Forever Forward Fridays

Tomoko Miyaguchi VS  Kanako Motoya - JWP 7/11/1997

JJZ: So we've watched a lot of wild ass Joshi matches. This ain't one of them. Before selecting this one to play forward I watched a few tag team bouts that would have been PIF worthy. But I thought I would like to go down a different road for this. Knowing little to nothing about Tomoko and Kanako, I very much got an established wrestler versus a young lion feel. With the exception of the screaming this was a thoughtful technical match. Mostly holds and striking. Very little bumping. But the energy still came through my screen. I really enjoyed that about this match. Now I got some major Daniel Bryan feels with those submission holds in the beginning but didn't think much about it until the finish. I wonder if DB was a big fan of these ladies. Enjoy baby.

CJD: If I have the date right, at the time of this match both of these women had only been wrestling for a handful of years. Although like you said, Miyaguchi (or Ran YuYu if you prefer) is definitely a bit more seasoned and playing the more veteran role. Still, the polish on this match from two wrestlers so inexperienced is remarkable. This was so fundamentally sound. I'm really glad you went in this direction too, I was in the mood for something that just played with the building blocks of pro wrestling without a ton of sizzle. Not that there wasn't a ton of fire and struggle here. I don't know the first thing about Kanako Motoya (or Kana Mizaki if you prefer!) but I'm very curious to see what she looked like a few years further into her career, considering she was this good this early!

Forever Forward Fridays

Tanny Mouse/Tomoko Miyaguchi VS Azumi Hyuga/Yoshiko Tamura - JWP 10/10/1997

CJD: Baby Mouse! Baby Azumi (when she was Tomoko Kuzumi)! Two wrestlers who I may or may not have seen before! A dead crowd, wrestlers screaming their heads off, a hot finishing steak, a million brutal dropkicks, neck bridging kick outs! JOSHI!! I didn't have a ton of Tanny options available to me but I did really like watching her as a greenhorn and seeing her evolution to her big title match from our last post to this one. Her team has that same plucky, light hearted, babyface vibe that she brought last time, this time against a no nonsense team bringing big time aggression. I was also feeling the straight up tag team action this week. Not a bad find at all with limited options.

JJZ: This was a fucking banger CJD! Holy hell, the screaming in this match was insane. Thiz was such an wild car crash of a bout that you couldn't blink. The German suplexes were so stiff. The neck droppies just kept on coming and making me gringe a little bit. Sorry that Tammy didn't bare that much fruit but I think you played forward a gem baby cakes. I know you mentioned that the crowd was dead but the energy and vocals of the wrestlers fully over came the dead ass fans. We've watched so many matches Chris, that I think you might agree sometimes while watching it's more like checking off boxes to determine if this is a good match, instead of just enjoying what's going on I front of you. These ladies totally took me out of that box checking mindset and I just enjoyed the ride.

What It Takes, Who I Am, Where I've Been

Rob Van Dam VS Kendo Kashin VS Necro Butcher - IGF 8/15/2008

JJZ: I'm not even sure if this match is good. I just can't believe it ever happened. I was definitely entertained by it. I had zero clue how Necro, Kendo and Van Dam would work together, but they pulled off a very fun, physical and ECW style match. I wish it was a THREE WAY DANCE to put it over the top for an ECW clone but I'll take what I can get. On paper I assumed Kashin would be a little left behind during the match but he brought it. Can't wait to hear your honest opinion on this one baybay.

CJD: What in the actual fuck. Only in Inoki Genome Federation. Fujiwara and Hansen at ringside watching this debacle?? Let's fucking GO!! I loved your comment on the phone to me that at first you expected this to be an upload of a video game match. Certainly felt like it. In my honest opinion, this was wayyyyyy better than it had any right being or needed to be. RVD and Necro were there to play and I'm much more receptive to Kashin's antics than I was when we attended Best Of The American Super Juniors live (a little PIF trivia for everyone there). The first 7 or so minutes things were clunky and they were finding the rhythm. When they locked into that groove though they rode it straight to the finish. RVD really played the hits in this one. Necro channeled Brody, Abby, and Kamala simultaneously. The perplexed crowd even came alive by the end. Also you said you wish it was a 3 way dance. But it was! Do you want me to edit that?

JJZ: There were two pin falls?

CJD: Yes!

JJZ: Holy fuck, I watched this on my phone while cooking my daughter dinner. I assumed with all the blood that Necro just got taken out of the match. Goddammit. I don't know how I missed that. You can include all of this in the review if you want.

