David Mitchell Don’t think he was unappreciated; I was a big mark for him. He was a heel who was obviously able to go. Not a lot of heels back then showed the kinda athleticism he did. Never cared for that JTex /Gary Hart angle though.
I cheered him because I NEVER saw a bad match from him!!! And I had only saw him in WcW, and he is STILL one of my top 5 favorite wrestlers of all time. He was just one helluva worker!
They were Some of the Best Matches of All Time. The Thunderdome Cage Match at Halloween Havoc 1989 was Absolutely Amazing! Sting and Ric Flair vs Great Muta and Terry Funk.
The talent and persona was there for him to be whatever was needed. Ninja's were red-hot back then, it would have been a massive face gimmick. Think of the merch they passed up on!
@@Soulmaestro2088 Ninja masks w/WCW logos prolly would have cost less than a quarter to manufacture & ship in the mid 80s, and would have sold for at least 4.99!
Great Muta was the slickest. I always loved Muta's whole entrance gear get-up since he looked like a GI Joe character to me as a kid and that moonsault looked especially vicious with how he'd execute it. This also reminds me of that time Tenryu and Great Kabuki randomly appeared in the WWF at the Royal Rumble to help kick the shit out of Undertaker.
I remember when Muta won the Battlebowl at Starrcade '92. It almost looked like he got spooked when all the pyro starting going off after he won. I loved Muta as a kid. He didn't need to speak English. He was really cool, and had great matches with everybody. I had just started watching wrestling at about a year before, and was unfamiliar with Muta at the time, but I was still excited when he won.
It would've worked man, i remember that summer of both 1989 and 1990. The Great Muta was friggin over and thensome! And he was doing stuff in the ring which was super unique, his long win streak and feud with Sting made him a household name at the time. Sure when you describe it like that we've seen Muta's style stuff since then millions of times its no longer unique. But in 1989/90 spitting green and red mist, the moonsault, Japanese strong-style with great technical wrestling from the orient and the facepaint. Made him monster huge at the time however! And once again feuding with Sting? Trust me it would've worked had NWA/WCW done it at the time.
It could have worked, for maybe a month. The tricky part is how everything about his look and appeal screams heel, but somehow little kids are supposed to look up to him? He looks awesome, but if Cornette doesn't even like the idea of putting a belt on him, then it's all for the best that he had a great career in Japan.
@@shindean *The tricky part is how everything about his look and appeal screams heel, but somehow little kids are supposed to look up to him?* ^Same thing can be said about the runs of guys like; The Undertaker, Kane, Cactus Jack, Kevin Nash's "Diesel", Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock so on. All were heels before their big dramatic babyface turn because fans actually cheers for them outright! They didn't visually look like babyfaces at all, but their huge popularity with fans of wrestling allowed them to become babyfaces due to massive crowd support and reactions in and out of the ring over time!
@@MGSBigBoss77 So basically you picked the company that has made wrestlers into products? Yokozuna was as close to a Muta gimmick as WWE allowed, and his biggest title run was losing it almost as soon as he won the belt. They don't have the imagination to give Muta anything that resembled his career in Japan.
I play bass in a metal tribute band. One year we did a Halloween show where we just did a bunch of Halloween themed metal songs from different bands. My character was already heavily influenced by wrestling. As I browsed the Halloween store, I was tempted to buy blood capsules to spit blood on stage. But then I thought “Gene Simmons does that in Kiss.” And since I painted my face too (inspired by Sting), I said no to the blood. So I started thinking. What else could I do? Then it hit me. Muta! I immediately googled how Muta did the mist. It was food coloring. He poured it into empty capsules. I bought everything I needed. I put the capsules in my mouth. I bit and spit. The stream that came out was weak. Nowhere near Mutas. So then I thought … wait. I’m not a wrestler. I don’t need to hide this so tightly. I made the food coloring. I put it in a Poland Spring bottle. I drank a Heineken at the show. I poured the food coloring into the beer bottle. I left the bottle on stage. I sipped it at the right time. Then I spit it out all over the front row.
There is one very simple thing that everyone just forgets/ignores, and that is he was ON LOAN from NJPW for ONE YEAR. He was going back there no matter what, so why would WCW make a guy who was 100% leaving in to their world champion?
Muta was a favorite of mine back then, I remember that Starcade (89' Future Shock), it was the first nwa/wcw ppv i ever watched. I use to spit water mist at my little brother when we were kids lol.
I am a wrestling fan since 1989. When the Great Muta joined Gary Hart's J-Tex Corporation (Terry Funk, Dragon Master, later Buzz Sawyer) i was so amazed by his moonsault and his other abilities! He definetly would have deserved at least one title run...! And watching him spitting out the green mist was pretty impressive and scary for me back then (i was 15 then)! :)
To me it wouldn't have mattered if MUTA was heel or babyface. The first match he had in WCW he was immediately over with the fans. When he was feuding with STING, he had just as much fans than STING.
