THE MOSS COVERED THREE HANDLED FAMILY CREDENZA
ARTICLE # 66
MARCH 31, 2003
All Japan Old School: 1989-1992
Finally, here’s the first Credenza article of my post-computer-meltdown days. I’ve shifted from my original plans, and have decided to review a group of matches from All Japan’s 1989-1992 period. Although I’ve called this an “old school” period, most of the matches reviewed here contain very good action content and age quite well as a result. This article focuses on some great mid-card or semi-main event matches, back when the in-ring quality depth of All Japan cards was much greater than in future years. Then again, when you had a young Kobashi, a rising star in Kawada, one of the most underrated teams ever in the Can-Am Express, and everyone’s favorite underdog Kikuchi, how could you go wrong?
6/5/89 All Japan All-Asia Tag Team Title: Footloose (Toshiaki Kawada & Samson Fuyuki) (c) vs Can-Am Express (Dan Kroffat & Doug Furnas)
Furnas & Fuyuki did a criss cross as footage began. Furnas caught Fuyuki and press slammed him. Furnas tackled Fuyuki and stomped him. Kroffat whipped Fuyuki into the barricade but Fuyuki fought back by ramming him into the ringpost. Fuyuki grabbed Furnas’s leg and dragged him out of the ring. Fuyuki whipped Furnas into the barricade. Fuyuki bent Furnas’s legs back and tagged Kawada. Kawada kicked Furnas’s leg and stomped him. Kawada spin kicked Furnas for a near fall. Furnas gave Kawada a beautiful (seriously) dropkick. Kroffat spin kicked Kawada for a near fall. Kawada countered a powerbomb and backdropped Kroffat. Footloose gave Kroffat a double kick and Fuyuki legdropped him for a near fall. Fuyuki headbutted Kroffat but Kroffat countered a back suplex and applied a crossface chicken wing. Kawada kicked Kroffat to break the hold. Furnas came in and attacked Fuyuki. Fuyuki countered a German suplex with an elbow. Furnas caught Fuyuki jumping off the top rope in a bearhug and Kroffat added a top rope clothesline. Furnas gained a near fall on Fuyuki. Furnas belly to belly suplexed Fuyuki for a near fall. Kawada got the better of Furnas and gave him a really stiff lariat for a near fall. Kawada gave Furnas a standing senton for a near fall. Furnas countered a powerbomb and backdropped Kawada. Kroffat hit a high kick but Kawada responded with chops and slaps. Kroffat caught Kawada swinging and belly to belly suplexed him for a near fall. Kroffat gave Kawada a lariat for a near fall but telegraphed a backdrop and Kawada kicked him. Kroffat gave Fuyuki some roundhouse kicks but missed a lariat. Kroffat caught Fuyuki and gave him a side slam for a near fall. Fuyuki countered a side slam and back suplexed Kroffat for a near fall. Fuyuki whipped Kroffat into the corner and monkey flipped him but Kroffat landed on his feet. Kroffat hiptossed Fuyuki and slammed him down by his hair for a face pop from the Budokan crowd. Fuyuki fought back and threw Kroffat out of the ring. Kawada whipped Kroffat into the barricade but Furnas then intervened with a lariat. Fuyuki gave Kroffat a lariat for a near fall. Kawada gave Kroffat a couple roundhouse kicks and a jumping kick weaker than what would become his trademark for a near fall. Kawada and Fuyuki gave Kroffat running lariats in the corner and Fuyuki gave him a cradle suplex for a near fall. Fuyuki held Kroffat and Kawada top rope dropkicked him for a near fall. Kawada German suplexed Kroffat for a near fall. Fuyuki threatened to enter the ring but Furnas knocked him to the floor with a dropkick. Kawada attacked Furnas with a series of kicks as Kroffat hit a tope suicida on Fuyuki. Kawada gave Kroffat roundhouse kicks in the ring as Furnas press slammed Fuyuki onto a ringside table. Kawada rolled up Kroffat for a near fall. Kroffat spin kicked Kawada and tagged Furnas. Kawada met Furnas with a series of kicks and gave him a Thesz press for a near fall. Kawada superkicked Kroffat and applied a sleeper. Kroffat caught Kawada in a powerbomb position, Furnas dropkicked Kawada, and Kroffat completed the powerbomb into a rollup for a super-heated near fall. Furnas slammed Kawada and Kroffat top rope splashed him for another hot near fall. Furnas powerslammed Kawada for a near fall. Furnas lifted Kawada into a backbreaker but Fuyuki tackled him. Kroffat knocked Fuyuki for a loop with a superkick and gave Kawada a tiger driver for the pin at 19:35 to win the title. The last 12:49 aired, and what