Clips of the 9/26 PPV begin the show. The two main stories are Mr. Gannosuke being fired for attacking President Arai and Kodo Fuyuki successfully defending his WEW World Title in an Iron Man Match against Hayabusa, the match ending in a 3-3 draw at 60:00.

Chocoball Mukai & Satoru Makita vs. Naohiro Yamazaki & Tomokazu Morita

Like the match involving rookies last month, this is basic as anything. Chocoball and Yamazaki aren't rookies anymore and Yamazaki has improved quite a lot. The main attacking spot the rookies use is a dropkick, which sums up the excitement level of the match. Makita does an awkward sequence of near falls with an inside cradle and a backslide. Chocoball hits Morita with a kneel kick, then a Fisherman's suplex hold for the win (9:55). None of the rookies really showed anything besides the early basics, though were barely two months into their careers. FMW desperately needs some new good workers, so hopefully at least one of these can rise to a good level.
[*]

The FMW PBP guy arrives late and parks his car. He forgets to lock the door. Uh oh!

Jado vs. Shinjuku Shark

Since Gedo has a big singles match tonight, Jado has to be put somewhere. This match screams "filler". Jado controls the match until Shark locks on a Cobra Twist. Jado escapes with a hiptoss, ducks a boxing punch, then drops Shark with a backdrop suplex. He throws some chops, before Shark comes back with his horrible boxing punches. He hits an avalanche-style Frankensteiner for just 1 1/2. He drops a moonsault press, but Jado gets the knees up. Jado powerbomb's Shark and goes straight from that into a crossface hold, Shark tapping (3:32). This wasn't horrible for the time given, thanks to Jado (he had most of the offense and supplied the basic intangibles), but wasn't close to good either.
[1/2*]

Kyoko Inoue & Flying Kid Ichihara vs. Azusa Kudo & Emi Motokawa

Kudo and Kyoko do some comedy early on. Kyoko ducks a lariat and for some reason she and Kudo stop and just start laughing. Kyoko ducks a double lariat and slaps both Kudo and Emi. She lures them into her corner, Ichihara coming off the top with a crossbody to both. Kyoko drops a falling body press, Emi bridging out of the cover with grace. She misses a dropkick, allowing Kyoko to clamp on a camel clutch. Ichihara is tagged in and hits Emi with a somersault senton for 2. He dropkick's a knee and goes straight to a figure-four leglock, Kudo entering and kissing Ichihara to break it. Yikes. Ichihara uses a double boot scrape on Emi and actually gets heat from the deader-than-WCW FMW crowd. He lands a moonsault press from the second buckle for 2. Kyoko sits Emi on her shoulders and Ichihara goes up top. Kyoko ventures too close to Flying Kid because Emi slaps him. She backflip's off Kyoko's shoulders and takes her down (almost reverse Frankensteiner-like), cradling for 2. Kudo is tagged and hits Kyoko with a low blow... and she sells it! Kyoko loses her temper and murders Kudo with two lariats. Emi connects with a missile dropkick to Ichihara and then they go to another comedy spot. They do a four way waistlock (as if going for a quadruple German suplex) with go-arounds. Eventually, Kyoko (at the front) inches to the ropes and it looks like they're doing a party train. Pretty funny. Emi hits Ichihara with an avalanche-style Frankensteiner for 2. She drops down as Ichihara springs off the ropes, Kudo entering with a slingshot shoulderblock. Kudo catapult's Emi into an attempted Frankensteiner to Kyoko, but they totally screw that up. Ichihara hits Kudo with a quebrada press for 2. A moonsault press gets the same result. Kudo avoids a second, then brings Flying Kid off the top with a somersault neckbreaker for the win (9:26). Kyoko and Emi shake hands after the match. This was better than I expected. These intergender matches are usually terrible. But in this case, Kyoko and Emi are good enough, Ichihara is okay and Kudo is awful, but didn't do much. They did some funny comedy too. The blown spot near the end was bad.
[*1/2]

The unemployed Mr. Gannosuke inspects the announcer guy's car. He breaks a windscreen and then opens a door. He pulls out a set of golf clubs and proceeds to smash up the car. The morale of the story? Lock the door!