@prowlifik Does that include having the right to put yourself above other peoples opinions because you have watched it longer? I'm certain I have seen more Puroresu matches than you. Doesn't mean I can tell you that your opinion means less.
When I was a kid, Muta was one of maybe 2 or 3 guys that I believed could actually take Sting out. It seemed that the crowd saw him as a threat to the Stinger, as well. Their chemistry in the ring prolly made it better, too. ✌💙🐔
Jim does have a point about a "face" Muta as world champ not being able to cut a promo being of the language barrier. Then again, Yokozuna (even though a heel at the time) was a dominant world champion for one yr & barely said anything besides "bonsai". The challenge would have been finding a credible "face" manager. It's sad to know that he could have made millions in possible merchandising in the U.S. because he was underused toward the end of his initial run. He should have received the "Steamboat" championship treatment in the NWA.
Another thing to keep in mind is Muta/Keiji Mutoh was on his excursion. Many NJPW Young Lions have excursions of 2-5 years (see Hiromu, Sho/Yoh and Okada). Muta's time was most likely up in the states as NJ felt he was ready for the main event spot.
He was the best athlete that was way before his time. His athleticism sold him regardless if he was face or heel; he just had that ora about him. He also had a gentleman's reputation outside the ring and carried himself with class. Yes, l met him one time at an old WCW show in Daytona. Great person!!! His dad was a legend also; The Great Kabuki. The lineage itself with that sold.
I am just so happy that more wrestlers are taking his moves and doing his mist. When I saw Asuka do it for the first time, the biggest charlie brown smile came over me while the Muta theme played in my mind. I never wished for Muta to be a huge hit in the states because he's so amazing in Japan, you just got to appreciate some wrestlers for who they were instead of what they could've been.
Hogan work was underrated because of the different styles. They (WWF) didn't want Hogan going 30 minutes anymore than they wanted the Sheepherders having a bloodbath.
Muta's matches were great for three reasons IMO: 1.He was smooth, quick, and agile with great moves, 2.He knew how to actually work a match (working on body parts, etc.), and 3.He had a lot of different types of matches. He had a few finishers other than just the moonsault. He did not always have to do the same moves.
Great Muta if booked right, could have been as great as Anybody all time. He was a great in ring talent, his gimmick was cool, his image was pleasant, all he needed was a great babyface manager and the mega push.
I mean...he was in his second run in 93. He had a HUGE following in the pro wrestling demographic for African-Americans due to films like Bruce Lee and The Last Dragon.
Muta having a comic book? Genius! Why the hell would Gary Hart talk him out of it? Hart took the hit and lost his job the night the Free birds turned on the Von Erichs but look how that feud turned out.
@ I swear I heard somewhere that the night the Freebirds turned on Kerry (which was Harts decision to do) he was let go. But I recall him continuing to work with Fritz and he had a great run there. I sure do miss World Class.
I didn't understand WCW until well after the Wrestlemania hype and Sports Illustrated coverage in the mid-1980's, but they had all the best exotics! When I saw Muta, Buzz Sawyer, The Road Warriors and Sting, I was hooked. Facepaint=Wrestling!!
I keep staring at the art, with the kanji on their faces clearly being one symbol that's been flipped around. I like to think the flipped one inadvertently means something funny/dirty.
I understand Cornette saying he wouldn't put the belt on Muta bc TGM didn't know English or at the least it wasn't great. I kind of think that's more of a reason bc he's something at that point that none of us as fans had ever seen before. His mysteriousness (word?) etc is what could've worked & even though he couldn't joust verbally, I'm sure there was middle ground somewhere. Add The Great Muta to one of the MANY missteps & bed shits early 90s wCw had. As a fan, fantasy booking wise, I thought Cornette was gonna say it but that's not the direction it went in. But Fantasy Booking wise, they didn't have to turn Luger face. At that time, Luger was doing good as a heel. I wonder why they didn't go the "Nikita Koloff & Magnum TA" route. And have Muta step up in Sting's place bc of the respect gained from their rivalry. We saw Flair vs Luger a lot by then. Muta could've been a guy put in there to challenge Flair, and considering his wanting to keep his promise to Sting, Muta would've just competed until Sting was healthy. And those Muta vs Flair matches would've been great.
I completely agree! And it would have worked. I was young when Muta had that original WCW run. I was 9 or 10, and Muta actually freaked me out! But I still liked watching him. Especially against Sting. Loved the green mist, the creepy make-up, especially when it was mostly white, his style, etc. SO much merch could have been made and it totally would have sold. Imagine a WCW Galoob figure of Muta? T-shirts, toys, posters, Mist-in-a-can to play The Great Muta at home! Haha WCW dropped the ball. And the word you were looking for was "mystique" lol. And he definitely had it!
