The Puroresu (Japanese Wrestling) thread

ScumdogV2 · 31-07-2009 5:19pm

NOAH Summer Navigation on the download, should be finished in an hour or so.

Match listing

NOAH, Jul., 25, 2009
Tokyo JCB Hall
3,300 Fans - Super No Vacancy

#1: Kentaro Shiga, Bryan Danielson & Roderick Strong vs. Tsuyoshi Kikuchi, Genba Hirayanagi & Kikutaro
#2: Katsuhiko Nakajima [Kensuke Office] & Kento Miyahara [Kensuke Office] vs. Yoshinari Ogawa & Akihiko Ito
#3: Takeshi Rikio & Mohammed Yone vs. Akira Taue & Takuma Sano
#4: Kensuke Sasaki [Kensuke Office], Takeshi Morishima & Takashi Sugiura vs. Kenta Kobashi, Jun Akiyama & Akitoshi Saito
#5: Nittere Hai (NTV Cup) Jr. Heavyweight Tag League III - Semi Final 1st
Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Kotaro Suzuki vs. KENTA & Taiji Ishimori
#6: Nittere Hai (NTV Cup) Jr. Heavyweight Tag League III - Semi Final 2nd
Atsushi Aoki & Kota Ibushi vs. Ricky Marvin & Eddie Edwards
#7: < Shuhei Taniguchi Rush 10 Match Series 5th >
Shuhei Taniguchi vs. Go Shiozaki
#8: Nittere Hai (NTV Cup) Jr. Heavyweight Tag League III - Final
#6's winner vs. #5's winner

/* Marufuji said, "I certainly return to this ring by the end of this year." */

Looking good.

flahavaj · 31-07-2009 7:15pm

ScumdogV2 wrote: »

NOAH Summer Navigation on the download, should be finished in an hour or so.

Match listing

NOAH, Jul., 25, 2009
Tokyo JCB Hall
3,300 Fans - Super No Vacancy

#1: Kentaro Shiga, Bryan Danielson & Roderick Strong vs. Tsuyoshi Kikuchi, Genba Hirayanagi & Kikutaro
#2: Katsuhiko Nakajima [Kensuke Office] & Kento Miyahara [Kensuke Office] vs. Yoshinari Ogawa & Akihiko Ito
#3: Takeshi Rikio & Mohammed Yone vs. Akira Taue & Takuma Sano
#4: Kensuke Sasaki [Kensuke Office], Takeshi Morishima & Takashi Sugiura vs. Kenta Kobashi, Jun Akiyama & Akitoshi Saito
#5: Nittere Hai (NTV Cup) Jr. Heavyweight Tag League III - Semi Final 1st
Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Kotaro Suzuki vs. KENTA & Taiji Ishimori
#6: Nittere Hai (NTV Cup) Jr. Heavyweight Tag League III - Semi Final 2nd
Atsushi Aoki & Kota Ibushi vs. Ricky Marvin & Eddie Edwards
#7: < Shuhei Taniguchi Rush 10 Match Series 5th >
Shuhei Taniguchi vs. Go Shiozaki
#8: Nittere Hai (NTV Cup) Jr. Heavyweight Tag League III - Final
#6's winner vs. #5's winner

/* Marufuji said, "I certainly return to this ring by the end of this year." */

Looking good.

Good man Marufuji!

That Jr Tag final looks epic, no mater whos in it. I'd be hoping for Aoki/Ibushi Vs KENTA/Ishimori.

Also the prospect of Morishima amnd Kobashi interacting in the six man tag is very enticing.

ScumdogV2 · 31-07-2009 7:25pm

Lets just hope I get around to actually watching it, eh? Got loads of stuff I haven't watched yet.

Here's one which will hopefully spark some discussion in this thread. NJPW Super J Cup 1994. I seen this years ago and always thought it was massively overrated. Seems the smarks have been w*nking over this for years.

Thoughts?

EDIT: I'm not degrading the quality of the matches, as they ranged from good to sensational. But as a tournament, it's been totally blown out of proportion by some folk, claiming it's the greatest tourney ever. Sorry folks, that crown sits firmly on the head of the WAR Super J in 1995.

michael.etc... · 31-07-2009 7:32pm

Big fan of the Super J cup. A whole show stacked with Junior Heavyweight stuff really isn't typically my thing, but the majority of this tournament was so well worked that It didn't matter. Saskuke was absolutely phenomenal throughout the entire show. I loved how there were different elements from different styles of flying, combined together. Benoit was awesome on it too.

