Hip To Be Square

Roddy Piper/Rick Martel (c) VS Kiwi Sheepherders - Portland NWA Pacific Northwest Wrestling Tag Team Championship 5/3/1980

JJZ: I really really tried to play forward an Islanders match since I wasn't super familiar with the tag team. The match pool was just so shallow I couldn't dive in no matter how hard I tried. But I found this. The video quality is shit and even cuts out for a few seconds. I've only seen a few things from Portland but always enjoy it. This is a 2/3 falls or TV time remaining match for the tag titles. The story telling in this match makes it really stand out to me. Playing on things later in the match from earlier in the match. Using the match format to preserve themselves for the later falls. I really popped when the ref didn't see the Sheepherders tag only for the babies to capitalize off it. I don't really remember seeing that in the 80s. I would love to dive into this feud more.

CJD: Early 80s Portland is a territory I just vibe with every time I watch it and this match is no different. The heels start out underneath and stay there for a large chunk of the match which is a format I've mentioned before is hard to do well. They do it well here. Piper being the bad friend influencing the clean-cut good kid Ricky Martel is awesome. Is Piper the first real anti-hero in pro wrestling? This felt like a chippy hockey game between division rivals where the ref knows to throw the rule book out at times, the best you can do is try to contain it. This story of the feud boiling over to the point where the faces are trying every tactic they can to to beat the dastardly Rose Army makes for a compelling psychology each fall. You weren't able to find an Islanders match but you found another beautiful illustration of the art of a heated feud, and in particular a tag team feud at that. Every minute of this, including everything post-match, makes me want to tune in to watch more of these teams against each other. Simply put, I loved this match!

One thing that bummed me out though was that we missed a Martel dropkick when the video cut out, which is always a thing of beauty. But thankfully he made up for it later in the match, including a psycho bump that caught me totally by surprise. I brought that one back multiple times.

God Bless You Tito Santana

Strike Force (c) VS The Islanders -WWF Tag Team Championships Prime Time 12/21/1987

CJD: It's hard for me to find joy in pro wrestling right now, but the art of building a great feud is something that always brings a smile to my face. Great feuds captured my imagination from a very young age and are one of the aspects of pro wrestling that keeps me coming back as a fan. John it's no wonder that Perfect/Santana stands out in your childhood memories so vividly. As I watched more and more Santana it was obvious he was a master of building and sustaining great feuds throughout his career. He's the type of wrestler that you can watch wrestle the same match 10 times over but his genuine intensity and fire will make it feel fresh each time. Case in point, I am going to actively seek out every match Strike Force had with the Islanders that made tape after this, because these two teams clearly tore up the later half of 1987 and I need more. This match is like listening to a great Benny Goodman song, where the tempo starts out blistering fast, never lets up, and still manages to build and build as it goes on. They play loose with feeling while still executing with skill and precision. Martel is graceful, bubbling with energy while Santana is so long and physical and aggressive. Meanwhile the Islanders were a total revelation to me here, perfect dance partners keeping up every step of the way, sometimes even outshining their opponents. The chemistry is made all that more perfect by Heenan on the outside, Prichard doing a surprisingly great job on play by play, and the cherry on top, Nick Bockwinkel on color, always standing up for his beloved Weasel. When even the bit players are eager to play along you know you're making beautiful music.

JJZ: Fucking A. This is an interesting commentator pairing. I honestly have seen Tama wrestle more in the movie Bodyslam than in actual matches. The Islanders are a scary team. Legit tough which makes them very believable heels. Strike Force is a team I've always really liked and have wanted to find that vault of hidden great matches. Seems like you've found something here my friend. The crowd is losing their minds during this match. The heel/babyface dynamic is so good. I loved hearing Heenan telling Haku and Tama the gameplan. I was left wanting more but not in a bad way. And I thought the finish was fantastic for a story building match.