The Ark (Pro Wrestling)

In all the world, currently, my favorite wrestling promotion is Pro Wrestling NOAH, and it's for one simple reason; everyone has a place.

It's not a federation filled with the youth of Japan like Dragon Gate, or the history of tradition like New Japan, but rather, a promotion all it's own. Like a hybrid of 80s New Japan sans Maeda, and 90's All Japan, NOAH is by all means the perfect wrestling promotion, and like I said, it's because everyone has a place.

Everyone's place fits, too. No one ever seems like they're doing something strange; Misawa's skill at booking has allowed for all wrestlers to break out on their own, but still maintain clear images of who they are as wrestlers.

This also holds true to NOAH's incredible junior division, one that puts all others to shame with sheer variety of wrestlers. You have the ace and fan favorite, Naomichi Marufuji, the champion and rival in KENTA, the foreign superpower in Low Ki, the obligatory luchadore Ricky Martin, the jaded champions in Suigira and Kanemaru, the ultimate bully and rival to KENTA, SUWA, and the veteran gatekeeper in Tsuyoshi Kikuchi.

Things are also very clearly defined in the heavyweight division. Misawa is the standard bearer, yes, but has seen fit to take a back seat to those who are far more willing to go, like Kenta Kobashi and Jun Akiyama. There are the upstarts of Rikio and Morishima, slimy Yoshinari Ogawa, the break out star in Mohammed Yone, the menacing Akira Taue, and the most dramatic protagonist in all of NOAH, Makoto Hashi.

To distract for a moment, the story of Makoto Hashi is the most fascinating thing I have ever witnessed. It's almost inspirational in a way. Hashi was one of the first wrestlers in NOAH to truly break out from a history of near-nothing in All Japan, and is now starting to get noticed by everyone for his exceptional talent and old school fire. He is a one time GHC Jr. Heavyweight title holder, but because of how he won the title (through the injury of champion Naomichi Marufuji) he returned it respectfully, and made it to the finals of the ensuing tournament, only to fall to Yoshinobu Kanemaru. This would be one of many disappointments in his career, as he would get all kinds of title shots and usually lose them.

Then there's his interaction with Jun Akiyama, who has taken a crazed coach role with Hashi. Akiyama sees big things for Hashi, and damnit, he's going to get them out of him, no matter what it takes. But before then, it was just thought as abuse, as Akiyama would get so frustrated at the beatings Hashi would recieve that he would climb in the ring, and throw him out, then slap him and beat on him. Over time, though, this started to reinvigorate him. Also, in matches that they have been on opposing sides, Hashi would just unleash hell on Akiyama for as long as he can. It almost seemed like he didnt want to win, just to get payback. This all came to a head at the most recent Tokyo Dome show. Jun Akiyama was granted a shot at the GHC tag titles, and almost instantly chose Makoto Hashi as his partner. However, he stated if they lost, he'd never team with him again. The ensuing tag match, while not very good due to Minoru Suzuki and Naomichi Marufuji being a still awkward team, was off the charts emotionally. You could not help but get behind Hashi, and even Akiyama was, giving him the chance to finish the match, but again, the eel known as Minoru Suzuki slipped out and got the submission victory. After the match, Hashi was seen crying, but instead of beating on him, Akiyama applauded his strongest efforts in the match, and thanked Hashi. It was really a surreal, awesome moment in the usually stoic world of Japanese wrestling.

Even in the lower card of NOAH shows, everyone has a clearly defined role. There's the ambitious group known as the Dark Agents, the veterans like Tamon Honda, Takuma Sano and Jun Izumida, the occasional appearance of Daisuke Ikeda, and the rookie sensation Go Shiosaki, who in his first year in wrestling was half of the finest tag match I've seen in some time, and probably my favorite match this year. There's also the team of TEAM KAOS, Michael Modest and Donovan Morgan, holding down the fort as the perinnial tag team title challengers, which brings us to the outsiders.

