Forever Forward Fridays

Chris Hero VS Keith Lee - Beyond 12/29/2016

JJZ: 2016 was an incredible year in professional wrestling. Maybe Chris Hero's best year ever. Every weekend he was just producing bangers across the independent scene. Also in 2016 Keith Lee was starting to make a lot of noise. So this match was so highly anticipated. Not sure if this was the first time they worked but it definitely was the first time in Beyond. The crowd was so hot for this match that the boys didn't really need to do much to deliver. They both hit hard and showed way more athletic ability than men there size should be able to. The psychology was what you'd expect for a hot vet vs a hot rising star. Kind of a look what I can do vs I'm smarter than you. Really liked this match. Well worth the wait.

CJD: I'm pretty sure this was the first match Hero and Lee had, and it's pretty special with that in mind. You know how much I love their gritty, John Carpenter fight scene style match in EVOLVE. This is isn't that, but it does tell a complete story and escalate beautifully considering the circumstance and how long they go. The last few minutes of bombs are what you pay for and you get your money's worth for sure. These beef slappers knew their audience in Beyond and played to that room perfectly. Really glad you gave me a reason to sit down to this one, and I'm looking forward to digging into Lee considering we might be watching the tail end of his career currently.

You Can Call Me Al

Al Perez VS Brad Armstrong - NWA 8/12/1988

CJD: Speaking of never reaching your full potential, here we have Exhibit B to Al Perez' Exhibit A. Armstrong was supposedly one of the most well liked and funny guys backstage, but for whatever reason that never translated into how he presented in the ring. For Perez, I thought this run with Gary Hart was his best work by far, and you could hear with this crowd just how much potential these two guys were bursting with. These types of matches would come on when I was a kid channel surfing searching for pro wrestling or cartoons, and it felt like such a different world than WWF. So believable and athletic but still so entertaining. This match never hits that next gear unfortunately, but I loved what we got, and thought it was a very fitting MSDTOCWWKD Champion to follow the Latin Heartthrob!!

JJZ: Baby cakes! This match is such the classic 80s TV match. I could totally picture you sitting on the floor like a preztel watching this. So good. Perez never worked ECW to my knowledge. He seems like a perfect fit. Reading up on him he did do a number of tours of Japan but I'm having a hard time finding stuff besides the Akiyama match. Brad Armstrong. I really enjoy all the Armstrongs and feel like there are a bunch of their matches waiting for me one day. If I had to pick out one thing that I enjoyed the most it was the early chain wrestling. These guys really put on a show. Some ahead of their time moves. I could watch a whole series of matches between these two guys.

Forever Forward Fridays

Kassius Ohno VS Mike Dalton - NXT 4/7/2012

CJD: Staying within our FFF themes with Breeze was difficult, and this match doesn't exactly fit the bill, but I know Chris Hero will give you bountiful options for indie wrestling goodness to get us back on track. And this curious pit stop on our winding Friday roads is a fascinating one for two Hero marks like ourselves. Man did he ever look primed and ready to take on the world as Ohno here. Breeze to his credit does an AAA+++ job as the enhancement talent. I don't want to say too much since there's not a ton to say about a match this short. But if you're a fan of either of these guys this is well worth a watch to give you insight into a lesser celebrated era of both of their careers.

JJZ: Wow, this match took me back man. Since I had Hulu, I was actually watching NXT around this time. I remember the not sold out crowds and more minor league feel before it turned into one of the greatest eras of wrestling ever. Onno played a huge part in developing a lot of the talent that would go on to become pretty successful. Breeze being one of them I'm sure. I picture after the match Chris and Tyler in the back talking about the match. Hero giving Dalton tips and props for what was an above average jobber match. This week's match was more about remembering a time than the match itself. Nice pick baby cakes.

Rookie Of The Year

Jun Akiyama VS Al Perez - AJPW 1/15/1993

JJZ: I was really in the mood for some young Akiyama. I honestly can't remember the last time I've watched a singles match of his this early in his career. I knew even going against a gaijin in Al Perez that he'd be working from under but I wanted to see that dynamic. I haven't watched an Al Perez match in years. I remember always liking him but thinking he never reached his full potential. He did some really cool shit in this one. His strength took me by surprise a little bit. Perez threw Jun around like a little pup at times. Both guys showed a lot of good offense and took some brutal maneuvers from each other. The home stretch of this contest was the driving force of me playing it forward to you. Perez and Akiyama really showed out during it. Enjoy baby cakes.

CJD: Al Perez never reaching his full potential is very much his MO, I think even according to him, although maybe more for lack of opportunity. It's surprising after this match we didn't see more of Perez in AJPW. For that matter was he ever in ECW? It seems like a natural fit that Heyman would have found a great use for him when nobody else could. Either way he made the most of this opportunity with young prodigy Jun Akiyama. They put on one hell of an undercard match, with real struggle, peaks and valleys. I really enjoyed their chemistry and then that finishing stretch totally had me hooked. Great find I had no idea ever happened, my partner in crime!