aired was sensational with great action but with a molten-to-say-the-least crowd. Fuyuki seemed to be really fun to watch when he was younger. Not a “great” worker, but very good and with plenty of intensity. Kawada was clearly the better worker, though, and you could tell already which one would become the greater in-ring star. Kawada had not yet perfected his array of kicks, but worked great as a mid-card rising star. By 1989 standards Kroffat seemed to be a top-notch worker while Furnas seemed much better than I would have expected. Maybe Furnas was like a more extreme version of Steve Williams in that tag matches really suited his strengths and hid his weaknesses, such as working the body of a match. In particular, Furnas came across as a great athlete given his physique with a super dropkick. Maybe I’m going out on a limb, but this match, as it relates to the 5/25/92 classic Can-Am Ex.-Kobashi/Kikuchi match, which might have been the best mid-card AJ match ever, is almost analogous to the 1/31/90 Liger-Sano match as that compared to the 4/30/92 Liger-Samurai match. In both cases, the matches shared a similar flavor, but the latter match was more spectacular, dramatic and technically superior. One more thing that stood out to me in this match was the crowd. I’ve already mentioned how hot they were, but what surprised me was their bias. They actually seemed to be rooting for the gaijins while clearly booing Kawada & Fuyuki, and not just when they used heelish and/or double team offense. Just struck me as kinda odd, perhaps it was because the crowd wanted to see a title change. Overall this looked like a forgotten classic because it took place on the undercard of the epic Jumbo-Tenryu match. ****1/2
6/5/89: Stan Hansen & Terry Gordy vs British Bulldogs (Davey Boy Smith & Dynamite Kid)
Great heat from the start. Kid headlocked Gordy and they had a criss cross where Kid finally tackled Gordy on his 5th try for a pop. Kid tackled Gordy twice more and snap suplexed him for a loud pop. Gordy armdragged Kid and tagged Hansen. Hansen kicked Kid and attacked his arm, including two kneedrops. Gordy kneedropped Kid’s arm as well and applied an armbar. Gordy kept Kid on the mat and applied a Fujiwara armbar but Kid was able to tag Smith. Gordy applied an armbar on Smith as well. They traded armringers, including Smith doing a flip counter sequence. Gordy gave Smith a short clothesline. Hansen slammed and elbowsmashed Smith for a near fall. Hansen rammed Smith into the corner and whipped him into the opposite corner but missed a running tackle. Smith gave Hansen an armringer as did Kid. Kid pounded Hansen’s left (lariat) arm. Smith applied an armbar, Hansen armdragged him but Smith rolled through and held onto the armbar. Hansen gave Smith a couple kneelifts and chopped him. Hansen rammed Smith into Gordy’s knee. Hansen and Gordy elbowed Smith and Gordy gained a near fall. They did a criss cross and Smith ignited the crowd with a spectacular press slam of the larger Gordy. Hansen went after Smith but Smith slammed him. Kid gave Gordy several headbutts and applied an elbowlock/front hammerlock. Kid turned it into an armbar/headscissors combo on Gordy. Hansen intervened and attacked Kid, then threw him out of the ring. Hansen went after Kid but Kid slid back into the ring. Gordy whipped Kid into the corner and gave him a running lariat. Gordy held Kid and Hansen gave him a high kick and a boot scrape. Hansen kneelifted and kneedropped Kid. Hansen stomped Kid and aborted a comeback by blocking a slam. Hansen pounded Kid but Kid backed him into the Bulldogs’ corner. Smith caught Hansen in a criss cross and slammed him. Smith also slammed Gordy. Hansen attacked Smith with elbows, a headbutt, kneedrop and boot scrape. Hansen rammed Smith into Gordy’s knee. Gordy gave Smith a couple punches to the gut and dropkicked him (barely grazing him as Smith seemed unsure as to whether to grab the ropes or take the move). Gordy suplexed Smith for a near fall. Gordy and Hansen backdropped Smith and took turns elbowsmashing him before Hansen gained a near fall. Hansen held Smith as Gordy elbowed him. Gordy snapmared Smith and applied a chinlock. Hansen suplexed Smith for a near fall and attacked Kid when he tried to intervene. Kid fought back and gave Hansen a series of shoulderblocks against the ropes. Kid chopped and elbowed Hansen but Hansen responded with elbows and chops of his