@@GLITZandGLOOM I was openly questioning myself on whether "mysteriousness" was a word, while also seeing if someone could confirm or deny it LOL I'll go w/ mystique I guess. You & I were around the same age during his 1st wCw run. The fans were ready for him to be a good guy. IDC what the excuses are, Flair/4h turn, whatever, fans were behind Muta. We were ready & wanted him to turn. When he was heel w/ Gary Hart, I found myself rooting for him against Sting. Like in the match for the TV belt, I'm like "his shoulder was up" LOL We all would've embraced him. Gary Hart (RIP), you know you were trying to continue getting the 💰 LOL. We understand. Sting was their guy of the future and I understand that. And I get Muta didn't have great English, but its not like Sting was dropping GREAT PROMOS left & right. Lets be honest. Idk if his promos were ever good until LATE in his career. Bc in the 80's to mid 90s, Sting was leaving things to be desired w/ his promo skills. When did Sting get over? Hmmm... WHEN HE DIDN'T TALK AT ALL. Who's that sound like from 89-90?!? I don't wanna hear about English, man. They were about to lose my all time favorite team, The Road Warriors soon, Sting was out, Luger was a good heel..DID I MENTION LOD WAS LEAVING? Gary Hart could've passed as a Paul Ellering face mgr type & spoke for him if told to do so. Ellering talked the same as a good guy manager as he did as a heel manager. FLAIR WAS LEAVING SOON. wCw f****d up. Muta was box office
@@PontFlair nah, don't be sorry haha. I love when fans are passionate about the product. It's fun for us fans to talk to one another. It's more fun than simply saying, "WCW sucks!" or "WWF sucks", "Cena sucks!", etc. People can feel however they want, but explain WHY. Fantasy bookings, they should have done THIS instead of THAT, and just ranting and raving about what we love... Pro wrestling!
@@GLITZandGLOOM legit I see people explain their name calling of others better than points they're making sometimes. Gets crazy on here LOL All I'm saying is Muta had everything it took to be, what's Vinnie Mac say, a "superstar". This is the guy. wCw was afraid bc of old time thinking. Foreigners are bad. JR thought outside the box, good on him. He's the greatest commentator I ever heard & he was using the thinker on this one. Gary Hart was wheeling & dealing too LOL I wonder, if Muta went back to Japan, that means Gary Hart's wCw time probably ended around that time too. A Paul Ellering situation w/ a face Muta would've kept him around longer I would assume. Seems like he didn't fully think that out. Muta as a good guy though, especially w/ how wCw would change in 90-91, might have helped. Ugh wCw, damn it smh
One possible way to switch The Great Muta Babyface would have been to team him up with the returning Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat. Those two would have made for an amazing tag team with Steamboat acting as the mouthpiece. However, I could see Muta eventually turning heel on Steamboat if the World Title were to enter the picture.
Muta was loved even when he was considered a heel... Remember RVD in WWE when he first came out? he was SUPPOSED to be part of the heel Invasion angle, he was CHEERED because he was RVD...
Muta in 88 showing up in the WWF would have been money. Have him be The Million Dollar Man insurance policy. Replace Andre with Muta and have mega bucks vs Mega Millions. Start the Angle with Muta spraying Liz in the eyes. Carry that program through Summer and finish it off with a SNME bout for the title. Ted gets pissed at Muta for losing and then he turns Babyface.
Muta was fully capable of it but in the mid 90s the only place they would've allowed him to do it was ECW. Vince is still stuck in that stereotypical Asian heel thing even in 2020 can't get Nakamura over, let alone back then. Pre-Bischoff WCW would be pretty much the same. And Bischoff, while forward thinking, wouldn't know how to utilize Muta and would just stick him with NWO..oh wait that already happened.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t WCW have a comic book that was published by Marvel during this time? I wonder if that’s why Jim mentioned Muta as a comic book character
Great Muta was never suppose to be a babyface though that is the point of Muta. He was always suppose to be intimating. And only got more scarier as he got older and eventually grew into legendary status where he was respected and cheered regardless.
This shows how much smarter Gary Hart was than JR: Gary knew 1) Flair was the top babyface and Sting was right behind him, so 2) his inability to cut a promo meant he'd never have that top spot, but 3) he could attain it as a heel and 3) the whole point of his WCW run was to position him to return home
Muta had a move set that made a 230 lb guy beating a 300 lb guy look believable to me as a kid. With his strikes, that round off elbow, and of course the moonsault, he could beat giants without ever having to lift them off their feet. I preferred WCW, but somebody like Ric Flair beating Hulk Hogan would have never been believable to me.
@@PontFlair I'd say it was the same gimmick, not similar. After all he is Kabuki's son (kayfabe). But in the ring you're right. Kabuki's not even close to Muta.
@@Rando1975 there were differences in their characters & I think the biggest difference was the style of wrestling. Even the way they acted during promos while Gary Hart talked his rap was different. Kabuki was more punchy & kicky, doing things here & there, at least from what I watched & for the time, that was fine. We see gimmicks etc evolve all the time, and although things may be the same or similar, sometimes guys just take it to a new level. Muta is the new level
@@Rando1975 had WWF at the time played the game right, I think Hakushi was a style similar to Muta. Almost "Muta light", but still had that mysterious thing going, mystique was a word given. I'm not an insider, but I think Hakushi was brought in bc TGM said no to WWF. And they dropped the ball w/ Hakushi. That guy had something
I don't doubt a part of it was Garry Hart not wanting Muta taken away from him but Garry Hart also Garry Hart wasn't stupid. He knew Muta would bomb as a face. Ofcourse everybody was going to cheer for the guy fight Ric and Arn after turning on Sting. They would have cheered The Dynamic Dudes. What about the next week and the week after that?
