WAR 2nd Anniversary Show 07/07/1994

Ashura Hara, Jinsei Shinzaki & John Tenta vs Jado, Gedo & Hiromichi Fuyuki

This was pretty fun. The Jado/Gedo/Fuyuki team attack at the bell and isolate Hara, with a nice triple team seeing Jado and Gedo elevating him for a top rope seated senton by Fuyuki. This is followed by a triple team powerbomb before we clip. We return to Tenta doing some awesome wobbling selling as the opposition try to down him, before he catches Gedo on a crossbody and hits the splash for 3.

Koji Ishinriki, Koki Kitahara & Takashi Ishikawa vs Akio Kobayashi, Koji Kitao & Masaaki Mochizuki

This is pretty much all clipped out. Kitao looks slow and lumbering on offence, which contrasts with Mochizuki, who blitzes Ishinriki with a flurry of kicks before Kitahara rolls him up for the win.

Arashi, Kendo Nagasaki & Masashi Aoyagi vs Animal Hamaguchi, Nobukazu Hirai & Shoichi Funaki

Bit of a mess this one. I did enjoy Nagasaki tying Funaki up in knots on the mat, and I liked how fired up Hamaguchi was when he finally tagged in, but this dragged even with clipping. Hirai gets a nearfall by German suplexing Aoyagi, but eats a kick to the head to be eliminated.

Atushi Onita, Bam Bam Bigelow & Genichiro Tenryu vs The Warlord, Chris Jericho & Vampiro

Really enjoyed this. There were some nice little touches, like Jericho controlling Tenryu, only to get felled by one vicious chop. Also loved the Warlord posing, only for Bigelow to interrupt it with an enzuigiri to the head. Vampiro is isolated and beaten before we clip, returning with Warlord catching an apron dive by Tenryu, slamming him onto a table. Jericho goes too short on a Lionsault, hitting Onita in the face with his knee. Tenryu and Onita hit a botched double team powerbomb on him, and as it all breaks down , Onita nails another powerbomb on Jericho for the win

Jinsei Shinzaki, John Tenta & Ashura Hara vs Koji Ishinriki, Koki Kitahara & Takashi Ishikawa

Matches are all full from this point on. Loved the Hara/Ishikawa section at the start, just two stocky bulls going at each other. The Ishinriki/Kitahara/Ishikawa squad looked more impressive here than in the first round, with Kitahara planting Shinzaki with a massive German suplex. He also punishes Shinzaki with kicks, which seem to bust him open from the mouth. The end sees Hara and Ishikawa resume hostilities, with Ishikawa levelling Hara with a big clothesline, only for Hara to hit one of his own for the win.

Bam Bam Bigelow, Genichiro Tenryu & Atushi Onita vs Arashi, Kendo Nagasaki & Masahi Aoyagi

This one breaks down early, with Onita leading a big fight on the outside in the crowd. He ends up on the losing side of his fight with Nagasaki, who belts him with the ring bell and absolutely buries him with chairs. It’s a really fun scene. Back inside, Tenryu gets punished and isolated, loved him selling Aoyagi’s kicks to the chest with big bursts of spit. His team mates lure all the opposing team into the ring for a fight, which buys Tenryu some time to recover. By the time the ref has settled things down, Tenryu is sufficiently healthy to hit an enzuigiri on Arashi and tag Bam Bam. Bigelow blitzes Arashi and moonsaults him for the win. Really good bout.

Ultimo Dragon vs The Great Sasuke

This is for Dragon’s UWA middleweight title. This is a whole heap of fun, really felt like two guys going all out. They work a decent acrobatic series to start, but things heat up some more when Sasuke sends Dragon outside and nails a big Asai moonsault, landing in the crowd. Love the spot back inside where Dragon can’t superplex Sasuke, so instead dropkick’s him to the outside and nails his own massive Asai moonsault. Beautiful Tiger suplex by Dragon gets two. High spot of the night sees Sasuke send Dragon to the outside, and nail this nutty dive from the top turnbuckle to the floor, landing precisely between two guard rails. There’s an odd transition back to Dragon offence, as he gets fired into the ropes, and just runs at Sasuke and clubs his back. Bit out of nowhere. Ultimo nails a dropkick as Sasuke attempts a quebrada, and hits a corkscrew moonsault for the victory. Great match.

