THE MOSS COVERED THREE HANDLED FAMILY CREDENZA
ARTICLE # 67
APRIL 15, 2003
All Japan Old School Part 2: Early 90s
Here is part two of my look at a bunch of matches from the early 90s All Japan era. This article looks at some of the main eventers such as Jumbo Tsuruta and Stan Hansen, as well as the new generation group of Misawa, Kawada, Kobashi and Kikuchi. From watching these matches it seemed like All Japan�s big singles matches hadn�t yet their peak standards of excellence that would emerge in 1993 and 1994, while their mid-card tag team matches from the early 90s age remarkably well and contained some of the best pre-1993 work found in All Japan rings.
4/6/91: Mitsuharu Misawa vs Stan Hansen
Hansen had an armbar on Misawa as footage began. Hansen briefly applied a crossface before dropping an elbowsmash. Hansen landed a couple kicks and elbowed Misawa. Misawa fought back with an elbow, chop and a couple kicks. Misawa stomped Hansen and landed some roundhouse kicks in the corner. Misawa gave Hansen a short jumping kick and a spinning kick for a near fall. Misawa applied a weak abdominal stretch on the ground and then an armbar. Hansen countered by attacking Misawa�s left leg, including bending the ankle around his knee. Misawa countered with a chinlock but Hansen maintained the pressure on his leg. Misawa stomped Hansen and landed a roundhouse kick but sold the damage done to his left leg. Misawa landed a roundhouse kick and an ax kick for a near fall. Hansen elbowed Misawa and backed him into a corner. Hansen elbowed Misawa and powerbombed him for a near fall. Hansen stomped Misawa and gave him a couple kneedrops. Hansen elbowed Misawa and gave him a couple kneelifts to the head. Hansen stomped Misawa and threw him out of the ring. Hansen rammed Misawa into the ringpost and hit him with a section of the barricade. Hansen elbowed Misawa and went for a powerbomb. Misawa tried to counter by backdropping Hansen over the top rope but they slipped and both men fell into the ropes. Misawa pulled Hansen out of the ring, then stomped and kicked him. Misawa whipped Hansen into the barricade. As Misawa returned to the ring apron Hansen met him with a boot to the face. Hansen rammed Misawa into the mat but Misawa responded in kind. Misawa legdropped Hansen but Hansen responded with a kick and a kneelift. Hansen whipped Misawa into the corner and gave him a running shoulderblock. Hansen gave Misawa some kneelifts in the corner and kicked him. Misawa whipped Hansen into the corner and scored with an elbow. Misawa gave Hansen a spinning kick and a senton for a near fall. Misawa cross bodyblocked Hansen for a near fall and gave him a top rope elbow strike for a more heated near fall. Misawa slammed Hansen but missed a tiger splash. Hansen suplexed Misawa on the floor. Hansen then knocked Misawa into the barricade with a tackle, with Misawa taking a cool bump over the barricade as it tipped over. Hansen booted Misawa on the floor and gave him the western lariat on the apron. Back in the ring Hansen DDTd Misawa for a near fall. Hansen missed a lariat, Misawa attempted a crucifix but Hansen countered with somewhat of a Samoan drop for the pin. What was that? Just a really weird finish that struck me as kinda lame. And it�s too bad, because the match had just gained great momentum in the last minute or so. The last 12:30 aired, and the match itself went about 17:30. A good match, but quite a bit was missing most of the way. Hansen, and Misawa for that matter, hit each other quite hard but neither showed the level of urgency in their offensive flurries you would expect from a Carnival Tournament match. Actually until the last couple minutes I don�t think there was a single sequence or exchange between them that ignited the crowd, which you usually see in most All Japan big matches from that era. Misawa had yet to score a pin on Hansen, at least in a singles match, and didn�t seem to be elevated at all in how this match was booked. While he had a reasonable amount of offense, Misawa never used the tiger driver or tiger suplex, nor had he attempted them. Neither man �dogged it� as all as they were always doing something, but they never really worked any dramatic stretched till near the end, nor work a significant storyline for an extended period. Good match, but a minor letdown. ***
1/24/92: Stan Hansen vs Tsuyoshi Kikuchi