own. Hansen snapmared and kneedropped Smith for a near fall. Hansen and Gordy tackled Smith. Gordy telegraphed a backdrop and Smith kicked him. Kid gave Gordy headbutts and chops. Kid gave Gordy a lariat and headbutted Hansen. Kid whipped Gordy into the corner and gave Gordy a running lariat. Gordy whipped Kid into the opposite corner and kicked him. Both Hansen and Gordy tried to powerbomb Kid but Smith intervened each time. Kid countered a powerbomb and kinda kicked Gordy. Kid slammed Gordy and hit a top rope splash for a near fall. Smith powerslammed Gordy for a near fall. Smith telegraphed a backdrop and Gordy kicked him. Hansen missed an elbowsmash and missed a lariat, and Smith gave him a cross bodyblock for a near fall. Smith slammed Hansen and press slammed Kid onto Hansen. Smith gained a near fall but ran into an elbow from Hansen. Hansen gave Smith his western lariat for the pin at 14:36. Great match that probably would have been even better 4-5 years earlier, before Kid’s body began to break down. Like the previous match, this one was fairly well-structured and very solidly worked, with the fan heat raising the quality a bit. Not that many hot near falls, but this was more of a fun novelty match because you had two teams that had rarely crossed paths in any form before, and here they worked well enough together to meet expectations. Hansen and Gordy were in their prime, while the Bulldogs were at a crossroads. They would soon end their partnership and a year later a 270lb Smith (probably 25-30 pounds heavier than his 85-88 run) would return to the WWF. Smith seemed to resemble his 1990-1993 self more than the lighter, less-muscular 80s Smith, but he worked to the higher end of his early-90s work. Workrate aside, Smith’s press slam of Gordy was pretty remarkable since Gordy was still quite a bit bigger (about 280 compared to about 245-250 for Smith). Kid clearly showed wear and tear his body had suffered over the past few years in that he didn’t work real long stretches or take many bumps. However, his trademark sharp form (think Chris Benoit in terms of execution and body movements) was still there and he could still do the snap suplex (on Gordy). No one’s best match by any means, but still very good and enjoyable. ***3/4
4/18/91 Kenta Kobashi vs Dan Kroffat
Kroffat had an STF applied on Kobashi as footage began but Kobashi soon reached the ropes. Kroffat did this cool inverted figure 4 leglock and bridged over Kobashi to gain a near fall and for more leverage. Kroffat elbowed, chopped and spin kicked Kobashi for a near fall. Kroffat slammed Kobashi but Kobashi caught him on the top rope and superplexed him for a near fall. Kobashi slammed Kroffat and went for a moonsault but Kroffat got up and knocked him to the floor with a kick. Kroffat hit a dive through the ropes. He tried to suplex Kobashi back into the ring but Kobashi countered and gave him a rolling cradle for a near fall. Kobashi telegraphed a backdrop and Kroffat kicked him. Kroffat went for a tiger driver but Kobashi pushed him into the corner and gave him some shoulderblocks. Kroffat elbowed Kobashi but Kobashi caught him jumping off the second rope and gave him a spinebuster for a near fall. Kobashi tried to lift Kroffat but Kroffat countered with kneelifts. Kroffat gave Kobashi a running somersault fireman’s carry slam for a near fall. Kroffat slammed Kobashi and went for a top rope splash but crashed onto Kobashi’s knees. Kroffat countered a German suplex and rolled up Kobashi for a near fall. Kroffat kicked Kobashi but missed a lariat and Kobashi back suplexed him for a near fall. Kobashi slammed Kroffat and went for a moonsault but Kroffat got up. Kroffat went for a back superplex but Kobashi fell on top of him for a near fall. Kobashi whipped Kroffat into the corner but ran into a boot. Kroffat threw a weak kick but Kobashi scored with a sharp superkick. Kobashi gave Kroffat a double arm DDT and pinned him. Just 4:47 aired, and what aired was pretty close to what you’d expect. Great back and forth work between two of the best AJ mid-card workers of the time. I’d say the heat was lower than I might have expected given the hot crowds AJ was known for in the early 90s, but the heat wasn’t lacking by any means. Certainly not as emotionally intense or dramatic as their legendary tag classic 13 months later, but this looked great. Probably ***1/2-**** depending on the overall length.
