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Post by BakFu on Jun 11, 2022 12:59:18 GMT
Bam Bam and Vader are looking good! Vader’s steam blowing helmet was so bad ass, equally bad ass when Sakuraba used a shop class version of it for one of his entrances (I think Thunder Rosa should do a Sakuraba themed costume one of these days…).  If nothing else, for prosperity, it would be cool to see a commemorative art book put out with all of the fire pro illustrations through the years. Again, licensing, blah blah blah, probably couldn’t happen, but I’ll keep dreaming, anyway. 🙂 Can’t wait to see the scans, thanks for the early pics! |
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Post by Shadow Master on Jun 11, 2022 16:57:21 GMT
Sakuraba isn't the only Wrestler who's adopted tributes/parodies of Wrestling greats in the Wrestling world.
- Haru Ichiban - a comedian that parodied Antonio Inoki.
- Antonio Konoiki - a Wrestler from the Japanese West Gate parody promotion that also dressed up like Inoki.
- Koriki Choshu - a comical Riki Choshu impersonator also from West Gate.
- Kikutaro - notably parodied Keiji Mutoh and Jushin Liger.
- Abdullah Kobayashi - performed as Stan Hansen a number of times. Chaps and all.
- Keiji Mutoh - beyond Kikutaro, has another impersonator. The name of the Wrestler escapes me at the moment.
- The Great Kabuki - at the height of his fame, when the Great Kabuki couldn't Wrestle in a certain territory, it was said that Gary Hart allowed other
promotions to have Wrestlers dress up like the Kabuki for a fee.
Long before I started learning Japanese, it was the colourful illustrations from these guides that won me over.
An era in Japanese legal history where the likenesses were so spot on, players in the West wondered how HUMAN got away with such accuracy.
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Post by Staubhold on Jun 13, 2022 22:13:22 GMT
There are so many tributes/parodies of great wrestlers. Many knock-offs use it to screw fans over. Chinsuke Nakamura
One Warrior Nation
Alabama Doink
There are so many Doinks wrestling in the backyard/indy scene
Dick Foley
Macho Warrior Ric Hogan
...and I love this jobber: Randy Hogan
Randymania running wild! Is that the reverse of this topic? Video game character in wrestling? Starman
Wolf Hawkfield
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Post by patmanqc on Jun 14, 2022 16:17:41 GMT
Sakuraba isn't the only Wrestler who's adopted tributes/parodies of Wrestling greats in the Wrestling world. - Haru Ichiban - a comedian that parodied Antonio Inoki. - Antonio Konoiki - a Wrestler from the Japanese West Gate parody promotion that also dressed up like Inoki. - Koriki Choshu - a comical Riki Choshu impersonator also from West Gate. - Kikutaro - notably parodied Keiji Mutoh and Jushin Liger. - Abdullah Kobayashi - performed as Stan Hansen a number of times. Chaps and all. - Keiji Mutoh - beyond Kikutaro, has another impersonator. The name of the Wrestler escapes me at the moment. - The Great Kabuki - at the height of his fame, when the Great Kabuki couldn't Wrestle in a certain territory, it was said that Gary Hart allowed other promotions to have Wrestlers dress up like the Kabuki for a fee. Long before I started learning Japanese, it was the colourful illustrations from these guides that won me over. An era in Japanese legal history where the likenesses were so spot on, players in the West wondered how HUMAN got away with such accuracy. Did Gary Hart own the great kabuki gimmick? |
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Post by Shadow Master on Jun 15, 2022 5:48:56 GMT
Sakuraba isn't the only Wrestler who's adopted tributes/parodies of Wrestling greats in the Wrestling world. - Haru Ichiban - a comedian that parodied Antonio Inoki. - Antonio Konoiki - a Wrestler from the Japanese West Gate parody promotion that also dressed up like Inoki. - Koriki Choshu - a comical Riki Choshu impersonator also from West Gate. - Kikutaro - notably parodied Keiji Mutoh and Jushin Liger. - Abdullah Kobayashi - performed as Stan Hansen a number of times. Chaps and all. - Keiji Mutoh - beyond Kikutaro, has another impersonator. The name of the Wrestler escapes me at the moment. - The Great Kabuki - at the height of his fame, when the Great Kabuki couldn't Wrestle in a certain territory, it was said that Gary Hart allowed other promotions to have Wrestlers dress up like the Kabuki for a fee. Long before I started learning Japanese, it was the colourful illustrations from these guides that won me over. An era in Japanese legal history where the likenesses were so spot on, players in the West wondered how HUMAN got away with such accuracy. Did Gary Hart own the great kabuki gimmick? Gary Hart certainly came up with the gimmick. In fact, The Great Kabuki was originally called "Kabuki" (as far back as 1981 when Kabuki made his debut in the Georgia territory). Here's a bit of text from prowrestlingstories.com:
"Kabuki was so over at one point that Gary Hart worked out a special contract that had another wrestler appearing under the gimmick when Hart and Kabuki were double-booked in different cities. Kazuharu Sonoda, who wrestled as the Magic Dragon and teamed with Kabuki at one time, had the gimmick down so good that, as long as no-one saw his face beyond the hair, the difference was negligible. Chances are very good that if you saw The Great Kabuki wrestle without Gary Hart in his corner in the early ’80s, it was Sonoda working in his stead."
