2 Cold Scorpio Documentation Project #5

2 Cold Scorpio vs. Mitsuharu Misawa, NOAH 6/9/2001 - FUN

One of those short matches that was meant to showcase how much stronger Misawa is than the midcarders. For a 3 minute match Scorpio really gave Misawa some hellish chairshots and hit a cool punch combo on the floor. Effective for what it was, but you do wish they had done a bit more.

2 Cold Scorpio & Vader vs. Mitsuharu Misawa & Jun Izumida, NOAH 11/20/2002 - GREAT

Routine tag but with every part being extremely well executed, a testament to the skill of these guys. Scorpio vs. Misawa exchanges were brief but really good, I imagine if you edited all their 30 second exchanges they had in various multiman tags together you’d have an excellent singles match. Vader is great as a force that waltzes in and destroys people, and he and Scorp set each other up extremely well. There is a heat section on Izumida where you actually buy Izumida getting pinned before the hot tag, and the ending with Scorpio refusing to be a loss post is all kinds of fun.

2 Cold Scorpio & Vader vs. Mitsuharu Misawa & Daisuke Ikeda, NOAH 12/2/2000 – FUN

Slower paced beginning here, which is good because it means we get Scorpio working segments with Ikeda and Misawa. You’re not sure how Scorpio would do with Ikeda but they mesh really well, with Scorp doing smooth movements and Ikeda kicking him really hard. I love how they played with averting the expectations of a heat section, and Vader continues to be awesome in these matches. Everytime he steps in and does something it feels like it could believably turn the match. Ikeda trading blows with Vader was also great. The match was cut short by Ikeda getting pinned early, but it was still a cool 8 minutes where every part was a hit.

2 Cold Scorpio vs. Satoru Asako, NOAH 11/4/2000 - GREAT

Extremely routine singles match, but every part was very well executed. Scorpios basic rope running and matwork looks really really good as always. Asako is one of the least talked about Japanese wrestlers ever, he’s not bad but he doesn’t do a ton to stand out either, that said if Bret Hart did the leg work segment Asako does here, hitting Scorp in the leg with the ring bell and then working him with a bunch of nice stretches, a lot of people would fawn. Scorp coming back with some well timed kicks while selling the leg was great. Good stuff that does as decent of a job of an opening match you can ask for.

 

2 Cold Scorpio Documentation Project Master List

2 Cold Scorpio Documentation Project #2

 2 Cold Scorpio & Vader vs. Daisuke Ikeda & Takashi Sugiura, NOAH 10/16/2001 - GREAT

Scorpio and Vader had a great dynamic as a team. Scorpio the more elegant wrestler, while Vader is just this hulking beast. As partners they act as foils for each other in a really unique way. This went a little under 7 minutes, but it was laid out nearly perfectly. Everything Vader does looks like he‘s just killing dudes, bashing guys heads in with his arms, body checks that look like they run you over. The crowd even buys a basic back suplex from him as a nearfall. Between Scorpio and Vader laying guys you get some fun character moments from both of them. Ikeda and Sugiura are mostly blown away but they get in some good hopespots. I liked the brief Ikeda/Scorpio section a lot. Ikeda was teeing off on Scorpio with stiff lariats until Scorpio was able to get in some beautiful (probably much less painfull but still hurty looking) kicks. Finish was fun too as Vader randomly seemed to hurt his leg. It may have been a shoot but probably not because Vader kept working matches the next couple days, but it gave the illusion that Sugiura might come back against the monster. The match ended early like a few NOAH matches did back in the day, to remind the crowd that things are important. Not the epic you might hope for when you see Ikeda and Vader and Scorpio in a match but it was healthy booking and the match was still really cool without burying Ikeda and young boy Sugiura.

2 Cold Scorpio & Vader vs. Jun Akiyama & Akitoshi Saito, NOAH 10/19/2001 - GREAT

Another match with a really great layout. Basically Vader is this ridiculously overpowered, but slightly banged up monster. You buy that he can KO people with a random punch or clothesline, or that a random leglock from him might dislocate someones leg. At the same time he‘s vulnerable and you think a random leg kick from Saito might make him give out. Akiyama and Saito try to zone in on Scorpio, he‘s not really the weak link, he‘s just the only one there that they have a chance in hell against. Scorpio feeds really well into their stuff and also sets up Vaders monster spots extremely well while hitting some graceful offense of his own. But the whole match was basically about Vader being an unstoppable force, while Akiyama and Saito still get close to turning the tide. I imagine it‘s pretty difficult to work a match like this and make it compelling but they succeeded here. Great stuff, early NOAH was the best.

2 Cold Scorpio vs. The Goon, WWF 12/2/1996 - FUN

This was Scorpios WWF debut using the terrible Flash Funk gimmick. Nowadays I imagine a guy with spectacular highspots making his debut would just eat the other guy up busting out all his stuff, but here the Goon controls a bit while Scorpio gradually does his stuff. The Goon who looks like some bush league indy dude in his hockey gear has some fun brawling, a nice bump through the ropes and a really nice posting. And Scorpio was pretty much the most spectacular guy in the world in 1996, really busting out complicated dives and rollups on a different level. And because of the match layout he gets over as more than a highspot machine. Fun match despite the unfortunate gimmick.

2 Cold Scorpio Documentation Project 

RIP The Patriot

  The Patriot vs. Bret Hart, WWF 9/7/1997

 This is a classic heel champ working around a cookie cutter babyface match with Hart doing an excellent job making everyone think The Patriot was gonna take the title. I am guessing the idea behind the masked Patriot was that he represents an everyman, and he has pretty fun everyman offense in armdrags and a really nice dropkick. The opening going was well laid out and the action solid, but inconsequential (some limb work that doesn't go anywhere). The heartpiece was the finishing stretch laid out around Patriot getting nearfalls with Bret hanging on by a threat and some shenanigans happening. I am sure those nearfalls stayed in peoples minds in 1997 and I loved the finish where the Patriot gets cocky enough to put Harts own move on him only for Bret to defeat him on a technicality.

The Patriot & Vader vs. Bret Hart & British Bulldog, WWF 10/5/1997

I don't remember Vader being this patriotic guy, but he is definitely somebody you want backing you up when the honor of your country is at stake. This was a flag match but there are pins and submissions, but we at least get the cool visuals of guys breaking their flags over each others heads. Vader is great here backing up the Patriot, coming in to take people out with big body checks and punches. He also has this insane moment where he goes for his moonsault and lands on his feet then beats the shit out of Davey Boy some more. The match could've used a better structure, Hart Foundation where making cutoffs and trying to isolate the faces but it never really came together for a proper FIP section, and what a weird thing for a match involving a character as southern fried as The Patriot to not be a southern tag,  but what we got was pretty fun.

The Patriot & Kenta Kobashi vs. Mitsuharu Misawa & Jun Akiyama, AJPW 11/22/1996

It's an AJPW pillars tag baby, so you get the usual cool strike exchanges plus the fun novelty of having The Patriot slotted into the format. You won't get neck chops or martial arts kicks from The Patriot but he is really fun doing his shoulderblocks and clotheslines and dropkicks with real Oomph behind them to fit into the match. I loved the constant teasing and countering of the Full Nelson Slam, and how they protected the move. Great finishing stretch with Patriot first working some pretty complex exchanges with Misawa and Akiyama before some baller nearfalls happen and The Patriot ends up falling victim to the usual Misawa helping out his junior partner shenanigans. You can totally tell when the crowd really catches on fire for this match and it's really fun to watch.