Over the years, the foreign factor has really grown into something fascinating. There's a steady parade of outsiders to do combat with NOAH regulars. The two that have had the biggest impact so far have been Minoru Suzuki and Gen'ichiro Tenryu. Also, New Japan and NOAH have been at near constant war, in both heavyweight and junior divisions, with Yuji Nagata having a truly incredible stint in NOAH, along with Hiroshi Tanahashi who's won the GHC Tag Titles, defended the U-30 Title against Marufuji, and wrestled Takeshi Rikio, GHC Heavyweight Champion, for the belt at the last Tokyo Dome show. There are lots of accounts as well of the New Japan/NOAH Junior War that are far more indepth than I can ever go, but suffice to say, it was an amazing thing to see.

Amongst the gaijin are wrestlers such as Scorpio, who has truly gone through rebirth, the incredible Doug Williams, and even a collection of power gaijin like Bison Smith. And this will continue to expand, as starting this November, Katsuyori Shibata will wrestle for NOAH, which will bring an element to the promotion that only KENTA and Daisuke Ikeda had in the past.

NOAH has also had the best feud this year, between Kenta Kobashi and Gen'ichiro Tenryu. It started innocently enough; a tag match was signed between Kenta Kobashi and Go Shiosaki, (which has been another fascinating development, as they've almost become father-son like in the ring) against Jun Akiyama and Tenryu. But Tenryu was never impressed with Kobashi, and provoked him. That wasn't very smart at all. Kobashi responded with great strength, and even drew blood from chops alone on Tenryu. And this was just the start of things.

Over the last few months, the two have tangled repeatedly, in tag matches, and each times, it just gets more and more heated and violent. Tenryu hates Kobashi's guts, and the feeling is mutual, as Kobashi now has a fire underneath him, actually coming up with new and unusual ways to punish Tenryu, such as his new Double Chop, made specifically to break Gen'ichiro Tenryu's collarbone. In one of their last matches, a six man tag between Kobashi, Tamon Honda, and KENTA, wrestling Tenryu, Akiyama, and Takeshi Morishima, where Kenta Kobashi almost dominated Tenryu with a simple headlock. He's using everything he can to punish his newest rival and hated enemy, and it's only getting more interesting as time goes on.

I'm forgetting a lot, probably, but these are just a few of the reasons that Pro Wrestling NOAH is the greatest promotion around today. My wrestling diet, as I've previously mentioned is entirely NOAH and CMLL anymore, and man, it's a happy diet.

Truly, this is the definition. (Pro Wrestling)

Obviously, Japan is different than the United States. But amongst the things in common, the most recurring trend is professional wrestling. And back in the old days, in the days of Showa, it was exactly that. In the days of JWP, it was, at least with Rikidozan, a form of entertainment. But the values of combat were kept, and it was just as much about strength as it was fighting spirit. But it was not a pure business. In the United States, they began to move farther and farther away from this, towards the theatrical, but the drama and the passion and the spirit remained in Japan, taking precidence over all other factors.

On both sides of the pond, wrestlers of eachother's country were seen as evil. In the United States, none really got that far at all, but some were treated with respect starting in the 60s in 70s. Specifically, Giant Baba and other All Japan wrestlers, who, unlike Inoki, actually went to the US. In All Japan, too, American's finally began to be seen as equals and men of integrity, such as the Funk Brothers, Stan Hansen, and others in that vein. Not so much in New Japan, but I'm not here to bash the stupid, stupid things New Japan has done in the past.

I'm here to talk about the simplification of all of this; the pure contest between the seperate nations.

Nobuhiko Takada Vs. Bob Backlund
UWF-i, 11/7/91
"Starting Over, Chapter 2"

Bob Backlund was the last real WWWF champion. With a five year, dominant reign, after defeating "Superstar" Billy Graham for his well earned title, Bob was on a tear. Like many other wrestlers like Ken Patera and people in that vein, he seemlessly combined the brawling and showmanship of North American Style, but the technique that came with his immense freestyle background. He was also a pure soul, and one people could not help but get behind. This changed in the mid-ninties, when he became a crazy man obsessed with winning the WWF title from Bret Hart after claiming he never lost it to Iron Shiek (who lost it to Hulk Hogan, which started all that crap), but that's not the point.

