Wrestle Kingdom XX
Date: January 4, 2026
Location: Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan
Attendance: 46,913
Commentators: Walker Stewart, Chris Charlton

It’s that time of year again as we have the biggest non-American event of the year. This show has quite the draw, as it features Hiroshi Tanahashi’s final match, as he is facing longtime rival Kazuchika Okada one last time in the show’s main event. If that isn’t enough, Yota Tsuji is challenging Konosuke Takeshita for the IWGP World Title. Let’s get to it.

Note that I do not follow New Japan very closely. While I do know most of the bigger names, I apologize in advance for any character or storyline points that I miss.

Kickoff Show: Katsuya Murashima/Masatora Yasuda vs. Shoma Kato/Tatsuya Matsumoto

Young Lions match. Murashima and Matsumoto go to the mat to start and neither can get very far. It’s off to Yasuda, who backs Kato into the ropes for a rather hard chop. They strike it out and go to the mat for another standoff as this is rather basic so far (in traditional Young Lion style). Yasuda grabs some suplexes to take over and it’s off to Murashima to take over. That doesn’t last long as it’s off to Kato to clean house before Matsumoto (the strong one) snaps off some slams. Murishima powerslams Matsumoto into a Boston crab and when a save fails, Matsumoto taps at 6:20.

Rating: C. It was a very basic match but that’s the point. This is the kind of match you put out there for the sake of having some action while the fans are coming in and it isn’t supposed to be anything more than a chance for the young stars to get their feet wet. No one really stood out but it didn’t last long and the action was fine.

Kickoff Show: TV Title: Chris Brookes vs. El Phantasmo

Phantasmo, with Jado and company, is defending. Brookes takes him to the mat rather quickly to start and trade some clotheslines. A running hurricanrana sends Brookes outside, where he decks Jado. One of Brookes’ lackeys ties a ribbon to Phantasmo’s neck for a rather long (as in about thirty feet) crank. With that out of the way, Phantasmo escapes a chinlock but gets backsplashed for two. Phantasmo knocks him back down and hits a middle rope elbow, setting up the air guitar.

The lackeys offer a distraction on the floor, allowing Phantasmo to hit a torture rack neckbreaker for two. Brookes superplexes him down though and a running dropkick in the corner gets two more. Phantasmo is up with a super hurricanrana but Phantasmo’s top rope splash hits knees. They trade kicks to the face to no avail so Brookes grabs a Jay Driller for two. Phantasmo is back with something like a Neutralizer for two of his own, followed by the Thunder Kiss 86 splash for the pin to retain at 11:50.

Rating: B-. This got a bit better and I was digging it by the end. I’ve seen both of these two before and they’re rather good so I’m not surprised they had a fine match here. It improved once they got away from the people at ringside too, as they were little more than pests who weren’t helping anything.

As usual, the opening video looks at the matches in order, which does give you a nice idea of where everyone stands.

Never Openweight Six Man Tag Team Titles: New Japan Ranbo

So this is kind of a weird one, as the titles are being defended in basically a team Royal Rumble. Each team (eight, for twenty four total entrants) sends in all three members at a time in one minute intervals. When one entrant is eliminated (pinfall, submission, over the top), the team is eliminated, last team standing wins the belts.

RoughStorm (Shota Umino/Yuya Uemura)/Kaisei Takechi are in at #1 and the House Of Torture (Ren Narita/Sanada/Yoshinobu Kanemaru) are in at #2, with the former being played to the ring by a pop band. The House jumps them to start and send RoughStorm outside but the two of them are back inside for some dropkicks. Bullet Club War Dogs (Clark Connors/Oskar/Yuto-Ice) are in at #3 and start cleaning house with Connors grabbing a big wheel for some destruction.

TMDK (Zack Sabre Jr./Ryohei Oiwa/Hartley Jackson) are in at #4 and the War Dogs are waiting on them, with the other six on the floor but not out. Connors hits a spear and it’s Tiger Mask/Togi Makabe/Ryusuke Taguchi in at #5. They take their sweet time getting to the ring, allowing Ice to almost be eliminated. Oskar is tossed though, meaning the War Dogs are gone.

Bishamon (Hirooki Goto/Yoshi-Hashi)/Boltin Oleg are in at #6 and get inside for some brawling as Taguchi uses the jumping hip attacks. Most of the people are on the floor as Team 150 (Tomohiro Ishii/Taichi/Satoshi Kojima) are in at #7. During their entrances, Mask is pinned by Oleg to clear the ring out a bit. Ishii slugs it out with Oleg and plants him with a suplex as we somehow only have two people standing in the ring out of fifteen in the match.

Toru Yano and SpiritTech (Master Wato/Yoh), the defending champions, complete the field at #8 with Yoh dressed as Yano. Taichi and Takechi get into something of a sumo match and a hurricanrana sends both of them out for the double elimination. The House cheat (their thing) to send Yoh over the top but his partners make the catch and throw him back inside.

Yoh hits Sanada low to even the score but Yoh is low bridged and pulled to the floor for the elimination. Sanada falls out as well though and we’re down to TMDK vs. Bishamon/Oleg. Sabre gets caught in the wrong corner for some running splashes and Oleg is choked. That’s broken up and Oleg throws Oiwa, only for Sabre to get the European clutch for the pin and the titles at 20:46.

Rating: C-. This didn’t work, as it was WAY too chaotic with far too much going on and almost no way to keep track of who was doing what. It featured one of the biggest annoyances in wrestling, with a battle royal style match with people on the floor for a long stretch, making it hard to keep track of who was involved. Just do a gauntlet match or something like that, as it makes it so much easier to understand.

IWGP Women’s Title/Strong Women’s Title: Syuri vs. Saya Kamitani

Winner take all. They go with the grappling to start and Syuri works on the arm before they both miss kicks. Saya takes her down for two and cranks on the arm, followed by some kicks to the back for two more. The referee gets in the way though, allowing Saya to hit a dropkick. Syuri is sent outside for a big springboard dive and they come back in to trade forearms.

Syuri’s jumping knee drops Saya but she’s able to catch Syuri on top. Saya goes up but gets pulled down by the arm, setting up a double armbar. The ropes get Saya out of trouble so Syuri drops her on her head for two more. A Blue Thunder Bomb gives Saya two of her own, followed by the Star Crusher for another near fall. Back up and Syuri’s running knee gets two and something like a powerslam gets the same. A poisonrana gives Saya two and a running hurricanrana gets the same. Syuri’s Buzzsaw kick gets two and something like an AA gives her the pin and both titles at 12:06.

Rating: B. This is a good example of what happens when you tell a good story with the action to back it up. They were playing up the good vs. evil story here (including the white vs. black attire) and I got it despite knowing almost nothing about either of these two. The action made it even better as they were both working hard. Good stuff here, as they told a story.

Unaffiliated/Bullet Club War Dogs vs. United Empire

Unaffiliated: Shingo Takagai/Hiromu Takahashi, Bullet Club War Dogs: David Finlay/Gabe Kidd/Drilla Maloney
United Empire: Andrade El Idolo, Callum Newman, Great-O-Khan, Henare, Jake Lee

Lee appears to be a surprise partner and has seemingly betrayed the War Dogs to join the Empire. It’s a brawl to start (of course) with Idolo doing his tranquilo pose in the ropes to sucker Kidd in. Idolo’s high crossbody gets two on Kidd, who clotheslines him out to the floor. Back in and Idolo drops Kidd with the spinning back elbow and it’s off to Henare vs. Takagi.

A strike off goes to Takagi and he grabs a neckbreaker for two. Khan comes in to toss Takagi into a sitout powerbomb but Takagi is back with a slam to Henare. A top rope back elbow gets two and Maloney’s spear drops Henare for the same. Henare headbutts his way out of trouble and it’s off to Newman vs. Finlay. A big running boot drops Finlay, who is right back with a backbreaker to cut Newman off.

Newman gives him a running dropkick and it’s off to Lee to slam Finlay for one. Finlay stuns his way out of a chokeslam and it’s off to Tanahashi to make the comeback. Kidd is back in and gets kicked in the face before Maloney gives Newman a spinning piledriver. Takagi Cactus Clotheslines Henare out to the floor and Finlay powerbombs Takahashi over the top and onto the ringside pile. A superplex hits the pile as well, leaving Lee to Helluva Kick Takahashi for the pin at 14:26.

Rating: B-. It was another match with too much going on and that hurt things a lot, but what matters the most is that they were able to explain the bigger stories. The main idea here was Lee returning to screw over the War Dogs, which worked fine. It was another match with a lot going on, but they did a nice enough job of letting you know what was going on, which helps so much.

Post match Francesco Akira returns and joins the Empire, even getting in on a beatdown.

El Desperado vs. Kosei Fujita vs. Taiji Ishimori vs. Sho

For a future shot at IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Douki, who is at ringside. Fujita dives onto the floor to start fast and it’s Sho getting caught by the other three. The ring is cleared until Sho is back in to strike it out with Fujita. A triple submission has Sho in more trouble and it’s down to a three way for the time being. Ishimori and Desperado strike it out with Ishimori hitting a quick faceplant.

