What's the story, watchers of whitewashing wrecking?!
I continue through the rings of Japan with another Stan Hansen encounter this week! What can I say, when I'm in a good grove, I like to stay there! This match blew every expectation I had away and thoroughly entertained me.
Let's read some more about it, shall we?
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| NJPW |
Here's what I watched for the week;
"The Butcher" Andy Williams - 1977-2026
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| AEW |
In the week since Andy "The Butcher" William's passing, I've seen nothing but universal love and praise for the impact this man made on every single life he touched. Similar in ways to when Jon Huber, or "Brodie Lee" passed in 2020, people from every corner of both the wrestling industry, as well as musicians and bands alike, have come out to say glowing things about Andy.
In his early years, Andy was the rhythm guitarist for the metalcore band "Every Time I Die," staying with the band alongside their vocalist and lead guitar player for the band's entirety. A band that is considered the tip of the spear for modern metalcore, ETID garnered a cult fan base since it's inception in 1998, with Andy being a large part of what fans gravitated towards.
Spoken of often for his appearance-betraying warmth and soft-spoken attitude, “to be liked by Andy was to be loved by Andy.” Many people have said that from the very moment they first spoke with him, they felt like they were already his friend. Whether people bonded with him over his taste in music or his love of wrestling, Andy never shied away from letting people know that he cared about their interests. For those that knew Andy, they considered him their biggest cheerleader, constantly in their corner and never afraid to send a text or meet in person to warmly declare how proud of them he was.
By 2016, Andy decided to try his hand at wrestling, making his debut under his real name in a losing effort to TARIK at Smash Any Given Sunday 4 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. From there, Andy found himself teaming with "Blade," going by a handful of different names in his early days, with the duo being known as The Butcher and The Blade. Spending most of their time in the north-eastern parts of the United States, Williams, soon going by "Butcher," became a weekend warrior in the world of wrestling, juggling ETID commitments while committing to juggling people inside the ring. By 2020, the pair would be picked up by AEW, spending most of their time on AEW's YouTube exclusive show Dark as well as Dynamite, wrestling tag matches against the likes of The Young Bucks, FTR, Private Party, SCU, and The Lucha Brothers. Though never seen as much more than "just another tag team," The Butcher and The Blade always entertained and had built up a good deal of respect from the boys backstage, seen as capable hands when the moment called.
I distinctly remember finding a photo of Andy on my Instagram all the way back in 2015. He on stage with ETID wearing a tank top and had an insane moustache, looking like a fucking monster. "This dude looks insane!" I thought, never thinking to check out his band but creeping his Insta to learn more about him. I was just getting back into wrestling at this time and, more than likely, so was Andy, a mere year away from his debut in a city not too far from me. There's a part of me that wishes I kept up with him more, and maybe gave ETID a proper listen, but I always had that memory in my back pocket whenever Andy popped up on my TV.
On the September 9th, 2026 episode of AEW Dynamite, a benefit show dubbed "Rebel Heart" to support Rebel and her fight against ALS, Excalibur spoke, through a cracking voice, on the loss of Andy better than I could ever hope to;
"The adage 'don't judge a book by its cover' perfectly suited Andy Williams. On the surface, he seemed like a hulking, violent brute, but one interaction with, one conversation with him would quickly reveal that he was anything but. Andy was the most thoughtful, creative, warm, supportive person you could ever wish for. He saw the potential in everyone around him and would encourage you to achieve more. He was somebody that, deservedly, could have had a massive ego, but instead used his energy to boost those around him and make the world a better place. We are worse off without Andy, but we are significantly better off for having had him at all. Though it may harm us and break our hearts, death cannot tear us apart. We miss you Andy."
Excalibur - AEW Dynamite - Rebel Heart - 09/09/2026
Rest well, Andy. You are terribly missed.
| Match | Show | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Andre The Giant vs. Stan Hansen | NJPW Bloody Fight Series 1981 - Day 29 | 09/23/1981 |
• • • • •
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| No formalities exchanged here. NJPW |
Basic Breakdown
In preparation for this match, I went against my better judgement and listened to Jim Cornette’s Drive Thru podcast episode about this match. Thankfully, Cornette did a watch along for this match years ago and gave some background info on the match.
