Ryan Navigates '90 - #48 (6/24 - 6/29)
A blistering 10-man tag from New Japan, and Big Boss Man's old high school teacher gives him a proper roasting.
Good day!
This is going to be a relatively brisk article as we only have a few segments and one match, but much fun will still be had. I probably could have lumped this content in with Part 47 or Part 49, but that would have made either of those ridiculously long, so here we are!
Ted DiBiase continues his tour of the Boss Man’s old stamping grounds, we get ten-man tag action from NJPW, and things wrap up with a pair of promos from Power Hour.
MONDAY, JUNE 25th
WWF Prime Time Wrestling
We again join “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase and Virgil in Cobb County, Georgia. This time, they’re in Big Boss Man’s old high school, where they interview one of his teachers, Miss Cofer.
Cofer pulls no punches, saying that Boss Man was the worst student she’s had in over 20 years of teaching. Ted asks what kinds of grades Boss Man got, and she replies with “ALL Fs”. He was so bad, they renamed the dunce corner “Big Boss Man” corner.
DiBiase gives us his trademark laugh before asking if Boss Man was at least an honest student. Miss Cofer says he had to cheat to get those Fs. Oh, got his ass.
DiBiase cites this information as proof that Boss Man is a big, dumb, illiterate hick from Cobb County, Georgia. Everybody has a price, but Boss Man is too stupid to realize it!
While Boss Man was talking about everybody having a price, Miss Cofer stares at Virgil’s money fan like my cat when I’m opening up a can of tuna. I think this may be pure speculation on my part, but I don’t believe that everything here is on the level.
This was another fun segment from the folks of Cobb County. DiBiase was a customarily great villain and Miss Cofer’s facials and delivery were pretty hilarious. She chewed up the scenery pretty well.
TUESDAY, JUNE 26th
NJPW New Kokugikan Densetsu ~ New Japan Pro Wrestling Explosion ~
2-out-of-3 Falls: Riki Choshu, Kantaro Hoshino, Kuniaki Kobayashi, Kensuke Sasaki & Shiro Koshinaka vs. Animal Hamaguchi, Super Strong Machine, Masanobu Kurisu & Blond Outlaws (Tatsutoshi Goto & Hiro Saito) - My boy Shiro's here! We saw him a couple of times in my Dive into ‘95 series, both times wrestling Keiji Muto in quality contests.
Oh, there’s other guys, too! We saw Kurisu in FMW twice this year, once in a barbed wire match with Atsushi Onita, and the other in an AWESOME Texas streetfight on April 1st. Choshu and Hamaguchi also tangled a few articles back in a bloody brawl.
At this point, Hoshino, a Rikidozan trainee, had been wrestling for nearly 29 years, debuting in December 1961. He amassed a few titles over the years, namely the AWA Southern Tag Team Championship with Kotetsu Yamamoto and the NWA Southern Junior Heavyweight Championship, but spent much of his Japanese career in tag teams and the lower card. His consistency did earn him one of the first inductions in the NJPW Greatest Wrestlers, their version of a hall of fame, in 2007. Sadly, Hoshino suffered a stroke in 2009 and passed away in 2010 after a bout of pneumonia.
The Outlaw team comes out to a version of “Night on Bald Mountain”, which is pretty beast. More heels should come out to that song. Especially Ricochet.
FIRST FALL: Choshu bowls over Kurisu with a shoulderblock, and it’s a FIVE MAN CLUBBERING in the face corner! Koshinaka exchange chops and headbutts as the crowd chants for Shiro. Kobayashi hits Kurisu with a baseball slide dropkick, then it’s a high-angle crab before Hoshino comes in…only to get overcome by Kurisu.
Hamaguchi tags in and goes after Hoshino, who quickly dodges and tags in Sasaki. Hamaguchi tries to take him down, but Sasaki thwarts those attempts. Choshu comes in and downs Animal with a suplex for two, but Hamaguchi comes back and tags Goto in for a double elbow. The heels work Choshu over in their corner for a bit.