Sho slams Fujita onto the referee for the save and Douki is in with a pipe for the beatdown. Robbie Eagles and Robbie X run in for the save, because this show needed another match with a bunch of people flying around. Sho drops Fujita with a shot to the head and a package piledriver gives Sho two on Fujita, with Desperado making the save. Desperado gives Sho a quick Angel’s Wings for the pin at 7:38.

Rating: C+. It was fun while it lasted and they told the story of Sho being a pest that everyone wanted to stop, but there is only so much you can do with four people (plus interference) in less than eight minutes. That’s been a theme of this show, as there have been too many people involved in almost every match. If this has to be a four way, just let it be a four way without all of the other people getting involved.

We hear about various upcoming shows.

We recap Aaron Wolf challenging Evil for the Never Openweight Title. Wolf is a former Olympic gold medalist in judo and making his professional debut.

Never Openweight Title: Aaron Wolf vs. Evil

Evil, with the House Of Torture, is defending and jumps him to start fast. They slug it out with Wolf hitting a running shoulder. A suplex and running elbow give Wolf two and Evil is already getting a breather on the floor. Back in and Wolf is knocked outside so the House can jump him to little avail. A chair is wrapped around Wolf neck for another chair shot and they head back inside. Wolf gets sent hard into the corner for two but he fights back, only for the House to get involved.

Some powder to the face cuts Wolf off and Evil grabs a Sharpshooter. Wolf makes the rope for the save and grabs a powerslam for two. An Angle Slam gives Wolf two and a top rope splash gets the same with the House pulling the referee. The House comes in for the beatdown, with some other wrestlers, including Toru Yano, not being able to make a save. A table is set up and Bad Luck Fale splashes Wolfe through for the big crash. Evil’s big clothesline gets two but Everything Is Evil is countered into a triangle choke to give Wolf the title at 12:54.

Rating: B. This is a case where “all things considered” needs to be brought up. For Wolf’s debut, he did remarkably well, as he was keeping things basic, but those basics looked polished. I’ll absolutely take someone doing simple things well over trying to do too much and looking sloppy. At the same time, JUST LET US HAVE A ONE ON ONE MATCH ALREADY! My goodness this was the seventh match of the night and ONE has gone without some kind of interference. It really shouldn’t be asking that much to avoid it a bit more often.

We recap Yota Tsuji challenging Konosuke Takeshita for the IWGP World Title (while also defending his own Global Title). The idea seems to be that Takeshita is all about wrestling everywhere and Tsuji is fighting for the company’s honor.

IWGP World Title/Global Title: Konosuke Takeshita vs. Yota Tsuji

Winner take all and commentary explains the idea of their issues: Takeshita wrestles the big matches but not the smaller ones and Tsuji wants him to do more. When they throw in that Takeshita has wrestled the second most time in singles matches all year, it kind of makes Tsuji sound whiny. Tsuji takes him down by the arm and then gets in a slap against the ropes. A running hurricanrana sends Takeshita outside but he comes back in to win a battle of shoulders.

The chinlock holds Tsuji down and he actually has to use a foot on the ropes for the escape (that’s quite a chinlock). Tsuji knocks him down for two but Takeshita gives him a suplex to cut off the comeback attempt. We pause for Tsuji to have a neck issue so Takeshita kicks him out to the floor. A running boot to the face sends Tsuji over the barricade but Takeshita sends him back inside for a middle rope backsplash.

The chinlock goes on again but the referee breaks it up, only for Takeshita’s running knee in the corner to miss. Takeshita is right back in with a running hurricanrana to send Tsuji outside for the big dive. Back in and Tsuji hits a kind of faceplant before armdragging him out to the floor. The big Fosbury Flop takes Takeshita down again, followed by a top rope double stomp to give Tsuji two.

They trade hard knees to the face with Tsuji getting two and a kneeling Tombstone connects. Takeshita shrugs it off and hits a spear to leave both of them down. Back up and they trade the big forearms with Tsuji winning the slugout but his neck gives out. Tsuji is able to hit a Canadian Destroyer and a spear sends Takeshita into the corner to leave both of them down.

The spear is countered into a Blue Thunder Bomb though and Raging Fire gives Takeshita two. Takeshita drops him with another forearm but the big knee is blocked. An Alley Oop drops Takeshita and they go up top, where Tsuji hits a reverse superplex for two. The spear misses for Tsuji though and Takeshita grabs a poisonrana. A super Blue Thunder Bomb (that was awesome) gets two more, as does the running knee. Another running knee is cut off with the spear though and a Boston crab makes Takeshita tap at 29:20.

Rating: B+. This was rather good and it felt like a big time title match. Takeshita can do just about anything in the ring and it’s awesome to see him getting his chance on the big stage. At the same time, I haven’t gotten much out of Tsuji in the few times I’ve seen him and that was the case again here. He’s fine in the ring, but I don’t get the appeal and while this felt like a big deal, it didn’t feel special, which isn’t a great sign.

Post match Tsuji talks about meeting a rival that he knew he couldn’t lose to and he thanks the fans for believing in him. Jake Lee runs in from behind and beats him down as Tsuji seems to have his first challenger.

We recap Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada, which is Tanahashi’s retirement match. Tanahashi has been the ace, and face, of the company for a LONG time now but it’s time for him to step away. It’s treated as a huge and important moment, which it certainly is, as the fans and company have to say goodbye. Okada, one of Tanahashi’s greatest rivals, is back to face him one more time.

Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi

We get the Big Match Intros and Tanahashi’s does indeed feel special. Tanahashi takes him to the mat by the arm to start and you can see a thank you message (in English) on Tanahashi’s knee pad. Back up and Okada takes him into the rope for a kick to the ribs but Tanahashi gets in a middle rope spinning crossbody. Tanahashi takes too long going up top though and a dropkick knocks him back down.

A running boot knocks him over the barricade and they get back inside, with Okada grabbing a neckbreaker for two. The chinlock has Tanahashi in more trouble but he fights up to drop Okada for a change. A middle rope flipping splash gives Tanahashi two and there’s the dragon screw legwhip. Tanahashi dropkicks the knee out and there’s the high crossbody to the floor. Back in and the Sling Blade is cut off with a flapjack from Okada, followed by the Air Raid Crash on the knee.

The top rope elbow lets Okada flip off the crowd but Tanahashi is back with the Twist And Shout. Okada Tombstones him down and they head outside, with Okada hitting another Tombstone on the ramp. Tanahashi barely beats the count so Okada Tombstones him again, only to pull it up at two. The Rainmaker connects and Okada pulls him up again, which is quite the evil move. Another Rainmaker connects but Tanahashi reverses a third into one of his own for a needed breather.

Okada hits another Rainmaker for another two and it’s off to a Boston crab. Tanahashi makes the ropes so Okada hits the great dropkick but Tanahashi is back with a Sling Bade. The sleeper sets up a PK (ala Katsuyori Shibata), followed by the running knee (ala Shinsuke Nakamura) into the High Fly Flow (ala Hiroshi Tanahashi). Okada fights out of a full nelson but gets Sling Bladed back down.

A High Fly Flow hits Okada’s back but another hits his raised knees, leaving them both down for a breather. They forearm it out from their knees and pull each other up until Okada hits the great dropkick. A fight over a Tombstone results in Okada hitting something like a Destino, followed by a Rainmaker for two. Okada drops the top rope elbow, does the full Rainmaker pose, and finishes Tanahashi’s career with the Rainmaker at 33:05.

Rating: A-. This was old school Tanahashi vs. Okada, as Tanahashi had one more great one in him. There were some outstanding moments in there with Tanahashi surviving and trying to turn the clock all the way back but just not being able to get there in the end. It’s certainly a fitting final match for an all time legend and I was getting emotional watching a legend go away. Great stuff here and worthy of the spot.

Post match Tanahashi is still down but Okada thanks him and leaves. Tanahashi gets up and is presented with some flowers and poses with (I’m assuming) some executives for photos. Cue Jay White (he’s been gone for a bit and does not have the best history with Tanahashi) to present Tanahashi with flowers and bow to him in a show of respect.

Then Will Ospreay joins us (he looks weird in a suit) for the same, followed by Kenny Omega and (a limping) Kota Ibushi. Katsuyori Shibata comes out too (this is too much for Tanahashi, who seems to need a minute to compose himself) and they even lock up and trade some chops. After a big hug, Keiji Mutoh gets in, followed by Tatsumi Fujinami (Tanahashi is just DONE).

Everyone gets together for a big group photo….and Tetsuya Naito is here too. Well in theory at least, as he takes his sweet time coming out, with Tanahashi pointing at his watch and motioning to get on with it already for a funny bit. Naito talks about what Tanahashi means to his career and even though he has left New Japan, Tanahashi is the reason he came back one more time.