Bam Bam Bigelow, Genichiro Tenryu & Atushi Onita vs Jinsei Shinzaki, John Tenta & Ashura Hara

Loved the start of this, where Bigelow and Earthquake squared off. Fun big man stuff, with Bigelow failing to slam Quake, but somehow succeeding with a suplex, weakening him enough for a second slam to work. Really liked Tenryu and Hara facing off, just two stodgy guys exchanging blows. There’s fun little bits scattered throughout, like Onita failing with a DDT on Quake, who is too big to send down. Also loved the massive belly-to-belly suplex Tenta hits. Hara gets back in, and just gets worn down by Tenryu, who hacks away with some chops. A nasty pair to the throat see Hara in real trouble, and he gets isolated and worn down for the rest of the bout. He eats finishers from Bigelow and Onita, and only survives because of team-mates making the save. He kicks out of an Onita powerbomb, but foolishly doesn’t tag out when he has the chance. Bigelow interferes, drawing the partners into the ring, but this means Hara now has no-one to save him. A Tenryu powerbomb only gets 2, but an enzuigiri and another powerbomb win the match for Tenryu’s team. Probably the best match of the tournament.

Best of the Von Erichs Vol 1

Since starting this blog three-and-a-half years ago, there have been a few things in wrestling I've developed a big love for. Along with current BritWres and puro, I've discovered a love of the Von Erich family, which led to me buying this DVD for $3 from the ever-reliable IVP videos.

Fritz Von Erich vs Giant Baba
Ladies and gentlemen, it's 1966, it's 2/3 falls and it's in glorious black and white. Fritz attacks early, including a vicious punt to Baba's upper chest, and the bell hasn't even sounded. Fritz batters Baba, and goes for the claw early, but Baba moves and starts working over Fritz with some good looking blows of his own. A big chop gives Baba the first fall early, but Fritz grabs him in the claw from the mat as he tries to climb off. As this is between falls, Fritz feels no need to release the hold, leaving a barely standing Baba prone at the start of the next fall. Fritz goes for the claw right away, but Baba fights with all his might to keep it off. I love the way Fritz will interject with a boot to take Baba's focus off the claw before attempting to reapply it. Baba gets rammed into the ringpost, and is left bleeding and beaten on the floor as Fritz goes back on the attack. The result of this is that the crowd goes mad everytime Fritz misses a blow or Baba gets on offence. Baba comes back to life and starts stalking Fritz around the ring, but Von Erich cheap shots and regains control. Back inside, Fritz gets the claw in the centre of the ring to win the second fall.

We cut to the third fall to see Fritz throwing someone outside the ring, but Baba takes over on him and throws him over the top rope, causing Fritz to retreat into the crowd. God, I love this match so far. Fritz is awesome at cowering off when Baba is on offence. They brawl on the floor, and Baba gives a chair to the claw hand to neutralise that threat. Von Erich retruns the favour by leathering Baba in the head with the chair, at which point the referee gives the fall to Baba by DQ. That doesn't seem to make sense, seeing as how Baba used the chair first, but that appears to be the decision. Great match.

Fritz Von Erich vs Jumbo Tsuruta
Fast forward 9 years to 1975, and Fritz still hates Baba. We know this as he gets into a brawl with him at ringside, and spends most of the prematch yelling at him. Indeed, this actually works against him right away. You know that terrible spot you get almost weekly on Raw, where a wrestler will allow himself to be distracted by a rival, leading to him being rolled-up for the loss? We essentially get that end to the first fall, only better as rather than roll Fritz up, Jumbo just decides to beat him up for two minutes and pin him, which gives the fall to Jumbo's power rather than the element of surprise.

This, of course, riles up Fritz before the second fall, and he focuses his attack....on Baba at ringside again. Eventually, he decides to focus on his opponent. Fritz is wise enough to know he can get a great reaction by just threatening the claw, so goes for it early and often, eventually locking in a stomach claw before Jumbo makes the ropes. Fritz repeatedly wears Jumbo down with the claw in the ropes, which means that, when he gets it mid-ring, Jumbo is unable to escape it, and this evens up the falls.

Jumbo is now split open from this assault, so Fritz zones in on the cut like a shark. Jumbo is weakened with bloodloss, so starts getting escorted back to the locker-room, but he ain't going out like that, breaking free and going back into the ring. Of course, he's still no match for a fit Fritz, and he ends up getting battered again before a load of trainees and Baba himself come to his rescue. Not a great match, but great wrestling that really sets up the Fritz/Baba match nicely...