However, Choshu makes it back to his corner for a tag to Kobayashi, but he is immediately beset by the baddies. Machine and Goto hit a double team elbow-back suplex combo, then it’s a double clothesline from Machine and Saito. Kobayashi continues taking punishment until he comes back with a spinning back kick to create separation and allow a tag to Sasaki.
Sasaki charges in, only to get folded in half with a backdrop driver from Goto!
However, Sasaki catches a leapfrog into a powerslam, then plants Goto with a bulldog. A corner dropkick from Sasaki leads to a powerslam in his corner, then Choshu tags in for some beatings, followed by Hoshino. He blocks a Goto clothesline and counters a backdrop driver with a Fujiwara armbar that is broken up by the heels.
Hoshino fends off Saito, using his own momentum to send him to the floor and keeping him at bay with dropkicks aplenty. Koshinaka tags in and trips up Saito during a drop-down sequence, but he finds himself in the wrong end of a Blonds beatdown. Machine comes in and is immediately driven to the other corner for a brief spell of offense from the faces. However, Machine counters a Kobayashi back suplex and it’s time for corner clotheslines and back elbows from SSM and Saito!
Machine tries a German, but Kobayashi holds off, then Sasaki dropkicks Machine in the back of the head. Kobayashi and Hoshino look for a spike piledriver, but that’s broken up.
Koshinaka falls victim to a SSM suplex, then becomes subject to some vicious chairing from Kurisu at ringside.
Back in, Hamaguchi gets some sliding elbows, then Saito crushes Shiro with a senton for two. A big top rope elbow from Animal and another nasty senton keep Koshinaka down for the three and the first fall.
SECOND FALL: Koshinaka continues getting beaten down by the Blonds, with particular attention paid on his knee. A glimmer of hope appears when Koshinaka ducks a Goto corner clothesline, but Hamaguchi immediately snuffs that out, throwing him back into their corner to resume the pounding. Saito attempts a second-rope senton, but Koshinaka moves and it’s HOT TAG HOSHINO!
Hosh hits a kitchen sink on Saito before Kobayashi tags in, hits some kicks, and gets a fisherman’s suplex on Goto for two. After a backslide gets two, Sasaki tags in and hits a powerslam for two, then Choshu comes in for a lariat. Koshinaka looks for a dragon suplex, but all the heels come in to put an end to that.
Goto hits a flying shoulderblock and tries for a Saito suplex, but all of Koshinaka’s teammates break THAT up. Koshinaka hits a pair of hip attacks, muscles Goto up for a German suplex, and gets the three to tie things up!
A brawl threatens to erupt during the rest period, but sanity prevails.
THIRD FALL: Koshinaka and Goto square off, but Kurisu tags in and gets immediately hurled to the floor. Everyone from the babyface side goes out to deal with Kurisu via the use of a chair, the ring bell, and the guardrail. Back in, Choshu gets backed into the opposing corner and gets beaten down…until he plants Saito with a Saito suplex!
Kobayashi tags in, and him and Sasaki hit a double-team back suplex. Kobayashi goes for a half-crab, but that’s halted by Kurisu. Sasaki comes in to exchange headbutts with Kurisu until that’s ended by Super Strong Machine. SSM and Sasaki trade blows until Machine powerslams him in the corner. Corner clotheslines from Machine and Goto keep the momentum on their team’s side, then Kurisu comes off the top with a stomp on Sasaki.
Kurisu toys with Sasaki for a bit, but Sasaki slaps the taste out of his mouth. Seconds later, Kurisu gets mobbed in the face corner until Hoshino comes in. Kurisu regains control, and the Blonds work Hoshino over for a brief period until he deftly evades a blow and tags in Kobayashi…who immediately falls prey to Goto. Machine checks in for a big flying back elbow and a Boston crab, but Koshinaka uses the POWER OF HIS ASS to break it up.
Choshu and Hamaguchi come in for a lively scrap, with Animal hitting a waterwheel drop for a near-fall. Choshu comes back with a Saito suplex for his own two-count, then he drops Hamaguchi with a lariat for another very close count. Choshu goes for a cover after a slam, but SSM comes off the top with a headbutt to break it up!
Kurisu comes in, but Sasaki runs in and dropkicks the crap out of him. Choshu fells Kurisu with a lariat and picks up the three and the deciding fall!