They pose together and Naito leaves, finally allowing Tanahashi the chance to talk. He thanks the fans for coming out and he thanks the wrestlers for fighting so hard. Tanahashi goes to leave but is told to go back inside….for one last air guitar. Ok a few last air guitars. He asks the fans to do the Wave around the arena because it’s bad for the circulation to stay seated so long. Of course the fans are right there with him and we get a ten bell salute. Tanahashi waves to the fans and then goes out to high five a bunch of them.

He goes to leave…but walks (ok limps) over to the other side of the stage and gets in a cart used for video shots for a ride around the arena. This goes on for well over ten minutes, with commentary signing off as he’s still going around. Tanahashi finally gets back on the stage and he says he is so happy he fell in love with wrestling. He thanks the fans and pyro goes off, leaving him to walk into the smoke to end the show. The post match stuff goes around an hour and while it’s long, you can’t argue about it being deserved.

A Tanahashi highlight reel plays n the big screen to wrap us up, though even that goes on for a long time as well. Eh it’s a one time thing.

Overall Rating: B. The last two matches more than carried the show but there were some weak parts before then. There were so many matches that were either multi-person matches or had interference and they both made things feel too messy. That being said, this was ALL about Tanahashi and that stuff was a mixture of great wrestling and some pulling of the heartstrings. It was one of the best goodbyes you’ll ever seen and it felt like he deserved every second of the time.

The World Title match was great and Wolf’s debut was rather good to make the show much more good than bad, but dang it could have used some adjustments on the undercard. I would normally say one match can’t carry everything, but when you have that match and the post match stuff taking up about an hour and a half, yeah it kind of can. Rather good show, but an all time farewell.

Results
Katsuya Murashima/Masatora Yasuda b. Shoma Kato/Tatsuya Matsumoto – Boston crab to Matsumoto
El Phantasmo b. Chris Brookes – Thunder Kiss 86
TMDK won the New Japan Ranbo last eliminating Bishamon/Boltin Oleg
Syuri b. Saya Kamitani – Spinning fireman’s carry slam
United Empire b. Unaffiliated/Bullet Club War Dogs – Running boot in the corner to Takahashi
El Desperado b. Kosei Fujita, Taiji Ishimori and Sho – Double underhook lifting faceplant to Sho
Aaron Wolf b. Evil – Triangle choke
Yota Tsuji b. Konosuke Takeshita – Boston crab
Konosuke Takeshita b. Hiroshi Tanahashi – Rainmaker

Remember to follow me on Twitter and Bluesky @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Nothing To Lose
Date: April 17, 2025
Location: MEET Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Jordan Castle, Brian Zane

This is from Prestige Wrestling, a promotion from the Pacific northwest. I’m not sure what that is going to mean this time around but I’ve enjoyed what I’ve seen from the promotion before. Hopefully they can live up to the hype as I’m watching them based on that reputation. Let’s get to it.

Note that I do not follow the promotion so I apologize in advance for any plot or character points I miss.

Lykos Gym vs. Sinner And Saint

Lykos II and Icarus start things off but all four come in for the staredown. With that broken up, Lykos II takes over on Williams and it’s quickly back to Icarus. An armdrag into an armbar takes Icarus down as Zane talks about his high school e-fed (I love independent wrestling). Lykos gets taken into the corner and dropped with a clothesline but he manages to get up top.

That means a roll over to Lykos II and the pace picks way up. A brainbuster gives Lykos II two but some rapid fire strikes to the face knock him down. Ode To The Fallen is broken up and it’s back to Lykos as everything breaks down. Lo Mein Pain gets two on Icarus but a double brainbuster is broken up. Lykos II is sent outside (and hard too) and it’s the Ode To The Fallen to give Williams the pin at 8:30.

Rating: C+. Perfectly watchable tag match here between two teams who have been around the independent scene for a good while. Sinner And Saint are getting a focus in TNA so they might be on their way somewhere. I’m not sure I get the appeal of Lykos Gym, but they are far from bad in the ring.

Arez/El Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr./Galeno del Mal vs. Z-Brats

Lucha libre vs. Dragon Gate here. Arez and Shun Skywalker start things off with Arez spinning around to get some early near falls. An armdrag takes Skywalker down again and the other Z-Brats come in to hammer Arez down into the corner. Everything breaks down and Galeno and Wagner gets sent into each other and Skywalker gets to pose. Back up and Galeno and Wagner (who are apparently brothers) double team Ishin and a pair of splashes get two, with Skywalker making the save.

Wagner chops at Skywalker in the corner but he’s back with a sitout butterfly suplex for two. Back up and a double suplex gets two on Galeno but Arez is back in for a PK to Minoura. A step up Asai moonsault takes him out again but Ishin is there for a running flip dive. The much bigger Galeno hits his own dive before Ishin manages to suplex him back inside. Galeno is right back up with the Galeno Special to plant Ishin for the pin at 10:34.

Rating: B-. This week has featured quite a few matches similar to this one and that’s not a bad thing. These people know how to work well together and this was no exception. They mixed things up a bit here with some bigger guys and that helped a good bit. It’s another fast paced tag match with people getting to do their thing and it’s on the card over and over for a reason.

Jordan Cruz vs. Bodhi Young Prodigy

The smaller Bodhi tries to start fast but his high crossbody is pulled out of the air. Cruz knees him in the face in the corner and grabs a Falcon Arrow to drop Bodhi again. Quite the lariat turns Bodhi inside out but he comes back with a high crossbody. A Pele kick rocks Cruz and a pop up hurricanrana gives Bodhi two. Bodhi’s 450 is countered with a grab of the throat and a superplex into a Shining Wizard…gets two as Cruz pulls him up. No More Sorrow (a brainbuster onto the knee) finishes Bodhi at 4:54.

Rating: C. Not much to this one but there wasn’t supposed to be. Bodhi is literally named “Young Prodigy” so seeing him take that kind of a beating makes good sense. Cruz got to show off well enough here too, though it’s almost strange to see this kind of a match on such a featured show.

Minoru Suzuki vs. Adam Priest

Suzuki gets a heck of a reaction and Priest heads straight to the floor for some stalling. Back in and a kick to the leg has Priest in more trouble as the fans get in a MURDER GRANDPA chant. Priest’s chops just annoy Suzuki and he’s smart enough before Suzuki can retaliate. The stalling is on again but this time Suzuki follows him outside and it’s time to throw some chops.

Suzuki even puts him in front of a fan for a big chop and let’s have a chair. Apparently that’s a ringside chair so it doesn’t count as a DQ, at least according to commentary. Back in and Suzuki starts working on the hand before switching over to a half crab. That’s switched into a crossface but Priest gets up and goes after the leg.

A Figure Four has the leg in more trouble but Suzuki cranks on the ankle to make Priest go to the ropes, despite still having the hold on. That’s some amazing pain innovation. Back up and they strike it out with Suzuki getting even angrier. Suzuki knocks him down and does it again, with the fans thinking Priest’s time is limited. The sleeper into the Gotch style piledriver finishes for Suzuki at 12:28.

Rating: B-. This is the kind of thing that Suzuki can still do well, as it was more a case of him being goofy/intimidating at the same time while using some smoke and mirrors to get through the match. Suzuki can’t move nearly as well as he did before and it’s smart to let him do something easier like this. The fans still love him so let him go do something a bit less than serious.

Post match Suzuki teases a piledriver on the referee but lets him escape.

Kevin Blackwood vs. Leon Slater

Man Like DeReiss is here with Slater. They go with the grappling to start until Blackwood grabs a headlock into a shoulder. Slater is back up with a running clothesline for a knockdown, with Blackwood nipping up. A bouncing kick to the face sends Blackwood to the floor and there’s the slingshot dive. Back up and a slingshot Fameasser over the middle rope has Blackwood in more trouble. Blackwood drops him onto the apron though and a knee to the ribs cuts him off again.

Slater’s rollup seems to annoy Blackwood, who drops him with a belly to back suplex. The abdominal stretch goes on the banged up ribs but Slater powers out and hits a leg lariat. Slater hits a running boot to the face for two so Blackwood German suplexes him down for the same. They go up top, where Slater gets shoved down but he avoids a dive. Slater hits a Blue Thunder Bomb, only to miss a 450. Another top rope double stomp is kicked out of the air but Slater’s Swanton 450 hits raised knees. Now Blackwood’s double stomp can finish at 12:21.

Rating: B. Blackwood has impressed me in the few matches I’ve seen him in and that’s a cool thing to see. He wrestles an intense style and Slater’s high flying fits in well with him. I’ve liked Slater during his time in TNA and hopefully he gets a chance to keep going, as that could take him a long way.

Evan Rivers/Tate Mayfairs/Vaughn Vertigo/Xia Brookside vs. Drexl/Jaiden/Amira/Matt Brannigan

Rivers and company have matching costumes….though I have no idea what they are. Jaiden strikes away at Vaughn to start before it’s off to Brookside vs. the rather odd Drexl. Mayfair comes in to chop away at Drexl, who rubs his nipples in appreciation. Brannigan comes in and gets taken into the wrong corner and it’s time for some wind up spanks. Brookside comes in and gets dropkicked down by Amira, sending her and her team outside for a huddle. Brannigan and company stop for a drink and everyone but Mayfairs do match pose.

