THE MOSS COVERED THREE HANDLED FAMILY CREDENZA
ARTICLE # 61
NOVEMBER 28, 2002
Snack on Danger, Dine on Death
This article features a Thanksgiving feast of mayhem, looking at five of the greatest and most memorable matches in the history of the death match genre. Matches reviewed include matches from the Onita explosion death match product, vintage IWA Japan and the Big Japan death match revolution.
5/5/93 No-Rope Electrified Barbed Wire Time Bomb Death Match: Atsushi Onita vs Terry Funk
The ref wore a thick silver protective suit for this match. The wrestlers locked up for a lengthy period of time amidst great heat. Funk elbowed Onita and chopped him. Funk landed some punches and Onita staggered back into the barbed wire for the first explosion. Funk landed more punches and Onita was bleeding by this point. Funk piledrove Onita for a near fall. Funk whipped Onita into the barbed wire without a struggle for the second explosion. Funk chopped Onita, whose back began to bleed. Funk landed more punches but Onita fought back. Onita applied a headlock but Funk countered with a kneebreaker. Funk tried to force Onita into the barbed wire but Onita held his ground. Funk applied a headlock but Onita countered with a back suplex. Funk headbutted Onita and pushed him towards the barbed wire but Onita fought and countered, and rammed Funk into the barbed wire for an explosion, which was weaker than the first two. Onita landed four headbutts and went for a fifth but Funk pulled him back and they both fell into the barbed wire for the fourth explosion. Onita spilled out of the ring as hit white top was torn and bloody. Funk nearly staggered into the barbed wire on his own. They traded blows shortly after the 10:00 mark as the 5:00 countdown towards the time bomb explosion began. Onita knocked Funk down with a sweeping punch/clothesline for a near fall. Funk gave Onita some headbutts but Onita responded with a headbutt of his own. Funk punched Onita and applied a spinning toehold. Onita kicked Funk away knocking him into the barbed wire for another explosion. Funk collapsed and staggered. Onita DDTd Funk for the pin at 12:14 (about 8:30 aired on the piece I saw) as the countdown continued. Onita shoved the ref out of the ring as the countdown reached less than a minute. Onita left the ring but returned and covered Funk as the explosion took place. Not nearly as spectacular as the Onita-Hayabusa explosion but still pretty memorable and a first of its kind. For an early death match, this looked very good, and actually one of the better explosion death matches to take place. Good back and forth action, and both men sold the gimmicks well. Onita was made for a match like this, while Funk's mannerisms fit into a match like this effectively. Nothing spectacular action-wise, but they were limited with the barbed wire on all 4 sides of the ring itself instead of two sides having the gimmick on the ground next to the ring. A great death match for its time. ***1/4
1/8/95 Barbed Wire Death Match: Cactus Jack vs Terry Funk
Funk hit Cactus with a chair at the start and gave him more chairshots at ringside. Cactus whipped Funk towards the barbed wire but Funk stopped just in time. They traded blows. Funk slid under the wire on a whip in and left the ring. Cactus attacked Funk in the crowd with a chair and rammed him into a table. Cactus gave Funk more chairshots and sliced his head open on the barbed wire. Cactus punched Funk but Funk took him down and applied a spinning toehold. Cactus tripped Funk to counter but Funk took him down and applied another spinning toehold. Cactus landed some punches to break the hold and elbowsmashed Funk. Cactus attacked Funk's bloody head with the barbed wire and bit him. Cactus bent Funk's arm in the barbed wire and Funk fell out of the ring, but found himself trapped briefly in the wire. Cactus hit Funk with a chair at ringside and punched him repeatedly in the crowd. Cactus lit a chair on fire and hit Funk with it. Funk hiptossed Cactus onto the flaming chair and threw the chair towards him and into the ring. Cactus grabbed the chair and hit Funk with it. Cactus went for a suplex but Funk countered and slingshot Cactus onto the barbed wire. Funk tossed Cactus into the barbed wire and Cactus went to revisit the infamous hangman spot but fell through the barbed wire to the floor. Funk attacked Cactus at ringside with the barbed wire from the ring. Cactus fought back but collapsed and Funk went after him. Funk propped a table against the ringpost and rammed Cactus into the table. Funk then grabbed a flaming branding iron and hit Cactus in the chest with the fire. Funk branded Cactus with the fire again. Cactus punched Funk and gave him a backbreaker on the floor. Cactus then hit an elbowsmash off the apron on Funk. Funk wandered about aimlessly with a chair around his neck. Cactus raked Funk's face and choked him with his own shirt. Cactus gained a near fall back in the ring and choked him with the shirt again. Cactus gave