Are there any japanese wrestlers today that could come stateside and gain an almost cult like followign like Muta and Liger did in the early 90's? And what made them so unique?
This is a very good question. Most people will tell you that it mainly had to do with their gimmicks, given how important they were in American professional wrestling during the early to mid 1990s. In my opinion though, their gimmicks only partially explain their success (in fact, I think Liger’s gimmick had nothing to do with his success). It is my belief that their success had more to do with the expectations American fans had for wrestling (especially fans of WCW) at this time and these wrestlers’ originality and inventiveness.
The Expectations of American fans: I think it’s undeniable that, in the early to mid 1990s, American fans valued wrestlers’ in-ring abilities much more than they do today (or, at the very least, the fans still had respect for and interest in those wrestlers who let their wrestling, rather than their mouths, do the talking). One of the implications of fans holding in-ring work in high regard was that they were much more open to watching foreign wrestlers who didn’t know a lick of English as long as these wrestlers could produce great matches. Ultimately, then, this is to say that the attitudes of fans during this time were conducive to technically gifted wrestlers getting over, regardless of their race or nationality.
Originality and Inventiveness: Simply put, Liger got over in America because no one in America without knowledge of puroresu had ever been thoroughly exposed to lucharesu. Sure, Liger’s zany outfit may have gotten people initially interested, but it was his in-ring performances rather than his apparel that converted them into junior heavyweight/cruiserweight wrestling marks (or, at the very least, it made them more open to the idea of watching wrestlers who were less than 6’3” and under 225 lbs.).
On the other hand, Muta’s popularity had more to do with how well he played his gimmick (sure, Muta was a great worker, but his arsenal didn’t include many moves that American fans weren’t already aware of). I know I said earlier that these wrestlers’ gimmicks had little to do with their popularity, and I still stand by that statement, precisely because it was what Muta transformed his gimmick into that is of key importance here. No other wrestler has so effectively been able to communicate their intentions and thoughts through nothing more than mannerisms and movements. Ultimately then, it was Muta’s body language, along with his uncanny ability to psychologically manipulate his opponents, that accounted for his success in the US. He was so good at what he did that, every time I see Kiyoshi or old matches with The Great Kabuki (whom Muta took the face paint and mist from), I expect them to do the same dastardly and evil things that Muta did. And, I think my associating Muta’s appearance/physical gimmick with his typical in-ring actions speaks volumes about his impact on those familiar with his work.
Are there any japanese wrestlers today that could come stateside and gain an almost cult like followign like Muta and Liger did in the early 90's? And what made them so unique?
People place so much emphasis on a wrestler's mic skills nowadays that I'm not sure any Japanese wrestler would be able to ever get over here (also, it doesn't help that American fans of junior heavyweight/cruiserweight wrestling now look to indy promotions and Japanese promotions themselves to get their fixes). I think a Japanese wrestler could get over here with the right manager/mouthpiece, but managers and mouthpieces seem to be a dying tradition in America. Right now, WWE currently has Naofumi Yamamoto in their development territory, so the jury's still out on whether or not WWE has any interest in doing something with the one Japanese wrestler they currently have (I don't count Funaki as a wrestler anymore).
However, under the right conditions, I think there are three Japanese wrestlers that could get over in America just like Muta and Liger did in the early 1990s: Hiroshi Tanahashi, Milano Collection AT, and Tiger Mask IV.