Backlund had a tremendous series in Japan with Antonio Inoki. In their two matches, they technically traded the title back and forth in three days. Backlund lost it to Inoki, but Inoki was not proud of his victory, and he handed the title back to Backlund. In their rematch, however, Backlund won with his trademark Chickenwing Face Lock, becoming legitimate in the eyes of Japanese wrestling fans. When he returned in 1991, he was already a threat. One of the few men to put down Inoki had come back, and would be going against a top native.

On the other side of the pond, you have Nobuhiko Takada. Classically trained, and originally a New Japan trueborn, Takada was not much of a stand out until a couple of chance occurances, including a long feud with Shiro Koshinaka (ASS BASED OFFENSE~~) and Akira Maeda's two departures from New Japan Pro Wrestling to form the UWF. In the UWF, Maeda's dream version of pro wrestling, It was closer to the original vision than anything else currently in Japan; it was sport. One day, I will write a comprehensive essay on UWF, UWF-i, RINGS, and the other companies of this nature.

But in UWF, Takada was king. Of all the men to ever wrestle in the UWF, he was one of two (the other being the incomparable Volk Han) men to defeat Akira Maeda in his own game, and when the promotion folded, he formed his own, UWF-i. Union of Professional Wrestling Force International. This match was among the first main events in the promotion.

This match has no real background to speak of, other than Backlund's reputation and participation in the first shows of UWF-i to give it legitimacy, and Takada being the franchise star of the promotion. There's no drama, there's no lead-in story line, there's no anger...there is simply the spirit of competition.

Backlund has the ultimate triple threat on his side; height, weight, experience. But so did Maeda when Takada wrestled him. After introductions, they shake hands, the bell rings, and they're off. Contrast in styles is immediately evident. Takada has his hands raised, in classic shootwrestle style, and Backlund has his hands low, ready for a take down or grapple.

The match progresses brilliantly. Takada shows his striking strength, but is always outwitted when on the ground. Within the first five minutes, Backlund has hooked a pin cradle, and an abdominal stretch. All Takada's had so far was a momentary face lock, and a near application of a cross armbar. Despite the few strikes, the crowd is way into it, hushed when they're on the mat, cheering when they're on their feet.

Past the five minute mark, Backlund again shows his expertiest, turning another abdominal into a kneebar. When Takada gets out, he gives Backlund a similar scare, with a cross arm bar applied. After Backlund gets out, the grappling just gets more intense and complicated. If Takada cant get the chance to strike, he's going to submit him, but Bob is a tough task, and can read Takada very easily. Almost every time Takada sets up for one hold or specific takedown, Backlund not only has a counter, but a counter to Takada's counter. He's almost always on top.

It's when Backlund is able to apply the Camel Clutch, the same move that cost him the WWWF title, that things start to really heat up. The sstruggle for the ropes is immense, but Backlund eventually gets free. As he stands, his eyes race, and he reformats his plan, having a striking opportunity. After repeated leg kicks, he is able to apply a knee bar of his own, with relative ease. Backlund doesn't have such an easy time escaping, and for the first time, Bob is not only frustrated, but without a counter, and has to use the ropes.

Takada hovers as Bob stands, and quickly adds an exclamation point, with a few knees. That doesnt work so well, as Bob scores with a back drop suplex, interrupting a ten count to apply a Fujiwara armbar. At this point, not only is the crowd completely into it, they're on their feet for everything. Oddly, whenever one man is in a hold, no matter how snug or simple, they cheer for the man in the hold.

Bob sinks to Takada's level, and knocks Takada down again, with a straight elbow. But that's a mistake, and as soon as Nobuhiko arises, poor Bob is VERY quickly demolished with kicks and palm strikes, setting up for a back drop suplex, then getting knocked down again as he tries to stand. The favor is returned, and Backlund is spared from the ten count by an armbar.