Forever Forward Fridays

"Speeball" Mike Bailey VS BREEZE - Prestige Wrestling 9/24/2023

Match Link

JJZ: So I wasn't sure going into this match what type of match they would work. Even with that mindset I was suprised that they did a working from under 70/30 kind of match. I think it's a great way to show Mike Bailey's ability to work so many different roles effectively. His last match we played against King was such a wild match it's awesome to see him work such a traditional style here. This is the first match I've watched on the indies with Breeze and man do I still love him. His run in WWE was just pure entertainment but you could tell he still had such a great workrate in him. I will say Mike's explosive style offense worked extremely well for this type of match. While Breeze was able to slow everything down it made Bailey look even better when he was able to hit his crowd popping attacks. Really enjoyed this one and I hope you do too baby cakes.

CJD: It was surprising how much of a Speedball showcase this was, even though I'd agree Breeze took the majority of it. There's a point to be made that part of being a great pro wrestler is how great you can make your opponent look, and Breeze did that at a high level in this match. I also really enjoyed watching another promotion other than PWG run this unique venue. Keeping in that Friday indy spirit. The thing I enjoyed most about this match is after a lot of serious business at PIF lately, this was a fun, easy watch, that still dialed it up a notch when it needed to. I'm very curious to see where Prince Pretty brings me next!

Is The Great Zebra White With Black Stripes Or Is It Black With White?

Kenta Kobashi/Kentaro Shiga VS Jun Akiyama/Maunakea Mossman - AJPW 6/9/2000

CJD: We've been talking music while reviewing our matches lately. First albums, demos, quoting lyrics. Well I'm going to roll with it. Your previous Shiga match was like an EP that introduces an exciting new sound for the band. This Shiga match is like the album that follows up that EP and delivers on all that promise and then some. You talked a lot in your review of your match about how things felt fresh. I agree completely and 1999/2000 AJPW desperately needed that fresh coat of paint. And even though everyone here was still in the Burning stable and these teams were just having a little competitive rivalry, you could feel that there was much, much more on the line. I've always had a soft spot for Shiga and Mossman (the future Taiyo Kea), and it's because sometimes you'll stumble onto awesome matches like this from both. This match is made by the hierarchy that Kobashi and Akiyama bring, and their performances are phenomenal. But dare I say our MDTSOCWWKD Champion of the week, Kentaro MFing Shiga, is the star of this show!

JJZ: Wow. This match. I can't believe we are stilling finding these wonderful gems 24 years after the fact. The energy between Akiyama and Kobashi was vibrating off the screen. But the shing star of this match was SHI fucking GA. The way he was demanding to start. And then when Jun wouldn't start the match with him, he just picked his spot and took him out. Well Godamn son, go and take it then. This is why I will always say this is the greatest wrestling ever. And this is what Japan nowadays is missing. At the end of the day this is two vets, a green horn and a guy would I'm not sure his level of Pro but I'd guess it about fourth or fifth year, just putting in work. If the same top guys worked a tag with a mix of experience like this today in NJPW, they'd definitely treat it as a rest match. I hope all that made sense. Also all four guys told a complete story that anyone could understand in any language. Also, that finish was sick!

Forever Forward Fridays

Kenny King VS "Speedball" Mike Bailey -  IMPACT! Wrestling Pit Fight 1/19/2023

Match Link

CJD: I spent a little extra time on K-I-N-G Kiiiiiinnngggg this week, watching him in tiny indies in big singles, on undercard tags in the veteran roll, trying to find that hidden gem. I'm a fan of Kenny, he has an it factor that makes me want to watch at least, even if he rarely shows up on a lot of end of year type lists. Well instead of going under the radar I settled on his 5th highest rated on Cagematch. And it's really because everyone should see this match. Once again, it probably won't make a lot of all-time match lists or what have you. But damn is this a fun piece of pro wrestling with a fresh presentation in a promotion that is hard to remember to check in on occasionally. Well here's your reminder. This match brought the best out of both Speedball and King, and I'm a little disappointed I couldn't find any of the build to it. I'd gladly have sat down to that as well. Very curious to hear your thoughts on this with decades of martial arts training, I don't know if it's scratching that BattlARTS/Bloodsport itch, but at the end of the day I thought the fun factor ruled above all.

JJZ: Jesus Chris. That this was such a joy to watch. Imma Tarentino it and just say the finish was fantastic. I literally said fuck out loud when he hit that. King and Bailey did a wonderful job using what they had as an offense. The spots off the apron were done perfectly. I didn't get any Battlearts feels but I did get some heat coming through my screen. Also Kenny and Mike's martial arts skills really shined at points. I would've loved a video package about the back story. Good shit homie.