(Written by jom)
Inexplicably, this is a really good match. I've talked about both of these guys before when reviewing K-WEST, but only Fujisawa elicited praise. He's an incredibly competent Kurisu trainee with the capabilities to be a scary brutalizer, fitting for someone with his lineage. Southern Cross, meanwhile, is bad! I last saw him in 2010 when he wore a mask and had a lanky build, but here he is in 2014, unmasked and possessing the body type of a divorced father. His previously-seen work was sloppy, boring, and practically screamed "I shouldn't be within 500 feet of a wrestling ring". He always came off as the type of wrestler you'd only see "succeed" in a place like FU*CK!, a promotion that would treat his lack of skills like a skill itself. I came into this hoping it would just be a Fujisawa squash, a chance for him to be mean and cruel to a tomato can worker and make me happy with unnecessary violence. What we end up getting is still pretty close to this, but Cross got all the chances he needed to prove that a lot can change in four years. For all of Fujisawa's dick kicks and stiff shots, Cross returned fire with impressive chops and displays of raw power, like a really snappy Tenryu-style powerbomb. He does a damn good job on the receiving end of things, selling Fujisawa's shots with a lot of grunting and recoiling. His blood getting all over his white pants after a Fujisawa shoot headbutt is just the icing on top. I think the best way to describe this match would be a display of Southern Cross's will. The Fujisawa bullying is sick and gross and all that, but I can't help but come away from this with the lasting image of Cross's bloody visage and never-say-die attitude. An infinitely impressive performance from someone I never would've thought could deliver such a thing.
Asian Cougar & Great Sensei vs. Tarzan Goto & Masked Saturn (Samurai Project 01/25/1998)
I only tracked this match down because of an old Japanese blog post talking about a supposed incident where Goto stabbed Cougar in his left arm with a broken broom and gave Cougar massive scars. That incident never takes place in this match and I have no idea whether the writer was misremembering which Goto vs. Cougar match it was or if it was just a plain ol' lie. Regardless, I have to find that writer's contact information and try to thank them. This match, as a whole, is borderline great. Sensei and Saturn (Hiroshi Hatanaka and Mitsunobu Kikuzawa respectively) only exist to detract. Sensei is a botch machine who slows the pace even if he has some good strikes. Saturn hits good punches and big moves but does nothing to further the match itself. The only two men that mattered on this day were Asian Cougar and Tarzan Goto. 1998 is part of that heavenly period of time where Goto could be put into any situation and deliver a great performance just by being himself, and when Goto wanted to put a little extra effort in? That's when you got the type of stuff that changed my entire perspective on wrestling. 1998 is also the start of Asian Cougar's run as one of the best spotfest workers of all time, but it's also when he sets himself into that role without much deviation for the rest of his career. I love Cougar and I've been very vocal on this blog about how much I love him, but I'd be the first to tell you he's never exhibited much range. He's got a winning formula and very little reason to do much else. This is different; this is the first Cougar performance I've seen where the man is truly a victim. Goto smashes dozens of chairs over his body, throws a table at his head, stabs his face with a broom snapped in half. Cougar's golden mask gets ripped wide open to expose a bright red ocean underneath his skin. Cougar bumps and staggers and collapses like a wounded deer, hopping around looking for any chance to escape. Cougar's greatest work comes once he's able to fight back. No slingshot leg drops; every single leg drop is done off the top rope for maximum damage to himself and his opponent. I've never seen Cougar so reliant on the top rope, so willing to bust his ass to hurt someone that much more. It's a subtle change to his moveset, a single rope difference between Cougar's regular arsenal, and yet it feels like the world has shifted. If this was a Cougar and Goto singles match with even more work between both, there's a chance it could've turned out as something truly special. As it stands though, it's an amazing preview of a match I truly didn't know I needed so badly.