I imagine putting a top talker to speak for him, similar to what Paul does for Brock these days, would have further set him apart and made him a bigger attraction as a champ. Then again, it may just have turned a lot of people off that he didn't speak English for them.
Always stayed tuned when Muta was going to be featured, almost seemed like a WWF refuge,but a good one like Savage,Jake or Henning, the mist was still cool as shit, and if you were going to get a win, then you was gonna look like Oscar the Grouch on the way back to the shower
Regarding the "faces can't have managers" point, didn't the Road Warriors keep Paul Ellering as a manager after they became faces? I know Paul Bearer stuck with The Undertaker after he had an alignment change.
Muta vs Sting was always huge to me, no matter when or where.
Muta was always able to work both heel or face , successful all around the world ,first class talent 🤗
Underused & underapperatiated in the us
His style is emulated all over the world
David Mitchell
Don’t think he was unappreciated; I was a big mark for him. He was a heel who was obviously able to go. Not a lot of heels back then showed the kinda athleticism he did. Never cared for that JTex /Gary Hart angle though.
Think of how many “Great Muta Green” Blow Pops they could have sold..turns your tongue green. Huge miss there.
😄👌 genius!
THAT!!! I'd buy a case or two
Little kids spitting green juice at each other...
His wrestling was outta this world love his matches against sting and flair
Yes!!!
I cheered him because I NEVER saw a bad match from him!!! And I had only saw him in WcW, and he is STILL one of my top 5 favorite wrestlers of all time.
He was just one helluva worker!
They were Some of the Best Matches of All Time. The Thunderdome Cage Match at Halloween Havoc 1989 was Absolutely Amazing! Sting and Ric Flair vs Great Muta and Terry Funk.
Agree the best thing about Ja-Tex stable
You gotta watch his work in the 2000s with Kawada, Kojima, Tenryu, etc.
As well as the 90s matches with Hashimoto and Chono.
The talent and persona was there for him to be whatever was needed. Ninja's were red-hot back then, it would have been a massive face gimmick. Think of the merch they passed up on!
yet another merch factory that WCW passed up.
@@Soulmaestro2088 Ninja masks w/WCW logos prolly would have cost less than a quarter to manufacture & ship in the mid 80s, and would have sold for at least 4.99!
@@206WarEagle like I said they passed up on a major merch factory.
@prowlifik Mouthful of water and the green foodcolor dropper would work for mist... dont let Moms see it stain your gear though
@@206WarEagle sounds like youve tried the ole misting yourself haha it is a damn good idea for sure.
Great Muta was the slickest. I always loved Muta's whole entrance gear get-up since he looked like a GI Joe character to me as a kid and that moonsault looked especially vicious with how he'd execute it. This also reminds me of that time Tenryu and Great Kabuki randomly appeared in the WWF at the Royal Rumble to help kick the shit out of Undertaker.
I remember when Muta won the Battlebowl at Starrcade '92. It almost looked like he got spooked when all the pyro starting going off after he won. I loved Muta as a kid. He didn't need to speak English. He was really cool, and had great matches with everybody. I had just started watching wrestling at about a year before, and was unfamiliar with Muta at the time, but I was still excited when he won.
Great muta was so unique in 1989. Nobody was quite like him. Loved when he would do those round off into a back elbow in the corner.
I also like the way he would bounce off the ropes and drop the elbow super fast. He just made everything look cool.
Muta was a BAMF. He oozed charisma.
Most definitely
They could have printed money with face Muta! Comics, masks, other merch...endless possibilities. Looked and moved like a superhero
Great Muta was a total badass .
Was a big Muta fan as a little kid. Loved his matches with Sting. Face paint, mist, cool moves... would’ve got over pretty easy as a face
Muta was such a great star for WCW they didn't dropped ball on his face run as Jim was right this would've been big for everyone involved.
The Great Muta was one of the best things about wrestling in those days. I would have watched that guy wrestling an overcoat.
"The Latin Heartthrob" Al Perez was the cool one in Gary Hart's stable.
KoolBreez Andrade reminds me a lot of Al Perez
@@jasperdriver8546 💯
Al Perez was so dull he made Tim Horner look like Mick Jagger.
AL was a great guy in person to.
Muta held both the IWGP and NWA heavyweight titles
Muta beat Masahiro Chono to hold the belts
Muta was way ahead of the curve. Amazing talent.