Fritz Von Erich vs Giant Baba
...and here is is from one week later. They've even brought in two refs, one Japanese and one American for this, which appears to be last man standing. Typically, Fritz assaults Baba before the bell. They trade blows outside the ring, before a bloodied Fritz claws Baba and pulls him into the ring. I love the image of Fritz, blood pouring down his face, clutching Baba by the face. A few solid chops by Baba eventually frees him. Baba stomps the claw hand and then rams it into the ringpost, and suddenly Fritz has to beg off from the assault of Baba. Fritz just about survives being counted to the mat, and applies a stomach claw to Baba. The count stops on 9 when Fritz is just about sat up, which really feels like it should be a loss to me. Fritz re-claws him, but Baba slips to ringside to escape it. Baba survives being rammed into a table, and a missed Fritz blow allows him to go back on the offensive, chopping away at Von Erich. Fritz gets chopped from the apron to the floor, and these ten counts are getting closer and closer. Fritz gets sent to the floor one last time and that's it, as he fails to beat the count. Being a gracious loser, he sneaks in one final stomach claw before leaving. Really fun match, they built up the tension mastefully with the falls.

Genichiro Tenryu & Jumbo Tsuruta vs David & Kevin Von Erich
We now switch to the younger Von Erich's. The siblings are much nicer than their dad, going for pre-match handshakes and HOLY FUCK Kevin is wearing boots. I'm thrown. The Von Erichs are a bit more firey than their opponents here, who seem more stoic on offense. David clubs Jumbo behind the refs back to establish a bit of heelishness. Kevin goes for the claw, which Tenryu manages to hold off, but this leaves him open for a stomach claw, which he breaks with some stiff chops. it breaks down into a brawl with all four fighting on the outside, but luckily a brawl is something all four are good at. I like the way that, after kicking out of a Tenryu pinfall, David takes advantage of an open torso to apply a claw on the already weakened stomach. The Von Erichs continue to go for the claw, punishing both Tsuruta and Tenryu with ones to the head and the stomach. Of the two Von Erichs, it is the smaller Kevin who is on the defensive more than David, and there are a few moments where David has to save him. This leads to the finish, where Kevin accidentally dropkicks David out of the ring, and Tsuruta takes advantage, dropkicking Kevin to pick up the win. Decent back-and-forth contest, and I liked the subtle "Kevin needs David to help him survive" storyline.

Fritz Von Erich vs Jumbo Tsuruta
This is another 2/3 falls match. Jumbo is 4 year more experienced than the last time these two met, though he still gets worked over in the opening stages here, with Fritz grounding him and trying for the claw. Jumbo does get a moment to shine, nailing a dropkick, but Fritz avoids a second a locks in the claw to the head for a quick pinfall. The second fall starts with Tsuruta still feeling the effects of the claw, so Fritz goes right for the kill again. Jumbo takes a huge bump as Fritz hurls him over the top rope by the head. One thing you notice is how good Fritz is at basing whole matches around one move, cranking up the tension for the application of the claw. He even applies it to one of Jumbo's seconds when forced by the ropes to release Tsuruta. The ensuing chaos leads to Fritz being DQ'd to gift the fall to Jumbo. However, Tsuruta is down and bleeding in the ring, giving Fritz control in the opening to the fall. He drags Jumbo off the ropes and into the centre to nail one final claw, but hits the mat instead. This break allows Jumbo to hit a dropkick and a big splash to win the third fall and the match. Really fun encounter, with Fritz being his own worst enemy to gift the win to Jumbo.

Kerry Von Erich vs Genichiro Tenryu
This is for the NWA Missouri title held by Kerry. Tenryu controls to start, grinding Kerry down on the mat. Tenryu shows his smarts by going to the ropes when Kerry gets his first bit of offence with a dropkick, then grounding him again with a headscissors. As Kerry is working face here, rather than heel like Fritz, he uses the claw as a "sudden hit" move, nailing Tenryu with it from a leapfrog for a big reaction and Tenryu scrabbling to the ropes. Tenryu really starts dominating, hitting a crossbody for two before levelling Kerry with an enzuigiri. He then starts to work over the wrist of KVE, ramming it into the ringpost twice, before repeatedly stamping it in the ring to remove the claw from Von Erich's arsenal. This doesn't stop Kerry locking it on several times though, which is a bit annoying psychology wise. He clamps it on Tenryu outside the ring, before diving back in to beat the count and win. This was gearing up to be great before Von Erich stopped selling the wrist injury, and we got a sudden shitty ending. Big disappointment.