11/21/90 Mitsuharu Misawa & Toshiaki Kawada vs Kenta Kobashi & Johnny Ace
Misawa gave Kobashi a cross bodyblock for a near fall as footage began. Misawa punted Kobashi’s chest several times. Kawada side slammed Kobashi for a near fall and kicked him. Misawa elbowed Kobashi for a near fall and rammed him into the corner. Misawa slammed Kobashi and Kawada applied a sharpshooter but Kobashi quickly reached the ropes. Kawada gave Kobashi a couple roundhouse kicks but Kobashi slapped him. Kawada elbowed Kobashi but missed a lariat and Kobashi powerslammed him. Ace gave Kawada a flying elbow and elbowed Misawa on the apron as well. Ace gave Kawada a top rope clothesline for a near fall as Misawa intervened and stomped Ace. Ace and Misawa traded blows. Ace kicked Misawa and DDTd him for a fairly heated near fall. Kobashi gave Misawa a bunch of slaps. Misawa whipped Kobashi across the ring but in the process Kobashi dropkicked Kawada off the apron in a neat spot. However, Misawa then flattened Kobashi with an elbow. Misawa gave Kobashi a top rope elbow strike for a near fall. Kawada gave Kobashi a lariat for a near fall. Kawada went to powerbomb Kobashi but Ace dropkicked him. Kobashi rolled up Kawada for a near fall. Ace kicked Kawada and gave him an atomic drop. Kobashi gave Kawada a top rope dropkick and DDTd him out of the corner for a near fall. Ace kicked Kawada and landed some slaps. Misawa won an exchange of blows with Ace and countered a suplex attempt. Ace caught Misawa and gave him an Ace crusher. Kawada kicked Ace and Kobashi slammed Misawa. Kobashi moonsaulted Misawa and held Kawada back as Ace gained a near fall. Misawa elbowed Ace and Kawada spin kicked and elbowed him. Kawada gave Kobashi a spinning kick but Kobashi slapped him hard. Kawada caught Kobashi and dragon suplexed him for a near fall. Misawa gave Kobashi a tiger splash and threw Ace out of the ring. Kawada then powerbombed Kobashi for the pin. The last 6:00 aired, and showed this was the excellent match you’d expect. In terms of quality of work, Ace was much closer to his post-1998 self than his very good mid-90s form, but he worked with good fire and the others were able to carry him. Misawa looked good, particularly in working well with Ace. But Kawada vs Kobashi was clearly the in-ring highlight, with flashes of brilliance that foreshadowed their future classics. Kobashi worked with his usual great fire and showed why he was turning into one of the best workers in the industry. Kawada seemed to be sharper than his usual solid 1990 standards in terms of working like a veteran. Against the main eventers of the time, Kawada showed more of a transition period between mid-card rising star and main event veteran in his work. Here, Kawada was in more of a position to take charge of the action, and he worked quite a bit like he would in later years, throwing sharp kicks and lariats and using the powerbomb as his finisher. Probably close to ****.