Muta as a Babyface could've been money like someone else said cool moves mist and the paint, I'm not sure how it wouldn't have worked
Marcus Garrison in order for him to be champion he would have had to have a month piece with him
It would've worked man, i remember that summer of both 1989 and 1990. The Great Muta was friggin over and thensome! And he was doing stuff in the ring which was super unique, his long win streak and feud with Sting made him a household name at the time. Sure when you describe it like that we've seen Muta's style stuff since then millions of times its no longer unique. But in 1989/90 spitting green and red mist, the moonsault, Japanese strong-style with great technical wrestling from the orient and the facepaint. Made him monster huge at the time however! And once again feuding with Sting? Trust me it would've worked had NWA/WCW done it at the time.
It could have worked, for maybe a month. The tricky part is how everything about his look and appeal screams heel, but somehow little kids are supposed to look up to him? He looks awesome, but if Cornette doesn't even like the idea of putting a belt on him, then it's all for the best that he had a great career in Japan.
@@shindean *The tricky part is how everything about his look and appeal screams heel, but somehow little kids are supposed to look up to him?*
^Same thing can be said about the runs of guys like; The Undertaker, Kane, Cactus Jack, Kevin Nash's "Diesel", Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock so on. All were heels before their big dramatic babyface turn because fans actually cheers for them outright! They didn't visually look like babyfaces at all, but their huge popularity with fans of wrestling allowed them to become babyfaces due to massive crowd support and reactions in and out of the ring over time!
@@MGSBigBoss77 So basically you picked the company that has made wrestlers into products? Yokozuna was as close to a Muta gimmick as WWE allowed, and his biggest title run was losing it almost as soon as he won the belt.
They don't have the imagination to give Muta anything that resembled his career in Japan.
Jim Muta looks awesome. The Great Muta is a legend. Travis Heckel, you've done it again.
I play bass in a metal tribute band. One year we did a Halloween show where we just did a bunch of Halloween themed metal songs from different bands. My character was already heavily influenced by wrestling. As I browsed the Halloween store, I was tempted to buy blood capsules to spit blood on stage. But then I thought “Gene Simmons does that in Kiss.” And since I painted my face too (inspired by Sting), I said no to the blood. So I started thinking. What else could I do? Then it hit me. Muta! I immediately googled how Muta did the mist. It was food coloring. He poured it into empty capsules. I bought everything I needed.
I put the capsules in my mouth. I bit and spit.
The stream that came out was weak. Nowhere near Mutas. So then I thought … wait. I’m not a wrestler. I don’t need to hide this so tightly. I made the food coloring. I put it in a Poland Spring bottle. I drank a Heineken at the show. I poured the food coloring into the beer bottle. I left the bottle on stage. I sipped it at the right time. Then I spit it out all over the front row.
"Muta" had the greatest manager of all time Gary Hart
GARY WAS THE BEST.
Muta was over whether he was a heel or not. They could have done more with him for sure.
Jim with Muta facepaint is something I didn't know I wanted to see until now
Travis did a great job here.
He always does
Doesnt disappoint
Great Muta is one of the G.O.A.T s
The Japanese on the thumbnail translates to "Thank you, fuck you, bye" 😆
The thumbnails kill me
There is one very simple thing that everyone just forgets/ignores, and that is he was ON LOAN from NJPW for ONE YEAR. He was going back there no matter what, so why would WCW make a guy who was 100% leaving in to their world champion?
Muta was a favorite of mine back then, I remember that Starcade (89' Future Shock), it was the first nwa/wcw ppv i ever watched. I use to spit water mist at my little brother when we were kids lol.
the great muta is one of my favorite japanese wrestler of all time.one of the best worker ever.
The artwork 😂😂😂
I am a wrestling fan since 1989.
When the Great Muta joined Gary Hart's J-Tex Corporation (Terry Funk, Dragon Master, later Buzz Sawyer) i was so amazed by his moonsault and his other abilities!
He definetly would have deserved at least one title run...!
And watching him spitting out the green mist was pretty impressive and scary for me back then (i was 15 then)! :)
To me it wouldn't have mattered if MUTA was heel or babyface. The first match he had in WCW he was immediately over with the fans. When he was feuding with STING, he had just as much fans than STING.
My favorite wrestler of all time
@prowlifik true fans know how great he is
@prowlifik American fans went nuts when he won battlebowl in 92!
@prowlifik I know I'm subscribed to New Japan World!
@prowlifik U edgy real fans crack me up.
@prowlifik Does that include having the right to put yourself above other peoples opinions because you have watched it longer?
I'm certain I have seen more Puroresu matches than you.
Doesn't mean I can tell you that your opinion means less.
Muta would’ve been a marketing goldmine at the time
When I was a kid, Muta was one of maybe 2 or 3 guys that I believed could actually take Sting out. It seemed that the crowd saw him as a threat to the Stinger, as well. Their chemistry in the ring prolly made it better, too.
✌💙🐔
the best part of the artwork is Cornette still having his glasses on lol.