Minoru Tanaka vs. MIKAMI (Batos Cafe 12/15/2019)
Two junior legends finally getting to duke it out in a singles match, albeit at least a decade past their primes. Let's get one thing straight right off the bat: 2019 Minoru Tanaka is not 1999 Minoru Tanaka, and 2019 MIKAMI is not 2005 MIKAMI. These aren't the greatest freak athletes in the world anymore. These are two veterans of the indie scene with a lot less to give than they had during the glory days. Coming into this match expecting to see these two busting out the flips and dives like the Y2K apocalypse hadn't happened yet would be a fool's errand. This is a match way more focused on what they can do rather than what they can't, and it benefits greatly from that mentality. Both men have their spots they've perfected over the years, and they do a great job of blending their work together into a seamless match. Minoru Tanaka is, of course, great. Even in his late 40s he still has great execution on all of his work, and, more than anything, he's dependable. At the same time, he's not particularly interested in getting out of his comfort zone. He's much happier using ol' reliable in the exact same way he always does rather than change up his game this late in his career. That's what makes MIKAMI stand out so much more. MIKAMI is a master at taking the pre-established and turning it into something new. He's hit a hundred Mickey Boomerangs throughout his career, but here he is at 45, hitting one on the apron. I've seen him put wrestlers in the Stinger since the mid-2000s, but I've never seen him set it up with repeated double axe handles between the shoulder blades. They're changes to the arsenal that might come off as unnoteworthy to some, but it shows a willingness to keep things fresh that many of MIKAMI's peers don't possess. When MIKAMI eventually calls it quits, wrestling will be losing one of the greatest and most under-appreciated minds in the history of the sport.
Kenji Fukimoto & Hideaki Sumi vs. Necro Butcher & Mad Man Pondo (FU*CK! 05/04/2007)
I bought this whole DVD just for this match. Sure, there's other matches on the show that I'd enjoy checking out. If this match didn't happen I'd still probably get it! The fact is this match did happen, and it was the overwhelming force which motivated me to get this DVD. Necro Butcher is possibly the greatest American wrestler of all time, and Sumi is the greatest karate pro wrestler of the 21st century. In my mind, putting them together is money. In execution, it is ABSOLUTELY money. Sumi and Necro do so much great work here, from Necro pantomiming at Sumi that his karate will not work against his brawling, to Sumi's karate doing a damn good job against him after all. Necro is wonderful on selling duty and fights back with lots of gut punches and face grabbing, and after getting embarrassed by Sumi's karate flurries he commits himself to Sabu'ing chairs at Sumi randomly throughout the match. Considering this, Fukimoto and Pondo should be afterthoughts, but both put in their own quality performances. Pondo is in full plunder mode, pulling out a massive knife to cut up Fukimoto's face and beating down both Fukimoto and Sumi with random metal objects. Fukimoto is almost entirely on selling duty, getting bloodied up and screaming for his life, but eventually fights back with some great lariats. This is sadly only eight minutes and there are a handful of awkward miscommunication moments, but, for the most part, this delivers on expectations.
Yusha Amon vs. Minoru Suzuki (Tokyo Tama Luchas 08/18/2013)
I don't like Minoru Suzuki. I understand the appeal of the "murder grandpa", although I don't agree with its validity, nor do I have any interest in talking with anyone that calls Suzuki that nickname unironically. A regular Suzuki match, at best, is funny because of how bad he is. He's an uncaring "legend" who collects paychecks by putting in the least amount of effort possible during wrestling matches. He's been a consistent net negative on professional wrestling since returning in the 2000s, after spending 10 years having fixed fights in Pancrase. The only type of Minoru Suzuki I truly find interesting is the Minoru Suzuki that works against the best and brightest of the scum indies. Whether it's the New Year's Summit tag where he plastered Keita yano around Korakuen Hall or one of the many neighborhood-spanning brawls he's done in places like Hokuto Pro, something about getting to work in the shoddiest promotions in Japan motivates Suzuki to actually care about his wrestling. This match is no exception, with Suzuki facing international man of mystery and possible Solar trainee Yusha Amon in Amon's own promotion. Minoru Suzuki's performance here isn't particularly out of the ordinary for a Suzuki match of the time, but there's something about the way Suzuki revels in Amon's lack of ability that really works to make me enjoy him here. He spends much of the early match refusing to sell or cooperate with him, laughing along with the crowd at his flubs and failures while grinding him down with the most basic holds possible, posing for photos along the way. He completely disregards all of Amon's offense, and the few times he does acknowledge it he completely denies it. The standout moment from the first two falls of the match (it's worked under "Mexico Rules") is easily when Amon goes for a flying cross chop and gets literally kicked out of the air. It's almost like Suzuki is working a comedy match while Amon is trying his damndest to work seriously. When Amon does start forcing Suzuki to work a little seriously, it feels like a life-changing event for Amon, proof that he can be a force to be reckoned with in professional wrestling. That period of time doesn't last long, but God bless him for getting to have that happen at all. Is this a legitimately great match? I don't know. There's a lot of talking to the crowd, a little to0 much reliance on Suzuki's usual schtick, and I just have bias against the guy. Still, I had way more fun with this than I ever thought I'd have with a 2010s Minoru Suzuki match.