Funk a DDT for a near fall. Cactus suplexed Funk for a near fall. Funk fought back with a headbutt and punches. Cactus headbutted Funk and gained a near fall. Funk gained a near fall. Cactus landed some punches for a near fall. He went to give Funk a stun gun onto the barbed wire or something similar but Funk countered with a somewhat sloppy DDT for the pin at 16:40. I only saw about 12:00 of this match. Good stuff, pretty wild for its time, but if this took place today, few people would talk about it tomorrow. Not well-structured, and while there were several near falls at the end, the last segment dragged in intensity. I thought their match in ECW three months later was actually a hair better than this match. Still a good match and a must-see if you want to gauge what the death match standard was like in early-95, because this was pretty high on the totem pole back then. **3/4
5/7/95 Barbed Wire Board Glass Death Match: Headhunter A vs Headhunter B
I went nuts for this match the first few times I saw it back in the day, let's see how it holds up. B scored with a couple lariats and nearly knocked A over the top rope onto the glass at ringside, but A held onto the top rope. B threw A over the top rope and A narrowly avoided falling onto the glass, actually stepping in it in the process. B punched A and pulled his head towards the broken glass but A fought back. A hit B with a few chairshots and broke the chair over his head. A rammed B into the apron. Back in the ring A kicked B, whipped him into the corner and hit a corner splash. A dumped B out of the ring and B held onto the bottom rope to avoid the glass. B hit a lariat and knocked A over the top rope with a second lariat. B stepped in the glass again. B kicked A and A fell onto a barbed wire board. B grabbed the board and propped it against the ringpost. B then whipped A into the board. B grabbed a piece of glass and sliced open A's face with it quite a bit. B held a piece of bloody glass IN HIS MOUTH as he stabbed A with another piece of glass repeatedly. A staggered into the crowd as fans hurriedly fled, then he collapsed on the bleachers. B attacked A with a piece of glass in the crowd. Back in the ring B slammed A and hit a huge top rope splash for a near fall. B then hit a top rope elbow for a near fall. B gave A a crappy back suplex (A barely jumped up) for a near fall in the only glaring flaw so far. A knocked B out of the ring with a lariat and then hit an amazing 400ish pound somersault plancha to the floor! A grabbed a huge piece of glass and grinded the edge of it into B's face and head. A then broke the piece of glass over B's head as well as another piece of glass. A brought more glass into the ring and smashed it over B's head for a near fall. A slammed B and hit a top rope legdrop for a near fall. A hit a top rope elbowsmash for a near fall. He brought a barbed wire board into the ring and choked B in the ropes. A slammed B onto the barbed wire board and brought the other barbed wire board into the ring. A made a barbed wire board sandwich with B in the middle, then hit an amazing top rope moonsault for a near fall. A brought an entire box of glass into the ring (with a full sheet of glass). A went for a suplex but B reversed it and suplexed him through the glass. B slammed A and went to the top rope but slipped and just hit A with his arm. B went back up and hit a top rope splash for the pin at 16:25. Several years after I first saw it, I still loved this match. Neither man was very mobile, but that was to be expected because they carried somewhere between 350 and 400 pounds of weight. This match was a great combination of extreme violence for its time (which actually ages well) with tons of blood and some pretty amazing flying spots. A's somersault plancha was one of the more amazing spots I've ever seen, and both men used top rope offense quite a bit. A few sloppy spots, but not bad enough to hurt the match. Well-structured, with several near falls fans got into and the finish coming, indirectly, from the violent spot of the match (the suplex through the glass). A near-classic death match at its time, for me it ages pretty well. Must see match if you want to see pre-Yamakawa-Honma death match excellence. ***3/4
6/20/99 Big Japan Heavyweight Title, Barbed Wire Board, Spike Nail, Light Tubes Death Match: Ryuji Yamakawa (c) vs Tomoaki Honma