Post-match, Goto tries to exact some vengeance, but to no avail. Hamaguchi and Kurisu then pose in the ring and soak up the vitriol of the fans.
****1/4 - An absolute blast of a match, with a zippy pace, awesome heel work, and a lot of fun little stories being told. There were some limited workers in the line-up, but the 10-man format and the quick tags in and out ensured that nobody was overexposed, especially for a rather long match.
Koshinaka was terrific as the face in peril, doing a great job selling the beatdown, getting the crowd behind him, and making the most of the offense he did get. Sasaki’s power and youthful exuberance was really fun. The kid was hitting suplexes and powerslams like he was auditioning to be the third Steiner Brother. Kurisu was a whirlwind of chaos, and him and the Blonds were great at drawing the ire of the fans. I continue to really dig Hamaguchi’s basics, Hoshino was delightful in the early going, Kobayashi was solid if unremarkable, and Choshu had entertaining exchanges throughout.
FRIDAY, JUNE 29th
NWA Power Hour
Backstage, Jim Ross (all the best to him in his latest battle with cancer) is joined by Paul E. Dangerously. JR asks Paul E. about what he says is the biggest match of his managerial career, the upcoming Mean Mark Callous vs. Lex Luger US title bout at the Great American Bash.
Paul E. says he gave up doing this show so he can donate all his attention on managing Mean Mark, the future of the industry. Dangerously discusses the importance of the United States championship and runs down a list of past champions, like Johnny Valentine, Ric Flair, Dory Funk, Jr., Terry Funk, Jack Brisco, and so on. Everyone who was somebody has held that title, and Mean Mark will win it in 8 days and shove it down Lex Luger’s throat.
Dangerously did a great job putting over Callous as the next big thing, the prestige of the United States championship and what it would mean to have Mean Mark win it. Effective and efficient.
It’s funny that all of Paul’s ballyhooing of Mean Mark being the future of the industry ended up being correct. It just wasn’t for the NWA.
We close out with Ric Flair and Ole Anderson cutting a promo backstage. Ole promises that on July 7th, Flair will walk in as champion, and will still be wearing the belt with both feet on Sting’s chest at the end of the night.
Flair tries to salvage something out of whatever Ole was saying before asking Sting if he’s ready to TAKE THE STEP. It’s gutcheck time! Flair’s been the cock of the walk for nine years! The man! In Baltimore, Sting has to prove to himself and the world that he’s ready to be the world champion. Flair says “no way” before ending with a trademark “Woo!”.
I generally like Ole as a talker, but he was clumsy here and nearly derailed Flair. However, once Naitch got going, he did a very good job hyping the big title match with Sting. That will be coming up within the next few issues.
THE TUGBOAT TRIBUNE
As always, the news comes courtesy of Dave Meltzer and the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Brad Armstrong is earmarked to re-enter the NWA fold. The new gimmick du jour will be The Candyman, a guy who tosses candy to the kids in the crowd.
Yeah, that’ll put asses in seats.
Fat asses.
From all the candy.
Look at what they’d have him wearing! It’s like something pulled out of Bill Dundee’s gear bag.
Somehow, this gimmick is a HIGH point in dignity compared to what Brad would be saddled with over the years. Like this:
Harley Race was arrested on June 9th after a drunken boating accident resulted in another boat getting rear-ended and four people being hospitalized with broken legs, and one case of a punctured lung.
Race himself was not injured, but he was charged with a D.U.I and resisting arrest.
Kevin Sullivan looks to be stepping back from actual in-ring wrestling in favor of being a road agent for the NWA.
Look for Kerry Von Erich to start with the WWF in August.
There were some doubts about the veracity of this news item at the time because Kerry flaked out on a similar deal with the NWA earlier in the year, and he currently has an ownership stake in USWA Dallas. However, KVE does indeed jump to The Fed.
NEXT TIME: A LOADED Saturday Special gives us action from AJPW, CWA, plus the usual Saturday stops and a look at North Carolina’s NAWA promotion.
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Riki Choshu’s hair is what young Paul E thinks his looks like in the mirror
Why no AWA news that week?