Single File #4
Posted: 02/06/01
It’s the Single File #4, with it’s new home at The Cubs Fan’s page. Huzzah!
When I heard that Mike Modest and Christopher Daniels were going to have a match on Nitro, I was pretty pumped. I hadn’t seen too much of Modest, outside of Beyond the Mat, the beach Nitro match vs. TAFKA Prince Iaukea, and a great lost Worldwide match against Elix Skipper (1). But I had seen plenty of Christopher Daniels on Shotgun Saturday Night and in Japan, and I really wanted to see the match.
So I watched the match, and when it was over, I thought it was pretty good. Oh sure, they’ve had better matches in the past. And both guys looked pretty nervous (Daniels especially, although the fact that he landed right on his head early in the match may have had something to do with that). The ending was pretty boneheaded, too. But for 8 or so minutes there was some damn fine wrestling on my TV.
So when I log onto the ‘net the next day, I see everyone debating the damned thing, defending or denouncing it. The way it was being analyzed you’d think it was the main event at Wrestlemania and not a try-out match on freakin’ Nitro.
Opinions varied greatly, as they tend to do on the ‘net. Some folks loved it, some folks didn’t, and some people called Wade Keller names. But what bothered me was that some people dismissed both wrestlers by saying things like “Oh, so that’s Christopher Daniels? What’s the big deal?” It just seems wrong to write off a guy who’s busted his ass for years based on one off-night (albeit an off-night at the worst possible time).
Trust me folks, Christopher Daniels can work (so can Modest, but that’s for another time). And I’ll prove it, with this six man match from Michinoku Pro:
Who: Curry Man/CIMA/Superboy vs. Minoru Fujita/Jody Fliesh/Shiryu 2
When: 12/21/99
Where: Tokyo Korakuen Hall
Backstory: None that I can think of. But here’s a scorecard to keep track of who’s who.
Curry Man: This is actually Daniels’ gimmick in Japan. He dresses all in yellow and wears a mask that looks like a bowl of curry on top of his head. It’s bizarre but quite funny.
CIMA: You’ve probably heard of CIMA—student of Ultimo Dragon, member of Crazy Max, one of the best young wrestlers on the planet. He actually went all the way to the finals of last year’s J-Cup (and probably should have won the damn thing, but that’s for another time).
Superboy: Really fat guy that flies like a luchadore. Has worked in Indies in both the U.S. and Japan.
Minoru Fujita: I honestly haven’t seen much of Fujita, but people in the know say he’s an ultra talented high-flyer who’s currently working freelance in Japan.
Jody Fliesh: Probably the best high flyer you’ve never heard of.
Shiryu 2: Curiously, Shiryu was Kaz Hayashi’s old gimmick in Japan, and this guy’s picked it up with Kaz in WCW. Also wrestles as Fantastik in Big Japan.
A few words of warning: these matches aren’t like American tag matches. The legal men are pretty much determined by whomever is in the ring at the time, whether or not they got tagged in. And matches in Japan don’t focus around the “hot tag.” A member of the face team may be beaten on for a while and make a dramatic tag, but it rarely leads directly to the end of the match.
The Match: Curry and company come out with the BEST entrance ever: set to Rage Against the Machine’s “Guerrilla Radio,” Curry and Superboy come out wearing Santa hats, with CIMA donning some funky goggles and accompanied by a fine young thing. Curry dances up a storm (including giving a mortified young woman her own up-close- and-personal dance ;) while Superboy says “hi” to all the kids. Then all three get in the ring for a Crazy Max salute (2). The faces rather mundanely come out to Dokken or Iron Maiden or one of those other bands my old college roommate Bob used to blast at all hours.
