Pro Wrestling Chronicle

Now that I’ve got Gene Boyer on board, I’m attempting to see how far we can push each other in our friendship of wrestling “psychosis”. Gene and I are fans of the nuts and bolts of wrestling as art and entertainment, and we enjoy killing hours of each others time talking “shop” as two fans who watch and enjoy alot of wrestling.I dropped a match to Gene and he dropped more than one to me. We claim we’ll probably watch them. So this post is me getting a leg up on my pal, as I do the match I recommended him, and then later the match that got him heavy into All Japan (8.31.93 Kobashi vs Doc) that he recommended to me. It’s what I watched while everyone else got drunk Saturday night.

A couple years back a bunch of people voted this match into the top 5 of all matches produced in the 1990s in the All Japan promotion. Just this year 14 people took a look back at the decade again, and this time the 6.9.95 Kawada/Taue vs Misawa/Kobashi tag match won the match of the decade honor. Tough title to live up to for any match, but especially in a promotion like All Japan that has so many great matches scattered throughout 1995, let alone the 90s. So I just had to take a look having never watched the match in it’s entirety.

Misawa/Kobashi vs Kawada/Taue (6/9/95)
Misawa is the ace by now. He’s been the singles champ and he’s your resident big man on campus. His partner is a pre-big time Kenta Kobashi, who is becoming big time in this period as we speak. He’s a semi-main event guy who has been an important part of the promotion for the last five years under Misawa. He was third in Misawa’s group, but has since replaced the man across the ring (Kawada) as Misawa’s tag partner.

Toshiaki Kawada was Misawa’s partner, and now his chief rival. Coming out of the Jumbo Tsuruta & friends vs Misawa & friends feud Kawada decided to make nice with his chief rival, Taue, in April 1993. They form a partnership and away they go. A few years pass and this is what we get.

Crowd at Budokon Hall is electric from the start. Kobashi has his leg (thigh) taped up. He and Taue start. Akira Taue is an acquired taste. He’s kinda like a better version of Giant Babba. Both were awkward but succeeded in this environment. Taue was a sumo wrestler before getting into pro wrerstling through the Baba family.

Taue wins the early exchange and tags out, having shown up Kobashi after stiff exchanges. Kawda in. He won’t cooperate. Stiff chop battle. Kawda says screw it and gives a Yakuza Kick to Misawa on the apron. Kawada was an awesome prick. He gets to play subtle heel, as they don’t really have heels as much as the guy who isn’t as over as Misawa. The story is that he wants at Misawa, who is the “quarterback” of the team. Kawada and Misawa came up together and were a unit together in JV, but once Misawa was firmly the star Kawada came calling many times to prove he could be the starting quarterback too. He went out on his own, apparently it got bitter, and started then Holy Demon Army (with Taue) as we see here.

Misawa immediately tags in, but still sells the kick to the face. He’s up to the challenge. They go toe to toe strong, with Misawa taking what Kawada gives and having the answer every time. So Kawada says all things equal, I’m Yakuza kicking Kobashi on the apron. Kawada has made it known he’s here for real, and the Misawa/Kobashi team better bring their A games. Both teams face off in the center but don’t touch. Crowd reacts. Kawada won’t back down.

Misawa and Taue. Misawa kills him with an elbow smash. Taue sells big. His team is making the elbow smash look like a death move tonight. Kobashi in. He brings it fierce too. Misawa/Kobashi tag in and out effectively. Looks like Taue is getting the punishment for Kawada throwing down the gauntlet. He tries to fight off Misawa, but can’t pin attempt gets a two count.

Kobashi in with a big suplex/Brain Buster. He works an ab stretch, his second short submission of the night. Misawa back in. Really well thought out hope spot for Taue. He ends up on the floor where Misawa fakes the tope suicida, and it’s Kobashi who shoulder block dives him off the apron. Good movement. Kawada tries to go after Misawa, but one big elbow smash sends him down. Elbow shivers of death tonight. The cherry on top is Misawa does hit the elbow suicida dive on Taue.

Back in a double suplex and pin gets a two count. They are really doing alot without doing big moves that should kill. Alot of thought goes into these matches and the subtle touches I like are all here. The circling, milking the crowd with looks, stares/glares at opponents, and focused confrontations that don’t destroy a guy because of frequent tags and good pacing. Match is headed down a great direction.

