AJPW Super Power Series 1997
Hayabusa & Jun Akiyama vs. Kentaro Shiga & Takao Omori - AJPW Super Power Series 1997 - Day 16 - 06/06/1997
1997 has brought in some new arrivals. First Hiroshi Hase and now FMW’s Hayabusa, debuted in the last tour and has been clashing with Shiga in his last two matches. The opening spot of the match is brilliant. Omori whispers something to Shiga before starting the match with him and Hayabusa but in comes Shiga with a dropkick to blindside him at the bell. Then they double teamed him, after knocking Akiyama off the apron. Hayabisa was able to hit a moonsault on the two and then hit a plancha to the floor. Then the All Asia tag team champions clash with Omori getting the better of Akiyama with a dropkick before tagging in Shiga. Akiyama easily out-muscles the young lad but Shiga isn’t shy about throwing hands before he gets leveled with a high knee. The match simmered down a bit but peaked once more when Akiyama had enough of Shiga’s disrespect and channelled Kawada’s attitude towards him, throwing him to the outside and slamming him hard onto the floor and then the guard rail. Shiga gets plenty of moments to shine towards the end as well, working the closing stretch against Hayabusa, including getting a near fall on him. Hayabusa does his firebird splash and Akiyama beats him with the exploder. ***1/4
Triple Crown Title Match: Mitsuharu Misawa (c) vs. Toshiaki Kawada - AJPW Super Power Series 1997 - Day 16 - 06/06/1997
After Kawada had finally pinned Misawa in a singles match (in a lacklustre fashion), he was next in line for a Triple Crown title match. And this match is significant because it’s the first title match these two have had for nearly two years, which also took place in Budokan Hall. After an initially awkward beginning where a quick tiger driver to the floor that gets treated like a quick body slam and Kawada starts to attack the arm throwing Misawa arm-first into the guard rail on both sides, they settle in their typical match style - Kawada driving the action with his emphasis on stiff striking while Misawa sells and works a comeback. The best moments in the match come when Misawa is trying to do a move and Kawada cuts him off with a great kick to the face or a backdrop. Misawa’s selling was really strong as it always is when it comes to his arm. Like Brock Lesnar and his ribs, Misawa just has the perfect way to make his arm seem vulnerable and withered. Kawada’s selling early in the match was rubbish but he, too, had a good selling performance once he hurt his foot. Not too over the top yet noticeable. Kawada was great on offence as well. He nailed a backdrop onto Misawa before applying the Stretch Plum for a rare plausible submission false finish. A large part of the match’s drama was whether Kawada could execute the Powerbomb in the middle of the ring. He was able to on the outside but he struggled to do it in the ring, no matter how much he pulled. Misawa backdropped him at one point but Kawada got back up to hit a lariat to the back of the head and then hits a proper brainbuster. The match has spells of the classic fighting spirit spots, such as Misawa hitting a great elbow after receiving a backdrop, which led into Misawa retaking the match at the scruff of the neck. Misawa starts throwing Tiger and German Suplexes but Kawada was able to still hit the Gamengiri. Misawa stayed with Kawada though and persisted with the suplexes, which probably were done a little too much by the end. And the actual finish was a bit of a let down as Misawa had clearly knocked Kawada a little loopy for the obvious rolling elbow finish that Kawda had kicked out of. From there Misawa had to hit a german suplex to end the match. It was a little repetitive in the end and took a while to get into the great rhythm that both thrive on but it was a very good match overall. ***3/4
AJPW Summer Action Series I 1997
AJPW World Tag Team Title Match: Johnny Ace & Kenta Kobashi (c) vs. Triangle Of Power (Gary Albright & Steve Williams) - AJPW Summer Action Series 1997 - Day 21 - 25/07/1997
Along with Lacrosse (Jim Steele) and I think Yoshihiro Takayama, Albright and Williams are the Triangle of Power, or T.O.P. Fun name.
This match provides an interesting hook pitting Johnny Ace and Steve Williams against each other. They start the match and Ace catches Williams with a back elbow before tagging Kobashi in. The match doesn’t rush to any of the big spots, keeping the pace steady and the action low key with some strikes and basic holds. Albright is presented as a challenge for Kobashi due to his size and physically. Kobashi chops Albright in the corner and tries to snapmare him over but Albright holds on before blocking the chop. Williams and Kobashi have a brief chop exchange which turns into a slap exchange. And then later Kobashi does a lovely delayed vertical suplex. Ace follows up by attacking Willaims on the outside, targeting the back before rolling him back in. Albright looks great in the unbeatable figure of the match. He man-handles Kobashi unlike any other and can bring Kobashi to his knees with an ugly face lock across the cheek bone. Williams after getting bested by Ace started to get louder and brash, taunting Ace after controlling Kobashi and slamming him in a gorilla slam. Williams then even slaps Kobashi in a disrespectful way, which Kobashi didn’t take too kindly to. T.O.P starts bending the rules more, working two on one against Kobashi before doing the same to Ace, who they’ve hurt by this point. Kobashi is struggling on the outside, leaving Ace with limited options. Kobashi does try to help when he can get to his feet but it’s easy pickings for Williams. Kobashi starts getting more success against Albright towards the later stages of the match, hitting an impressive german suplex and doing a cross arm breaker but Williams cuts him off. Kobashi gets crushed with a top rope powerslam with Albright giving Willaims an assist that gets a close two count at the 20 minute call. Ace gets laid out with a powerbomb on the outside floor while Kobashi and Williams slug it out in the ring. Albright hits the German Suplex to a great reaction and Willaims executes the backdrop suplex which almost gets them the win but Ace was just able to break up the pin. It was almost over there. Williams goes to the second rope once more but he hits a powerbomb instead to win the match and titles.
Great match;. Perhaps one of the forgotten great tag team matches of the era. It was more slow and elss action packed than the more famous tags but the quality was there to see. The dynamic between Kobashi and Albright was great but the true magic was between Kobashi and Williams. Plus the surprisingly strong teamwork between T.O.P was a treat to behold. ****
Triple Crown Title Match: Mitsuharu Misawa (c) vs. Akira Taue - AJPW Summer Action Series 1997 - Day 21 - 25/07/1997
Taue starts the match with a quick fire Nodowa, then trying again but Misawa had him scouted this time. Taue replied with a great dropkick that sent Misawa to the floor. And then came the TOPE!!!! Misawa is in trouble early often but Taue is relentless. He hits a powerbomb on the outside and tries for the Nodowa on the apron. Misawa is able to scupper the attempt but fails to stop the backdrop. Taue goes for the Nodowa again but Misawa channels his inner Will Ospreay with a great backflip counter that I went nuts for. Misawa on the backfoot continues to be great with his elbow strikes and ingenious ideas for counters. The match spilled back to the floor with Misawa in control this time and Taue was met with a Tiger Driver on the floor. And just when Misawa has control for the first long period of the match, Taue picks him out of the mid-air to hit the Nodowa. Taue targets Misawa’s neck with two snake eyes across the ropes. Taue gets flashy himself, doing a well executed hook kick that the fans “woah” at. Taue hits a german suplex, getting a two count. The closing stretch isn’t exactly peak All Japan but I thought Taue was great during this stretch of the match. He might just be one of the low-key greatest offensive wrestlers ever. He’s so creative in what he does. He makes a simple boot to the face come off as much more. Similar to the Kawada match, the actual finishing German suplex is an anti-climatic finish for a really good match. Are crowd expectations hurting what are in reality solid finishes or are they just not landing as well? It’s a tricky thing to consider. ****
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