I don’t know who make theses graphics but they are awesome. I pee on myself now. So hilarious and awesome. 😂😂
Jim does have a point about a "face" Muta as world champ not being able to cut a promo being of the language barrier. Then again, Yokozuna (even though a heel at the time) was a dominant world champion for one yr & barely said anything besides "bonsai". The challenge would have been finding a credible "face" manager. It's sad to know that he could have made millions in possible merchandising in the U.S. because he was underused toward the end of his initial run. He should have received the "Steamboat" championship treatment in the NWA.
I remember seeing the Great Muta in Starrcade future shock where he lost to Sting, Ric Flair and Lex Luger in one night
I fucking hated that! I was a huge Muta fan & thought he would win the whole tournament. Boy, was I wrong!
which was some ol absolute bullshit.
Another thing to keep in mind is Muta/Keiji Mutoh was on his excursion. Many NJPW Young Lions have excursions of 2-5 years (see Hiromu, Sho/Yoh and Okada). Muta's time was most likely up in the states as NJ felt he was ready for the main event spot.
Yup, Muta's run in the early 90's said it all didn't it!
Probably the best excursion ever.
He was only 24 or 25 if I'm correct.
Chono did as well. He wrestled in Atlantic Grand Prix for a while as Tokyo Chono.
Crazy that there are so many what if scenarios during that time period.
lol, the "thank you fuck you bye" written in japanese in the background
He was the best athlete that was way before his time. His athleticism sold him regardless if he was face or heel; he just had that ora about him. He also had a gentleman's reputation outside the ring and carried himself with class. Yes, l met him one time at an old WCW show in Daytona. Great person!!! His dad was a legend also; The Great Kabuki. The lineage itself with that sold.
He's only Kabuki's kayfabe son.
Most graceful wrestler ever alongside Savage and Windham.
Great muta was similar to Superfly Jimmy snuka as Snuka was a heel in the WWF but was still cheered due to his talent and athleticism.
mutoh and kobashi are my two fav wrestlers of all time 👌
Chono > Kobashi
I prefer Misawa
@@danilopapais1464 Misawa is one of the all-time greats
I am just so happy that more wrestlers are taking his moves and doing his mist.
When I saw Asuka do it for the first time, the biggest charlie brown smile came over me while the Muta theme played in my mind.
I never wished for Muta to be a huge hit in the states because he's so amazing in Japan, you just got to appreciate some wrestlers for who they were instead of what they could've been.
I like the Mist too. I was a kid the first time seen the mist used. Kabuki spit mist on Jimmy Valiant at House show in Greenville.
Gary Hart CREATED Muta, just as he created Kabuki before that....
He was perfect as TV champ..him as face vs Anderson would have been money long term.
First time I ever saw the Great Muta he was introduced by and managed by Gary Hart and I have enjoyed watching Muta ever since then.
Muta was a face to me every time I ever watched him. I was always crestfallen when he wasn’t on.
Muta was one of WCW greatest assets. They didn't do right by him.
Sting and Muta as baby face tag team champs.
Best artwork yet
saw Muta go against Hogan in 92', great match!
It was in 1993, just before Hogan dropped the title to Yokozuna and left the WWF shortly thereafter.
OctoMan PC's The Great Kubuki vs Junkyard Dog .
@prowlifik HH was slim and moved like bret hart!
Hogan work was underrated because of the different styles.
They (WWF) didn't want Hogan going 30 minutes anymore than they wanted the Sheepherders having a bloodbath.
ruclips.net/video/rbpvttJc0Sk/видео.html
Best artwork yet!
Muta's matches were great for three reasons IMO:
1.He was smooth, quick, and agile with great moves,
2.He knew how to actually work a match (working on body parts, etc.), and
3.He had a lot of different types of matches. He had a few finishers other than just the moonsault. He did not always have to do the same moves.
Muta Lock, Figure 4, and his patented Shining Wizard
Great artwork as always
Muta by far 1 of the quickest transition wrestlers I seen he was like a cat not too many could keep up with his agility & speed
Great Muta if booked right, could have been as great as Anybody all time. He was a great in ring talent, his gimmick was cool, his image was pleasant, all he needed was a great babyface manager and the mega push.
As a babyface he couldn't have a maneger..... Says who ?
I mean...he was in his second run in 93. He had a HUGE following in the pro wrestling demographic for African-Americans due to films like Bruce Lee and The Last Dragon.
AT THIS TIME THERE WAS NO ONE BETTER THAN KENJI MUTA THE GREAT MUTA. I REMEMBER WHEN I GOT SOME PICTURE WITH HIM HE WAS LIKE A PIECE OF STEELE.
First rule of netiquette: Dont write in all caps.
Jim and brian, keep up the great work!!!👍
Muta Being Babyface Wouldve Been Crazy Especially The Merchandise Looking Back He Couldve Been World Champion Probadly Twice
Muta vs Masahiro Chono in the Tokyo Dome
The Mist, the Mist!
The Great Kubuki vs Junkyard Dog check it out . The greatest mist job .
Muta having a comic book? Genius! Why the hell would Gary Hart talk him out of it? Hart took the hit and lost his job the night the Free birds turned on the Von Erichs but look how that feud turned out.