Kobashi misses a second rope shoulder block and poor Taue gets the hell out of there. Kawada comes in on a mission. Before Kobashi can fully stand he gets shoot kicks to the bad left leg/thigh. Ten minutes gone by. Kawada is using the Yakuza kick (the big boot to the face) as his death move tonight, as a counter wieght to Misawa’s elbow strikes. Kobashi tries one of his own but planting his foot hurts the leg and he goes down. Awesome. Kawada still sells being momentary stunned.

Kawada focuses on striking and stretching out Kobashi’s bad leg. Taue tags in and enjoys the same thing. sharpshooter on Kobashi and the fans are already hot, fearing a possible tap. Man, Kobashi is great as babyface in peril. Hopespot is a chop battle with Kawada, but he just gets annoyed and kicks the knee of Kobashi to ALOT of crowd heat. text book selling and “heel” ring control/tags.

Taue can’t get the knee breaker and Kobashi uses some flashy moves before making the hot tag. Misawa is in! Crowd pop! Do I have to tell you what this man does with his elbows? Good side show as Misawa goes after Kawada, who drops off the apron. A minute later Misawa hangs onto the ropes and hits an unsuspecting Kawada with an elbow smash, knocking him off the apron. The minute Kawada recovers he rushes into the ring and kicks Misawa right in the face, breaking his Boston Crab on Taue. Is it a Yokahama crab in Japan?

Kawada tags in while it’s Misawa’s turn to sell big. Now he’s gonna get it. HUGE Yakuza kick, followed by knees to the head. He even shoves the ref out of the way. Misawa takes the shots and starts to glare up. He rises. He takes one more shot, you think he’s going to make a comeback, but then the benches clear. Taue grabs Misawa while Kawada and Kobashi scrap. Taue face-choke slams Misawa (varation of his Nodowa, like a Rock Bottom), and kicks out Kobashi’s knee. Misawa comeback with a elbow strike, but Kawada cuts him off. Kawada ends up feeling harsh elbow strikes, but again Taue comes over to give him a Nodowa. Again Kobashi comes to the rescue, where his leg becomes his undoing. Misawa save? He gets slammed onto Kobashi’s knee in a strong spot, and then Kawada comes off the top to deliver his knee to Kobashi’s leg. That’s the end of the rally. Kobashi is on the floor selling big.

Kawada with he spin kick for two, then a submission more to annoy Misawa than anything else. Taue/Kawada in full control. Stiff work from Taue that looks great on Misawa. Good camera work as Kobashi is taping up the thigh again as Kawada face-washes Misawa in the ring on the canvas. Twenty minutes in and this is an amazing match.

I like the strategy that’s employed here. Taue does an impactful move and goes for a pin. Impactful and another pin attempt. Tag out. Kawada is mindful of Kobashi and sends him off the minute he tries to climb the apron. Misawa hope spot gets dashed by a lariat. Kawada goes for one of his finishers, the powerbomb, but Kobashi saves. Nope, Taue sends him out and Kawada hits it. Great nearfall people bought into.

This match is the shit. Kobashi strains and pains all the way back in while Kawada has his finisher submission (stretch plum) locked in, and Taue walks up to protect the hold in the middle. He nails Kobashi twice, but ‘boshi takes him out. Then grimacing in pain the throws punches as Kawada takes the beating to keep the hold on. Kawada lets go and starts punking the kid, and it ends in a double clothesline. Outstanding.

Kobashi ends up hot tagged in with Kawada, down selling a Misawa kick. Kawada is a demon tonight, as he takes the chops and just kicks Kobashi’s bad leg out. This whole match has been him as the leader saying, “is that all you got kid? I want Misawa” with a stoic Taue behind him maximizing his pros and cutting out his cons.

Place is electric for Kobashi’s comebacks and “hulk ups”. We’re 25 minutes in and Kobashi will not stop coming at a freshly tagged Taue. Taue keeps sending him off, but once Kobashi gets control it’s Taue who won’t stop coming at Kobashi. This is tough guy stuff done to maximize the stiff stuff as the moves they do to each other are similar and “one upping” to show dominance. Kobashi comes out the victor.