Backlind calms down, and is able to go back to the wrestling, reversing the hold, and scoring a two count pinfall. Still too soon, though. They stay close to the ground, Bob on top until he tries to pin again. Takada then hooks a one legged crab. Bob is forced to use the ropes again, but Takada is on him as soon as he's up, rushing him with strikes, then taking him down with a hip toss, and applying another cross armbar.

In ambition, Backlund moves against Takada, trying to get him into the ropes, but is not able to get there, as Takada releases, and pulls him back, applying an achilles tendon. Backlund's control is over- this is Takada's match now. Bob's on his level, and Takada starts to go for the win.

By the fifteen minute mark, they're both tired, exchanging heel holds, arm bars, and harsh takedowns. Whenever Takada gets caught, he does everything he can think of to escape. When Backlund is captured, though, he's calm, cool, and knows just what to do, provided it's not in too deep. But all those deep armbars Backlund can't just slip out of take effect eventually, and he tires down.

Backlund's next big offensive rush, after being knocked down twice more, gets another offensive, sweeping with a head lock takedown, and catching the arm bar. Takada hits the ropes, and after a strike exchange, Takada is lobbed across the ring with a Butterfly Suplex, and caught in a Boston Crab. As he hits the rope, he's elbowed, and then placed in a sleeper. But that sleeper is only a transition, and the crowd just loses it as Takada is trapped in the feared Chickenwing Face Lock. He does not say die, however, and manages to drape one foot over the ropes. Takasa is alive, but man, Backlund is not about the fact.

Backlund hits the precursor to the Olympic Slam, and applies a tendon hold. Takada's no longer interested in wrestling; only victory. He sits up, and relentlessly axe kicks the arm. He's free, and after another massive strike barrage, and trips him, applying a tendon hold, then a half crab when that fails. Backlund's last strength comes, and he is able to flip Takada off, and run for a tackle. But Takada shifts instantaneously into the Kimura, rolling Backlund over, and tightening the most basic, yet easily most painful submission in the sport. And in that one tense moment, admist the screams of thousands, with the atmosphere at a fever pitch, with both men exhausted, yet struggling, with that agonizing hold on tight...

...Backlund blacks out.

And like that, in an instant, Takada has done it. 25 minutes of hard, hard work pay off, and Takada is the winner. Backlund is in utter disbelief, awakened by the bell, and yelling that he never gave up. The match is ruled a TKO, or technical knock out, and in the rebirth of UWF, Nobuhiko Takada stands tall among all other men, having now defeated another former world champion. The men then shake hands, and in the ongoing conflct of American and Japanese wrestlers, Japan takes a large victory.

You might ask why I chose to do an essay on this one match. It's simple. Aside from the nationalism, the fierceness of the fight, the fire in the men...it is the glorious perfection of man on man combat. It is the mixture of everything pro wrestling was supposed to be from the start, and today, it stands as a shining example amongst several similar groups and matches of what pro wrestling is.

A true contest of will that happens to have an end before it has a beginning. The good and evil, the white and black, the axis and allies are left up to the interpretation of the viewer, but at the end of the day, this is a pure contest, and artistic in execution.

If you were to ask me to define professional wrestling, I would cite this match. It is everything that I believe in within this, the most intense form of stage and art ever known.

Matches like this, are why I watch pro wrestling.

"Everyone loves bad news from a pretty mouth." (Music)

Profound truth, the title is. At least for me.

I don't know a lot about singing. I only did it for a while, and I embarrass easily, so I've shyed away from it. I don't know about classical opera, or the techniques of a jazz singer. I don't know how note progession is formed, or how songs are written out. I don't know much about singing.

But I'll tell you what I do know. I know that the best life philosophy I have is "judge a man by his depravaties. Virtures can be faked. Depravities are real." And I know that it is the singers with disease in their voice, when you can smell the alcohol through the speakers, when you can immerse yourself in what the man (Well, usually man) is saying, when you can feel the very guilt in the man...that's when I take notice. There's nothing wrong with the other view. Some prefer the song bird. I prefer the crippled, whimpering dog.