@ I swear I heard somewhere that the night the Freebirds turned on Kerry (which was Harts decision to do) he was let go. But I recall him continuing to work with Fritz and he had a great run there. I sure do miss World Class.
Muta was a guy who was hard to have as a heel at all because he was so damn cool.
30 years later...Muta still is fucking cool
Muta/Mutoh is on my Mt.Rushmore.One of the best ever!!!
I didn't understand WCW until well after the Wrestlemania hype and Sports Illustrated coverage in the mid-1980's, but they had all the best exotics! When I saw Muta, Buzz Sawyer, The Road Warriors and Sting, I was hooked. Facepaint=Wrestling!!
I was 13 in '89 when Muta showed up and I was an instant fan even though I HATED Gary Hart. It would've worked, he was just too cool.
With all the martial arts movies back in the day dubyaceedubya missed the boat on this one.
I keep staring at the art, with the kanji on their faces clearly being one symbol that's been flipped around. I like to think the flipped one inadvertently means something funny/dirty.
I understand Cornette saying he wouldn't put the belt on Muta bc TGM didn't know English or at the least it wasn't great. I kind of think that's more of a reason bc he's something at that point that none of us as fans had ever seen before. His mysteriousness (word?) etc is what could've worked & even though he couldn't joust verbally, I'm sure there was middle ground somewhere.
Add The Great Muta to one of the MANY missteps & bed shits early 90s wCw had.
As a fan, fantasy booking wise, I thought Cornette was gonna say it but that's not the direction it went in. But Fantasy Booking wise, they didn't have to turn Luger face. At that time, Luger was doing good as a heel. I wonder why they didn't go the "Nikita Koloff & Magnum TA" route. And have Muta step up in Sting's place bc of the respect gained from their rivalry. We saw Flair vs Luger a lot by then.
Muta could've been a guy put in there to challenge Flair, and considering his wanting to keep his promise to Sting, Muta would've just competed until Sting was healthy.
And those Muta vs Flair matches would've been great.
I completely agree! And it would have worked. I was young when Muta had that original WCW run. I was 9 or 10, and Muta actually freaked me out! But I still liked watching him. Especially against Sting. Loved the green mist, the creepy make-up, especially when it was mostly white, his style, etc.
SO much merch could have been made and it totally would have sold. Imagine a WCW Galoob figure of Muta? T-shirts, toys, posters, Mist-in-a-can to play The Great Muta at home! Haha WCW dropped the ball.
And the word you were looking for was "mystique" lol. And he definitely had it!
@@GLITZandGLOOM I was openly questioning myself on whether "mysteriousness" was a word, while also seeing if someone could confirm or deny it LOL
I'll go w/ mystique I guess.
You & I were around the same age during his 1st wCw run. The fans were ready for him to be a good guy. IDC what the excuses are, Flair/4h turn, whatever, fans were behind Muta. We were ready & wanted him to turn.
When he was heel w/ Gary Hart, I found myself rooting for him against Sting. Like in the match for the TV belt, I'm like "his shoulder was up" LOL
We all would've embraced him.
Gary Hart (RIP), you know you were trying to continue getting the 💰 LOL. We understand.
Sting was their guy of the future and I understand that. And I get Muta didn't have great English, but its not like Sting was dropping GREAT PROMOS left & right. Lets be honest. Idk if his promos were ever good until LATE in his career. Bc in the 80's to mid 90s, Sting was leaving things to be desired w/ his promo skills.
When did Sting get over? Hmmm... WHEN HE DIDN'T TALK AT ALL. Who's that sound like from 89-90?!?
I don't wanna hear about English, man. They were about to lose my all time favorite team, The Road Warriors soon, Sting was out, Luger was a good heel..DID I MENTION LOD WAS LEAVING?
Gary Hart could've passed as a Paul Ellering face mgr type & spoke for him if told to do so. Ellering talked the same as a good guy manager as he did as a heel manager. FLAIR WAS LEAVING SOON. wCw f****d up.
Muta was box office
@@GLITZandGLOOM sorry about the long reply
@@PontFlair nah, don't be sorry haha. I love when fans are passionate about the product. It's fun for us fans to talk to one another. It's more fun than simply saying, "WCW sucks!" or "WWF sucks", "Cena sucks!", etc.
People can feel however they want, but explain WHY. Fantasy bookings, they should have done THIS instead of THAT, and just ranting and raving about what we love... Pro wrestling!
@@GLITZandGLOOM legit
I see people explain their name calling of others better than points they're making sometimes. Gets crazy on here LOL
All I'm saying is Muta had everything it took to be, what's Vinnie Mac say, a "superstar". This is the guy. wCw was afraid bc of old time thinking.
Foreigners are bad. JR thought outside the box, good on him. He's the greatest commentator I ever heard & he was using the thinker on this one.
Gary Hart was wheeling & dealing too LOL
I wonder, if Muta went back to Japan, that means Gary Hart's wCw time probably ended around that time too.
A Paul Ellering situation w/ a face Muta would've kept him around longer I would assume. Seems like he didn't fully think that out.
