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[1991-03-30-SWS-Wrestlefest] Hulk Hogan & Genichiro Tenryu vs Legion of Doom


Loss

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  • 1 month later...

Super match. I didn't expect this to be so good, but I think it's better than the Hogan/Hansen match the year before. Tenryu is his usual reliable self, but Hogan and particularly Hawk bust their asses, bleed, swing furniture around and take some nice bumps. Hogan looks really great here, maybe the best I have ever seen him look, and the Road Warriors aren't far behind. They all seem especially amped up for this match. The finish was too 80s All Japan for my liking, and that takes it down a little bit, but I'm really impressed.

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I did not like this nearly as much as Loss and did not think it was one of Hogan's strongest performances from Japan. I liked some of the big spectacle stuff, like the double press slams of Hogan and Tenryu. And I'll never complain about double juice. But I never, for a second, got sucked into the drama of the match. Hogan and Tenryu didn't trust the Warriors to sell (rightly, I'm sure.) But their peril never felt particularly perilous. Loss had me excited for this, so it was actually a pretty big disappointment

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I would classify this as a real fun brawl with Hawk and Hogan really taking it to one another. The double press slams was a dream match moment. It was a little your turn my turn that

didn't help the drama of the match.Still a fun brawl that had a big time feel to it.

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This was a lot of fun, basically what you'd want out of a quasi-dream match. There were some surprisingly stiff chair shots during and after this, Hogan re-opens his WM7 cut, and even Hawk lets the juice flow in what I think is the first time I've ever seen in a Roadies match. We also get an awesome spot near the top with both Road Warriors doing press slams--Animal's gorilla press of Hogan was particularly impressive. Didn't notice much in the way of my turn/your turn--both Hogan and Tenryu worked what amounted to FIP segments with hope spots and cut-offs and all of that. Hawk breaks up a legdrop and Hogan breaks up a Doomsday Device and the action spills to the outside, where the Roadies level Hogan & Tenryu with chairs and just beat the count back in. Not really an ideal finish for a Dome show main event, but there's a heated post-match confrontation that makes you want to see a rematch that sadly never comes. This really felt like a career performance for both Hogan and Hawk. Probably Animal too, but Hawk struck me as the more impressive guy on his team.

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  • 3 weeks later...

That’s something to watch Hogan getting press slammed like that. While everyone adjusts their style to fit Japan, Hebner still sucks. Match was excellent though. Hogan took a lot of big moves and bumps. He can be so much better in Japan from the little I have seen of him there. LOD looked like monsters during match tossing Hogan and Tenryu around. Finish is what I expected so didn’t really hurt it in my eyes.

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  • 1 month later...

There's plenty that's wrong with this shambles of a match, but everything about it fades into insignificance apart from one particular moment. A few minutes in Hogan hits his Japanese finishing move the Axe Bomber. Well not today it's not. Because the Road Warrior no sells it Hogan has to take him down afterwards and ends up applying a rear chinlock. That's right, a finishing move used as a transition for a rear chinlock. Extraordinary.

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  • 1 month later...

Very fun match but I have it a smidge behind the WM 7 main event. I was not too keen on a lot Animal did in the later stages of this match as I think he got blown up. He does a comically bad job of going into Hogan's big boot for instance. I did like the double juice and brawling aspects of this match. Hogan/Tenryu is an awesome team.

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  • 1 year later...

Just seeing Hogan and the Road Warriors in the same ring was awesome, and I mean that in the literal sense. Everything else was gravy; Vince was never going to let any of the three of them do a job or look weak for any length of time, so we got what amounted to a barfight instead of a classic storytelling wrestling match.

 

As barfights go, this was very good, as each team took the other's best shots and came back with their own. I'm honestly surprised that Vince allowed three of his top babyfaces to go at it so viciously against each other, complete with Hogan and Hawk busting each other open. I know they had to adjust a bit for the Japanese crowd, but I thought more of the WWF storytelling style would be in effect, where faces trade holds and power moves but never get overly aggressive with one another. Seeing chairs, tables, and the guardrail used so effectively was a sight to behold.

 

The finish was what it was: a copout to avoid a clean loss on anyone's record, including SWS ace Tenryu. But if you came into this particular match looking for a well-told story and a definitive victor, you deserved to be disappointed. This was spectacle for spectacle's sake, a true Vince McMahon production with assistance from SWS. This match would have fit in well on a WWF pay-per-view; in fact, I'm surprised they didn't do with this match what WCW did with the Flair/Fujinami bout, and that's put highlights of this and some of the undercard bouts on pay-per-view for American consumption. Then again, God forbid Hogan take one minute of his time away from Slaughter, especially to fight two fellow faces and team with a Japanese guy few people in the WWF's target audience had ever heard of. The poor kids' heads would have exploded!

 

Interesting touch having Hogan sell the fireball attack with the bandage on the side of his face. But the LOD never did anything with it; when Hogan bled, it was from the forehead.

 

I didn't notice any egregious no-selling from the LOD, but like I said, just the spectacle of having Hogan in the ring with them makes up for any of the match's storytelling flaws.