3/2/91 PWF Jr. Title: Masa Fuchi (c) vs Dean Malenko
Fuchi slammed Malenko as footage began. Fuchi missed a lariat and Malenko gave him his own lariat. Malenko landed a couple elbows and whipped Fuchi into the corner but ran into a boot. Fuchi went for an atomic drop but Malenko countered with a rollup for a near fall. Malenko knocked Fuchi out of the ring with an elbow and hit a tope suicida. Fuchi caught Malenko on the top rope and tried to flip him to the mat but Malenko landed on his feet. Fuchi whipped Malenko into the corner. Both men blocked German suplex attempts. Fuchi missed an elbow but blocked a northern lights suplex. Malenko pushed Fuchi into the corner and gave him a northern lights suplex for a near fall. Malenko gave Fuchi a roundhouse kick. Malenko took down Fuchi and applied a legbar as heat picked up. Fuchi reached the ropes after a struggle. Both men countered suplex attempts. Fuchi blocked a rollup and rolled up Malenko for a near fall. Fuchi went for a back suplex but Malenko fell on top of him for a near fall. Malenko rolled up Fuchi for a near fall and slammed him. Fuchi caught Malenko on the top rope and slammed him to the mat. Malenko caught a charging Fuchi and gave him a stun gun. Malenko German suplexed Fuchi for a near fall. Fuchi blocked a second German suplex and kicked Malenko away. They traded German suplex counters but Fuchi caught Malenko and applied a stump puller (remember Big Bully Busich???). Malenko submitted and Fuchi retained the title. The last 5:00 aired, and it looked like a very good match. Fuchi seemed like a funky worker even back in 1991, but he was much better than in later years. Malenko looked like a very good worker who seemed unsure of his role and hadn’t found his niche yet character-wise. At times he tried to portray a fiery babyface, and even in 1991 it seemed apparent that wasn’t the type of character he was cut out for and was suited for a more serious role/character. Still this was a fine back and forth stretch with some heated near falls. My guess is ***-***1/2 based on what aired.
5/25/92 All Japan All-Asia Tag Team Title: Dan Kroffat & Doug Furnas (c) vs Kenta Kobashi & Tsuyoshi Kikuchi
Furnas gained a near fall on Kikuchi as footage began. Furnas press slammed Kikuchi clear out of the ring. Kroffat elbowed and snapmared Kobashi as Furnas press slammed Kikuchi onto a ringside table, which caved in somewhat. Furnas lifted Kikuchi, Kroffat gave him a top rope clothesline and Furnas rolled through into a pin position for a near fall. Furnas slammed Kikuchi and Kroffat applied a Boston crab. Fans were rabid and even popped huge when Kikuchi reached the ropes. Kroffat gave Kikuchi 3 snap suplexes in very rapid succession for a heated near fall. Kroffat applied a headlock but Kikuchi fought back with a back suplex. Kroffat prevented Kikuchi from tagging out by grabbing his hair. Furnas gave Kikuchi a tilt-a-whirl slam for a near fall. Furnas applied this brutal kneeling Boston crab on Kikuchi that blows away Chris Jericho’s earlier “walls” version. Kobashi intervened giving Furnas a couple kicks but Furnas shrugged them off and reapplied the hold. Kobashi then slapped Furnas hard to break the hold. Kroffat gave Kikuchi his rolling fireman’s carry slam for a near fall. Kroffat slammed Kikuchi and applied a side half crab/armbar combo while pushing his knee into Kikuchi’s side. Kroffat landed some kneedrops to Kikuchi’s back and applied a bow and arrow hold. Kobashi legdropped Kroffat to break the hold for a pop. Furnas missed a lariat and Kikuchi elbowed him. Kikuchi gave Furnas a leg lariat and tagged out. Kobashi kicked Furnas and superkicked both opponents in sharp fashion. Kobashi slammed both champs and gave Furnas some chops but Kroffat intervened with a jumping knee. The champs pounded Kobashi but missed a lariat and Kobashi gave them a double lariat for a huge pop. Kobashi back suplexed Furnas for a heated near fall. Kobashi whipped Furnas into the corner and gave him a running lariat. Kobashi tried to DDT Furnas out of the corner but Kroffat grabbed him off the second rope and dumped him to the mat like a powerbomb. Furnas gave Kobashi a lariat for a near fall. Furnas slammed Kobashi and Kroffat went for a top rope splash but crashed onto Kobashi’s knees for another pop. Kobashi gave Kroffat an enzuguiri as he tagged Kikuchi. Kikuchi gave Kroffat a really sharp top rope headbutt (that looked like they really clashed heads) for a heated near fall. Kikuchi gave Kroffat a cradle suplex for