Tetsuhiro Kuroda vs. Gedo

Gedo is in amazingly great shape nowadays. Kuroda has a bandaged leg and ribs. They shake hands and go to the action. Kuroda sends Gedo out early with a lariat. Kaori Nakayama gets on the apron with her cane, trying to distract Kuroda. Gedo sneaks in from the other side, but Kuroda turns and Gedo rushes straight back out. Kuroda chases and throws Gedo into the crowd. He hits a DDT to Gedo in the bleachers, then runs across Korakuen Hall. With a huge run up, he decks Gedo with a lariat. Back in the ring, Gedo ties Kuroda to the tree of woe. Then in a really cool spot, Gedo tries a sliding dropkick, but Kuroda pulls himself up and Gedo goes groin-first into the ring post at a SCARY speed. Kuroda smacks Gedo's leg around the post and stays on it with a figure-four leglock. Kuroda throws another running lariat for 2 3/4. He runs into a boot and Gedo surprises him with a crucifix cradle for 2. He follows with a hurricanrana, Kuroda countering the cradle with a sunset flip for 2, Gedo escaping and instantly using a jackknife hold for 2! Both get up and Kuroda sends Gedo straight back down with a lariat. Kaori trips Kuroda and Gedo uses the Gedo clutch for 2 3/4! A dropkick sends Kuroda out, but Gedo misses the follow up pescado as Kuroda slides back in under him. Gedo climbs to the apron, blocks a lariat, then drops Kuroda throat-first on the top rope. Gedo goes up and hits a great Superfly splash for 2 1/2! He charges Kuroda, but gets sent into the middle turnbuckle with a drop toehold. A big lariat from Kuroda gets 2 3/4! Gedo flips out a German suplex and blocks a lariat, but Kuroda spins around and kills Gedo with a short lariat for 2 1/2. Kuroda stomps the boot and hits a running lariat, but Mr. Gannosuke has arrived and is distracting the referee. Kaori canes Kuroda and then canes Gannosuke! Gannosuke is too strong though and stomps her, taking the cane. Kuroda goes over to take a look and gets caned in the head, Gedo covering for the upset win (10:23). This rocked for the time given. They crammed tons of action into it and had some fluid sequences and reversals. Gedo is quite the great worker when he wants to be, busting out a good moveset here. Even though, in the end, this match was just used to build to Gannosuke vs. Kuroda at the big November PPV, it was good stuff.
[**1/2]

Gannosuke hits Kuroda with a lariat after the match and puts him in a Scorpion Deathlock. Kuroda taps out frantically and all the rookies/ring boys have to pull them apart. President Arai (who's looking rather evil these days, as opposed to the timid like he used to be) arrives and Gannosuke attacks him, just like last month. They do a long post-match promo, Arai setting up Gannosuke vs. Kuroda for 11/12/00 PPV. No, Gannosuke isn't fired now, but something more important will be on the line in the match. His career! The intermission kicks in, which means clips from spot shows. Firstly, Kuroda vs. Chocoball Mukai from 10/7 (in front of a crowd that is dead even by FMW standards). Gannosuke trips Kuroda and smashes a chair over his head. Chocoball rolls up Kuroda for a shocking win. Kuroda is very pissed off at losing to the glorified jobber and attacks Gannosuke, the two brawling around the building. From the same day, in what probably ruled, Hayabusa & Masato Tanaka battle Kodo Fuyuki & Kintaro Kanemura (I don't know if they call themselves The New Footloose anymore). An unmasked Hayabusa pins Kanemura with a firebird splash. On 7/28/00, NOAH's Masao Inoue & Yoshinobu Kanemaru beat Jado & Gedo for the WEW Tag Team Title. In an embarrassing situation for FMW, Tamon Honda and Naomichi Marufuji beat that team for the titles on 10/22/00, in NOAH. This was embarrassing, because FMW's tag belts (which are treated with importance in FMW, at least one main eventer usually holding half) were being tossed around on the NOAH undercard. So a match was set up for this PPV, with presumably an FMW team taking them back.

Tamon Honda & Naomichi Marufuji (c) vs. Hisakatsu Oya & Ricky Fuji for the WEW Tag Team Title