So, it would seem Hart had enough pull to lend out the gimmick in the 80's. |
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Post by kokushishin on Jun 15, 2022 14:04:31 GMT
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Post by Shadow Master on Jun 15, 2022 15:19:26 GMT
Thanks for sharing. Never heard of this game until now. Based on the trailer, I picked out: Masaharu Takahara - a fighter striving to be the best. The Japanese poster boy with a red bandana. Ryu perhaps? Seishi Moribe - based on real-life Koppo legend Sensei Horibe. Tula Han - looks like Street Fighter's Guile - but the Russian accent and name remind me of 90's Russian Sambo RINGS star Volk Han.
Namkiat - no idea on this Androgynous Muay Thai fighter. The Great Aja - described as a legendary lucha heel. His name brings to mind Aja Kong, but the Mexican skull makeup confuses me. Jackie Iaukea - at first, I thought he was based on Samoa Joe. But, he's billed as "Sumo's Force of Nature", so I'm guessing Yokozuna? Max Morgan - nice nod to Hulk Hogan's original Fire Pro name (Ax Morgan). Obviously based on Hulk Hogan. Wild-Eyed Vagabond - the evil monk guy with the prayer beads. Reminds me of Street Fighter's Sagat mixed with Akuma. |
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Post by Shadow Master on Jun 15, 2022 17:11:41 GMT
In one of gaming Historian and fellow Fire Pro player PatmanQC's newest videos, Pat brought up another cult gaming hit with a Pro-Wrestler reference:  In the game Windjammers 2, there is a Pro-Wrestler type character named Max Hurricane. Pat believes Max is a nod to Adrian Adonis. With his bright neon colours, similar hairstyle and heavyset build, I can see it.  Myself, I see the Ultimate Warrior from the early '90's. Similar white and green makeup, blonde mullet and intensity. Attire-wise, Max Hurricane's attire also reminds me of Muscle Power from SD Hiryu No Ken on the Super Famicom (who is another Warrior knockoff from the '90's). In Max Hurricane's concept art, the bearded examples look closer to Big Van Vader. Be sure to check out Pat's excellent video on Windjammers. Remember folks, he's one of us, and, more importantly, you'll be glad you did. |
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Post by OrochiGeese on Jun 16, 2022 11:18:18 GMT
Love the connection to Windjammers and Hiryu No Ken!!
I used to play Windjammers all the time in a local arcade that I'd usually go to play SSF2 and MK2 for. When the competition for those games died down, I'd switch to Windjammers.
I played Golden/Ultimate Fighters on SNES which I think was in the Hiryu No Ken series.
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Post by Shadow Master on Jun 16, 2022 13:21:13 GMT
Love the connection to Windjammers and Hiryu No Ken!! I used to play Windjammers all the time in a local arcade that I'd usually go to play SSF2 and MK2 for. When the competition for those games died down, I'd switch to Windjammers. I played Golden/Ultimate Fighters on SNES which I think was in the Hiryu No Ken series. Ultimate Fighter is the localized version of Golden Hiryu No Ken on the SNES. Some people consider it the worst beam 'em up on the SNES/SFC. Myself, I always had a connection to the game. Culture Brain were trying to simultaneously cater to Wrestling, fighting game, RPG and beat em up fans. Sounded good on paper, but not so good in execution. In fact, Ultimate Fighter was one of the first games I mentioned in this thread. Almost 20 years ago (while I was going through my Pro-Wrestling revival), I ended up watching older matches from the territory days. The dim lighting of the television audiences, the cadence and promo delivery of the NWA's best, and then there was this guy:  With his masked shinobi hood, pre-match nunchaku routine, face obscured by long, jet-black hair and kabuki facepaint, I was hooked. Being the first Wrestler to wield the poison mist and have Gary Hart as his heel manager was just the icing on the cake. While The Great Muta was unquestionably a far-superior athlete and took the image of the Muta gimmick to unprecedented heights with his elaborate entrance attires, Kabuki was the great foreign Wrestler that jumpstarted my love of classic Wrestling. Not long after, I discovered All Japan Pro-Wrestling (in which Kabuki found similar fame) and Fire Pro-Wrestling. To this day, I still get a kick out of finding references to "the mystery of the orient" in video game form. |
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Post by kokushishin on Jun 16, 2022 15:40:00 GMT
Tula Han - looks like Street Fighter's Guile - but the Russian accent and name remind me of 90's Russian Sambo RINGS star Volk Han.