Streamers get thrown and a big brawl breaks out, with everyone fighting outside the ring and into the crowd. We clip ahead a little as it’s Curry Man and Fujita in the ring. Curry grabs Fujita by the hair and shoves him down, but Minoru kips right back up. Curry tries it again with similar results. The two trash talk, and then Curry slaps on a headlock. Fujita counters by whipping Curry into the ropes, but Curry hits a shoulderblock and covers for a 1 count. Curry bounces off the ropes, and Fujita drops down, but Curry slams on the brakes after a Fujita leapfrog and rolls him up for another 1 count. Curry bounces off the ropes again, but this time gets nailed with an armdrag, followed by a hiptoss. Curry stumbles to the corner, where Fujita peppers him with kicks, followed by some Ohtani-esque (3) bootscrapes and a running dropkick to the kisser. Fujita whips Curry into the opposite corner and charges, but Curry manages to drop toehold him into the bottom turnbuckle. Curry follows that up with a Cactus clothesline that sends both men to the outside.
Now Fliesh and CIMA come in. CIMA sends Jody into the ropes, and Jody tries a shoulderblock to no effect. Fliesh tries again, and with the same result. Jody runs off the ropes again, but CIMA ducks down and leapfrogs. Jody tries a kick, but CIMA catches the foot and throws it up, but Jody manages to backflip and land on his feet. Jody runs off the ropes again and manages a nasty satellite headscissors that sends CIMA to the outside. Jody follows it up with a spinning ’rana from the apron that sends CIMA flying into the crowd. Jody gets back in the ring and tags in Shiryu.
The bad guys threaten to walk out of the match while Shiryu leads the crowd in a chant I can’t make out. Superboy gets in the ring, and then acts like he wants to get out. But when he turns around, Shiryu hits him with a kick and sort of hiptosses him across the ring. Superboy charges, but Shiryu leapfrogs him and hits another hiptoss. Shiryu charges this time, but Superboy backdrops him. However, Shiryu manages to rebound off the ropes and armdrag the hefty highflyer. Wild. Shiryu charges again, and this time Superboy hoists him directly overhead. But Shiryu manages to land on the top rope and backflip off, then do his weird spin-and-jump leg kick thing (4). Curry comes in and grabs Shiryu, but we get some heel miscommunication as Superboy whacks Curry by mistake. Shiryu hiptosses Superboy and backflips off of Curry (5), only to be grabbed by Superboy. Curry tries a dropkick, but alas, nails his partner, sending Superboy out of the ring. Curry tries a punch, but Shiryu catches the fist and then does one of those run-up-the-ropes-bounce-and-armdrag spots that sends Curry out of the ring. Shiryu then runs like he’s going to do a suicide dive, but does a Tajiri front-flip-and-rebound-off-the-ropes and poses.
CIMA comes in and trips, or maybe he was bowled over by all by all the action. Shiryu takes the opportunity to tag in Jody. CIMA acts like he wants a test of strength, but instead kick Jody right in the gut. CIMA with some more kicks, then a whip to the ropes followed by a back elbow. With Jody on all fours, CIMA takes the opportunity to dropkick him right in the head. CIMA with a scoop and a slam, and then hits a baseball slide dropkick right to Jody’s head. CIMA drags Fliesh over to his corner and tags in Curry Man, who comes in and gets some chops in, followed by a whip to the ropes and a leaping leg lariat. Curry taunts Shiryu and Fujita, and then covers for a 2 count. Superboy comes in and they whips Jody into the ropes, with Curry hitting a drop toehold and Superboy following up with a FAT (in several senses of the word) senton. SB covers, only to have it broken up by Fujita at 2. CIMA comes in and kicks the crap out of him, and I guess they’re the legal men, as Superboy dumps Jody out of the ring. CIMA whips Fujita into the ropes, but puts his head down and gets a kick for his troubles. Fujita follows up with a DDT, and then a snap suplex for a 2 count. But when CIMA kicks out, Fujita holds onto his arm and immediately turns it into a cross armbreaker. Cool. Fujita tags Shiryu back in, and he applies a front chancery, but CIMA manages to back him into the heels corner, where everyone takes their shots. Curry Man tags in and hits some chops, followed by a slam. Superboy then hits a slingshot somersault senton, then CIMA hits his own insane version, and Curry follows up with an Arabian Press for a 2 count. Awesome. Curry then slaps on an abdominal stretch and reaches his hand out, which CIMA promptly pulls. Gotta love injecting Southern Heel tactics