AJPW Wrestling Summit 1990

So, I am still ongoing in my quest to get into Puro. However, sometimes it's nice to have a helping hand, and this show is a prime example of that. This show is a cross-promotion with the WWF, so I get the added benefit of my childhood heroes accompanying me on the ride

Jumbo Tsuruta & King Haku vs Rick Martel & Mr Perfect
it's kinda fun to see Haku working as a face here. Perfect begins the match by bumping for the two big men, before Haku becomes face in peril following a missed flipping senton. Haku isn't the only one here who busts out some flashier moves: after dropping repeated elbows on Haku to keep him down, Martel lets him get up and hits a rana on him. Martel then hits a springboard splash for two. Martel goes to the well again by trying for a second rana, but Haku drops him face first on the turnbuckle. The heels keep Haku in danger with some submission holds, but Haku gets knees up on a Martel splash, and gets the hot tag from Tsuruta. The pop Tsuruta gets is immense. Haku and Tsuruta work the heels over, culminating in Tsuruta hitting a picture perfect belly-to-back suplex on Martel for the win. Well executed formula tag match, with the added bonus of seeing guys like Martel and Haku bust out moves you don't normally see from them

Genichiro Tenryu vs Randy Savage
Fun stuff to start as Savage tries all kinds of mindgames to put off Tenryu, who stands there with a totally unconcerned look on his face. Savage takes the opening flurry of chops like a man, crumpling into the corner, but quickly taking advantage as Sherri distracts Tenryu. Tenryu regains control by back bodydropping Savage WAY over the top rope to the floor, then meeting him with a flying shoulderblock from the apron. Another Sherri distraction allows Savage to dominate again, but inside Tenryu hits Savage with an enzuigiri (complete with awesome wobbly legged Savage selljob). Sherri really earns her money by again giving Savage the advantage and this time he makes the most of it, which allows him to hit the big elbow, which only gets two. Savage escapes a powerbomb attempt, but hurts his knee on a crossbody. This allows Tenryu to hit another enzuigiri (with another fantastic sell by Savage) and the powerbomb for the win. As enjoyable as you'd expect from these two, Savage really made Tenryu look immense here, taking his stuff like a man, and the crowd were really into both guys.

Ultimate Warrior vs Ted Dibiase
This is for the WWF title. It opens pretty much as you'd expect it would, Warrior countering everything Dibiase tries with raw power, until Dibiase avoids a flying shoulderblock, sending Warrior face first to the mat. Dibiase gets a little bit of offence in, including spiking Warrior on a piledriver, but Warrior suddenly hits a few clotheslines and a big splash for the win. Far too short and essentially just a showcase of two guys showing their best spots.

Demolition vs Giant Baba & Andre The Giant
Man, the Demos will have their work cut out making this one look good. And in fairness, Smash tries his best to make Baba's attack look threatening. Baba has this really odd way of selling that's curiously hypnotizing, as it doesn't even slightly resemble regular selling. Not saying it's good, just oddly watchable. Andre, despite being possibly more immobile than Baba, at least looks more imposing due to sheer girth. The Demos really try here, using quick tags when they have the advantage to keep control of the monsters, but their selling is what really hold the match together. Of course, it all breaks down into a brawl, allowing Andre to drop an elbow on Smash for the win.

Hulk Hogan vs Stan Hansen
It's really odd to see these two guys in the ring together, it feels like they should exist in entirely different universes. Even odder is watching the two big guys exchanging wristlocks and Hogan taking Hansen to the mat. Of course, this doesn't last and before long they're brawling outside, where Hogan busts Hansen open on the ringpost. Hogan then works over the cut viciously, wailing away at Hansen and even kicking him in the head until he falls out of the ring. Not what you'd expect from 90's red-and-yellow Hogan. Hogan slams Hansen through a table outside and puts him back in the ring to stamp his head again. When Hansen finally gets some offence in, in the form of a flying shoulderblock, the pop is huge. Hansen's payback on Hogan is pretty hellacious, hitting the Hulkster in the head with a chair (which he then throws at Earl Hebner!) and hitting a flying axehandle (of sorts) from the railings. Now with Hogan bleeding, Hansen goes after his cut, but a lariat attempt is countered by Hogan. Hansen avoids the legdrop, but Hogan nails him with a lariat for 3. Super, super enjoyable, Hogan looked like a monster out there.