I don't think it's fair to say the "smarks" have been w*nking over it- it's pretty much blown away the majority of fans, regardless of their "category", because it's so impressive.

Have to catch up on some of the stuff discussed in this thread, been away for a few days!
That Hansen/Vader brawl is incredible stuff.

gimmick · 03-08-2009 7:51pm

Watched Super J 1994 myslef this weekend, and while I enjoyed it, it is nowhere near the acclaim it gets. With that being said, it is a very good watch. Great to see early Benoit working and Liger at arguably his peak.

I have Super J 95 as well. Might give that a go at the weekend.

flahavaj · 03-08-2009 9:11pm

gimmick wrote: »

Watched Super J 1994 myslef this weekend, and while I enjoyed it, it is nowhere near the acclaim it gets. With that being said, it is a very good watch. Great to see early Benoit working and Liger at arguably his peak.

I have Super J 95 as well. Might give that a go at the weekend.

1995 is the better of the two, you have all the usual protaganists of the time, plus the bonus of Rey/Psicosis stealing the show with an exhibition of their usual stuff.

gimmick · 05-08-2009 9:45am

Just read Michael etcs.... piece in the latest FSM on Misawa. Nice read. Just one question though - why did Kawada chose not to join Misawa at NOAH? Was it a personal thing or was he a close ally of Mrs Baba?

EoinHeffernan · 05-08-2009 7:29pm

flahavaj wrote: »

Inrin Sama or something? HUSTLE is beyond bizarre.

Yinling-Sama. She also played the parts of New-ling and The M-peranza.
Indeed HUSTLE is beyond bizzare and that is it's USP.
I'll take it anyday over a NOAH match with 500 lariats.

The video below is a fantastic example of the greatness of HUSTLE:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxbtNJqCzDo

michael.etc... · 05-08-2009 9:37pm

gimmick wrote: »

Just read Michael etcs.... piece in the latest FSM on Misawa. Nice read. Just one question though - why did Kawada chose not to join Misawa at NOAH? Was it a personal thing or was he a close ally of Mrs Baba?

As far as I know, it was a personal thing largely, stemming from how Kawada had always struggled with this notion that he'd spent the Nineties in Misawa's shadow and the two had serious differences. Remaining with Baba guaranteed he'd finally be the number one guy. Obviously I'd say there's a helluva lot more to it though, politically, and probably cash wise, but I guess alot of that talk was lost in translation. Misawa never really talked about that stuff either.
Thanks for reading the article. It was done at very short notice, and had to be kept pretty brief to fit in that issue so quickly, but I think it turned out pretty well.

Hustle is ridiculously good fun!

flahavaj · 05-08-2009 10:18pm

EoinHeffernan wrote: »

Yinling-Sama. She also played the parts of New-ling and The M-peranza.
Indeed HUSTLE is beyond bizzare and that is it's USP.
I'll take it anyday over a NOAH match with 500 lariats.

The video below is a fantastic example of the greatness of HUSTLE:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxbtNJqCzDo

Puro mark sighting AHOY. You MUST post in here on a daily basis and nurture this thread into a beautiful Manami Toyota like flower. I demand it. We may not have the obscure wit of THE BOARD but we are simple folk and easily pleased.:pac:

Tying both topics together, Kawada in HUSTLE is greatness.

Any links to your Misawa article Micheal or do I have to stop being a tight c*nt and buy it?

The Cannibal · 05-08-2009 11:14pm

Why do Japanese referees count in English?

flahavaj · 05-08-2009 11:24pm

The Cannibal wrote: »

Why do Japanese referees count in English?

I often wondered this!!!

Perhaps the Japanese and English words sound the same or are pronounced the same, or something?

gimmick · 06-08-2009 12:48pm

I ahve spring break this weekend (ie the missus is away), so have alot of puro to catch up on.

Any recommends of a few must see matches above others. I have a set of the top 25 NOAH matches made by some person who shall remain unnamed and a bunch of 90s stuff as well.

Whats the good word?

The Cannibal · 06-08-2009 2:22pm

I've been reviewing a good few lately, here's what I've liked recently.