Namkiat - no idea on this Androgynous Muay Thai fighter. The Great Aja - described as a legendary lucha heel. His name brings to mind Aja Kong, but the Mexican skull makeup confuses me. Jackie Iaukea - at first, I thought he was based on Samoa Joe. But, he's billed as "Sumo's Force of Nature", so I'm guessing Yokozuna?
Yes, Volk Han's hometown is Tula.
Namkiat is apparently Napa Kiatwanchai. Although around the time of Live a Live he was more notable in professional boxing.
Aja- apparently it's supposed to be Muta, although the costume seems more like Kabuki?
Iaukea is likely a fusion of King Curtis Iaukea and Konishiki.
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Post by Shadow Master on Jun 16, 2022 18:08:35 GMT
And I thought my knowledge of obscure Wrestling references was exemplary. Great work, kokushishin.
With Aja's muscular physique and stuck out tongue, I'd say Great Muta (especially Muta's white and black facepaint design). Not counting the recent mobile baseball game from Japan, I think the last time anyone added a Great Kabuki reference to a video game was Konami's Max Voltage from 1996.
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Post by OrochiGeese on Jun 27, 2022 7:52:17 GMT
Ultimate Fighter is the localized version of Golden Hiryu No Ken on the SNES. Some people consider it the worst beam 'em up on the SNES/SFC. Myself, I always had a connection to the game. Culture Brain were trying to simultaneously cater to Wrestling, fighting game, RPG and beat em up fans. Sounded good on paper, but not so good in execution. I really enjoyed Ultimate Fighters but I think I would enjoy it even more now for the reasons you listed. Back when I first played it, I was very heavily in Street Fighter mode. So any fighting game was kind of measured along the ruler of SF which isn't exactly fair. I had been a wrestling fan but kind of lapsed around the early/mid 90's. But now, I am all for what Culture Brain was doing in theory. It's a great combination of genres. And I remember the game enough to say I'd be even more into it now. It definitely wasn't the worst beat 'em up on SNES and was one of the more interesting ones. I also remember the box description which kept describing the "Hiryu No Ken" system in amusing ways. "What IS the Hiryu No Ken System?" and then they would be unintentionally comedic talking about it. I really liked Rival Turf too as a SNES beat 'em up with fighting game and wrestling influences. |
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Post by Shadow Master on Jun 27, 2022 16:09:53 GMT
80's Mania Wrestling has a new Wrestler:  Hardhard Jim Duncan is Hacksaw Jim Duggan. In Modern Mania Wrestling we have the newly added:  Supposedly based on Jade Cargill. |
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Post by Shadow Master on Jun 29, 2022 16:45:42 GMT
Between the late 80's to early 1990's, just about every Beat 'Em Up had a Pro-Wrestler or pop culture reference. Many of which we already covered in great detail in this thread. Though, one series we never touched on yet involves the Bad Dudes.  In Bad Dudes, the boss of stage 1 is Karnov. Not only is Karnov the star of Data East's 1987 platformer of the same name, but Karnov himself is based on Pro-Wrestler Abdullah The Butcher.  The boss of stage 2 is a re-drawn Wolverine. Apparently, Data East were working out a deal with Marvel to base a Beat 'Em Up on the X-Men. But, the deal fell through.  The boss of stage 4 looks like a Road Warrior's knockoff. Hawk's makeup, Animal's mohawk, the shoulder pads...and even a dropkick.   The boss of stage 5 uses a combination of a sickle and a morning star. Mixed with his facepaint and choice of green colours, I am reminded of Japanese Deathmatch legend Mr. Pogo.  In the 1990 sequel Crude Buster, the boss of stage 1 is a homage to shock rocker Alice Cooper! What's worse? The python has the ability to dismount and attack the player on it's own (try sharing that with PETA today). |
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