another hot near fall. Kroffat reversed a whip into the corner and nearly took Kikuchi’s head off with a superkick. Kroffat went for a tiger driver, Kobashi intervened but Kroffat clubbed him with a right and threw him over the top rope to the floor. Kikuchi blocked a tiger driver by kneeling on one knee. Furnas stomped Kikuchi and elevated him on his shoulders, and Kroffat knocked him for a loop with a sky high (top rope) lariat for a dramatic near fall. Kroffat elbowed Kobashi on the apron and applied a cobra clutch on Kikuchi. Great spot as Kroffat wrenched and twisted Kikuchi around with the hold with such intensity it looked like he was trying to break Kikuchi’s neck. Kobashi intervened before Kroffat could pin Kikuchi. Kobashi whipped Furnas into the barricade as Kroffat chopped Kikuchi. Kroffat went for a superplex but Kobashi intervened, elevated Kroffat on his shoulders and Kikuchi gave him a top rope dropkick. Kobashi flipped Kikuchi onto Kroffat for a great near fall. Kobashi slapped Kroffat but Kroffat sidestepped a shouldertackle and threw Kobashi to the mat. Furnas gave Kobashi a frankensteiner but Kikuchi came off the top rope and hit Furnas before he could attempt a pin. Kroffat chopped Kobashi, Kobashi whipped Kroffat into the corner but ran into a boot. Kroffat then walked into a superkick and Kobashi powerslammed him for a heated near fall. Kobashi slammed Kroffat and went for a moonsault but Furnas stopped him. Kikuchi threw Furnas out of the ring but Kobashi missed the moonsault. Kroffat rolled up Kobashi for a near fall. Kroffat went for a backdrop but Kobashi sunset flipped him. Kroffat countered, Kobashi went for a headscissors, Kroffat did a cartwheel counter, Kobashi kneed Kroffat and DDTd him to end the hot sequence for a great near fall as fans went nuts. Kobashi slammed Kroffat and hit the moonsault for the pin after about 22:00 to win the title. HUGE reaction to the finish and title change as Kobashi took one of his early steps towards superstardom. About the last 12:28 aired. It’s a shame the first half didn’t air, because the second half was just incredible. Before the days of crazy spots and head-dropping, great workers could work hot action sequences that combined just the right amount of high impact spots with some but not too much danger, with an intensity that enabled even simple spots like a powerslam or cradle suplex to lead to dramatic near falls with tremendous fan heat. Actually, I don’t know if I’ve ever seen such a molten hot crowd during the course of a match, or at least to such a sustained extent, as fans were ignited for almost the entire stretch that aired. Furnas was the weakest worker of the bunch, but even everything he did had an exceptional sharpness and intensity. Kroffat more or less carried the workload for his side as usual and looked like a top 20 worker in doing so. Even though he is smallish, Kroffat worked like a great killer heel in punishing Kikuchi, most notably the snap suplex sequence and the brutal cobra clutch. Kobashi proved why he was arguably the top worker in wrestling, being able to work like a fiery underdog while still playing a leadership role for his team. In particular, one segment re-defined the term “hot tag”, including Kobashi’s unusually sharp superkicks (and he was usually sharp in the first place!) on both opponents. Even with the great workers around him, Kikuchi stole the show for me. Many people have called him the greatest underdog type worker in wrestling history in terms of taking a beating, and he proved them right here. His bumps, even simple ones, were all intense and he would add something extra to every blow, such as the way his head snapped back when Kroffat superkicked him or the way he flailed his arms wildly when locked in the cobra clutch. Is this a ***** classic? I’m hesitant to give it such a rating, because I haven’t seen the first half and I’ve seen several better matches with more technically flawless second halves. But I will say this much: I have not seen a better match since the current decade began. A true classic that’s every bit as sensational watching it in 2003 because of the unreal crowd heat. ****3/4
NOTE: I would have done my ROH article as previously advertised, but I had completed half of it when my computer suffered its meltdown. All hotline files with the ROH matches were lost as well as, because of my stupidity, the article file itself.
Next Article: All Japan Old School Part 2: Early 90s
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