generation Army (Mitsuharu Misawa & Toshiaki Kawada) vs Miracle Violence Connection (‘Dr Death’ Steve Williams & Terry Gordy) - AJPW Summer Action Series 1991 - Day 15 24/07/1991
After feuding since half the year, this is the blow off, essentially. The Miracle Violence Connection having recently beat Spivey and Hansen for the titles and they face their rivals for the time being, Kawada and Misawa. This was a solid tag match was really suffered from two wrestlers that struggle to keep the crowd (and me) invested wholeheartedly. The peaks of the match were great, the body of the match was just rather dry. The work is actually fine, technique wise. Williams shows great ability to twist a limb in an effective way, it’s not interesting to watch for long periods. Perhaps they were a victim of the style and fans expectations. The match once the SGA makes their comebacks comes alive but yeah, this wasn’t good. **1/4
Super Generation Army (Mitsuharu Misawa, Toshiaki Kawada & Tsuyoshi Kikuchi) vs. Tsuruta-gun (Jumbo Tsuruta, Masanobu Fuchi & Yoshinari Ogawa) - AJPW Summer Action Series 1991 - Day 17 26/07/1991
We joined in progress about half way through but this was still good. Kawada looked great, taking control being all business. Misawa and Kickichi got their asses handed to them but sold really well. Tsuruta-Gun was great as the machines, running roughshod. ***1/2
Summer Action Series II
AJPW World Tag Team Title Match: Super Generation Army (Mitsuharu Misawa & Toshiaki Kawada) (c) vs. Tsuruta-gun (Akira Taue & Jumbo Tsuruta) - AJPW Summer Action Series II 1991 - Day 17 04/09/1991
Great continuation from Misawa/Jumbo's feud from last year. That ending was great with Misawa getting the submission over Jumbo to a thunderous reaction from the crowd. Kawada being left alone for large portions of the match due to Misawa's injury was a nice touch, allows Kawada to show of his selling abilities and get heat and Misawa gets sympathy for the injury, allowing him to get the reaction he got at the end whilst Taue and Jumbo look clever and very dominant. Good tag team match. It may not be the best tag match of the 90's (for All Japan anyway) but it's a smartly worked match. ****
October Giant Series
Super Generation Army (Mitsuharu Misawa, Toshiaki Kawada & Tsuyoshi Kikuchi) vs. Tsuruta-gun (Akira Taue, Jumbo Tsuruta & Masanobu Fuchi) - AJPW October Giant Series 1991 - Day 15 15/10/1991
I thought this was really good. Misawa being ineffective as a result of his injured nose, leaving Kikuchi and Kawada on their own to fend off the mighty Tsuruta-Gun. Some great underdog interactions between Jumbo and Kikuchi. ***1/2
Triple Crown Title Match: Jumbo Tsuruta (c) vs. Toshiaki Kawada - AJPW October Giant Series 1991 - Day 22 24/10/1991
This was fantastic.. Maybe the turning point for Kawada turning from Misawa’s partner to a top guy. Maybe not. The difference from this match and their Champion Carnival match is clear. In that match Kawada was on the defensive, this time he was on offence. And boy was he dominant. Smart use of the headlocks and the abdominal stretches to wear down Jumbo. Him being able to grind Jumbo down was fantastic to watch. Jumbo having to struggle and fight for everything he got is a rare sight, even against some of his toughest opponents. Misawa included. The crowd was red hot for everything as well. Being Pro-Tsuruta but Kawada having tons of fans as well. The finishing stretch was fantastic and elevated by all the struggle beforehand. ****1/2
Real World Tag League
Real World Tag League 1991 Match: Super Generation Army (Mitsuharu Misawa & Toshiaki Kawada) vs. Tsuruta-gun (Akira Taue & Jumbo Tsuruta) - AJPW Real World Tag League 1991 - Day 11 29/11/1991
I knew that this was a 30 Minute match coming in but they sucked me in that well that I completely forgot about the time limit to the end. No padding, none that was obvious anyway, all action and progression. Misawa struggling because of his facial injuries. Kawada struggling again Tsuruta-Gun and their cheating antics. A fantastic closing stretch. Awesome match. ****1/2
Real World Tag League 1991 Match: Danny Spivey & Stan Hansen vs. Tsuruta-gun (Akira Taue & Jumbo Tsuruta) - AJPW Real World Tag League 1991 - Day 17 06/12/1991
Well this was amazing. The dynamic double teams of Tsuruta-Gun against the brutal force of Hansen and Spivey. Great action start to finish with some great urgency with this only being 12 minutes. Frantic pacing. Heavy action. Great finish with Hansen accidently nailing Spivey with the lariat too. ****1/4
AJPW World Tag Team Title Real World Tag League 1991 Match (vacant): Steve Williams & Terry Gordy vs. Super Generation Army (Mitsuharu Misawa & Toshiaki Kawada) - AJPW Real World Tag League 1991 - Day 17 06/12/1991
This was very similar to some of their other matches but with a heightened Kawada performance and a much hotter crowd, it elevated it somewhat. The MVC was fine on top but Kawada’s selling was awesome and made the match way more interesting than it had any right to be. The finishing stretch was awesome though. ***3/4
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