Hansen chased Kikuchi out of the ring with his bullrope but Kikuchi gave him a top rope elbow strike. The crowd went nuts as Kikuchi attacked Hansen with a series of elbows. The bell finally rang as Kikuchi landed more elbows. Hansen headbutted Kikuchi but Kikuchi came back with a kick and more elbows. Hansen brutally slammed Kikuchi on the apron. Hansen kicked Kikuchi�s head repeatedly on the floor and gave him a gut wrench suplex right onto the top of the barricade. Hansen hit Kikuchi with a chair and elbowsmashed him. Hansen pounded Kikuchi and powerbombed him. Hansen landed some kicks to the back and threw Kikuchi out of the ring. Hansen twice slammed Kikuchi into the ringpost and rammed him into the barricade. Hansen then gave Kikuchi essentially a doctor bomb onto the barricade. Hansen went for a lariat but Kikuchi hit him with a leg lariat for a pop. Kikuchi landed some elbows and knocked Hansen down with a leg lariat. Kikuchi missed a top rope dropkick and Hansen repeatedly kicked and stomped his back. Hansen applied a brutal Boston crab, completely sitting down on Kikuchi�s back for the submission win at 4:10. Short, but all action and incredibly intense- almost the polar opposite of the previous match. Smart booking in the Boston crab finisher because Kikuchi was enough of an underdog to render the lariat as not needed in this situation, thus saving that spot for tougher opponents. Kikuchi continued to be one of the best underdog workers here with an intensity that was strong even by his usual standards, and fans picked up on it as they went nuts for every blow he landed. Hansen just beat the crap out of Kikuchi and this is one of the most memorable beatings I�ve seen someone take. This would have been a perfect TV match for something like RAW or Smackdown, since it had so much action and intensity. Then again, this was better than most or all sub-5:00 TV matches nowadays. **3/4
2/27/92: Kenta Kobashi vs Jumbo Tsuruta
Kobashi applied a half crab as footage began but Jumbo quickly reached the ropes. Kobashi rammed Jumbo�s knee into the mat twice and applied a Texas cloverleaf but Jumbo quickly reached the ropes again. Kobashi stomped Jumbo�s knee and Jumbo rolled out of the ring. Kobashi applied a Boston crab on the floor and rammed Jumbo into the ringpost. Jumbo countered a kneebreaker with an elbow and gave Kobashi his own kneebreaker onto a ringside table. Jumbo rammed Kobashi�s knee into the mat twice and applied a half crab. Jumbo stomped and kicked Kobashi but Kobashi fought back with kneelifts and a shouldertackle. Jumbo gave Kobashi a series of kneelifts and a lariat. Jumbo gave Kobashi two short lariats but missed a third and Kobashi DDTd him. Kobashi gave Jumbo a neckbreaker drop for a near fall and applied a chinlock. Kobashi stomped Jumbo and applied a sleeper/bodyscissors combo. Jumbo reached the ropes and they left the ring. Kobashi kicked Jumbo and DDTd him on the exposed floor. Kobashi gained a near fall back in the ring and applied a sleeper but Jumbo pushed him into a corner and escaped. Kobashi charged but Jumbo shoved him down to the mat. Jumbo missed a lariat and Kobashi applied a sleeper but Jumbo quickly countered with a back suplex as heat picked up for a near fall. Jumbo scored with a jumping knee and knocked Kobashi out of the ring with a second one. Jumbo dropped Kobashi across the barricade and rammed him twice into a ringside table. Jumbo punched Kobashi and jumped off the top rope with a flying bodypress for a near fall. Jumbo powerbombed Kobashi for a near fall. Jumbo went for a back suplex but Kobashi fell on top of him for a near fall. Kobashi back suplexed Jumbo and slammed him. Kobashi moonsaulted Jumbo for a heated near fall. Kobashi landed a series of chops, whipped Jumbo into the corner and gave him a running lariat for a near fall. Jumbo landed a high kick and Kobashi ran into a lariat. Kobashi blocked a back suplex but Jumbo gave him an enzu-lariat. Jumbo landed some punches but missed a short lariat and Kobashi German suplexed him for a heated near fall. Jumbo countered a second German suplex with some elbows but Kobashi powerslammed him for a near fall. Kobashi jumped off the top rope but Jumbo met him with a kick for a near fall. Jumbo gave Kobashi a lariat and back suplexed him for the pin. The last 13:48 aired and I think they joined the match on TV about 8:00 in. This was one of those excellent old school All Japan top tier matches. They did just about everything in their arsenal, but took their time in building the match. Unlike Misawa-Hansen, this had the feel of a steadily building match that was logically leading to the closing stretch. The last 5-6 minutes were particularly excellent with lots of exchanges and near falls, and with a hot crowd. As far as workrate and intensity, they weren�t in overdrive mode, so this wasn�t as great as their 5/24/91 classic, but was just a notch or two below that level. They did a great job as usual working the veteran-underdog storyline, but it wasn�t as pronounced as their 5/91 match, and it seemed like Kobashi had more offense this time. Jumbo was still a top worker, and while this wasn�t his best performance he was fired up and his offense was sharp. ****1/4