Instead, Brannigan gets suplexed down so it’s time for CPR. Amira gets taken into the corner for a kick to the back of the head but manages a quick shot of her own. Jaiden comes in to clean house for all of five seconds before getting stomped down in the corner. Jaiden’s suplex gets him out of trouble and it’s Drexl coming in to clothesline and grab various things. Everything breaks down and most of the people head out to the floor. Amira gets caught in the Tree Of Woe for a coast to coast ax handle. That sets up Mayfairs’ moonsault for the pin at 11:56.

Rating: C+. This was little more than goofy fun with the heroic team getting to do their entertaining stuff and the villains cutting them off here and there. It was a good example of taking a bunch of people and letting them entertain the fans, which is going to work every time. If nothing else else, Brookside getting a bit more featured time is a nice bonus too.

We get a pretty basic highlight package on the promotion.

Michael Oku vs. El Phantasmo

Amira (not the one from the previous match) is here with Oku. Feeling out process to start and they take turns shaking Amira’s hand. Phantasmo shoulders him down and grabs a hurricanrana to send Oku outside. Some chops have Oku in more trouble and a whip into the corner has him in trouble back inside. Oku is sent outside, where his chop almost hits Amira by mistake.

Back in and Oku wins a slugout and grabs a tornado DDT for two. The top rope Lionsault misses though, leaving Phantasmo to hit a regular version for two more. Oku kicks him down though and now the top rope Lionsault can hit the leg, setting up the half crab. The rope is grabbed so Oku knocks him outside, setting up the Fosbury Flop. Phantasmo is able to catch him on top for a superplex and a cutthroat driver gets two. They trade big shots to the head until Phantasmo’s clothesline gets two. Oku’s backslide gets two so Phantasmo hits a Canadian Revolution II for the same. Thunder Kiss 86 finishes Oku at 13:30.

Rating: B-. Oku continues to grow on me and that’s nice to see after so long of being relatively indifferent to him. This was a good mixture of technical and high flying stuff, with Phantasmo looking rather smooth in the ring. You can see how talented these two are and they had a good match, which shouldn’t be a surprise.

Respect is shown post match.

IInspiration vs. Kylie Rae/Nicole Matthews

This is the IInspiration’s first American independent match ever and the fans give them quite the reception. Matthews runs Lee over and mocks her dancing, only for Lee to do the exact same thing in a nice moment. Rae comes in and gets caught with a middle rope ax handle to the arm. It’s back to Matthews, who gets rolled up for a quick two. With Matthews on the floor, Rae gets caught with some running shots in the corner. Stereo kicks drop Rae again and it’s time for Matthews and Rae to leave.

The IInspiration isn’t having that and drag them back for the right hands in the corner. Matthews gets in a shot to McKay’s knee though and it’s time to start the double teaming on the leg. Matthews cranks on McKay’s leg but she sends Rae and Matthews into each other. It’s back to Lee to pick up the pace, including a tornado DDT for two. Everything breaks down and Matthews gets a half crab on McKay. Lee does the same thing to Rae and it’s a powerbomb/spinning faceplant combination to give Lee the pin at 10:54.

Rating: C+. This was the feel good match as having the IInspiration got to have their big moment as they have been away for a long time. They get to come in and beat some known names, which is a fine way to use them. I’m not sure I can imagine them being around long term, but it was perfectly fine for a one off appearance.

Prestige Wrestling World Title: Alan Angels vs. Calvin Tankman

Angels is defending and it’s No DQ so he jumps Tankman with a trashcan to start. They get inside for the opening bell and the much bigger Tankman fights back to take them out to the floor. An exchange of chairs to the back goes to Tankman, who knocks him around ringside and drops him onto the apron. The door is loaded up but Angels dropkicks it into Tankman’s face for the big crash.

Angels chokes away with a chain and puts a trashcan over Tankman’s head for a heck of a chair shot. Tankman drops him with a single forearm and Angels’ chair shot bounces off the rope and hits him in the head. Angels blocks a powerbomb though and hammers away with forearms to the back of the head.

The Rings Of Saturn with a chain has Tankman in more trouble but he powers out for two of his own. Tankman makes a door bridge, with a super sitout powerbomb putting Angels through them for two. With that not working, Tankman takes him up again but cue Jordan Cruz to powerbomb Tankman through the chairs. The Halo Strike (basically a Van Daminator) retains the title at 16:01.

Rating: B-. The ending felt like a big deal as Angels now has some muscle to help fight against the forces of good. Tankman is a big guy who can move and that makes for a good challenger for a smaller champion like Angels. The weapons stuff helped make the match feel special, as we hadn’t seen it throughout the show. Nice main event here with the surprise angle at the end.

Overall Rating: B-. This was about all you can ask for out of such a show, as they had good matches with some storyline changes taking place as well. It’s a perfectly watchable show with some familiar faces and a few names who are probably more local to Prestige. I had a good time with this one as it’s a perfectly acceptable show.

Results
Sinner And Saint b. Lykos Gym – Ode To The Fallen to Lykos
Arez/Galeno del Mal/El Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr. b. Z-Brats – Galeno Special to Ishin
Jordan Cruz b. Bodhi Young Prodigy – No More Sorrow
Minoru Suzuki b. Adam Priest – Gotch style piledriver
Kevin Blackwood b. Leon Slater – Double stomp
Evan Rivers/Tate Mayfairs/Vaughn Vertigo/Xia Brookside b. Drexl/Jaiden/Amira/Matt Brannigan – Moonsault to Amira
El Phantasmo b. Michael Oku – Thunder Kiss 86
IInspiration b. Kylie Rae/Nicole Matthews – Powerbomb/spinning faceplant combination to Rae
Alan Angels b. Calvin Tankman – Halo Strike

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WrestlLiving Proof
Date: April 17, 2025
Location: Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Rich Bocchini, Ethan HD

This is from Defy Wrestling, a promotion based out of the Pacific northwest. The promotion has been around for a long time and I’ve liked most of their stuff that I’ve seen over the years. This show is likely going to include the usual array of guest stars that you see in Wrestlemania Week so that should be a nice bonus. Let’s get to it.

Note that I do not follow the promotion so I apologize in advance for any plot or character points I miss.

Some women, possibly Vert Vixen and Rhio, get in a fight backstage.

Bollywood Boyz/Galeno del Mal vs. C4/Negro Casas

The Boyz and C4 (Cody Chhun and Guillermo Rosas) have been feuding for a good while now. The bell rings and we pause for a Bollywood dance off, because, well, that’s what the Bollywood Boyz (Harv and Gurv) do. We settle down to Harv small packaging Chhun for two before handing it off to Gurv. The bigger Rosas comes in to run Gurv over with a shoulder and a double dropkick sends Harv outside. Casas (65 years old) comes in to chop away at the far bigger del Mal, who drops him with a single chop.

We settle back down to Rosas working on Gurv’s arm and it’s back to Casas for some chops of his own. Del Mal comes in and Rosas gets crushed in the corner with some splashes. The Bollywood Blast hits Rosas and it’s back to del Mal for a very big running splash. Harv’s chinlock is broken up with a chinlock and it’s back to Chhun to clean house. A double suplex drops del Mal but the Boyz are back in with stereo Sharpshooters to C4. Casas breaks those up and, along with C4, grab stereo la majistrals for a triple pin at 10:09.

Rating: C+. This was right out of the modern six man tag playbook and that only made for such an interesting match. It was a bunch of people running in and doing various spots until the ending. What we got wasn’t bad and the fans were into the dancing at the beginning, but this never got to a very high level.

Here is Ravenous Randy Myers (the Weirdo Hero) for a surprise chat, though he does kiss some fans on the way in. He welcomes the darling fans to the 11am show and says we should make some magic. Myers parades around the ring a bit and here is Evan Rivers to go after him. Myers fights back and chases him through the crowd.

Amira/Vert Vixen/Viva Van vs. Liiza Hall/Nicole Matthews/Rhio

Vixen and Rhio start things off but Hall tags herself in to make us wait for what seems to be the big fight. They fight over wrist control and get nowhere until Vixen takes her down for an elbow to the back. Van comes in for a double basement dropkick for two on Hall, who pulls her down to work on the arm for a bit. Rhio comes in to trade rollups for two each with Van, who comes back with a spinwheel kick.

It’s off to Amira, who charges into a raised boot in the corner, allowing Matthews to come in. A quick armdrag takes Matthews down but she’s right back with a quickly broken rear naked choke. They trade kicks from the mat with Matthews getting the better of things, meaning it’s off to Hall for some kicks to the back. A double knockdown keeps Amira in trouble but she counter’s Hall’s kick to the head into a powerbomb for a needed breather.