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  • 1 year later...

Rubbish? Odd, I loved this!

 

Hulk Hogan & Genichiro Tenryu vs Legion of Doom - SWS Tokyo Dome 3/31/91

 

Who pissed in Hogan's corn flakes this morning? He was ornery as hell bowling over a young boy, hurling the WWF championship belt at Hebner and kicking a camera man. When he tagged in, he slapped Tenryu hard and sort of shoved him out of the way. He never really settled down either as he was hurling out some pretty damn stiff shots. The beginning was awesome Clash of Titans style stuff. A lot people liked Hawk in this, I thought Animal looked way better than usual. The stereo press lam by the Road Warriors on Hogan & Tenryu was great but how about hurling Tenryu like a projectile. Loved the spot where Hogan hit two clotheslines and then Tenryu two enziguiris to set up the stand off. Four monsters of the ring going at it. Really cool vibe. HAWK NAILS A DROPKICK! Hogan throws Hawk out to the outside and has this wild brawl where both men juice. It is insane. I don't think I have ever seen a Roadie blade before. Animal hits a powerslam on Tenryu and Hawk hits a great shouldertackle. Hawk and Tenryu get into a great, heated chopfest with Tenryu winning and tagging out. Hogan calls for AXE BOMBAH~! I will say Animal and Hawk are up to their usual tricks of not really selling and definitely not bumping or even going off their feet. In this case, it actually adds to the appeal. Hawk tags out and Animal hits a big jumping shoulder tackle on Hogan. I thought the weakest part of the match was the Hogan FIP, not much happened and feel like Hogan was gassed at this point. Hogan vs Hawk would have been a great short program in 91. Set it up as LOD laying Hogan our with Hawk getting the singles matches or how about LOD vs Hogan/Warrior at Summerslam! I think Hogan realized he was gassed and rather work a compelling segment just trips Animal and tags out. Tenryu is out fire and Animal figgin presses Tenryu out to the floor from a pinfall. That's crazy. Insane brawl breaks out! Totally redeems the lame Hogan FIP. Hogan is swinging chair wildly at Hawk. Hawk responds by throwing a table at Hogan!!! Hulk Hogan in an insane brawl, this is great. Animal chucks Tenryu into the front row over the announce table. IT IS BREAKING LOOSE IN TOKYO! Nice belly to belly by Animal on Tenryu and liked Tenryu sell to try to tag Hogan, but Animal is on him. Tenryu gets back suplex and Animal immediately ties him up from making tag as Tenryu is desperate. Hawk hits Hogan on apron. Great tag wrestling here. Hawk sets early so Tenryu hits a Powerbomb hope spot. I love it! In a bloody, wild Clash of Titans, a powerbomb is a great hope spot. Animal decks Tenryu, but Tenryu still makes hot tag. Hogan shoots Animal in for the big boot and totally whiffs. Probably Animal's fault. ATOMIC LEGDROP~! Hawk saves. DOOMSDAY DEVICE~! Hogan cracks a chair over Animal's back. Wild brawl erupts and it is a double countout! Animal just destroys every young boy in the ring with a chair and then there is an awkward macho standoff where Hogan and Tenryu actually stand down at first but it is to get a chair and then finally the Road Warriors. Hogan & Tenryu hold the battlefield for the symbolic victory.

 

Absolutely loved this. One part Clash of Titans, one part wild brawl. Legion of Doom's no selling, no bumping actually worked to increase the drama and it forced Hogan to get really nasty. Kind of like Hogan at Superbrawl V with Vader all his typical shit did not work so he had to get real nasty. I thought Hawk and Animal were energetic. Hogan was great at the wild brawling. Tenryu had some really good stiff shots and the only one who could bump in the match. Just a really cool heavyweight slugfest and don't mind the double countout at all they had been on floor repeatedly and showed that the ring really could not handle all this mass. Japan where dream matches come true. ****1/4

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  • 3 weeks later...

#340 - placetobenation.com/countdown-top-500-matches-of-the-90s-350-301

 

I don't know if I'd call this a great match, but it's definitely a great moment in time that is a lot of fun. Tenryu carries the show with his bumping and selling, but it's just a cool visual seeing these four guys go at it. Personally, I think I do prefer the Hansen/Hogan match to this (and for sure WrestleMania VII). But, this is definitely a good one to check out. The stuff with Hogan and Hawk beating the crap out of each other on the outside... AWESOME.

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  • GSR changed the title to [1991-03-30-SWS-Wrestlefest] Hulk Hogan & Genichiro Tenryu vs Legion of Doom
  • 1 year later...
On 12/30/2016 at 10:14 AM, Superstar Sleeze said:

Rubbish? Odd, I loved this!

 

Hulk Hogan & Genichiro Tenryu vs Legion of Doom - SWS Tokyo Dome 3/31/91

 

Who pissed in Hogan's corn flakes this morning? He was ornery as hell bowling over a young boy, hurling the WWF championship belt at Hebner and kicking a camera man. 

What the hell was up with this? He kicked the cameraman *to the ground* like Josh Homme after too many shots and lines.

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