Tomomi Tanimoto sings Oya out to the ring, reciting a very catchy song. Team NOAH gets a good reaction. Marufuji and Fuji start, doing some matwork, Marufuji flipping out of holds and what not. He nicely flips out of a headscissors takeover attempt. Fuji sends Marufuji out with a dropkick and follows with a sort-of-tope suicida. Honda and Oya are tagged, Oya taking the big man down with a ground Cobra Twist for 2. Honda ducks an enzuigiri and lariat's Oya down. Team FMW grasp control, beating up Marufuji. Oya folds Marufuji up with a backdrop suplex for 2, Honda saving. Marufuji flips out of a backbreaker attempt and hits a swinging neckbreaker. He connects with a beautiful dropkick and Honda is tagged. Headbutts for everyone from Headbutt Honda. A falling headbutt to Oya gets 2. Marufuji comes in with a delayed missile dropkick, then a hurricanrana to Fuji for 2! He goes up and hits a frog splash for 2 1/2! Fuji dropkick's Marufuji into another of Oya's deadly backdrop suplexes. Ricky drops him with a brainbuster for 2 3/4, and hey, the fans are actually responding! Honda sneaks up behind Fuji and KILLS HIM DEAD with a high-angle release German suplex... Dead End! Marufuji decks Fuji with a running elbow and climbs the turnbuckles. SHIRANUI! Stick a fork in Fuji, he's done. Marufuji covers for the win and successful defense (9:46). I was sure Fuyuki would book the titles home to FMW, but he and Kuroda went and took them from Honda and Marufuji on 12/23/00. Does ANYONE in wrestling get more hang-time than Marufuji. Good lord, he's amazing. This was a pretty decent match. Even Honda wasn't bad, because his involvement was kept down to his big moves. Oya seems to have slowed down quite a lot, not looking like the awesome worker he once was. But this was decent, Marufuji the definite star.
[**]

Some junk backstage with Shinjuku Shark, Flying Kid Ichihara and the brainless valets. Pushing and shoving occurs, people arriving to restrain them.

Masato Tanaka, Hideki Hosaka & Mammoth Sasaki vs. Kintaro Kanemura, Supreme & Homeless Jimmy

My least favorite promotion, XPW, in FMW! Hosaka and Sasaki left Shin Fuyuki-gun after a falling out with Kanemura at the last PPV, so are faces again. Tokyo Korakuen Hall stands and dances with "Mr. Hardcore" Kintaro Kanemura. Hilariously, during the ring intros, the camera focuses on the wrong XPW guys as they're announced. So fat pig Supreme is homeless and Homeless Jimmy is fat pig Supreme. Tanaka has protective head gear on, after getting a really serious cut on his skull. They go straight to a brawl, fighting all over the place. Tanaka and Kanemura have one of their typically good sequences to start, ducking and dodging. Kanemura jumps off the top and catches Tanaka in mid-air with a DDT! Tanaka then leaps off the second buckle, drilling Kanemura down with a swinging DDT. Tanaka is backdropped out and Kanemura follows with a FAT MAN TOPE SUICIDA! Kanemura gets a table out. In the ring, Supreme throws some god awful lariats at Hosaka. Hosaka fires back with a Samoan drop, then hits his own tope suicida to Supreme outside. Jimmy hits Sasaki with a trash can, but then gets said can kicked in his face. Sasaki puts the trash can over Jimmy's head and punches it. Sasaki puts Jimmy through a table on the outside with a nodowa off the apron! Tanaka is lay on a table outside, Supreme jumping off the top with a half-body press (lands on his feet) and putting Tanaka through the table. Tanaka and Supreme fight backstage, Tanaka landing a chairshot. Kanemura bleeds heavily. Jimmy shows his skills with a diving lariat, a dropkick and a kneel kick to Sasaki. Hosaka Frankensteiner's Kanemura off the top and through a table outside! This looks incredible, since Hosaka isn't exactly a cruiserweight. He seems to have legitimately hurt himself though. Supreme hits everyone with a wooden board. All three babyfaces are sent into each other and then DDT'd. Supreme keeps shouting "fuck you!" at everyone.

Hosaka hits Kanemura with a Liger bomb, Sasaki following with a legdrop and then Tanaka with a diving body press (all consecutively) for 2 3/4! The Diamond Dust from Tanaka gets 2, Supreme saving. Kanemura plants Tanaka on his head with a release German suplex. Rather than do the defiant no-sell, Tanaka just falls back into the ropes, dazed. Tanaka and Kanemura do a ton of reversals and counters after Tanaka goes for a rolling elbow, leading to a Kanemura backslide for 2 1/2. Hosaka hits Kanemura with a Frankensteiner, then puts a chair on his head. Sasaki hits it with another chair and Tanaka smashes Kanemura with an elbow for the win (14:59). This wasn't bad, believe it or not. Supreme is absolutely horrible, but was kept out for much of the match. Jimmy seems pretty decent in his role, since he's a crazy bumper, so he serves a purpose in these type of matches. Tanaka and Kanemura were obviously the best, their stuff together just great, since they know each other so well (anyone want to count how many times they've wrestled with each other? Thought not). Hosaka was also good, looking quite better than he has in the past and having a new badass look to go with it. There was too much mindless brawling, but they put together some decent sequences in between that. The XPW guys didn't really drag it down, aside from when Supreme was in the ring. Jimmy has potential, but his body will probably break down if he keeps bumping around like that.
[*3/4]

Backstage, Kudo walks out of the ladies bathroom. This struck me as hilarious, even if a very basic joke (transvestite in ladies bathroom). And it's main event time...