EDILTZ Special!! The Best Of Tom Zenk

You can only imagine my joy when, weeks after starting this blog, I spotted a DVD for sale from IVP videos called The Best Of Tom Zenk!! For the bargain price of $3, it consists of 2 hours of Zenk from his Japan tours between 1986 and 1994. This should be excellent.

Rick Martel & Tom Zenk vs the Funk Brothers (22/11/86)
The Funks start off playing face, showing mutual respect to Zenk and Martel, but early signs of frustration show when the younger team manage to keep up with them on the early exchanges. The first sign of the Funks' heeling comes when Dory repeatedly throws Zenk outside the ring (with some big bumps taken by Zenk) to be thrown back in by Terry, only for Terry to give Zenk an atomic drop (almost hitting a cameraman) before throwing him back in, to the rage of Martel. Martel begins to brawl with Terry outside, while Dory works over Zenk on the inside, hitting a nice piledriver for two. Martel comes in on a hot tag, following a reversal of Dory's spinning toe hold, and Terry does everything in his power to draw the ire of the crowd and make Martel look good: he runs away from Martel all around the ring, cowers in the ropes and offers a handshake in an attempt to placate Martel. Martel, as a good face, accepts the handshake, but the audience knows that Terry can't be trusted. So when Terry tries to double-cross on a clean break, and Martel avoids contact, the crowd erupts and a two count off a crossbody gets a huge pop. Zenk is brought back in with his own crossbody for two, but Terry rolls him up for three. Good tag affair with plenty of heat, the fired-up babyfaces meshing well with the sneaky heels.

Tom Zenk & Rick Martel vs Giant Baba & Hiroshi Wajima (12/12/86)
The crowd are psyched for Wajima right from the start. Zenk manages to hit one of the highest standing dropkicks I've seen on Wajima as Martel holds him in a bearhug. Baba comes in and the match quality quickly goes downhill, including him putting Zenk in a headscissors for what feels like ages. Wajima at least has some energy and shares some fierce exchanges with the two gaijin. This is my first time seeing Baba, and he's really not my cup of tea. His bumps and offence both are really low impact and go beyond being safe into being business-exposing.The difference between him and Wajima are night and day, so it comes as a relief when Wajima comes in like a house on fire and levels Zenk with a backdrop driver and a lariat for the win. Not a good match

Tom Zenk & The Terminator vs Genichiro Tenryu & Ashura Hara (21/11/87)
The Terminator is the brother of Johhny Ace and Road Warrior Animal. At this point, Zenk is more established in Japan and is actually getting some decent offence in, getting to look good against both Tenryu and Hara. Zenk and Tenryu share some nice exchanges during the opening section, including a swank sequence where Zenk goes from a hammerlock into a headscissors on Tenryu. Zenk also nails a nice standing inziguiri on Hara. Terminator doesn't fare so well, making the mistake of exchanging chops with Tenryu. Zenk rescues his partner from a Tenryu top rope elbow, but is unable to stop him falling prey to an enzuigiri and powerbomb for the Tenryu win. Pretty enjoyable, if a bit short.

Tom Zenk & The Terminator vs John Tenta & The Great Kabuki (11/12/87)
Early bad break for Zenk as he botches an attempt to springboard out of the corner, only for things to get worse then Tenta press slams him. After his mistake of chopping with Tenryu last match, this time Terminator goes for a test strength with Tenta. Again he doesn't win, but does get to knock the big man down with a clothesline. Tenta looks great here, moving with a fair bit of speed and he sends Zenk flying out of the ring with a big shoulder tackle. He also levels Terminator with a dropkick out of the corner. In fact, aside from a small flurry of offence from Zenk, it's pretty much the Tenta show, as he soon squashes Terminator with a powerslam and an elbow drop for the win.

Tom Zenk & The Terminator vs Abdullah The Butcher & TNT (12/12/87)
This TNT sadly isn't Savio Vega. Zenk & Terminator get the chance to look pretty dominant in the early stages, working over TNT with some double-teams and sending him outside for more punishment. Against Abby, it isn't quite the same, with Terminator making an offensive mistake for the 3rd match in a row by trying to headbutt the Butcher. Abby works Terminator over outside, including feeding him to a TNT chairshot and pins him with an elbow drop inside. Match lasted about 5 minutes. This is the last Zenk/Terminator match on the disk, all of which have seen Zenk getting in some solid offence, only to be let down by his partner. At this point you'd assume Zenk would be looking elsewhere...