I’d like to preface this by saying, right out of the gate, Jim Cornette is a horribly bigoted person. His viewpoints and reviews on modern wrestling are out of touch at best, and racist, homophobic, sexist, and intentionally inflammatory at worst. I’ve enjoyed Cornette over the years, especially his coverage of wrestling from the territory days, and I can’t help but feel he’d be garnering far less flack if all he did was discuss the Midnight Express and OVW on his podcasts. But, of course, that kind of coverage only gets you so far. Covering the current product and ripping it apart with “clever” quips and “witty” digs (I quote because they often turn into derogatory remarks on the person) gets him listens and encourages engagement for him on Twitter. So he stays relevant and has fun ripping into people online. Bad publicity is still publicity.
So, with all that out of the way, let's get into the pre-match coverage.
As Cornette was so willing to discuss on his podcasts, he talked about the difficulty promoters found in fining credible “threats” for Andre in the 70’s and 80’s. You may be able to find someone that was able to match up close to Andre physically, but couldn’t compare to him in any meaningful way athletically, with The Giant “dancing” circles around them. On the flip side, you could find a dozen wrestlers that could match Andre athletically, but were so much smaller than him, I didn’t make sense hat they’d be any sort of threat to Andre.
Enter; Stan Hansen.
A top baby face gaijin in Japan, Hansen was at least close to size in Andre and could meet up to him athletically so that The Giant didn’t look like he was just toying with his food in the ring. Which, it’s important to mention here, Andre in Japan during this era was a monster, and I mean monster heel. I mean, look at Andre! He’s the size of a silo and hits like a nuclear warhead. He cuts through a crowd like a bull elephant cutting through brush, so it only makes sense for him to be a killer heel. In the states, Andre was usually treated as a baby face attraction, occasionally working heel when the moment called for it. Especially in his signature feud with Hulk Hogan in 1987.
Furthermore, Hansen not only stood up to Andre physically, but he also had enough respect and credibility that Andre would be willing to work with him. I saw a clip recently, and I regret that I didn’t save it, where Andre was working in Japan against a shooter that took him down to the canvas twice using legitimate hip tosses. Not wanting to let this match get away from him, the much, much larger Andre hooked the guy with a full nelson and effortlessly took him to the canvas, just laying on top of him until he clued in that the match wasn’t going to be going down that way, brother. Suffice it to say, if Andre didn’t want to work with you or wanted you to know “that doesn’t work for me, brother,” he could have done so in an instant. As this match progresses in my review, you’ll come to realize that Andre more than likely had a healthy amount of respect for Hansen.
I’d also like to make mention of Andre and Hansen’s contract status with NJPW at this point in their careers, as it’s a pivotal point for both men.
Hansen, arguably NJPW’s top gaijin, was only a few months away from jumping ship to AJPW, where he’d stay for years to come. The story goes, so says Cornette’s co-host Brian Last, once Abdullah the Butcher showed up in NJPW, he took the top gaijin spot from Hansen, who realized his stock wasn’t going to be worth as much there as it did once upon a time. Fearful his pay would take a considerable hit, a meeting was arranged by Terry Funk in Texas between Stan Hansen and Giant Baba, the owner of All Japan. Apparently, an agreement was met and Hansen jumped ship in December of 1981 to join All Japan.
Andre, on the other hand, was a 15 year journeyman by this point in his career, turning pro in 1966. Once he made it to the states, he never truly had a “home” promotion, wrestling for the NWA, JCP, NJPW, WCCW, and dozens of other promotions across the globe, but not for the WWF. All that would change in 1982, debuting in March of 1982 and quickly making the WWF his home. In ‘82 alone, Andre wrestled 211 matches, with 71 of them being in the WWF. 58 were for NJPW, 28 for the NWA, 23 for the AWA, and so on and so forth. It’s safe to say that 1982 was when things really changed for Andre, finally getting the big mainstream American exposure the WWF would afford him, granting him movie performances in the 1987 hit “The Princess Bride” and the moniker of the “Eighth Wonder of the World.” Despite Still splitting his time with the WWF and NJPW until 1986, Andre was seen as a WWF wrestler by many fans, even if the majority of his career was sent elsewhere.
Bell To Bell
Both men cut through the crowd, Hansen unnaturally calm on his way down. Bellowing, what I've learned now, is "YOUTH," as he believed he was part of the youth movement of Japanese wrestlers at the time, especially as the top gaijin. Andre is out next, my comparison to a bull elephant from earlier feeling all too true. He marches down, swinging his arms at fans that reach to touch him, the path in front of him clear and wide, thanks to his manager Arnold Skaaland. Climbing in the ring, Hansen wastes no time, charging into Andre only to get caught with a boot as he lumbers over the top rope.