Now we get the big showdown between Vixen and Rhio with an exchange of kicks to the head. The fight gets intense enough that Amira and Matthews come in to try and pull them back to the corners. Instead everything breaks down, with Vixen and Rhio slugging it out on the floor. They fight into the crowd, leaving Hall to suplex Van. Amira gets taken up to and crashes back down off a spider suplex. Van and Matthews kind of fall out of the corner (not sure what they were trying there) before Van hits an Ocean Cyclone suplex (ah that’s what they were trying) for the pin on Matthews at 14:07.

Rating: B-. I was getting into this one as they made Rhio vs. Vixen feel like a showdown between people who wanted to hurt each other. That’s what it needed to be and it made for a good match. The other four were doing their thing as well and I got into a match between people I don’t particularly know. I’ll call that a good sign, as you should be able to tell that kind of a story.

Michael Oku vs. Evil

Amira (not the one from the previous match) is here with Oku. Of note: during the entrances we get a graphic for upcoming events, including the one we’re currently watching. Evil goes for a cheap shot off the handshake to start (because of course) and grabs a headlock. Oku sends him to the floor for a suicide dive though, only for Evil to be ready for the Fosbury Flop.

It’s already time to choke with the tag rope (and Evil even ripped it off to be extra ev…well you get the idea) and Evil gets some near falls. A rake to the eyes has Oku in more trouble but he comes back with a quick middle rope dropkick. Oku plants him down for some near falls but it’s way too early for the half crab. Evil throws the referee at Oku and gets in a low blow, setting up a suplex neckbreaker (with an assist from the referee) for two.

Amira won’t let Evil bring in a chair though and Oku sends him to the floor for the flip dive. Back in and a frog splash high crossbody gets two on Evil and the half crab goes on. That’s broken up rather quickly and another low blow sets up a fisherman’s suplex for two on Oku. Back up and Oku’s running knee sets up a spinning frog splash for two more. Another frog splash hits raised knees though and Evil hits a hard clothesline for his own near fall. A fireman’s carry into a sitout powerbomb gets two more on Oku, followed by Everything Is Evil (STO) for the clean pin at 10:10.

Rating: B-. Oku has changed just enough of his style that I’m liking him a bit more and it’s nice to see someone with his skills in the ring. On the other hand you have Evil, who isn’t exactly worth seeing most of the time. I was a bit surprised to see Evil get a clean win as Oku is a fairly big star, though I guess he isn’t annoying New Japan stable big.

Post match Evil puts on a Scorpion Deathlock, with Amira helping the referee to break it up.

Tag Team Titles: Lykos Gym vs. Susumu Yokosuka/Hyo vs. Sinner And Saint

Sinner And Saint, with Evan Rivers, are defending. We pause for Hyo, who seems to be a male stripper, to get money stuck into his gear. Hyo and Kid Lykos II (partner of Kid Lykos) with Hyo missing a dropkick, allowing Lykos to grab a quick rollup for two. Icarus (Sinner) comes in and gets caught with a basement dropkick but Williams (Saint) cuts off a whip into the corner.

Lykos comes in to take over on Williams and a double back elbow sets up a basement dropkick for two. Williams is back up to take over on Lykos II’s arm and it’s back to Icarus for a clothesline. Lykos II gets in a shot of his own though and it’s off to Hyo and a double stomp to Williams. Rivers gets on the apron for a cheap shot so here is Randy Myers to get some revenge from earlier and chase Rivers into the crowd.

Yokosuka remembers that he’s in the match but can’t get a powerbomb on Icarus. Instead Icarus is sent into the corner but it’s Lykos II getting suplexed down. Hyo takes down the suspenders and hits a middle rope backsplash, with Sinner and Saint making the save. The Lykoses hit something like a Motor City Machine Guns Skull & Bones and we hit the parade of knockdowns. Williams sends Hyo into a low blow, setting up Ode To The Fallen (Angel’s Wings/kick to the head combination) to retain the titles at 11:07.

Rating: B-. It was a pretty wild match where they gave up on the tagging about halfway through. That’s what happens most of the time in matches like this and while it was still entertaining, it turned into a bunch of near falls and saves. Sinner And Saint still don’t do much for me, though it was certainly not a boring match.

Kenta vs. Mance Warner

Kenta is trying to get back to the top after losing the World Title and this is one of his big steps. They forearm and then slap it out before going outside for Kenta’s kicks to the chest. Kenta even steals a fan’s hat, though he is nice enough to give it back. Warner gets in a few shots of his own, only to get kicked in the face for his efforts. Commentary tries to pinpoint Bucksnort, Tennessee as Warner and Kenta go to the stage for a chair duel. Then they sit in the chairs and trade slaps, as wrestlers tend to do.

Warner gets the better of things and takes the chairs back to the ring, with Kenta joining them shortly thereafter. Kenta powerslams him through an open chair but Warner is back up with the running lariat for two. They trade shots to the head until Kenta grabs a Falcon Arrow, followed by a top rope double stomp for two. The GTS is broken up and Warner hits a rather hard chokeslam for two of his own. Back up and they trade forearms until Warner drops him with a right hand. That’s shrugged off though and a quick GTS finishes Warner at 13:11.

Rating: B-. This started good good and then slowed down a bit, with things thankfully not getting too far into the hardcore/violent stuff that Warner tends to do. Instead it was more of a straight fight and Kenta felt like he earned the win. This was a nice change of pace after having so many tag matches thus far.

Rock N Roll Express vs. Midnight Heat

Midnight Heat is Eddie Pearl/Ricky Gibson (not Robert Gibson’s former partner). For the sake of simplicity, I’ll refer to Robert Gibson as “Robert”, Ricky Gibson as “Ricky” and Ricky Morton as “Morton”. The fans really do not like Midnight Heat and Ricky makes it even worse, saying that the fans are here to see if the Express are still actually alive. They are for now, but this match hasn’t started yet. The Express has the chance to take their boots off and get out of here right now.

Morton mocks the Heat for taking so long to say anything. Yeah the Express is old but in their day, the Heat couldn’t beat either one of them. Morton thanks the fans for always being there for them and it’s time to get it on. Robert sends the Heat into each other to start and a double right hand sends them outside for a needed breather.

Back in and Morton hits a running knee lift to Pearl before taking him into the corner. Pearl manages to knock Morton into the corner and it’s off to Ricky for an assisted kick to the ribs. Morton avoids a charge in the corner though and Robert comes in (ignore that he was half in before the tag) as everything breaks down. Gibson hits Pearl by mistake and Morton busts out a Canadian Destroyer. Robert’s right hand of all things finishes Gibson at 7:34.

Rating: C. The thing to remember about the Express is that they aren’t going to be the fast paced stars like they were forty years ago. The point of having them around is getting to show off their charisma and the nostalgic, which is not a bad idea. That’s what they did here, and they still look good enough in the ring to get by. They’re a fun team and it was nice to see that they still have enough of it to be entertaining.

Defy World Title: Clark Connors vs. El Phantasmo vs. Man Like DeReiss

Connors is defending and DeReiss raps his way to the ring, as is his custom. The challengers yell at each other to start so Connors flips both of them off and bails to the floor. Back in and Connors stomps away on DeReiss but Phantasmo is back up to hammer on Connors in the corner. Phantasmo bends Connors’ finger back but the long form Old School is broken up.

Instead Connors is knocked out to the floor, where DeReiss gets beaten up too. Connors teases chopping a fan who is sitting on Phantasmo’s lap but then just pokes Phantasmo in the eyes instead. Back in and Connors grabs a chinlock on Phantasmo but DeReiss comes off the top with a Blockbuster to take Connors down. The Tower Of Doom brings DeReiss crashing down and Connors gets two each.

DeReiss and Phantasmo get sick of Connors and superkick him down before Phantasmo drops DeReiss with a forearm. Phantasmo misses a kick to the face and a cutter drops him for a change. DeReiss’ 450 connects but Connors comes back in to steal the near fall. Phantasmo is back with a superkick each and something like a Pedigree gets two on Connors. DeReiss tries another 450 but hits Connors’ raised knees. Connors hits a spear each and No Chaser (implant DDT) pins DeReiss to retain the title at 12:38.

Rating: B-. I’m not sure if there was some kind of a personal issue here, but it never felt like they were really angry at each other. Maybe that’s not what they were going for, but it didn’t make for the most exciting match. All three of them did look good in the ring, though Connors is still relatively early in his title reign so having him keep the belt is a good move. Let him get a nice win and move on, which is what he pulled off here.

Overall Rating: B-. As has been the case with Defy that I’ve seen, this was a perfectly fine wrestling show without anything really standing out. The action was good and it felt like there was enough of a history that I got some of the points of the matches. While there will be better independent shows over the weekend, there are going to be far worse picks. Nice enough show here.