Case in point is Tom Waits. A sicklier man there has never been. His raspy voice is that of a alcoholic jailbird, who's seen it all and could not possibly be less impressed. He has his moments of softness, specifically towards women. But that's to be expected. The man is, by all means, a man. His raspy voice and haunting stories are more captivating than any opera I've ever heard. It's the minimalist beauty.

Another example is Issac Brock, of Modest Mouse fame. I'm admittedly a bandwagon jumper, and my exposure started with "Good News For People Who Love Bad News," but after hearing Bukowski, The Devil's Workday, and Satin in a Coffin, I realized how he'll be next to follow this trend. He sounds constantly like he's so close to snapping and going Tracy Smothers on everyone, commiting Ultra Mega Mass Homicide.

I don't have to say a damn thing about Mike Patton. To a lesser extent, Nils Frykdahl.

This vocal style is also the main reason I got into death metal, black metal, and hardcore. Men like Dallas Toler-Wade of Nile, Lord Wyrm of Cryptopsy, Abbath of Immortal, and Dimitri Minakakis of The Dillinger Escape Plan sound like every single bit of blackness, hatred, and evil in this world, and what comes out is disgusting, yet spectacular in such a way that is not able to be matched in any other kind of music. And with those bands, it just so happens that the music is good enough to match the insane vocal quality, despite it being on the complete opposite end of the spectrum in what is seen as a "singer's voice." I'm sure there are other, amazing vocalists out there, but it's those four that hooked me on this extreme of music.

However, this is not to say that everyone that sounds sick is good. This is not the case. The Vines lead singer sounded like he suffered from Typhoid, yet I never ever liked him. The 'group' broke up last year on my birthday; it was the best present I ever got.

Also, I do not mean to say that I only like deep, raspy voiced guys. I've always been a fan of Cedric Zavala (ATDI, Mars Volta) and Gavin Hayes (dredg). I can't appreciate it fully, and I usually get funny looks from people who -can- sing, but whatever.

My point is this; if the voices are ugly, take the story into context. Take what they;re howling, whether figuratively or literally, into context. Don't write it off because it isn't completely legible the first few times through. Just sit back and let it resonate.

Elbow? (Pro Wrestling)

Pro Wrestling NOAH. Nowadays, my pro wrestling diet is exclusively NOAH and CMLL. And man, I'm getting fat. The quality of both products is absolutely astounding, especially considering NOAH's talent pool is mostly older men. Yet somehow, when the big shows come around, NOAH just cannot be beat. And the biggest of the big for NOAH was this year, on July 18th. "Destiny."

The main event was between Mitsuharu Misawa and Toshiaki Kawada. In Japan, this is the equivalent to El Hijo Del Santo Vs. Negro Casas, or Ron Wright Vs. Whitey Caldwell. It's not only perpetual and unbalanced, but it's pretty much always good. Over the last decade and a half, Misawa and Kawada's histories have been closely intertwined, as is shown in the brief highlight video for the match before it starts.

Misawa and Kawada had what is seen as one of the greatest matches of all time, back in 1994. June 3rd, for the Triple Crown, back in All Japan Pro Wrestling. This match is not a rematch, as they wrestled each other several times over the ensuing 90s All Japan period, but 90s All Japan came to a very sudden stop in August of 2000, when Misawa took pretty much all of AJPW and formed NOAH. Kawada stayed behind, of course.

Since then, All Japan and NOAH have gone in fascinating paths. AJPW struggled, then shed the Oudou image, as did the entirety of NOAH. Both grew into strangely unique federations, with NOAH being the Watts-era Mid South to AJPWs Carolina, and both continued to grow.

For those who dont exactly get that, it's like how WWE and TNA are now. Only no one gives a shit about TNA. But, to be fair, no one gave a shit about AJPW during the restructuring.