Tom Zenk & Stan Hansen vs Abdullah The Butcher & Jimmy Snuka (30/08/88)
One year later and Zenk has a hell of an upgrade for his tag partner. Hansen jumps Abby as he gets in the ring, and it is on. Abby and Hansen brawl outside, while Zenk and Snuka tangle in the ring (which most fans aren't watching). Eventually, we get back in the ring, where Abby and Snuka double team Zenk repeatedly, including a series of chokes on the rope and Abby jamming a fork into Zenk's neck. all Hell soon breaks loose again with both teams brawling outside, while Snuka chokes Zenk with a chain. Chaos keeps reigning with Hansen snapping at one point, hurling a table in the ring. Eventually the ref has had enough and it's a double DQ. Despite it's sloppiness and Snuka looking far from his best, this is a fun little brawl.

Tom Zenk & Dan Kroffat vs Toshiaki Kawada & Samson Fuyuki (18/04/88)
This is for Kawada & Fuyuki's All-Asian titles. Fuyuki is a future founding member of Team No Respect. This match is notably faster than the last few matches and provides a refreshing change of pace, with Zenk looking noticably energized in his early exchanges with Kawada. Kroffat also looks good and both teams seem to have nice chemistry. Kawada sends Zenk to the floor, but misses a pescado, allowing Zenk and Kroffat to double-team Fuyuki, leading to a Zenk springboard splash for two. Kroffat busts out Cattle Mutilation on Fuyuki at one point, before hitting him with a Razor's Edge and I'm really starting to love this match. Kawada gets double-teamed with a swank suplex/missile dropkick combo from the gaijin, and you get the feeling that Zenk and Kroffat should have teamed more often, with Kroffat just bringing out more and more swank offence, including a powerslam that has a real nice snap to it. Against the run of the match, Kawada hits a crucifix on Kroffat for the win, but this was just a great match by all four men.

Tom Zenk & Jim Brunzell vs the Fantastics (11/07/89)
Some more nice tag-team wrestling. Zenk almost sneaks an early pin by catching Fulton in a small package as he ducks a Brunzell leapfrog. Zenk also does some nice work by catching Rogers with a springboard crossbody from the corner, then faking him out on a second attempt to hit a beautiful dropkick. The Fantastics, predictably, work fantastically (sorry) as a team, but Zenk and Brunzell look good together too. Zenk hits a choice powerslam when he catches Fulton coming off the top rope. The Fantastics have some beautifully executed double-teams here, including a fun double monkeyflip on Brunzell. Zenk seems to be positioned as the powerhouse of the match, and he does good work in the role, catching Rogers and Fulton with a double clothesline before hitting a good running powerslam on Rogers. The end comes when the less-established team misses a double-team move, allowing the Fantastics to double-team Brunzell with an assisted top-rope backsplash for the win. I could happily have watched another 10 minutes of this.

Tom Zenk, Stan Hansen & Doug Furnas vs Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi & Tsuyoshi Kikuchi (23/07/94)
Zenk is sporting some rather fetching pink trunks. A fun spot near the start sees Kikuchi running from Zenk and Furnas, thinking he's outsmarted them, only to get hammered by Hansen from behind, who throws him to Zenk and Furnas to attack outside the ring. The American team looks good early on, with Hansen and Furnas combining for a nice double-team shoulderblock on Misawa. The home team focus on keeping Hansen down, with Kobashi and Misawa both getting to look good against him, Kobashi even fighting to get the big man over for a suplex. It doesn't last too long, and soon Hansen and Zenk combine to hit a second-rope clothesline into a back suplex on Kobashi. Hansen also takes Kobashi to the floor for a DDT. The hot-tag to Misawa gets a massive reaction, which he repays by taking Hansen down with a flying elbow.Both teams exchange fast tags and offence, with a Furnas release German suplex on Kikuchi looking particularly impressive. Things break down quickly, until we're left with Furnas in the ring with Kobashi, who hits a moonsault for the win. Fast, frentic and crucially, a lot of fun.

Overall, this has done nothing to dilute my appreciation of Tom Zenk. What I saw on this disk was a great tag-team worker with great babyface fire and high athleticism. Four of the matches here are legitimately great, and I think it's fair to say Zenk pulled his weight in there. EDILTZ will continue, but it'll be hard for me to find better examples of how good he was than this