Results
C4/Negro Casas b. Bollywood Boyz/Galeno del Mal – Triple pin
Amira/Vert Vixen/Viva Van b. Liiza Hall/Nicole Matthews/Rhio – Ocean Cyclone suplex to Matthews
Evil b. Michael Oku – Everything Is Evil
Sinner And Saint b. Lykos Gym and Hyo/Susumu Yokosuka – Ode To The Fallen to Hyo
Kenta b. Mance Warner – GTS
Rock N Roll Express b. Midnight Heat – Right hand to Gibson
Clark Connors b. Man Like DeReiss and El Phantasmo – No Chaser to DeReiss

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Wrestle Kingdom 19
Date: January 4, 2025
Location: Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan
Commentators: Walker Stewart, Chris Charlton

It’s that time again as we have the biggest international wrestling show of the year. The show is always worth a look as the action will be quite good, even if the company might not be as hot as it was in past years. The main event is Zack Sabre Jr. defending the IWGP World Title against Shota Umino so let’s get to it.

Note that I do not follow New Japan closely at all, with Wrestle Kingdom being the only show I watch every year. I know most of the names but I have no idea on storylines or character development. I apologize in advance for any details I miss or get wrong as I’m going entirely off what I see and what commentary tells me.

Pre-Show: New Japan Ranbo

This is basically a Royal Rumble with one minute intervals but in this case the winner gets a World Title shot rather than qualifying for the KOPW Title match. Great O Khan is in at #1 and Josh Barnett is in at #2. They go with the grappling to start (as is Barnett’s custom) and that’s a stalemate until Oleg Boltin is in at #3. With O Khan down and holding his knee, Boltin and Barnett grapple until Hirooki Goto is in at #4 (as the intervals are already getting wacky).

They pair off and the clock speeds way up as Yuji Nagata is in at #5. Nagata and Barnett (they have a history) pair off but Boltin breaks it up. Boltin and Barnett crash out to the floor for our first eliminations and Togi Makabe is in at #6. Makabe chokes O Khan in the corner (I don’t think the chain is legal) and Kenta is in at #7. Kenta knocks Nagata to the apron and kicks him out as Yoshi-Hashi is in at #8.

Kenta and Hashi strike it out with Kenta getting the better of things as Yujiro Takahashi is in at #9. Hashi sends Kenta to the apron but gets tossed out as Toru Yano is in at #10. As tends to be his case, Yano knocks Kenta to the apron and sends Takahashi into him for an elimination, followed by the rollup pin on Takahashi for the double upset. Hiroyoshi TTenzan is in at #11 and strikes away until longtime partner Satoshi Kojima is in at #12.

They beat up Yano but he sends them into each other and pins Tenzan for another surprise elimination. Tomoaki Honma is in at #13 as Makabe keeps kicking out. Sanada is in at #14 (after main eventing last year) and is immediately beaten up by Kojima and Makabe. Sanada kicks Kojima low though and tosses him out as Taichi is in at #15. Taichi and Sanada fight to the floor without being eliminated and it’s Tomohiro Ishii in at #16.

Honma jumps Ishii but gets forearmed out of the air and braibustered for the pin. Alex Zayne is in at #17 to complete the field, giving us a final grouping of O Khan, Goto, Yano Sanada, Taichi, Ishii and Zayn as Makabe has apparently been eliminated. Taichi gets caught trying to kick Sanada low and that’s a DQ, only for Taichi to kick Sanada out anyway.

Yano tries his turnbuckle shot but misses the swing and gets tossed. Ishii is out and we’re down to Zayne, Goto and O Khan. Zayne is sent to the apron and sent out, leaving us with two. O Khan hammers away to start but charges into the GTR, allowing Goto to send him to the apron. A running clothesline gives Goto the win at 34:37.

Rating: B-. Having the stakes being bigger and not having the whole final four advance deal made things better. Goto is a big enough name to earn a title shot and it makes sense to send him forward, so this does feel important. It’s still a nice way to get a bunch of people on the show and this worked as well as it needed to.

The opening video looks at the bigger matches and runs down the card (in order, as usual).

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles: Intergalactic Jet Setters vs. Ichiban Sweet Boys vs. Catch 2/2 vs. Bullet Club War Dogs

The Jet Setters (Kevin Knight/Kushida) are defending in a ladder match against Robbie Eagles/Kosei Fujita (Sweet Boys), TJP/Francesco Akira (Catch 2/2) and Clark Connors/Driller Mahoney (War Dogs). It’s a brawl to start (of course) with Knight being left in the ring until the Boys bring in the first ladder. The Dogs bring in some chairs to increase the violence before going up, only for Kushida to take out their ladder.

Everyone is on the floor and Knight is knocked out of the air by a flying chair. Something like a running piledriver onto the floor knocks Kushida silly but TJP won’t let Akira be sent through a table. Some people get back inside with Knight setting up a ladder and bridging another inside. Eagles hits a springboard 450 to Connors on the ladder and an electric chair cutter drops Fujita. Some mist blinds Eagles and he gets sent through the bridged ladder for a huge crash.

Knight goes to the top of the ladder and tries a Motor City Machine Guns Skull And Bones, only to pretty much completely miss Maloney for the huge crash. Fujita gets thrown off a ladder and Knight goes up, only to have the ladder shoved over. TJP knocks Maloney off a ladder, leaving Catch 2/2 and the Boys to go up at the same time. The brawl is on until Fujita is left with Akira. Some choking is enough for Fujita to pull down the titles at 13:07.

Rating: B. It’s rare for NJPW to run this kind of a match but it worked rather well. I can go for seeing something like this as a special treat and that is the kind of thing you want to see on a show like Wrestle Kingdom. It was a total car crash match with one big spot after another and that worked out rather well. Good opener, with the fans into what they were seeing.

IWGP Women’s Title: Mayu Iwatani vs. AZM

Iwatani is defending and they slug it out to start. AZM knocks her to the floor and hits a big running dive to take her out. Back in and Iwatani hits a running dropkick against the ropes but AZM catches her on top. A top rope double stomp gets two on Iwatani but she’s right back with a heck of a superkick. Iwatani’s moonsault misses and AZM grabs a Canadian Destroyer. A double underhook Canadian Destroyer gets two but Iwatani gets her feet up to knock her out of the air. They trade German suplexes until Iwatani hits a Tombstone. A moonsault gives Iwatani two and a dragon suplex retains the title at 8:47.

Rating: B. I’m not sure what to say about a match like this as there was very little story given by commentary (though they do seem to have a history) so they were just doing a bunch of moves to each other. That being said, it was quite the action packed match and they were laying their stuff in so it was an easy match to watch with both of them looking rather talented. Good stuff here, even if it didn’t have time to do much.

NJPW TV Title: Jeff Cobb vs. Ryohei Oiwa vs. El Phantasmo vs. Ren Narita

Narita is defending. Cobb and Oiwa trade big shoulders to start with Oiwa actually getting the better of things. An armbar is broken up but Narita is back in for some choking to Oiwa and a kneebar to Cobb. Phantasmo slips out of the Tour Of The Islands but gets knocked off the top onto the other two. Cobb is back up with a big running flip dive onto the other three, followed by a standing moonsault for two on Narita.

A Tower Of Doom plants Phantasmo but Narita is back in with a top rope knee to Cobb for a near fall of his own. Narita’s board is taken away by Phantasmo’s manager Jado, leaving Cobb to plant Phantasmo out of the air. A doctor bomb gets two on Cobb with Narita pulling the referee out at two. Back in and Cobb hits Tour Of The Islands on Narita but Phantasmo makes the save. Phantasmo’s springboard splash pins Narita for the title at 9:59.

Rating: B-. This was another all over the place match with Cobb as a monster, Narita breaking up everything he could and Phantasmo feeling like the star. Oiwa was there as well but didn’t really stand out. It wasn’t as good as some of the other matches but Phantasmo, who is recently back after winning a battle with cancer, winning was a nice moment.

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Evil

Lumberjack match and Tanahashi’s career is on the line. They fight over a top wristlock to start until Evil grabs the hair like an evil villain. A quick crossbody staggers Evil but he catches Tanahashi skinning the cat and bites his leg (as you do). Evil sends him through a chair at ringside and Evil’s House Of Torture beats up Tanahashi’s lumberjacks.

Back in and a suplex gives Evil two but Tanahashi goes classic with a dragon screw legwhip. The middle rope flipping splash gives Tanahashi two but the threat of a Sling Blade sends Evil outside. One of the lumberjacks solves that rather quickly and it’s Twist And Shout to drop Evil again. The House Of Torture comes in to beat Tanahashi down and Dick Togo gets in a low blow.

Tanahashi’s friends make the save but Tanahashi misses a charge into an exposed buckle. That’s shrugged off and it’s a dragon suplex into a Sling Blade but Tanahashi crotches him on top. Powder to the eyes blinds Tanahashi and Darkness falls gets two. The Scorpion Deathlock goes on but Evil lets go, setting up an STO….but Tanahashi rolls him up for the pin out of nowhere at 15:07.

Rating: B. The action itself was good enough, but this was all about the storytelling. It’s one of those stories that anyone could understand, as it was light vs. darkness, with good winning in the end. That’s as basic of a story as you can get and it worked well here. I liked this, with Tanahashi overcoming the House Of Torture, who have been annoying every time I’ve seen them.