Superstar Hayabusa & Onryo vs. Kodo Fuyuki & GOEMON

Fuyuki asks for a handshake, but jumps Hayabusa and tears off his elbow pads. By this time, Hayabusa's elbows are all but destroyed, requiring surgery, so this is disturbing. The heels cut open his elbows with a fork and then attack it! Onryo misses a pescado to Fuyuki outside and is lariated down. GOEMON uses his trusty fork on old friend-turned-enemy Hayabusa. Hayabusa tries a comeback with a quebrada senton (springboard twisting senton technically, I suppose) but a Lionsault finds only Fuyuki's knees. They stay on the bad elbows, Fuyuki using a cross armbreaker. Hayabusa flips out of a German suplex attempt from GOEMON, catching him with a high kick and Fuyuki with a backflip kick. The crazy Onryo is tagged and he arrives with a missile dropkick to Fuyuki. He hits GOEMON with a Frankensteiner, sending him out. Onryo follows with a FREAKING INSANE springboard tope con hilo! Back in, a jumping elbow (with a spectacular spin) gets 2. Fuyuki catches Onryo with a vicious running lariat for 2. A Fisherman's buster gets 2 1/2 as Shin Fuyuki-gun takes control again. GOEMON (the name of a famous Japanese thief, which this gimmick relates to) steals Hayabusa's Falcon Arrow, using it on Onryo for a 2 3/4 count. The heels hit Onryo with a superbomb for... 3? What the...? Fuyuki slaps the referee and the match continues. Either that was a horribly botched ending or Fuyuki decided "we don't want to end it yet!". I'm guessing the former. Fuyuki revs up and decks Onryo with his running lariat. He traps Onryo in the Stretch Plum, Hayabusa returning to save. GOEMON rushes Onryo, but gets powder in his eyes. Hayabusa is tagged and springboard's in with a lariat to GOEMON. He hits Fuyuki outside with a big quebrada! He clips GOEMON with a springboard kneel kick and then a delayed Falcon Arrow for 2 3/4! He goes up and hits the firebird splash, Fuyuki saving! Onryo and Fuyuki fight outside, Onryo getting powerbombed on the floor. GOEMON spits red mist into the eyes of Hayabusa and rolls him up for 2 3/4! Fuyuki gets a couple of near falls from a high-angle powerbomb and running lariat. GOEMON goes up, but Onryo throws a chair, stalling him.

Fuyuki uses a Northern Lights suplex hold(!) to Hayabusa for 2 1/2! Hayabusa ducks the running lariat and hits Fuyuki with a shotei. H Edge to Fuyuki! Hayabusa goes up and hits the firebird splash, pinning the WEW World Champion (16:40)! Fuyuki attacks Hayabusa's bad arms after the match, putting him in a cross armbreaker. Onryo saves and Hayabusa takes off his mask, cutting a promo and celebrating with fans to end the show. Hayabusa pinning Fuyuki was to set up their blowoff match in November, that being Hayabusa's final match before double elbow surgery. This was a good match, although as a main event was kind of disappointing. The botched 3 count was horrible. This just about ousted Kuroda vs. Gedo for match of the night, but only because it had a lot more time. Kuroda vs. Gedo was better for the time given. I'm actually slightly interested in watching Koji Nakagawa again, because his GOEMON gimmick is intriguing and refreshing. I admire Hayabusa for wrestling through the elbow pain and letting the heels add to it during the match. He has had so many serious injuries throughout the years, it's a miracle he's still wrestling. Onryo main eventing is also really cool. He may be small, but he's an interesting character and is a good wrestler.
[**1/2]

Overall:

This was basically a show to build to the major event next month. To make it a recommended show, it really needed a very good to excellent match. It didn't have one, although the PPV had a consistent rate of decency, even on the undercard. While it may seem like I'm setting a low standard, you must understand that these are FMW's only real TV outlet (they have a Samurai! TV show, but don't use it much), so have to do everything on each show. I wish FMW would stop doing the goofy backstage crap though, because it comes off looking bush league. Fuyuki's "entertainment wrestling" is bad and doesn't approach the stuff Go Ito was doing when he was head booker and when FMW did the whole ZEN thing, not to mention the legendary Street Fight days of FMW. All the heel/face turning seems to have killed most FMW crowds, which is sad too.

For more of Stuart's thoughts and opinions on puroresu, visit www.puroresufan.com

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