But I'm not here to talk about how they grew, with Misawa and Kawada in different yet similar positions in both feds. Or how weird AJPW got, or how awesome NOAH got. I'm not even here to talk about Misawa Vs. Kawada. I'm here to specifically talk about the end of the match. This was just the briefest history lesson, but history will play a part in establishing the finish.

Amongst the internet wrestling community, there has been backlash over the end of the match. It's full of people who simply do not understand and therefore hate the finish.

For those who haven't seen it, it's a match full of headdrops, that ends with this.

http://pulolesu.game-server.cc/move/move-photo/252.gif (Apparently, img tags dont work.)

Then a pin.

And people complained about this.

Before I get into the history and how this is logical, I want to share a theory I've come up with. The Universal Law of Being Fucked Up in the Head. It's like this: When the force of the contact upon one's head is not only so fierce that it rocks the head, but causes the subject's scalp to ripple, the subject as officially reached the state of Fucked Up in the Head.

Even aside from that, look at where he hits. Anyone that's seen boxing or MMA will know that all it really takes is a good shot to the jaw to cause a man to crumple, like Kawada. Kawada was hit with a knock out blow, and IWC members are complaining. This is a perfect suppliment to my "strikes aren't over in the US" arguement two posts back in the Strong Style issue.

There's also the factor of history, which cannot be ignored. I brought this up in a recent debate over Naomichi Marufuji and his contagious faggotry, and that is that Misawa's elbow have years upon years of build to it. It KOed Fuchi, it mauled Tsuruta, it toppled top gaijin, and it gave him his title and tournament wins. His elbow is the ultimate weapon. So fittingly, it's what gives him the win here. He's beaten the very, very best with his elbows. He hasn't always finished with them, but it's the use of the weapon that gives him victories. Watch the match twice; see how cautions Kawada is of getting hit until the first hit makes contact, and he tastes it all over again. This time, he thinks he's grown enough to have less of a resistance. Sadly, Kawada is still no Tsuruta, so he cannot take that kind of abuse. So, he lost to the elbow. The finish of this match is poetic, not repulsive, and it's what sets the mistique of 90s AJPW apart from all other puro.

Fuck you, Opera.

I had this huge 7 page sensationalist thing I was getting ready to post on SUPS (Spoiled, Unrealistic Princess Syndrome). It was totally great and some of the best writing I've ever done.

Then Opera crashed and I lost it all.

Fuck you, Opera.

EDIT: And now, WWE is bringing in midget wrestlers.

Today sucks.

Strong Style in America (Pro Wrestling)

Japanese wrestling is pretty rad. It's an accepted fact. It's built on totally different honor systems, so the confrontations are usually sporting instead of dramatic, but they can be, with the right types (Usually Americans or young wrestlers). I understand for people who have never seen it before, it's a really astounding experience. I was mesmerized by my first puroresu match (Keiji Mutoh Vs. Masahiro Chono, 2001 some time). It was everything I had expected pro wrestling to be, and most importantly, it was completely open to interpretation. I understand how awesome that is.

What's not awesome is the fact that wrestlers who watch these awesome things begin to employ these tactics, with some not understanding what makes it all work.

I'm not going to lie and pretend I know everything about pro wrestling. I don't really have a right to speak about deep philisophical intricacies (or whatever), but I'm pretty intuitive, and I know some pretty smart guys who have shown me the tiny things that makes "Strong Style."

The first problem is this simple fact; in America, unless it's one of five exceptions, strikes are not finishes. It's a sad truth. But, lets look through the wrestlers today. Specifically, Samoa Joe. He's got some pretty bad ass kicks, and some real looking strikes. Has he ever finished someone with the Enzuigiri? Or a simple roundhouse to a kneeling opponent? Hell, even a Savate kick? Nope. Because no one buys it. He can do it all he likes, but no one will ever say "oh, wow, what a slap, that's gotta be it," much as a few fanbases would lead you to believe. However, he has used the Lariat as a finish, which is exception one.