The bell rings as things are already underway, Andre and Hansen trading shots in the corner, with Hansen able to stagger The Giant with elbows that back him into the corner. Something Cornette pointed out in his pod, that apparently Hansen discussed in his book (something I need to add to my library) is that Hansen always wanted to be "in motion." Whether he was on the attack or on the defensive, he knew that he could keep the crowd with him by always moving in one way or another, always acting like he's about to strike or ready to take his opponents best. Maybe that's why I love Hansen so much, he's a perpetual motion machine of brutal violence.
Shooting Andre across the ring, The Giant takes the corner and shifts the ring upon impact, a horrific sight. That, and watching Andre run. Again, this is stark contrast to the Andre of 1987 that is almost immobile, that apparently had Paul Orndorff waiting at the curtain at WrestleMania 3 in case it turned out that The Giant couldn't perform. This Andre, this Andre would have slaughtered Hogan at the 'Maines 3.
Hansen moves in on the cornered Giant but catches another boot, flailing around the canvas as Andre collects himself. He goes back into Andre, but gets caight with a bearhug, with Andre simply imposing his sheer size on Hansen. Let's not forget, Hansen is every bit of 6'3" and 300 pounds here, he's a bear of a human being, but to Andre's Grizzly, Kodiak, or Polar bear stature, Hansen has been demoted to a mere Black bear inside that ring. He fights the grip of The Giant, pushing on his chin, but Andre keeps the squeeze on, only for Hansen to deliver a headbutt and a short lariat to break the hold, but it doesn't get him much distance. Falling to the ropes, Andre falls on top of him, crushing him against the strands.
Fighting him away, a sharp elbow and heavy forearm catch Andre across the back of the head and shoulder blades, but The Giant grabs the left arm of Hansen and twists, isolating the limb as he lands headbutts on the elbow pad, the cornerstone of his Western lariat. Staggering after one headbutt, Andre may have caught the point of the elbow itself, falling to his knees on top of Hansen. Whether his size and luck alone did it or it was an intentional redirect, Andre is able to force Hansen to the canvas, maintaining grip on the elbow as he foes for a modified armbar/wristlock. When Hansen starts to shove himself off the canvas to relieve the pressure, a rhinoceros-sized headbutt to the ribs drops Hansen flat out again. Rising to his feet, a dismissive stomp to the arm of Hansen is the exclamation point on his punishment, marching to the ropes to bellow at the disapproving crowd.
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| Hansen nearly fells the redwood! NJPW |
Turning back around, Andre walks into a massive Hansen chop, the force nearly sending The Giant over the top rope. I mean, the top of his waistband is in line with the top rope, so it wouldn't take a lot to send The Giant ass-over-teakettle... or maybe beer keg is more accurate. Regardless, Hansen lays into Andre with chops, but The Giant delivers one headbutt to send Hansen back into the corner. Wrapping Hansen's lariat arm around the top rope, Andre punishes Hansen in the corner, who fights hard to get The Giant off of him. Despite his best efforts, Andre continues to wrap and twist the left arm of his foe, digging in and using the ropes for extra leverage.
Whipping Hansen across the ring, which isn't very far for Andre, he lands hard. Able to avoid at the last possible second, Hansen avoids being turned to paste as Andre drives his shoulder into the corner, the pissed off bull nearly breaking the ring with his impact. Falling through the ropes after missing, Andre catches himself on the apron, not wanting to give Japan a sudden earthquake by falling to the floor. Fighting from above for a mere moment, Hansen lays boots into the head of Andre before the ref pushing him back, giving his foe a chance to recover and rise. As Andre gains verticality, Hansen uses it as a chance to try and slam The Giant, grabbing him for a bodyslam, but The Giant stays firm on the ground.
Again, Andre goes for the left arm of Hansen, actually hooking him in a double wristlock! Andre is wrestling! Wrenching up while standing behind Hansen, he rotates his foe to turn it into a proper double wristlock now, putting immense pressure on the elbow and shoulder joint. Hansen, always in motion, starts swinging at the left leg of Andre, trying to chop down the foundation of The Giant. He looks to get close, but Andre instead falls back to the ropes, the referee calling for a break of the hold. With the grip broken, Andre again goes for the left arm of Hansen, able to get him off his feet when he pulls down on a standing armbreaker, putting 300 pounds of pressure on the small joints of the arm. Horrific.
Twisting and bending his limb, Hansen is forced to resort to dirty tactics, grabbing the afro of the French Giant, pulling him to the canvas. Both men are quick to get to their feet, with Hansen favouring his left arm at this point, striking with his right. Again, Andre hooks the arm in a double wristlock and Hansen drives short kidney punches to The Giant, doing anything he can to save himself from losing a limb. Shifting Hansen's arm to over his head, Andre hooks him and rips him off the canvas, delivering a massive vertical suplex, almost a sit-out variant from Andre, who doesn't feel like sending Hansen out of the ring if he gave it the full extension.
