And Behold a Pale Horse: and His name that sat on him was Yoshiaki Fujiwara

Yoshiaki Fujiwara v. Riki Choshu NJ 6/9/87- EPIC

PAS: Pretty much a textbook example of a simple match performed by ridiculously charismatic performers, and how great something like that can be. Very few wrestling moves performed by either guy. Fujiwara does basically headbutts, punches and a Fujiwara arm bar. Choshu does kicks, one back suplex, a scorpion deathlock and Choshu lariats. It isn't about what they do, it is how and when they do it. Fujiwara jumps Choshu in the aisle and just destroys him for the opening five minutes. Choshu is bleeding and Fujiwara is smirking and strutting, Choshu gets control with a back suplex, and Fujiwara has an awesome "Oh Fuck" look on his face as he goes up. It gets a little more back and forth after that, but Fujiwara still controls most of it, until he makes the mistake of getting cocky and removing the ringpad. Choshu reverses the whip, Fujiwara takes a bump, they spill to the outside, and Choshu just smashes Fujiwara's head into the ringpost. Fujiwara has a traditional comedy spot, where he no-sells getting his head smashed into the ringpost, so Choshu really has to crack open his skull to make it work. Then it is all about a repulsively bloody Fujiwara trying to survive incredible looking Choshu lariats. Both guys come off as such superstars, it was like watching Hogan v. Rock with actually contact being made on the moves.

TKG: So Fujiwara attacks Choshu in the aisle busts him open and beats on him, and beats on him, and beats on him...and there is no comeback and it almost had a lucha fall feel as just completely one sided but you can tell everything by reading both guys eyes. Phil mentions Fujiwara's facial expressions and I don't care how long one studies mime with Decroux...Fujiwara can communicate more with a wrinkle of his nose. There is this point where Choshu is punching Fujiwara in the corner and Fujiwara goes from anger at being in the corner, to defiance , to struggling to maintain the defiance, to just a fuck you face that would make Murakami cower. The first lariat that Choshu hits Fujiwara with is just an absolute blast..like getting run over by a truck. the second and third ones are less impressive lariats but Fujiwara has these really awesome ways of selling/taking them. I mean they are still impressive lariats but its more about Fujiwara going into a flamingo stance and the flipping downward in what really looks like a boxer getting KOed and moving legs involuntarily on fall kind of deal. The lariat take that ends the match, I can't even come up with a way to describe it.

Yoshiaki Fujiwara v. Fred Hamaker UWF 5/4/90- GREAT

PAS: Hamaker is a Dutch amateur wrestler with Curt Henning’s perm, he had enthusiasm although I didn’t get a real sense that he knew what he was doing. This was of course the Fujiwara show, and it is a show I never tire of watching. Fujiwara approached this like someone solving a corporate desk toy logic puzzle. He would try one approach, it would fail, he would regroup, try something different, adjust, until he finally found the road to success. He wasn’t getting frustrated exactly, he would try an attack, it would fail and he would brush himself off and go again.

TKG: Like the opening match with a member of Team Netherlands, Hamaker would go for the ropes as son as it looked like Fujiwara was going for anything but before he seemed anywhere near actually putting something on. In the first match this was distracting as never get a sense of what Anjo was going for. Here Fujiwara really makes a big deal of all the breaks, slow to release, taunts seconds while the two are in ropes, gets Soronaka to separate, gets up and smiles etc.

Yoshiaki Fujiwara v. Tiger Mask IGF 9/8/09- FUN

These guys still have great chemistry together. Sayama has gotten really fat and his kicks really land with a Hashimotoesque thud now. Fujiwara's selling is great here, as can absorb some of the kicks, but he slowly gets beaten down. Sayama dominates the early part of the match with kicks, but Fujiwara avoids a diving headbutt and rolls out of the ring. As he is getting in, he smacks his head against the ring bolt, to sort of say "Let's go motherfucker" and then dominates with big headbutts, almost finishing Sayama when the time limit ran out. This felt a little more exhibitiony then there 2008 match, but both guys looked good.

The Complete and Accurate Yoshiaki Fujiwara