The other three are the Shining Wizard and it's children, Super Kick (which, oddly enough, is pretty dead in Japan), Axe Kick, and the Yakuza Kick/Big Boot.

My original outline for this was Low Ki, but Low Ki has changed so radically over the last two years that it's unfair to say that. His initial problem was he used the same style, of a Strong Style junior, in both Japan and America. Well, in Japan, that's fine; the kicks look strong, and people could buy those as finishes. In America, he can growl and scream all he likes, and kick as hard as he likes with pretty unprotected kicks. Lets look at that match he had in 2002 against Christopher Daniels in ROH. Plain as day, he roundhoused him straight in the head. He was on his knees, and got kicked squarely in the head. The crowd went up for it, yeah, but they didn't buy it as the end of the match. The announcers sold it as such, but you could tell the fans 'knew' that wasn't it.

An even better example was Low Ki Vs. Samoa Joe, in that same year (I believe.) The match was almost all strikes, and when the last one came, the crowd was just dead. No one bought the knockout blow. That's bad. Of course, they cheered 'respectfully' for the victory, but the silence before hand was telling.

Last is also ROH. 2003, "Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies." Low Ki's Tidal Krush kick, from the middle rope, legitimately Dan Maff out. The next time he did it? Nothing. Everyone thought that was an isolated incident, and it would never happen again. When Misawa KOed Masanobu Fuchi with an Elbow Suicida, the crowd would totally buy the dive as a finish. Think about that. Mitsuharu Misawa made a dive a finish. There's no such thing over here.

Nowadays, Low Ki uses an American Style. He's got his three big finishes (Ki Krusher, which put down a lot of big guys in ROH) the Double Stomp (which is a flying move that he makes look absolutely wicked) and the Dragon Clutch (see Ki Krusher). He doesnt pretend that his other, spiffy kicks will get the job done over here.

Second: Mixed Martial Arts holds are not used properly. Ever. In Japan, a Jujigatame is a lethal thing, and if it's in tight, you can't really last that long. Same with a Triangle Choke, or a Kneebar. You either reverse it in the first ten seconds, or it's all over. In America, people last far too long in such holds, and dont even kind of struggle. For example, Damian Vs. Kevin Steen. Steen fought a Triangle choke for almost five minutes. You dont come close to half a minute in a properly applied Triangle Choke. So what did this do? It killed the Triangle Choke dead in IWS. No one buys it as the instant doom finisher it should be, and it's too late to change it, due to the 'educated' state of the fans.

Third: Strong Style is used as an excuse. The common misconception is Strong Style is that it's "Real but worked." In a sense, this is all of pro wrestling. But that doesnt mean to strike recklessly and to endanger your opponent with real headdrops. This same conclusion is drawn from 1990s AJPW, and I'll speak more on that the more I learn and collect about it. If nothing else, Strong Style is about Toukon; fighting spirit. It's about not giving up. It's about leaving it all out there. It's not about putting the other person in mortal danger. I mean, look at Yoshihiro Takayama. Because of Strong Style, we have lost the greatest all around heavyweight in the last decade.

What cheeses me off even more about this is wrestlers wanting Kayfabe back. Well, if you want kayfabe back, don't you think that YOU should help? The fans wont go back to the state it was at if we all act like flippy bitches or that strikes don't really mean that much. Point in case: The Taped Fist Match. It's dead, due to the sheer amount of people that tape their fists during matches. It used to be one of the biggest blow off matches you could have, and now, thanks to modern wrestling, and wrestlers not having foresite, it's completely gone. Pretty soon, wrestling will be dead, and Mixed Martial Arts will reign supreme, unless everyone goes back to the basics and calms the fuck down.

What this is.

It's where I yell at people. I'm an opinionated man, and flooding message board after message board with rhetoric, while fun for me, isn't fun for others.

So, partake in MaSuTology 101. Maybe you'll learn something. Or maybe you'll be offended. It's all the same to me.