into a Puro-lucha match. Curry releases the hold and tags in CIMA, who applies his own abdominal stretch while Curry pulls on his free hand. The heels all come in, Shiryu gets whipped into the ropes and drop toeholded by Superboy, then gets met with double sliding kicks to the head from Curry and CIMA. Curry and CIMA then hold Shiryu down while Superboy hits another FAT senton. Superboy covers for a 2 count while Jody comes into the ring. He and CIMA start fighting, so I guess they’re the legal men now, as Shiryu gets deposited to the outside. CIMA whips Jody into the ropes and flapjacks him, hitting an X-Factor on the way down. It gets a 2 count. The heels come in and CIMA hits a Lionsault, followed by a Lionsault from Curry, and lastly a FAT Lionsault from Superboy that gets another 2 count. The heels whip Jody into the turnbuckles, and Superboy lies down on all fours like they’re going to do a Poetry in Motion. But Jody runs, leaps off of Superboy, lands on Curry Man’s shoulders, then jumps and hits a ‘rana on CIMA (6). Christ! Superboy grabs Jody, and Curry goes for a clothesline, but nails his partner instead, allowing Jody to make the tag to Shiryu.
Shiryu comes in a house o’ fire, hitting tilt-a-whirl backbreakers on CIMA and Curry Man before getting hit with a dropkick from Superboy, who in turn eats a springboard dropkick from Fujita that knocks him to the outside. Shiryu runs like he’s going to do a suicide dive, but grabs onto the ropes and instead gives Curry (who was standing behind him) a flying headscissors that sends him to the outside. Shiryu then does the Chris Jericho springboard dropkick that knocks Superboy off the apron. CIMA tries to give Fujita his Super X-Factor, but Fujita dropkicks him in mid air, sending the Crazy Max member tumbling outside.
With all the heels on the outside it’s mega-highspot time. Fujita starts off first with a tope suicida that sends CIMA into the crowd. Shiryu then follows up by hitting a running no hands Swanton Bomb over the top rope and onto the prone Superboy on the floor. Holy Shit, I must’ve rewound that a dozen times. Then, if that weren’t enough, 1 second later Jody hits a shooting star press from the top rope onto a standing Curry Man on the floor!
Shiryu and Superboy manage to get back in the ring. SB manages to reverse an Irish whip and duck a clothesline, then hits a backdrop suplex for a 2 count. Superboy slams Shiryu, goes up top, and hits a sweet Swanton Bomb for another 2 count. SB goes to the second turnbuckle, but misses a moonsault, and Shiryu manages to slap on a Majistral cradle for 2. Shiryu bounces off the ropes but gets tossed in the air by Superboy, but still manages to pull off a pinning ‘rana. But he can only hook one leg, so it gets another 2 count. Shiryu whips Superboy into the corner and follows up with a clothesline, then puts the big man on top and comes off with a ‘rana. He goes for the sure pin, only to have it broken up by CIMA. Now Fliesh is in the ring again, so I guess these two are the legal men. Jody goes for a pinning combination and CIMA tries to reverse, but Jody turns it into one of those mid-air bulldogs. Jody goes up top and jumps off trying, a ‘rana, but CIMA blocks and hoists Jody back up. But Fujita comes off the top with dropkick to CIMA’s back, causing him to fall with Jody on top. Now Fujita is the legal man for his squad as Jody bails. Minoru whips CIMA to the corner, and CIMA tries the old “sling over my charging opponent,” but Fujita grabs his legs in mid-air. So CIMA improvises by twisting his body so Fujita goes face first into the bottom turnbuckle. I love that move! CIMA goes for a German suplex, but after a series of reversals Fujita manages to nail a brainbuster. He then goes to the apron and hits a springboard splash for 2. Fujita then whips CIMA into the ropes, but CIMA ducks a clothesline and then hits a spinning plancha onto Shiryu who was outside the ring. This allows Curry Man to sneak up behind Fujita and try the Spicy Drop (7), but he flips out and applies a Northern Lights Suplex for 2. Fujita tries a whip to the corner, but Curry reverses. Curry Man charges, but gets backdropped onto the apron. Curry goes to the top rope, but gets caught. Fujita tries a superplex, but CIMA comes into the ring and hits a big low blow. Curry Man (still on the top rope) twists Fujita around so he’s facing the ring, then Superboy comes in and lays down, and CIMA gets a running leap off of him and nails a Poetry in Motion palm thrust. CIMA then nails the Iconoclasm (8), and Curry follows up with a splash off the top. Curry goes for a pin, but Jody and Shiryu break it up.