Post match the brawl is on with the House beating the good guys down. Katsuyori Shibata makes the save though and, with the villains gone, challenges Tanahashi for tomorrow at Wrestle Dynasty. Works for Tanahashi.

AEW International Title/NEVER Openweight Title: Konosuke Takeshita vs. Shingo Takagi

Title for title and Don Callis is here with Takeshita. They trade running shoulders to start with Takeshita missing a charge into the corner to slow him down. Back up and one heck of a forearm drops Takagi and a Vader Bomb gets two. Takagi isn’t having much of a chinlock and they go to the floor where he hits a pop up Death Valley Driver. A superplex into a sliding lariat gets two on Takeshita but he blocks Made In Japan.

Some German suplexes put Takagi down but Takeshita is too banged up to stay with him. A wheelbarrow German suplexes drops Takagi, who pops back up with a heck of a lariat to leave both of them down again. Made In Japan gives Takagi two but Takeshita grazes him with a jumping knee.

Another attempt connects far better for one, followed by the Blue Thunder Bomb for two. Takagi is back with Last Of The Dragon but for some reason he doesn’t cover. They trade poisonranas before Takeshita forearms him in the back of the head for another knockdown. Another forearm sets up Raging Fire to make Takeshita a double champion at 12:43.

Rating: B+. This was two hard hitters beating the fire out of each other until one of them couldn’t get up. That’s always something that is going to work and it more than worked here, with Takeshita continuing his rise up the wrestling world. Heck of a fight here, and the best match on the show so far.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title: Douki vs. El Desperado

Desperado is challenging. They stare each other down to start and Desperado bails out to the floor. A quick switch lets Desperado hit a running flip dive, with his legs slamming into the barricade. They trade forearms on the floor for a bit before getting back in, earning some nice applause. Back in and Desperado plants him own, setting up a quickly broken Texas Cloverleaf. Douki sends him outside and hits a dive off the top, only to land on his arm and COMPLETELY wreck the elbow. The referee immediately stops the match, making Desperado champion at 5:51. I won’t rate it due to the injury but it was starting well.

Post match Desperado says he and Douki will do this again.

IWGP Global Title: Yota Tsuji vs. David Finlay

Finlay, with Gedo, is defending and Tsuji needs to win his first singles title to start realizing his potential. Tsuji knocks him outside to start but Finlay gets away before the dive. Finlay plants him on the floor before hammering away back inside. Tsuji blocks what looked like a Rock Bottom though and hits a stomp to put Finlay down for a breather.

A running hurricanrana sends Finlay outside and there’s the big running flip dive. Back in and a Cactus Clothesline puts both of them on the floor again, allowing Finlay to get in a nice posting. A whip through some chairs has Tsuji in trouble but he beats the count back in, as you probably guessed.

Tsuji manages a suplex into the corner and catches him on top with a kick to the head, leaving Finlay looking a bit dead. Finlay is fine enough to hit three straight Dominators for two but Tsuji is right back up. A missed moonsault lets Finlay grab a powerbomb for two more and we get a double breather.

Tsuji is back up with a spinning top rope double stomp to the back for another near fall and they’re both down again. Finlay cuts him off with a cutter and a brainbuster onto the knee gets two. The Stundog Millionaire into a spear gives Tsuji two and frustration is setting in. They trade shots to the face but Finlay knees him in the face for two more. Tsuji hits his own knee, setting up a powerbomb into another spear for the pin and the title at 19:35.

Rating: B-. It was good, but I’m not sure if it was as big of a moment as commentary tried to make it seem. Maybe I’m missing something here but it felt like just kind of a match rather than a big showdown or a moment. There is definitely potential in Tsuji, though I’m not sure if he’s going to be the next big thing around here. Maybe that’s due to me being sick of the spear, but this never got to that next level.

Tetsuya Naito vs. Hiromu Takahashi

This is billed as fifteen years in the making, with Takahashi being said to have saved Naito’s career but it’s apparently their first ever match. Takahashi comes out in a costume that is…we’ll go with big and weir and I won’t try to go further than that. Takahashi seems to show some disrespect to start and the fans don’t like that as the bell rings.

They go with the grappling to start and Naito takes him down for a basement dropkick. Naito ties up the neck as we hear about his terrible eye issues until Takahashi makes the ropes for the break. Back up and a clothesline sets up Takahashi’s running basement dropkick for two more. Naito picks up the pace and armdrags him into another basement dropkick, meaning it’s time to pose.

Takahashi grabs an AA for two and there’s a German suplex to put Naito down again. Naito’s DDT is blocked so Takahashi can take him down but Naito grabs a quick Destino. Another Destino gets two but Takahashi counters a third. Back up and Naito hammers away on the neck, only to get tied up with a cradle for two. Takahashi hits his own Destino, setting up Time Bomb II for two. Back up and Naito hits his own Destino for two more but Takahashi grabs the leg to cut him off. One more Destino finishes Takahashi at 17:09.

Rating: B. This is a match where there is definitely a major backstory that I haven’t seen but commentary did a great job of explaining why I should care about what is going on. It’s a good sign when I can get the gist of what they’re going for without having seen any of their history and they pulled it off here. They seemed to be going for a match of respect here, which is a hard one to pull off. Nice stuff here, with what felt like a long history culminating with a good match.

Post match, Takahashi does show respect.

We recap the main event. Zack Sabre Jr. wants to become the first foreigner to walk in and out of Wrestle Kingdom as champion while Umino just wants to be champion. This doesn’t exactly feel like the hottest main event.

IWGP World Heavyweight Title: Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Shota Umino

Sabre is defending and has his TMDK stable with him. Feeling out process to start and they fight over wrist control with neither getting anywhere. Umino grabs some full nelsons and Sabre gets annoyed that he can’t stay away. A running dropkick puts Sabre down and we finally have someone taking over. Some elbows have Sabre down as commentary points out how many times Umino has beaten Sabre, despite never winning a title or major tournament.

That’s a story that makes sense and it was summed up rather quickly there. Sabre starts in on the arm with some cranking and stomping as we hear about Sabre’s training in how to hurt people. An abdominal stretch lets Sabre switch things up a bit as he’s starting to pick Umino apart. Umino gets out and grabs a PerfectPlex for two, setting up a slingshot DDT onto the apron to knock Sabre silly.

Back up and Umino sends him into the barricade, followed by another dropkick. A hanging DDT off the barricade drops Sabre hard, setting up a top rope dropkick to the side of the head back inside. Sabre dropkicks him right back though and we get a double breather. Umino sits up and wants some kicks to the back, with Sabre being glad to oblige. Sabre starts in on the arm before tying both of them up to make it much worse. The double arm crank is blocked so Sabre switches to a triangle choke but Umino powers out for another double down.

Back up and Sabre hits a heck of a clothesline, only to walk into a reverse Twist And Shout. They trade uppercuts, with Umino hitting one to really rock Sabre. An exchange of kicks goes to Sabre but Umino is back with a springboard tornado DDT. The Zack Driver gives Sabre two and they’re both down again. Umino is back with a lifting DDT for two and a spinning double arm DDT gets the same.

Sabre starts going after the ankle with a variety of holds, including something like a reverse figure four. The rope is finally reached and Umino fights up with some not so great forearms. Another DDT works a bit better as Umino keeps trying to fire up and get the fans behind him. A super Zack Driver is blocked and Umino grabs a super Death Rider to leave both of them down.

Umino stomps away and shoves the referee, which the fans don’t like. Some more stomps keep Sabre down until he drops Umino and kicks away. Another exchange of strikes puts Umino down but he reverses another ankle lock. The ankle gives out though and another Zack Driver gets another two. A Gotch Style piledriver and a Sabre Driver (really creative names there champ) retains at 43:44.

Rating: C+. So the story of the match was Umino needed to step up and finally claim the title to become a star and he just didn’t. The fans never quite seemed to get into him and I only bought Sabre as being somewhat in danger. While not a bad match, it doesn’t feel like a main event of the biggest show of the year. It felt like a match to set up a big moment later, perhaps next year, and that’s only so exciting. Cut off ten to fifteen minutes and this is MUCH better.

Post match Sabre says he’ll be waiting for Umino again and he’ll win tomorrow in another main event. Happy New Year, and it will be the year of TMDK.

Overall Rating: B. This is a show where the action was quite good and nothing on the card is anything close to bad, but there was nothing on this show that felt like it was a must see match. I can go with a collection of good matches, but I could also go with some kind of a special moment of something that makes me want to see what is next. Tsuji winning feels like the start of a long term project and maybe we get some kind of torch passing moment next year, but that doesn’t leave much on this show. I certainly didn’t dislike the show, though it’s definitely not something that makes me think that NJPW is must see right now.