They actually shook hands before the bell! They locked up, Honma's back was near a barbed wire board. Yamakawa was almost backed into a barbed wire board. Honma whipped Yamakawa to the corner but Yamakawa slid to avoid the board. They appeared to be setting up for a chair duel at ringside but Honma hit Yamakawa in the gut with his chair. Honma hit Yamakawa with a chair but missed a third shot. Yamakawa kicked Honma and whipped him into a sea of chairs. Yamakawa punched and kicked Honma. Back in the ring Yamakawa kicked and slammed Honma and hit a couple power legdrops. After several reversals Yamakawa whipped Honma into a barbed wire board. Honma left the ring and Yamakawa followed him. Honma kicked Yamakawa but Yamakawa scored with a chairshot. Yamakawa set up a pile of chairs on the floor but Honma attacked him. Yamakawa whipped Honma into a table propped against a wall and rammed him into the table. Yamakawa elbowed Honma repeatedly and put more chairs in the pile on the floor. Yamakawa pounded Honma and gave him a TIGER DRIVER onto the chairs on the floor! Eh, that was different! Yamakawa kicked Honma and pushed his head into the nails at ringside. Yamakawa grabbed a light tube, twirled it and swung it at Honma but missed. Honma landed some kicks and took down Yamakawa, then grabbed a light tube of his own (from a board with tubes on it). A duel with light tubes??!! Just the thought seems psychotic. Both men missed on the first try but then hit each other with the tubes, both men being hurt in the process. Yamakawa tried to suplex Honma out of the ring and dumped him over but Honma stayed on the apron narrowly avoiding the nails on the floor right next to the apron. Yamakawa elbowed Honma and kicked him, leaving Honma dangling about an inch away from the nails. Honma held onto the bottom rope as Yamakawa stomped him. Yamakawa charged but Honma jumped to the middle of the top rope and hit a springboard elbow. If you didn't catch on before, now you'd know this wasn't your typical death match. Honma whipped Yamakawa into the corner (no board) and hit a running elbow. Honma bulldogged Yamakawa onto a barbed wire board for a near fall. Honma piledrove Yamakawa for a near fall and threw him out of the ring. Honma pushed Yamakawa's head into the nails briefly, then hit an absolutely insane running somersault plancha OVER THE NAILS onto Yamakawa at ringside! Granted the nails were next to the apron, but if Honma had slipped he would've really been nailed (okay, bad pun, but you get the idea). Honma placed a couple chairs in the corner and grabbed a light tube. Honma jumped off the top rope but broke a light tube over Yamakawa's head for a near fall. Honma set up a barbed wire board on a couple chairs in the corner. Honma rammed Yamakawa into the corner and choked him in the corner. Honma then gave Yamakawa a top rope huracanrana through the barbed wire board for a near fall. Honma pushed Yamakawa to the apron trying to knock him onto the nails. Honma rammed Yamakawa into the corner, took him into the crowd and piledrove him on the floor. Honma climbed to the second level (about 8-9 feet up) and jumped off the railing to the ground and broke a light tube over Yamakawa's head. Honma small packaged Yamakawa on the floor for a near fall. Yamakawa's back was a bloody mess by this point. Honma placed a board of light tubes on a couple chairs on the floor. Honma kicked Yamakawa and punched him on the apron. Honma went to tombstone Yamakawa off the apron through the light tube board (!!!) but Yamakawa blocked it. But Honma then tried again and succeeded, driving Yamakawa head first through the light tubes!!!!!! Honma then gained a near fall on the floor. Honma hit a blockbuster off the top rope for a near fall and gave Yamakawa a roundhouse kick. Yamakawa blocked a kick and pulled Honma to the apron next to the nails. Yamakawa hit a baseball slide kick but Honma held onto the bottom rope. Yamakawa hit a second baseball slide kick but Honma held on, barely. Yamakawa hit a third and Honma fell onto the bed of nails. Back in the ring Yamakawa gave Honma a high-angle pedigree (started looking like a tiger driver but then dropped front first) for a great near fall. Yamakawa then hit a corkscrew high angle pedigree for the pin at 19:35 to retain the title. This has the be the greatest true death match ever. Yeah, their rematch was definitely a better match than this, but that was more like a wrestling and death match blend. There were some good wrestling spots here, but this had a more exclusive death match flavor. Both men looked outstanding, with Yamakawa looking so much sharper and more charismatic than he did circa 1996-97, when he was a solid worker willing to take incredible punishment but also a bland character. Honma, in this match and their rematch, looked at least like the Masato Tanaka of death matches. In other words, he set a new standard for incorporating great wrestling exchanges and near falls into a hardcore style match. But Honma was a better athlete than Tanaka, at least with more spectacular athletic spots. Just shy of a classic, but the greatest death match up to this point, and only topped by their rematch. Both matches have to be seen to be appreciated. Amazing match too since they only had maybe 500-600 fans in the building (I'm bad at guessing crowd sizes, but it was a small crowd). ****1/4
1/2/00 Big Japan Heavyweight Title, Barbed Wire Board/Spike Nail Death Match: Ryuji Yamakawa (c) vs Tomoaki Honma
