Jun Akiyama vs Mitsuharu Misawa
Champion Carnival 1994 Match
taped 03/19/1994, aired 03/20/1994
Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan
(reviewed 04/30/2024) Quick little match that illustrates just how flat and unreactive Mitsuharu Misawa is as a wrestler. Jun Akiyama is always the one pushing this match forward. When he applies the requisite rest holds that every AJPW youngster uses to contain a veteran opponent—thankfully with something more than a bunch of idle headlocks—Misawa counters with chanceries and chinlocks of his own, nothing any more incendiary. When Akiyama does coax more physicality out of Misawa with some spicy slaps it likewise doesn’t last, those aggressive elbows making way for his flippy R-Truth clothesline with all the intensity of a ‘08 Smackdown opener. Granted, part of why Akiyama seems like the more active participant of this match is that he’s the young guy shooting his shot but we see these listless performances in Misawa’s other matches against equals and veterans alike; nothing ever lights a fire under his ass, no matter how hard his opponents try. Couple of rolling elbows cut Akiyama down to size before a Tiger Driver picks up the win for the first time in a while. Winning with moves that regularly get kicked out of multiple times in bigger matches: definitely a sign you’re treating every night like an untelevised house show.
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