The heel clear the ring of the faces, and Superboy hits a FAT Asai moonsault on Shiryu. But Jody manages to crawl onto the apron and hit the Rey Mysterio springboard ‘rana into a pin for a very long 2 count. Curry whips Jody into the ropes and ducks a Fliesh clothesline, but Jody uses his momentum to jump to the apron. Curry tries to knock Fliesh off, but gets met with a kick in the head for his troubles. Jody then…well, we’ll take this slow…he jumps and twists, landing on the top rope with his back facing the ring, leaps and twists again and hits a spinning DDT on Curry in the ring. It, amazingly, only gets 2. Jody misses a kick and walks into a uranage from Curry, who follows up with a gorgeous double jump moonsault for 2. Curry goes for a powerbomb, but it gets turned into a Rocker Dropper in mid-air. Jody then hits a gorgeous Shooting Star Press and goes for the pin, only to have it broken up by CIMA.
Now everyone’s in the ring, and Shiryu and MM get dumped to the outside again, and CIMA and Superboy follow up with stereo tope suicidas! Now time for the amazing finish. Jody gets a running start and leaps to the top rope, and Curry follows him, leaps to the top rope alongside him, grabs Jody, and leaps with a uranage in mid air! Spicy Drop then finishes Jody and the match (16:51).
Good God, what a match. I’m sure some people would complain about psychology and transitions. I say go watch All Japan if you want that. This is one of the most amazing spotfests I’ve ever seen. It had innovative moves, amazing spots that were flawlessly executed, plus everyone totally busting their asses. This right here is why I watch wrestling.
Fallout: Daniels was rightfully offered a contract by WCW, and hopefully will be putting on matches like this in the near future. Everyone else is still kicking around Japan (with Superboy doing some recent work for U.S. indies).
If you want to see the above match, drop me a line and I can point you in the right direction.
Next time…I’ve done a lot of good wrestling lately. Next time we’ll do some really bad wrestling. Take care ‘til then
Joe Gagne
Endnotes:
(1) Modest was billed as Mike Cirello, even though he still had “Modest” written across his butt. He dropped Elix on his head repeatedly, and finished him off with Shane Helms’ Vertebreaker (the first time I ever saw that move).
(2) You put your hands together and make a gun, then you raise it behind your head and thrust it repeatedly at your crotch. Kinda like Japan’s version of the D-X salute.
(3) In reference to Shinjiro Ohtani, well known for his dickish ways.
(5) This looked bad. Curry pretty much cupped his hands together like it was his intention for Shiryu to do a backflip off of him.
(6) Shannon Moore tried this in the 4 way CW match on the 1/29/01 Nitro, but really messed it up.
(7) A running inverted Death Valley Driver.
(8) You sit your opponent on the top rope, then
turn around and grab underneath your opponent’s arms, then toss them forward,
so they land like they’ve just been superplexed.
Known
as the “Flipping Slam” corner special in No Mercy.