They started with a great mat exchange in which Yamakawa teased pushing Honma into a barbed wire board. Honma landed a punch, kneelift and headbutt but Yamakawa landed a couple headbutts of his own. Yamakawa slammed Honma and hit a couple power legdrops before applying a chinlock. Yamakawa grabbed a headlock but Honma countered with a back suplex. Honma kicked Yamakawa and whipped him towards a barbed wire board but Yamakawa avoided it with a baseball slide. Honma missed a dropkick. He gave Yamakawa a drop toehold and applied a headlock on the mat. Honma gave Yamakawa a couple kneelifts. Yamakawa whipped Honma towards a barbed wire board but Honma jumped onto the board and backflipped off it in a tremendous spot. Honma kicked Yamakawa and whipped him into the board. Honma kicked Yamakawa and hit a running elbow in the corner. Honma threw Yamakawa out of the ring and rammed him into a table. He hit Yamakawa with a chair and rammed him into a bunch of chairs. Honma attacked Yamakawa with a chair and took the fight through the stands and out of Korakuen Hall. Yamakawa rammed Honma into a sign and they left the main arena. They toured the building amidst a "Dai Nihon" chant and reentered the arena. Yamakawa rammed Honma twice into a sign and into a table. Yamakawa then gave Honma a powerbomb on an elevated floor in the crowd. Yamakawa vertical suplexed Honma on that floor in another cool spot. Yamakawa kicked and elbowed Honma in the head and gave him a couple chairshots. Back in the ring Yamakawa kicked Honma. He then tried to suplex Honma out of the ring and onto a bed of nails at ringside but Honma countered and dropped Yamakawa gut first across the top rope. Honma elbowed Yamakawa off the apron and hit a somersault plancha over the nails onto Yamakawa! Honma sliced up Yamakawa's head a bit on the nails at ringside. Honma brought a couple chairs into the ring and hit Yamakawa with one. Honma set up a chair and tried to powerbomb Yamakawa onto it but Yamakawa blocked it. In one of the neatest spots Honma simply lifted Yamakawa and gave him a Samoan drop through a barbed wire board in the corner a few feet away. Both men were bleeding by this point. Honma set up the other barbed wire board across two chairs and rammed Yamakawa into the corner. Yamakawa fought back and gave Honma a top rope huracanrana through the barbed wire board in another great spot. Yamakawa gave Honma a Liger bomb onto a barbed wire board for a near fall. Honma fought back with an enzuguiri and gave Yamakawa a flying shouldertackle. Honma tombstoned Yamakawa and placed a barbed wire board over his body. Honma hit a top rope headbutt onto Yamakawa but hurt himself in the process. Honma placed a barbed wire board propped up on two chairs at ringside and drove Yamakawa through the board with a top rope huracanrana to the floor. Honma hit a couple running elbows for a near fall and a greetings from Asbury Park for another near fall. Honma missed an elbow and Yamakawa gave him a released German suplex and a lariat for a near fall. Yamakawa brought a table to ringside and placed a barbed wire board between the table and the apron, and over a bed of nails on the floor. Yamakawa landed a couple elbows but Honma fought back with elbows of his own and powerbombed Yamakawa through the barbed wire board. Honma hit a couple running elbows for a heated near fall. Honma hit an elbow and Yamakawa hit a lariat simultaneously. Honma then elbowed Yamakawa sharply and pinned him at 23:45 to win the title. An absolutely amazing match, almost like Tanaka-Awesome in a death match setup. But that analogy doesn't do this match justice, because in many ways this was much more innovative and more smartly worked. They actually paced themselves well, adding meaning to all their big death match spots. The spots weren't the craziest or most violent you'll see in such a match, but many of them were creative and/or athletically spectacular for the genre. Yamakawa had really come a long way from his time as a rising star in the early Big Japan days, when his work was solid but very bland. Here he showed great charisma and his work was really sharp and inspired. As for Honma, he was just amazing in some of his creativity. Have you ever seen someone backflip off a barbed wire board to avoid contact? And what about the bumps he took on the hard floor in the crowd from the powerbomb and vertical suplex. Those were familiar moves, but incorporated into unique spots, making them much more memorable. This has to rate as the best death match ever, being a few steps up in every way from the excellent Toyoda-Kudo explosion death match in 1996 and the Kudo-Ozaki barbed wire match in 1997, as well as being a much more technically sound match than their 6/20/99 classic. I can actually see some giving this ***** because they did so well with a death match, but I think lack of crowd heat and emotion at times hurt. Still a classic, one of the top 5 or 10 matches of 2000, and an epic as the greatest death match in the history of the genre. ****1/2
Next Article: Best of 2002 Part 1
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