4/19/92: Stan Hansen vs Toshiaki Kawada
Hansen went after Kawada at the bell and they traded blows. Kawada fired some slaps but Hansen responded with kneelifts and threw Kawada out of the ring. Hansen booted Kawada and rammed him into a ringside table. Kawada kicked Hansen�s leg twice but Hansen elbowsmashed him. Hansen elbowed Kawada but Kawada knocked him down with an elbow of his own. Kawada stomped Hansen and kicked his face, and Hansen rolled out of the ring. Hansen landed some slaps and punted Kawada�s back. Hansen stomped Kawada and DDTd him. Hansen gave Kawada a kneelift, elbow and a couple chops but Kawada responded with a headbutt. Kawada kicked Hansen�s leg and worked on it on the knee. Kawada stomped Hansen and applied a half crab. Kawada rammed Hansen�s knee into the mat but stumbled into an elbow. Kawada kicked Hansen�s leg and stretched it on the mat. Kawada rammed the knee into the mat again and applied a leglock. Hansen tried to counter with kicks but Kawada responded with kicks of his own while maintaining the leglock. Hansen finally reached the ropes after a lengthy struggle. Kawada kicked Hansen�s leg repeatedly on the apron and on the floor. Hansen fought back and powerbombed Kawada on the floor in a cool spot because it was so sudden. Hansen smartly continued to sell his own damaged knee. Hansen gave Kawada two kneelifts to his back and knocked him off the apron into the barricade. Hansen slammed Kawada across the barricade and a ringside table. Hansen back suplexed Kawada into the ring for a near fall. Hansen stomped Kawada and backdropped him. He elbowsmashed Kawada for a near fall. Hansen pounded Kawada but Kawada fired back with a high kick. Kawada stumbled into a double boot and Hansen kicked him twice. Kawada responded with some sharp roundhouse kicks to the body and the head. Kawada missed an elbowsmash and Hansen gave him his own elbowsmash for a near fall. Hansen slammed Kawada but missed an elbowsmash. He elbowed Kawada but missed another elbowsmash and Kawada met him with a jumping kick for a near fall. Kawada rammed Hansen into the turnbuckle and kicked his head. Kawada spin kicked Hansen and Hansen rolled out of the ring. Kawada slammed Hansen on the floor and elbowsmashed him from the apron. Kawada gave Hansen a lariat for a near fall and a top rope elbowsmash for another near fall as heat picked up. Kawada landed some roundhouse kicks but Hansen blocked a spinning kick and pushed him to the mat. Hansen absorbed two elbows and pushed Kawada down again. Kawada kicked Hansen�s leg and gave him an enzu-lariat. Kawada applied a sleeper. Kawada gave Hansen his trademark Kawada kicks and booted him. Kawada gave Hansen a roundhouse kick and some elbows but Hansen responded with elbows and headbutts. Hansen gave Kawada a low dropkick through the ropes and slammed him on the floor twice. Hansen kicked Kawada�s back and gained a near fall back in the ring. Hansen went for a lariat but Kawada met him with a jumping kick. Hansen repeatedly kicked and stomped Kawada. He powerbombed Kawada for a heated near fall. Hansen applied a Boston crab but Kawada reached the ropes, although Hansen was slow to break the hold. Hansen elbowsmashed Kawada but missed a lariat and Kawada elbowed him sharply for a near fall. Kawada charged but Hansen gave him a western lariat for the pin at 18:02. Not the match they were capable of, but close, and by no means a disappointment. This was well-plotted because it didn�t drag much at all and had heated exchanges spread throughout the bulk of the match. Hansen was never much of a technical wrestler, and generally needed a hard hitter or fiery worker to keep the body of a match interesting. Kawada was much more of an ideal opponent for Hansen than Misawa because by 1992 Kawada had already established himself as a versatile, sharp striker who could exchange blows as good as anyone. Here they didn�t seem as hard hitting as their 2/93 classic I�ve heard great things about, but they did hit each other quite hard and this was an adequate indication of what they would do in 1993, when both men elevated their game including Hansen having one of his best in-ring years. The exchanges were heated, but except for the closing minutes fans didn�t respond quite as strongly as I would expect, perhaps because everyone was sure of the end result and not �surprised� by how the match unfolded. Hansen�s selling was really great in selling his knee. In particular, there were times where Hansen would hit a big desperation spot (powerbomb on the floor) just to give his knee more time to heel, and these spots worked because they were pulled off so quickly. Excellent match, typical of All Japan at the time. ****