Muta as a good guy though, especially w/ how wCw would change in 90-91, might have helped.
Ugh wCw, damn it smh
That thumbnail is Gold!
has Muta ever had a bad match? like im dead ass serious. ive never seen a bad Great Muta match.
The first time I saw Muta was at Spring Stampede 94 against Steve Austin, that wasnt good.
That's all I got.
@@Millwall77 and honestly, I've seen that one a few times and actually thought it was pretty good. 🤷🏽♂️
One possible way to switch The Great Muta Babyface would have been to team him up with the returning Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat. Those two would have made for an amazing tag team with Steamboat acting as the mouthpiece. However, I could see Muta eventually turning heel on Steamboat if the World Title were to enter the picture.
Can you imagine him in 90's wwf against Bret, Shawn, Owen, Davey or Mr perfect?
Muta was loved even when he was considered a heel... Remember RVD in WWE when he first came out? he was SUPPOSED to be part of the heel Invasion angle, he was CHEERED because he was RVD...
Muta in 88 showing up in the WWF would have been money. Have him be The Million Dollar Man insurance policy. Replace Andre with Muta and have mega bucks vs Mega Millions. Start the Angle with Muta spraying Liz in the eyes. Carry that program through Summer and finish it off with a SNME bout for the title. Ted gets pissed at Muta for losing and then he turns Babyface.
Drummajortsu I love this
Muta vs savage
Mutoh was a babyface champion…in Japan!…🤣🤘🤘🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥👍✌️😎👺👺👹👹
Lol. The Japanese says, roughly: "Thank you. Fuck you. Bye."
Muta was fully capable of it but in the mid 90s the only place they would've allowed him to do it was ECW. Vince is still stuck in that stereotypical Asian heel thing even in 2020 can't get Nakamura over, let alone back then. Pre-Bischoff WCW would be pretty much the same. And Bischoff, while forward thinking, wouldn't know how to utilize Muta and would just stick him with NWO..oh wait that already happened.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t WCW have a comic book that was published by Marvel during this time? I wonder if that’s why Jim mentioned Muta as a comic book character
Great Muta was never suppose to be a babyface though that is the point of Muta. He was always suppose to be intimating. And only got more scarier as he got older and eventually grew into legendary status where he was respected and cheered regardless.
Loved Muta. Any reason why WWE hasn't put him in the HOF?
I think the main reason if because he never worked there. But that hasn't stopped them before.
This shows how much smarter Gary Hart was than JR: Gary knew 1) Flair was the top babyface and Sting was right behind him, so 2) his inability to cut a promo meant he'd never have that top spot, but 3) he could attain it as a heel and 3) the whole point of his WCW run was to position him to return home
Loved Muta!
That drawing lmfao
Same way I felt about 'Tajiri' if he waz a lil taller😔
Muta had a move set that made a 230 lb guy beating a 300 lb guy look believable to me as a kid. With his strikes, that round off elbow, and of course the moonsault, he could beat giants without ever having to lift them off their feet. I preferred WCW, but somebody like Ric Flair beating Hulk Hogan would have never been believable to me.
The Great Kubuki
Similar gimmick, maybe, in the ring though, Muta was WAY better.
@@PontFlair I'd say it was the same gimmick, not similar. After all he is Kabuki's son (kayfabe). But in the ring you're right. Kabuki's not even close to Muta.
@@Rando1975 there were differences in their characters & I think the biggest difference was the style of wrestling. Even the way they acted during promos while Gary Hart talked his rap was different.
Kabuki was more punchy & kicky, doing things here & there, at least from what I watched & for the time, that was fine.
We see gimmicks etc evolve all the time, and although things may be the same or similar, sometimes guys just take it to a new level.
Muta is the new level
@@Rando1975 had WWF at the time played the game right, I think Hakushi was a style similar to Muta. Almost "Muta light", but still had that mysterious thing going, mystique was a word given.
I'm not an insider, but I think Hakushi was brought in bc TGM said no to WWF.
And they dropped the ball w/ Hakushi. That guy had something
I don't doubt a part of it was Garry Hart not wanting Muta taken away from him but Garry Hart also Garry Hart wasn't stupid. He knew Muta would bomb as a face. Ofcourse everybody was going to cheer for the guy fight Ric and Arn after turning on Sting. They would have cheered The Dynamic Dudes. What about the next week and the week after that?
I imagine putting a top talker to speak for him, similar to what Paul does for Brock these days, would have further set him apart and made him a bigger attraction as a champ. Then again, it may just have turned a lot of people off that he didn't speak English for them.
Always stayed tuned when Muta was going to be featured, almost seemed like a WWF refuge,but a good one like Savage,Jake or Henning, the mist was still cool as shit, and if you were going to get a win, then you was gonna look like Oscar the Grouch on the way back to the shower
Hello from Baltimore
Regarding the "faces can't have managers" point, didn't the Road Warriors keep Paul Ellering as a manager after they became faces? I know Paul Bearer stuck with The Undertaker after he had an alignment change.