Taiji Ishimori Vs Ricky Marvin - SEMex Differ - 18/05/09

Starts out pretty slowly with a lot of really good chain and builds into something pretty damn awesome. I gave it ****1/2

Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Kotoro Suzuki Vs Katsuhiko Nakajima & Kento Miyhara - NOAH 12/07/09

Really good, fast paced match that builds up into an epic frantic finish. ****1/4

Masato Yoshino, BxB Hulk & PAC Vs Dragon Kid, Taku Iwasa & Akira Tozawa - Dragon Gate Kobe Wrestling Festival 19/07/09

Get Dragon Gate guys in a 6 man tag on a big show and you know that you're gonna want to watch. ****1/4

Manabu Nakanishi Vs Hiroshi Tanahashi - NJPW Dominion 20/06/09

This match had a certain epic struggle feel to it that I really dug. It is the kind of feel that I think every major world title match should have but often doesn't. ****

Jun Akiyama Vs KENTA - NOAH Cross Roads 09 - 17/05/09

Both of these guys have been excellent so far this year and this was a really good match. The heavyweight champ against the junior heavyweight champ. ****

Those are all the non Devitt matches that I've given ****+ to recently. Still watching through a back catalogue so I'll probably add a few more to the list. I have given some of KENTA's ROH stuff high ratings too.

ScumdogV2 · 06-08-2009 5:00pm

flahavaj wrote: »

I often wondered this!!!

Perhaps the Japanese and English words sound the same or are pronounced the same, or something?

I heard somewhere that it's because wrestling in Japan was introduced by Westeners, so they kept the referee's three count in English. Something like that anyway, but not 100% sure.

Fozzy · 06-08-2009 5:43pm

ScumdogV2 wrote: »

I heard somewhere that it's because wrestling in Japan was introduced by Westeners, so they kept the referee's three count in English. Something like that anyway, but not 100% sure.

That's basically it. It's not just wrestling that it's confined to either, they often use English words for certain things, mainly entertainment-based stuff

Puroresu just comes from their pronounciation of pro wrestling. I remember reading about the first time in a while that WWE went to Japan, the fans booed the Japanese ring announcer and cheered Lilian, even though most of them wouldn't have understood her. It's a sort of culture thing where they see America and English as being more glamourous and big time than their own language

It kind of works in reverse too, there's people here saying how they prefer the Japanese commentary :pac: Mick Foley also said that he'd sell more Japanese t-shirts in the US and more US t-shirts in Japan

Bubs101 · 06-08-2009 6:15pm

Apparently it's really really hard for Japanese people to learn English based on the sounds they usually make so there is a massive mystique and admiration over there for it

michael.etc... · 06-08-2009 7:51pm

flahavaj wrote: »

Any links to your Misawa article Micheal or do I have to stop being a tight c*nt and buy it?

You have to buy it, you tight b****rd. It's only a few squid, and you'll also get my IC title cover story for your bucks.

If I get time later, I'll post up a bunch of NOAH/and or other matches that have caught my eye. This one though, I fricking loved... Misawa vs Takayama(C) for the GHC title.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjD1y3NVFLw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNNduWa2H9k

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEluzZj33tc

flahavaj · 10-08-2009 1:02pm

Enjoyed that match Michael, the last 5 minutes were brytal as both men threw everything thye had at each other. I liked the slightly different MMA style they went for as well.

Next match I'm going to throw is one of the all-time great pro wrestling matches. i'd say there a a very strong case for calling this the greatest match from any part of the world sibce the turn of the century.

Kobashi Vs Misawa 3/1/03 from NOAH. Spectcular match that was as good as anything they ever produced together in All Japan. I could watch it over and over again. Words fail to do justice to how good this is.

YOU ALL NEED TO WATCH THIS MATCH!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhJlmiMyRNQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0BI4G24hDI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDUTz2n8LVU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jf9RVl3oXx8

EoinHeffernan · 11-08-2009 1:59am

Since there is very litle Hustle Love in this thread, a VTR of the top moments leading to HUSTLE's 100th show:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ja9Q1GHQpy0

And remember to Love & HUSTLE!!

EoinHeffernan · 11-08-2009 2:09am

HUSTLE House Vol.29 opening featuring Toshiaki Kawada arguing with a frog and Kawada kicking a woman in the face, if you want to skip the promo just fast forward to 4:03 and watch some fantastic male on female violence!!