9/1/90: Fantastics (Tommy Rogers & Bobby Fulton) vs Joe Malenko & Tsuyoshi Kikuchi
Fulton applied a bow and arrow on Kikuchi as footage began. Malenko intervened with a dropkick on Fulton. Rogers atomic dropped Kikuchi and rolled him up for a near fall. Kikuchi fought back and Malenko elbowed Rogers twice in the back. Malenko headbutted Rogers in the back and applied a facelock. Malenko crossed Rogers�s legs and applied a Mutolock. Malenko gave Rogers a couple knees to the gut but Rogers responded with his own kneelifts. Fulton punched Malenko and went for a piledriver but Malenko countered with a backdrop. Fulton held on and sunset flipped Malenko for a near fall. Fulton applied a bodyscissors and then something like a half crab with both men facing upwards. Kikuchi kicked Fulton to break the hold. Fulton pounded Kikuchi as Rogers held him in the corner and Rogers dumped him HARD to the floor. Kikuchi landed some sharp elbows and slammed Rogers. Kikuchi gave Rogers a top rope elbowsmash for a near fall. Kikuchi headlocked Rogers but Rogers back suplexed him for a near fall. Rogers backdropped Kikuchi and elbowed Malenko on the apron. Rogers gave Kikuchi a drop toehold into a punch from Fulton. Fulton threw Kikuchi out of the ring with Kikuchi taking his usual hard bump. Fulton punched and elbowed Kikuchi. Fulton went for a suplex but Kikuchi countered with a suplex of his own for a near fall. Kikuchi landed some elbows but Fulton pulled him out of the ring. Fulton gave Kikuchi a dropkick through the ropes and a tope. Fulton took Kikuchi into the crowd and tried to suplex him but Kikuchi suddenly countered with his own suplex for a pop. Malenko landed some quick roundhouse kicks on Rogers and gave him what looked like a botched or blocked dragon screw. Malenko and Rogers fought in the ropes and onto the floor. Malenko whipped Rogers into the barricade. Rogers blocked a lariat but Malenko blocked a crucifix. Malenko countered a German suplex and gave Rogers a couple kneelifts. Malenko did this great counter sequence into a Russian legsweep on Rogers for a near fall. Kikuchi botched a springboard move as he slipped off the top rope. Rogers elbowed Kikuchi from the apron and slammed him neck first across the barricade. Malenko backdropped Fulton on the floor and Rogers piledrove Kikuchi on the floor. Rogers gave Kikuchi a sharp slingshot splash for a heated near fall. Rogers punched Kikuchi and rammed him into the turnbuckle. Rogers powerslammed Kikuchi for a near fall. The Fantastics gave Kikuchi a double second rope dropkick and Fulton gained a dramatic near fall. Fulton lifted Kikuchi but Malenko intervened. Rogers gave Malenko a top rope axhandle as Kikuchi sunset flipped Fulton for a great near fall. Kikuchi gave Fulton a cradle suplex for a near fall but Fulton caught him on the top rope with a punch. Fulton armdragged Kikuchi to the mat. Rogers and Fulton appeared to attempt a double flapjack or backdrop but dumped Kikuchi almost straight down on his head and Kikuchi�s body folded up upon impact in a spectacular spot. Rogers gained a heated near fall and gave Kikuchi a northern lights suplex for another near fall. Malenko German suplexed Fulton but the ref wouldn�t count the pin because they weren�t legal. Kikuchi won an exchange of blows against Rogers but Rogers lifted him and Fulton came off the top rope with the sky high lariat. Rogers gained a near fall. Fulton gave Kikuchi a top rope kneedrop and Rogers quickly followed with a top rope splash for the pin. The last 11:04 aired so this was about 17:00 long. This was an incredible match, largely due to a vintage Kikuchi performance. Kikuchi added something extra to EVERY single thing he did. His strikes looked exceptionally sharp, but his bumps were off the charts, as he would hit the mat (or the floor) hard even for the simplest of spots. The double backdrop from hell was just an amazing spot in how Kikuchi�s body folded up and was one of those hard to duplicate spots. Kikuchi�s comebacks were spectacular and dramatic with fans popping huge for his offense. Kikuchi just carried this match. That�s remarkable given his opponents, Rogers and Fulton, who were among the best in-ring tag team acts ever and still in their prime in 1990. Both Rogers and Fulton looked great in beating up Kikuchi and in their double team spots. Malenko was really good too, but he seemed to be a 5th wheel in this match as he didn�t �fit in� stylistically even if he did work well with the Fantastics. Lots of good work early on with good submission spots. Much of the footage though was action packed and quite heated at least when Kikuchi was involved. One of the best All Japan mid-card tag team matches, which would almost become a lost genre within a few years. Not the classic some have pegged it as (Meltzer ****3/4 for example), but still a sensational match. Kikuchi raised the quality of the match so many notches with his work. ****1/2