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Rising to his feet with horrific speed, Andre looks to deliver a massive headbutt to Hansen, but his foe shifts to his knees to avoid impact, with Andre catching himself standing as he shuffles around to collect his balance, shaking his head with a face that says "you quick son of a bitch." Landing more punches to the gut of Andre, The Giant grabs Hansen by the head and pulls him up into an abdominal stretch, landing a sledgehammer-sized forearm shot to the small of Hansen's back. Falling to his knees against the ropes, Andre stalks Hansen, pulling him back in a chinlock, wrenching on the neck before nearly cracking the chest of Hansen with another sledgehammer blow.
Leaning on the ropes to catch his breath, Andre sits out on the back of Hansen, driving out every bit of air left in the lungs of Hansen. Sure, he could probably pin Hansen off that, but there's a real desire to hurt one another here, and Andre is not done, and neither is Hansen. Clutching his left arm to his chest and staggering to his feet, he drives up and forward with his shoulder, catching Andre in the chest, a defiant act against his monstrous foe. Shooting Hansen off the ropes, Andre looks to send Hansen into the lights with a back body drop, but Hansen slows himself down and catches Andre with a boot to the face, scooping The Giant between the legs and - WHAT?! Andre goes for the ride! A bodyslam!
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| Holy mother of god. NJPW |
Big shoutout to @KingsRoadChronicles on Instagram for not only turning me onto this match earlier in the week, but also for doing the number crunching on how many times Andre had actually been slammed. As it turns out, Andre's "first" slam from Hogan at the 'Maines 3 was his (recorded, at least) 27th career bodyslam. Hansen was man number 11 to slam the giant here, with Hogan actually being man number 10, famously bodyslamming Andre at Showdown at Shea in 1980, a... WWF show... huh. Can't even keep their own history straight, can they? As if Andre's insane selling in this match up to this point wasn't enough of a sign, his willingness to go up for Hansen with the slam should tell you everything you needed to know about how Andre felt about Hansen. In 15 years, Andre only went for the ride (apparently) 27 times, despite wrestling (recorded, obviously not counting matches that are unrecorded or lost to time) over 2,600 matches over the course of 15 years. That's just over 1% of his total matches up to 1987, with Hansen in that incredibly small minority. That's insanity.
Anywhoo, back to the match at hand, Hansen rebounds off the ropes and looks to drop the elbow on Andre, but, by god, The Giant rolls out of the way! With unreal speed, might I add. Slow down Andre! You're scaring the kids! Back to his feet, Hansen goes for the back of Andre, leaning on his side to catch his breath. Stomping and bludgeoning his back, Andre writhes around on the canvas now, with Hansen going for a camel clutch attempt, but The Giant is able to keep himself mostly flat.
Eventually, Andre is able to break Hansen's grip and pull backwards, with Hansen landing face first on the canvas, the rug being pulled out from under him. Back on his feet quickly, he drops an elbow across the back of Andre's head as he pulls himself over to the ropes, trying to get back on his feet. The shot drops Andre dead, with Hansen laying in with big knee drops and kicks, using the ropes to get himself up faster. Andre rolls to the apron to escape, but Hansen follows him, with Andre catching his boot and twisting, the joint manipulation dropping Hansen off the apron and down to the floor.
The melee continues, with Andre vertical once again both men landing heavy-handed strikes on each other, the guard rail and ring apron used as weapons as well. The referee begins his count, but neither man pays him any mind until he reaches his 20 count and the bell rings. Trying to salvage things, Hansen climbs inside the ring, like a teenager showing up after curfew pretending he wasn't 2 hours late. The referee admonishes him, telling him this match is done, this after he shoves the referee and gestures for Andre to get back inside the ring. Clearly, Hansen isn't done with Andre just yet. He gestures to the crowd and shakes his head, the crowd echoing his sentiment for restarting the match.
Skaaland gets on the apron with Andre and begins speaking with the referee, demanding the double count out be waived off and the match continue. The referee initially declines, but Andre gets inside and grabs him by the scruff, pulling him back to Skaaland, the... gentle... persuasion proving to do the trick, with the referee making the call as the crowd reaches an insane fever pitch.