CJD: I will, and it gave me a chance to jog my memory about one more amazing part of this match. That Dollar Store Hatebreed RVD entrance song! What a choice! I bet he's used it a bunch and I'm just out of the loop, but that was something else.

Forever Forward Fridays

Kaori Yoneyama (c) VS Tanny Mouse - NEO JWP Openweight Championship 8/01/2010

JJZ: Tanny who? Tanny what? I wouldn't be suprised if you or Friend of the Blog PB played her for me before. I mean she has an unbelievable balance of gaga and aggressiveness. The way both ladies weaved in and out of silly and serious but didn't take away from the feel of the match being heated was really unique. Kaori and Tanny had a balls to the wall finishing stretch that could have went either way. I was suprised with how stiff some of Mouse's go home moves were considering how interesting her earlier moveset was. Now Yoneyama can hit a sunset flip bomb from anywhere it feels like. Really enjoyed this and I think I might double dip this one and show our boys it next time we get together.

CJD: I don't think I have ever seen a Tanny Mouse before. She strikes me as someone you wouldn't forget. This match seems like one you'd think about skipping on a DVD, but you give it a chance because you like one of the wrestlers, and you're really glad you did. You're absolutely right that Tanny's lighthearted antics make how tight some of those pinning combinations were, or how stiff some of those exchanges were, super surprising. I would have liked if they could have put a slightly better bow on top but this match still felt like an unexpected treat either way. No idea where Tanny's going to take me next!

I'm In Search Of The Lionheart

Rob Van Dam VS Chris Jericho - ECW 6/21/1996

CJD: There were a few factors at play when deciding if I should play this match forward. First of all, I feel like Friend of the Blog Mr H has played both of us quite a few hidden gem ECW fancams from this venue. Second of all, the match has that hidden gem feel for the first half... then falls apart a little bit. But third of all, man do these guys work their butts off to still deliver a good match, despite it clearly taking its toll on both of them. So mix that all up, marinate it in a 90s ECW stew from our high school wet dreams, and serve with tempered expectations for what you're actually going to get... and I said, let's do the damn thing! Pun intended. I was pleasantly surprised by how punchable RVD's face was in this match. He was an underrated smug prick in this era even if he was clearly transitioning to cool heel. Jericho was an effective babyface too. There was a lot to take away from this, even the post match, and I could see someone saying the match had more flaws than positives. But for the FanCan Connection's tastes, I bet you'll be allll about this one.

JJZ: First first first of all. I 100% played this match for you before. Either from my 20 something disc ECW comp or my Best of Jericho RF video comp. Either way I'm super fucking excited to review this since it's been at least 10 years since I watched it. Now you know, I'm a RVD mark. I'm not as much of a Jericho guy as some people, but his ECW run, that I do love. And this is fucking ECW grade A material. I don't know why but I just love the shit Van Dam does. He did a spring board flip off the guard rail and I loved it. It's so wild how some wrestlers you can just enjoy their moveset over others. Jericho is working his tail off in this one. Everything he does he has to earn. I could watch ECW all goddamn day. Recently I've only been watching current NJPW and I'll tell you what, I enjoyed this match more. Well done baby cakes.

Forever Forward Fridays

Kaori Yoneyama (c) VS Emi Sakura - JWP Openweight Championship Hair VS Hair Match 9/19/2010

CJD: Only in joshi. This is the kind of match you cannot sit and nitpick here or armchair quarterback there. Somewhere along the line you have to decide as a fan. Am I in? Or am I out? Because this is vibrant, passionate, essential pro wrestling. This needs to exist. So if it's not for you, that's fine. But from one fan to another, who isn't always the most receptive to joshi, I'm begging anyone reading this. Please open your heart and mind to this match. I'm a little familiar with Yoneyama (John I played you a great hidden gem title match between her and Azumi Hyuga many moons ago). Sakura I believe PIF made me aware of for the first time last week. And just like that this door is opened to me, a lifelong super nerd fan who sometimes can feel like he's seen it all. No matter how much pro wrestling you've watched, keep pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone. You never know when a match like this is waiting for you around the corner.

JJZ: CJD, I've tried to sit down and watch this match like 4 times. And everytime something interrupted me. But finally I was able to watch it front to back. This was a beautiful display of pushing the limits to the edge but not going over. Stiff but not crazy stiff. Oh shit spots but not holy fucking shit is she OK spots. The falsies were about to go off the cliff then Bam! One two three! It was an epic journey my man. I know it was from 2010 but the gritty feel of filming and look of the crowd I would've thought 1991. Excited to watch more Joshi. Hoping I can watch the next match on my first try!