EoinHeffernan · 11-08-2009 2:14am

HUSTLE-Mania 2008 featuring the closest thing we'll ever get to a rematch of Takada vs Muto, its Esperanza The Great vs The Great Muta.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-thKvl2eQdg&feature=related

flahavaj · 11-08-2009 2:21am

So off the wall you feel like you have to watch.

Jolt2007 · 11-08-2009 4:24am

This is super stuff. Most entertaining wrestling I've seen in ages, Bret v Shawn in Japan

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYhqy1qLJMk

michael.etc... · 13-08-2009 11:34pm

flahavaj wrote: »

Kobashi Vs Misawa 3/1/03 from NOAH. Spectcular match that was as good as anything they ever produced together in All Japan. I could watch it over and over again. Words fail to do justice to how good this is.

Time to get this thread back on the main page.

Watched the Kobashi/Misawa match. I strongly encourage anyone who hasn't watched it yet to check it out... this is the bout mentioned in the FSM article, and It's probably Misawa's last true classic, and at the time was a real eye-opener for alot of people.

Some of that Hustle stuff is downright side-splitting. I really reckon it's the sort of thing would do really well on a low-key spot here on like Sky or summit.

For something different, I thought I'd post a bit of Joshi. And not just any, but a historic, legendary bit of Joshi, from the AJW Dreamslam 2 show. Although there's tag matches on this show that are arguably better, I thought this singles match might be a better start for some, even though the pic quality could be better!

Bull Nakano vs Chigusa Nagayo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ba_IS6Elaj4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cOP8uwXxGs

flahavaj · 13-08-2009 11:39pm

Is that match Hair vs Hair michael?

Agreed on the Hustle stuff. I reckon it could make for some popular stoner-type late night TV, like Takeshi's castle.

michael.etc... · 14-08-2009 12:02am

That's what I was thinking, but without the insulting dubbing... let's face it, it's wacky enough anyways.

Nope, just a regular match, the only hair matches i can think of with Nagayo were against Dump in the 80's.

gimmick · 18-08-2009 6:50pm

Trying to keep it totally Japanese at the moment in what I am watching. Upstairs I started Super J Cup 1995 last night. First time I ever seen a Japanese comedy match, did not think it was possible even, but Damian Vs Gran Naniwa genuinely had me laughing out loud a few times.

Only a few matches into it, and none have been longer than 6 minutes ish. Normally i do not like short matches, but I assume they are short matches as tey are trying to get over the fact it is a one night tournament and not wanting to waste energy. My favourite so far has been Ohtani Vs Mochzuki. Only lasted 4 odd minutes, but it was non stop from the get go. Nice to see Funaki actually wrestle a real match as well and not look a complete novice.

Funnist part of this is the promo from Chris Jercho in the intro. Man he has come a long was from the lump of cardboard he was there.

Downstairs i am watching a best of NOAH set. Today watched Marufuji & Hashi Vs Akiyama and Suzuki (cannot remember first names). Top class affair this, mixing hard hitting "strong style" and some great high flying. Next was Takayama & Takashi Siguira Vs Akiayama & Takeshi Rikio. Really enjoyed this es pecially the big man confrontations between Rikio and Takayama. Siguira impressed me, and I seem to remember loving a few of his other matches I have seen from NOAH in the past also.

Its been a good day

Fozzy · 19-08-2009 6:01pm

gimmick wrote: »

First time I ever seen a Japanese comedy match, did not think it was possible even

Really? Maybe the match you watched was all-out comedy, but comedy matches aren't that uncommon. Towards the end of Giant Baba's career he did comedy tag matches all the time. And in NOAH, Momota has been in a lot of comedy matches, playing the inept old guy who is somehow getting the upper hand on his opponent. And I'm sure you know Kikutaro (I'm convinced that I spelt that wrong. Also known as Ebessan, he wears a giant cartoon mask, he had some matches in ROH), he's hardly known for his technical displays :pac:

I'm dying to see the Makabe vs Sugiura match from last week. Kind of similar wrestlers, I just want to see how they matched up with each other

gimmick · 19-08-2009 7:27pm

I would not be that well versed when it comes to puroresu as others.

Re Kikitauro/Ebessan/Ebetauro, I only ever seen him in ROH. Wasn't certain he was Japanese.

The Puroresu (Japanese Wrestling) thread

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