When the ring referee declares this match will continue, the crowd explodes, wanting to see these two continue to tear into each other. Distracted by the ring crew taking the mic away, Hansen jumps Andre against the ropes, laying into his with forearms and - Jesus Christ! Hansen just armdragged Andre! This is nuts! In all honestly, an armdrag on Andre should be easier, given how easy it would be to get under his hips and take him over, but to have the strength to do it is something else entirely.
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| Andre must feel like he's at the carnival for all the rides he's taken. NJPW |
Elbows to the back of Andre's head stagger him, with a rising knee to the side of the head sending The Giant falling backwards into the ropes. He gets tied up in the "Andre spot," getting caught betweehn the middle and top strand, with Hansen using the moment to lay in heavy right hands on the silverback-sized skull of Andre. Andre isn't tied up long, eventually switching things up and tying Hansen up in the ropes instead, crushing his chest with a massive forearm shot before nearly falling over the ropes from the amount of stank he put behind the shot.
Pulling Hansen to middle, a headbutt drops him once, but a second one merely staggers Hansen, taking a few steps before falling into the ropes. Going to the corner, Andre takes the top of the corner padding off, these corners looking closer to boxing corners with one tall pad rather than 3 individual pads. With the corner exposed, he grabs the groggy Hansen and pulls him to the corner, lining him up only for Hansen to catch himself, instead sending Andre head first! Nearly falling to the neighbouring corner, Andre hits the dirt hard, holding his head as Hansen goes for an elbow drop on the wounded Giant. Not moving away, Andre instead catches the elbow and turns it into a double wristlock! We're wrestling!
Fighting to their feet, the wristlock is transitioned into both of Hansen's arms being held behind his back, Andre putting the pressure on in between headbutts between the shoulder blades. Hansen is able to get both legs between the ropes to break the hold, but The Giant, in a way not too dissimilar to a father pulling his son off a jungle gym, pulls Hansen back to centre. Good lord, that's terrifying.
Move Of The Match
Acting quickly, Andre quickly spins Hansen around before pulling him off the canvas, holding his foe 20 miles above the ring before dropping him back to earth with a bodyslam. When Hansen lands, he bounces nearly a full foot off the canvas. Good lord. Just put a bullet in my head, I think that would hurt less.
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| Like jumping off the Empire State building. NJPW |
Again, with insane speed, Andre hits the ropes and attempts a splash on Hansen, but he rolls clear of the falling fridge. Going for an elbow drop of his own, Andre rolls clear himself, holding Hansen down on the canvas before landing a headbutt, skull on skull. With both standing, he shoots Hansen off the ropes and tries catching him with a boot on the rebound, but Hansen sidesteps and rebounds again, landing the Western lariat on The Giant! The crowd explodes as Andre stumbles and falls through the ropes to the floor, with Hansen falling to the corner.
Catching his breath, he stands alone in the ring, with Skaaland giving Andre an elbow pad of his own. The referee notices this, and so does Hansen, who urges him to check the newly introduces piece of apparel. Is it loaded? Does it have razors on the edge? Is it made of anthrax and evil intentions? Who's to say! Andre shoves the referee away when he tries to check the pad, stalking Hansen inside the ring again. The referee is persistent though, not letting up, that is until Andre shoots him into the ropes and cleaves him in half with a lariat of his own.
Both men brawl again, the bell ringing as Andre and Hansen lay into each other in the corner, a bar under the bright lights. Despite getting a second DQ/non-finish, the crowd is still with it, ravenous to see these two monsters clobber each other. Ring crew and Young Boys are in the ring to try and separate the two, with Hansen and Andre laying into them as readily as they lay into each other. It's a mess of limbs and bodies, neither man willing to listen to reason. Eventually, Hansen is forced out the ring, with Skaaland trying to tame his wild Giant.
Match Time: 12:48
(Technically two matches, one at 8:26 and one at 4:22. Combined into one time for the sake of the review.)
This match was basically King Kong vs. Godzilla. Who cares if there's a winner or loser, we just want to see these two dudes lay into each other. This is a totally different era where a match like this could be done, and was done quite regularly! It wasn't uncommon for big matches like these to have DQ's or non-finishes, stretching the feud on another month or to the next big town, an era where live arena is where they got all their money. If you could push the blowoff for this match another month, then another month, that's a whole other month of ticket sales. Aside from the reason for a match like this happening, this match ripped. Far and away the best I've ever seen Andre, who was more than willing to bump and sell for Hansen, who was more than equal to the task of going toe to toe with Andre. These guys did a lot of great stuff between the ropes, as well as outside them, and I was engaged the entire bout. Fantastic stuff all around.
• • • • •
Until next week. Be well, stay safe, and love one another.
cliffmorganwstl@gmail.com
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