Issue 61B - 1/16/00 Selected matches from Battle Station Big Japan 10/29/99

Dai Nihon Nintei Death Match Heavykyu Senshuken Jiki (next) Chosensha (challenger) Ketteisen (decision match) Barbed Wire Board Death Match Tomoaki Honma vs. The Winger Taped 10/3 Kanagawa JR Shinkawasaki Eki Kokura Hashi Shimohiroba (2,250)

This was pretty much what we have come to expect from a Honma death match. A fast-paced junior style match with good work and lots of big gimmick spots, but the spots were rather meaningless because they weren't implemented or put over in a way where they could have any lasting effect. Winger did a nice tope con hilo near the barbed wire board in the corner then threw Honma around ringside. Honma is one of the best bump takers, and particularly has mastered getting thrown through rows of chairs and into barbed wire boards. He wound up bleeding from the head for no reason other than that you are supposed to bleed in this kind of match. "I think they could have used a spot where Honma had actually received some sort of chair shot or injury to the head to justify him bleeding from the forehead at that point in the match. I mean, when Honma was thrown into the barbed wire board, his head was nowhere near the wire," wrote Jason. Winger put Honma on a table and climbed to the top of a big truck. He proceeded to jump off the truck, putting Honma through the table with his senton! This looked really awesome because it was a good 10 foot drop. Later on, Winger sandwhiched Honma between the barbed wire boards and gave him a diving senton. "The senton through the table was a really nice spot because Winger set it up right. He piledrive Honma on the ground before laying him on the table then didn't waste any time getting to the top of the truck. It really helps when a spot that takes time to set up is done quick enough so it doesn't kill the credibility by being too slow," wrote Jason. They blew the key spot where Honma was supposed to counter a nadare shiki no Frankensteiner with a super powerbomb onto a broken board that was in between two tables. Just to make us all groan, they immediately tried it again. "I guess in defence of trying the spot again, I would say that this isn't the type of match where they could have worked another sequence to cover up the blown spot, all of the gimmicks were used up so they would have had to do something other than use the barbed wire," wrote Jason. I'd always rather see the wrestlers do a sequence or three before redoing the spot. I agree that they didn't have any great options when it came to gimmicks, but anything would have been better than their lesson in exposing the business 101. In any case, the spot worked the second time and Honma proceeded to win the match with the 4 no ji shiki jackknife (figure 4 style jackknife cradle). The selling was non-existent, but that could be said about every Big Japan match. Winger was nothing special, but he was a good enough opponent that Honma could make the match with his work and bump taking. "A pretty cool match just because of all the bumps into the gimmicks, which I guess these type of matches are all about. Winger was pretty impressive with his tope con hilo and the senton off the truck too," wrote Jason. Winger has a few good moves, but otherwise isn't much of a worker. In this case, Honma's skill and all the brawling really helped did a good job of masking his liabilities. Special thanks to: Jason Higgs 17:52 (10:37 aired)