3/27/92: Kenta Kobashi vs Stan Hansen
Kobashi gave Hansen a ton of chops early and dropkicked him against the ropes. Kobashi stomped Hansen and landed more chops on the floor. Hansen fought back and rammed Kobashi into the ringpost. Hansen hit Kobashi with a chair and kicked him. Hansen gave Kobashi a boot scrape and a couple chops but missed a third and Kobashi dropkicked him. Kobashi spin kicked Hansen and gave him some kicks in the corner. Kobashi gave Hansen an armringer into a hammerlock. Kobashi turned it into an armbar but Hansen backed him into a corner. Kobashi stretched Hansen�s arm in the ropes and dropkicked the arm (Hansen�s lariat arm by the way). Kobashi repeatedly stomped the arm. Hansen threw some kicks but Kobashi responded with kicks of his own and applied an armbar. Hansen gave Kobashi two headbutts but Kobashi slapped him. Hansen slapped Kobashi and gave him several kicks. Hansen gave Kobashi a couple kneedrops and powerbombed him on the floor. Hansen stomped Kobashi on the floor and on the apron. Hansen brought Kobashi�s neck down across the top rope. Hansen applied a dragon sleeper with Kobashi�s neck over his knee. Kobashi reached the ropes but Hansen elbowsmashed him for a near fall. Hansen backdropped Kobashi and elbowsmashed him for a near fall. Hansen stomped, elbowed and chopped Kobashi but telegraphed a backdrop and Kobashi kicked him. Kobashi bulldogged Hansen and pounded him on the floor. Kobashi DDTd Hansen on the floor and jumped off the apron but Hansen met him with an elbow. Hansen knocked Kobashi for a loop with a tackle on the floor. Hansen gave Kobashi an ax kick as his neck was draped over the second rope. Hansen choked Kobashi across the top rope and pounded him. Kobashi blocked a chop and gave Hansen a series of slaps and a dropkick. Hansen gave Kobashi two superkicks and a third kick. He chopped Kobashi and powerbombed him for a near fall. Kobashi blocked a second powerbomb by grabbing the middle rope. Hansen suplexed Kobashi for a near fall and stomped him. Kobashi threw some weak kicks at Hansen�s leg. Hansen piledrove Kobashi for a near fall but missed a lariat and Kobashi DDTd him for a near fall. Kobashi gave Hansen a neckbreaker drop (sorta like a clothesline) for a near fall and applied a sleeper. Kobashi gained a near fall and reapplied the sleeper. Kobashi gave Hansen a legdrop from the bottom rope but missed a moonsault. Hansen went for a powerbomb but Kobashi fell on top of him for a near fall. Hansen blocked a German suplex and elbowed Kobashi but Kobashi gave him an enzu-lariat and a legdrop. Hansen quickly rose up and gave Kobashi a kick and some slaps. Kobashi responded with an enzuguiri and a legdrop. Hansen rose up and landed some punches but Kobashi gave him a bunch of elbows. Kobashi legdropped Hansen and hit a second rope legdrop for a near fall. Kobashi pushed Hansen into the corner and DDTd him out of the corner for a near fall. Kobashi landed his trademark series of chops but missed a savate kick and Hansen shoved him down to the mat. Hansen gained a near fall but Kobashi gave him a backslide for a near fall. Kobashi small packaged Hansen for a near fall and gave him some kicks. Hansen missed a lariat but caught Kobashi on the rebound with his Western lariat for the pin at 14:41. I thought the finish was a bit sudden since the match had only peaked for the last 3:00 or so, and that prevented the match from reaching its potential. However, given where Kobashi stood in early 1992 compared to mid-93 (when he had the all-time classic against Hansen), perhaps he wasn�t a big enough star yet to get more offense or near falls down the stretch that seemed like potential finishes. Fans seemed to agree as they didn�t get as fired up for Kobashi�s offensive flurries and near falls as much as I would have expected. Both men were their usual selves in their workrate, which made for a great match. Kobashi�s work on Hansen�s arm early was very solid, too bad they didn�t revisit it down the stretch. The sequencing of spots could have been a bit better as the closing minutes, while the highlight of the match, weren�t as hot as the previous 10 minutes seemed to call for. While both men worked quite hard and near their potential, this match didn�t reach expectations. In fact, while it was great, this was nowhere nearly as great as their 1993 matches would be. ***3/4
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