LWO 4-Life

Eddie Guerrero VS Chris Jericho - WCW 10/31/1998

JJZ: Baby cakes. If I could describe this match in one word, it would be efficient. Not a lot of time, but wanted to get thier shit in. So clean. So fresh. So smooth. You know that these two just walked out there only knowing the finish and just popped out this little 8 minute gem. For my money Eddie Guerrero is a top three wrestler of all time. It's not because of epic long historical matches. It's because he can make eight minutes full like a complete story. Jericho also does a great job. Not trying to disrespect him in anyway. I'm just an Eddie mark.

CJD: Efficient is a good word to describe this match. I'd pick spontaneous. I agree it's obvious these two are just feeling it and didn't plan a single thing. With that in mind this is fascinating to watch. I honestly thought Jericho might have impressed me just as much as Eddie this time around, which is saying something. I thought this was a great big league companion piece to Papi/TAKA. Neither match will blow you away but both are great showcase pieces in their own right. Definitely the stuff that makes PIF so fun after all these years, matches that help you fully understand eras and what makes a wrestler tick.

Forever Forward Fridays

Riho VS Emi Sakura - AEW 3/3/2023

JJZ: Sticking with the AEW here. Side question to start. They mentioned during the commentary that Riho started wrestling when she was 9. I know that Kenny Omega was one of her trainers. Is she the girl that he wrestled back in the day? I tried to look it up real quick and got nothing. So this was a really smart match with Riho working from under while Emi Sakura used size and strength to maintain the offense. Emi had a little swag in her game I thought. I don't think I've seen her before but I maybe have in the past with you on a Saturday night filled with wrestling. I think both ladies came out of this match looking better than they went into it. I really enjoyed the commentary also. Jericho and Excalibur were fantastic together. JR really needs to hang it up. Enjoy baby cakes.

CJD: Riho started working with Omega when she was something like 13 so you'd think she was the same girl, right? But no, that was another child wrestler (9 years old) who Kenny had the infamous match with. I don't believe I've ever watched a Sakura match before either and I agree, she put some stank on this match. In a good way. I thought her and Hayter in our last match both built very compelling structures around Riho, who if I'm going to be honest, I think is fairly limited. The positives she brings to the table are strong though and these two matches highlighted them nicely. I really loved that tiltawhirl backbreaker on the outside. And some of those pinning reversals. The main thing I left this match with was an appreciation for their chemistry, and how Emi in particular refused to rush this match. There were a few moments you could tell another opponent would have executed one second sooner, and those seconds over the course of the match really add up. I love that seasoned approach and am looking forward to getting a better understanding of her career!

Dangerous River

Eddie Guerrero/Essa Rios VS the Hardy Boyz - WWF 4/17/2000

CJD: This is such a good television tag match. Really everything you could want especially with all the moving pieces. It honestly exceeded my expectations... except one glaring issue. You'll be able to tell by the end. I rewatched a few times to try to figure out what happened and I think it was a rare Eddie botch where he immediately realized he had to just own it to make the spot work. But man is he so, so fucking good as always every other second from the moment he walks out with Chyna to the moment the video cuts off. I loved the two of them together in this run. Essa has a real edge in this match that I enjoyed. The Hardys in this era were every backyard wrestler's heroes. And they were such a force in US wrestling in general, so unique and totally unstoppable. I can gladly overlook that one miscommunication to play this one forward to you. It's a real moment in time!

JJZ: This is a fucking dream match on paper. Could you imagine if they got twenty minutes. Totally forgot Lita was with Essa Rios at one point. Watching Eddie wrestle is like Christmas moring. I'm so excited for all of his moves. They are like little presents. I know what I'm going to get but I love them every time I open another box. The Hardys and Rios have such explosive offense that you can't blink. Also Jesus Jeff bumps so hard for everything I don't know how he is walking today. Another fantastic TV match. Love me some Eddie. You absolutely know where I'm going next!

Back Next Week

What's good my PIF fam, it's CJD here, hopefully telling you for the last time in a while we're missing our updates this week. But we will be back for certain next Tuesday and Friday! The matches are in the bank and they both rule. On my end my family's move is finally in the latter half (of Phase I at least) so I should have my priorities back on pro wrestling blogging any day now. See y'all then!!