Misawa in to help with a big move that goes straight to a pin. nice. Kawada has to break it up. Then Kobashi teases his finisher move, the moonsault, but Kawada from the apron kicks hi in the head. They’ve teased alot of finisher stuff, which is great, and Misawa has kicked out of the powerbomb. Both men sell as the crowd comes alive.

Misawa in on Taue to a pop. Lariets and elbows. All of it works because it looks awesome and it’s sold big. Tiger Driver! Great false finish, so now Misawa has hit his finisher. Misawa puts his submission move on Taue while Kawada is detained by Kobashi. Kawada breaks it up, and in the 2-on-one, he hits Misawa with a back drop driver. Kobashi is smart here, as he takes out the tag opportunity of Taue tagging Kawada (these guys actually do go back to the corners after they interfere, so there are rules continuity), and then gets back in time to take a tag from Misawa.

Kobashi throws a belly-to-back suplex folding up Taue, but only gets two. He goes for the moonsault again, but Kawada is in to chokeslam him down. Kawada then is mindful himself, going back and getting Taue to tag him in, and immediate goes for the back drop driver again. Kobashi panics and hits elbows to stop Kawada, knowing that would destroy him. We’re over 30 minutes in at this point. Kawada goes for it anyway, but Kobashi reverses to land on Kawada. two count actually gets not buy in from the crowd. Not big enough I guess.

They climb to there feet. Kawada grabs the waste and Kobashi elbows to stop the backdrop. Off the ropes Kawada goes for it again, but it’s reversed and Kawada takes the back drop driver. What’s so great is Kobashi immediately grabs him leg as if planting it really hurt him. He slams down Kawda and goes for the moonsault a third or fourth time. This is clever - Taue stops him so Misawa comes in and places Kawada on the other side. He hits the frog splash, but he isn’t the legal man, so he can’t cover Kawada!

Kobashi goes up for the moonsault, Misawa sentons to keep Kawada hurt, and Kobashi FINALLY hits the moonsault! Huge nearfall. Misawa tagged in. Tries for a tiger suplex, Tiger Driver, before hitting a German suplex, Tiger suplex, and finally a Tiger driver. Taue breaks up the sure pin just in time. He then uses his chokeslam move on Misawa, and again from the top rope.

Taue and Kobashi get out of the ring, and at 35 minutes we have Misawa and Kawada down selling in the ring as the crowd goes nuts. Kawada blocks Misawa shots and bicycle kicks him to hell. On the apron Taue attempts a chokeslam, Kobashi saves, but Kawada takes his bad leg out. Taue chokeslams Misawa to the floor! Kobashi, already down, crawls over and covers Misaw to protect him from further harm or a pin in the ring. Taue takes him out, and rolls Misawa in. Awesome detail - Misawa keeps rolling as a desperate Kawada tries to pin him. He rolls out and when he’s brought back in kicks out at two. His instincts save him.

Kawada goes for the powerbomb but Misawa makes the ropes. Again, but Kobashi grabs his leg. A third time he hits, but can’t get the pin. 40 minutes in Kawada pulls him up again. Misawa back drops him to avoid a third powerbomb. Kawada is pissed, stomping on his face. Kobashi tries again to cover Misawa from a beating, but instead takes a chokeslam/Back Drop Driver from the opposition. Misawa mounts a comeback on Taue, but Kawada kicks him in the face. Near fall. Misawa throws desperation elbows. Kawada won’t be denied. He hits a back drop driver of death! Misawa kicks out at 2.999! Kawada pulls him up and kicks him in the face. They tease the powerbomb, and finally Kawada hits it for the pin in 42:37. Kawada/Taue win the belts! Kobashi was crawling to Misawa’s aid as Taue held his legs at the end.

Unbelievable match. I fact, see it and believe it happened. this may actually be 5 stars, but as it’s hard for me to ever say a match is perfect, it’s one of those 12-15 I’ve watched and thought “you are one of the best ever”. 4 3/4 stars. loved it to no end. So smart and so well layed out. Athletically and psychologically ahead of it’s time and yet old school. Timeless classic. Period!