Results
Hirooki Goto won the New Japan Ranbo last eliminating Great O Khan
Ichiban Sweet Boys b. Intergalactic Jet Setters, Catch 2/2 and Bullet Club War Dogs – Fujita pulled down the titles
Mayu Iwatani b. AZM – Dragon suplex
El Phantasmo b. Jeff Cobb, Ryohei Oiwa and Ren Narita – Springboard splash to Narita
Hiroshi Tanahashi b. Evil – Small package
Konosuke Takeshita b. Shingo Takagi – Raging Fire
El Desperado b. Douki via referee stoppage
Yota Tsuji b. David Finlay – Spear
Tetsuya Naito b. Hiromu Takahashi – Destino

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Forged In Excellence Night One
Date: October 19, 2024
Location: St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Don Callis, Mauro Ranallo

So this is Maple Leaf Pro, the new promotion from former TNA executive Scott D’Amore. The card has been built up well over the last few weeks and I might as well look at the first two nights. As you might expect, there will be a heavy Canadian influence on the show, but there are some outsiders as well. Let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at some of the people on the show tonight and how they got here, with some classic Canadian wrestling clips thrown in. It’s almost weird seeing TNA clips in there given how D’Amore departed.

The production looks OUTSTANDING for an independent show, easily on par with TNA.

Josh Alexander/Stu Grayson/El Phantasmo vs. Rocky Romero/Alex Zayne/Trevor Lee

Well you knew Romero was going to be on a show like this. What kind of a show? Every kind of a show. Alexander works on Romero’s arm to start and elbows him down before handing it off to Grayson and Lee, the latter of whom has gotten a heck of a haircut. Grayson takes him down and hits a dropkick but Lee hands it off to Zayne.

Phantasmo comes in to take him down, followed by a very springboardy armdrag. Alexander and company grab stereo Sharpshooters but they’re quickly broken up, with Romero hitting the Forever Clotheslines on Phantasmo. Lee gets kicked into Zayne though and it’s off to Alexander to clean house. Everything breaks down and Alexander gets kicked down as Callis wants Alexander hurt before he faces Konosuke Takeshita tomorrow night.

Alexander fights up as well and hands it back to Grayson for a double clothesline. Phantasmo hits a torture rack neckbreaker but Romero sens him into Alexander. Grayson’s Nightfall (torture rack into a backbreaker) drops Zayne and Alexander hits a release German suplex on Lee. Romero’s armbar is countered into another backbreaker though and Alexander nails the C4 Spike for the pin at 13:27.

Rating: B. Heck of a choice for an opener here, as they didn’t overstay their welcome, kept the action up, and gave the fans a hot match to get things going. The Canadians winning is the most obvious result imaginable and they had a good one here, with Alexander feeling like a polished star. Rather solid match with this one and the show is off to a nice start.

Mike Bailey is ready for Konosuke Takeshita because we’re on his own home country turf.

We run down the card.

We get a history of Maple Leaf Wrestling and various great wrestling in Canada, as narrated by Bret Hart. That’s certainly a big get and there is some awesome classic footage in here.

Bhupinder Gujjar vs. QT Marshall

Gujjar is/was from TNA (he hasn’t been around in a bit) and Marshall has AEW’s Harley Cameron in his corner. Cameron mocks the Windsor fans and Marshall promises Gujjar the beating he deserves for thinking a cup of coffee in a major promotion matters. Marshall armdrags him to start and stops for some posing on the top. They fight over wrist control with Gujjar taking him down and hitting a nice dropkick for two. There’s a clothesline to the floor and Gujjar follows him out with a slingshot dive.

Back in and Marshall pulls him off the ropes for a crash to take over again. A slap to the face wakes Gujjar up though and he hits a running forearm to put Marshall down for a change. Marshall is right back with a sitout powerbomb for two but Gujjar hits some jumping shots to the face. Cameron grabs the foot though and Marshall scores with a Diamond Cutter for the pin at 8:25.

Rating: C+. Not as good as the opener but it lets a named heel get a win off some simple yet effective interference. That’s always been a standard for D’Amore’s shows: they aren’t going to reinvent the wheel, but they’re going to give you completely competent wrestling with talented stars. That’s what we had here, as it wasn’t a classic or anything, but it was perfectly acceptable wrestling.

Kylie Rae is really excited to be here in Canada and was here at 6am. She’s ready to face anyone and everyone.

Kylie Rae vs. Aurora Teves vs. Laynie Luck vs. Taylor Rising

One fall to a finish. Rae shakes hands with Teves and Luck but Rising kicks her in the ribs to start fast. They trade rollups for two each and it’s a four way standoff. Rising bails to the floor and it’s Rae grabbing a crossface on Luck, with Teves making the save. Back in and Rae forearms away at Rising but Teves takes over with some rapid fire kicks. Rae takes Luck to the floor and gets hit in the face, setting up a big flip dive off the top for a massive crash. Back in and Rising gives Teves a Pedigree but Luck comes in with a top rope cutter. Rae pops up to superkick Luck and pin Teves at 6:53.

Rating: C+. As usual, you can only gets so much out of a four way match with less than seven minutes as everyone is trying to get their stuff in as fast as they can. Rae is by far the biggest star in the match and it makes sense that the promotion would want to focus on her, but she doesn’t have the best record when it comes to sticking around. Maybe this is the exception though, as she certainly has the talent to go somewhere.

Josh Alexander (after an interview with Konosuke Takeshita is accidentally shown) is glad to be back in Canada and Canadian wrestling is back too! He’s ready for Konosuke Takeshita tomorrow as they make more history.

Now we get the Takeshita interview (fair enough as someone probably hit the button early by mistake), which is part of the WrestleDream press conference with Takeshita saying he’s ready to face anywhere, anytime.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles: Jet Setters vs. Aiden Prince/El Reverso vs. Rogue Squadron vs. Brent Banks/Johnny Swinger

The Jet Setters (Kushida and Kevin Knight) are defending and the Squadron are Rohit Raju/Sheldon Jean. The Squadron clears the ring to start but then runs off from the threat of violence. We settle down to Knight and Banks catching the others’ kicks so Swinger comes in and gets punched out to the floor. The rapid fire changes begin until Prince rolls over to kick Knight in the face. Prince and Reverso hit stereo dives onto the champs on the floor but it’s the Squad stomping away back inside.

Raju and Jean take turns working on Prince’s arm but the champs crotch Raju against the post to cut him down. Swinger, the goof, comes in and is immediately glared back into the corner by Kushida. The Squadron takes him into the corner but Kushida rolls out and hands it back to Knight. It’s back to Prince, who gets dropped by the champs, only for the Squadron to knock everyone down.

Swinger is the only one left standing so naturally he goes up, only to get crotched back own. A bunch of people are sent outside for the series of dives but Jean comes back in and strikes away. Banks clears the ring again until Reverso hits a springboard kick to the face. Knight is back up to kick various people down until Swinger grabs a rollup for two on Kushida. That’s enough for the champs, as it’s a neckbreaker/high crossbody combination to finish Swinger and retain the titles at 16:09.

Rating: B-. Another fun match with all kinds of action, but also another match with so many people floating around that it was hard to keep track of everything. It doesn’t help that the teams aren’t the most familiar and it is already tricky enough to remember who is who. This was fun while it lasted, but it would have been better with fewer teams.

Video on the Champion’s Grail, one of the promotion’s titles. Apparently it’s a cross between Riki Choshu and Kenny Omega. That’s a heck of a mixture.

PWA Champion’s Grail: Rohan Raja vs. Jake Something

For the inaugural title and no word on what the PWA is. Raja is a former member of the Desi Hit Squad in TNA, where Something currently wrestles as well. The bigger Something powers him into the corner to start and then runs him over with pure strength. Raja gets in a shot of his own though and some forearms to the back have Something in trouble for a change. Back up and Raja starts in on the arm, with a knockdown setting up an armbar.

Raja’s neckbreaker gets two but Something uses the good arm to hit a clothesline. What looks to be a powerbomb doesn’t work so Something settles for a spinebuster for two instead. Back up and a hard forearm rocks Raja again and a one armed powerbomb (cool) gives Something two more. Into The Void (boss Man Slam) is broken up and Raja hits a Backstabber into a brainbuster. Something misses a charge and Seek And Destroy (jumping Downward Spiral) gives Raja the pin at 13:31.

Rating: C+. Nice enough power vs. non-power match here but I’m still not entirely sure what the title is supposed to be. Given the people involved, I would assume it’s a midcard title but the whole PWA deal wasn’t exactly well explained. Perfectly fine match here, though nothing that stood out in the slightest, even with someone who with as good of a look as Something.

Post match Raja says he’s defending the title around the world and wants to face the best. He’s hungry for competition, so he’ll be called Ravenous Rohan Raja. Uh sure.

Bully Ray takes credit for the house because he is the biggest star in this company (well, kind of). He doesn’t know why Raj Dhesi (formerly known as Jinder Mahal) would sign up for a tables match with Ray, but it won’t go well for him.

Bully Ray vs. Raj Dhesi

Tables match. Before the match, Ray complains about being listed as only being in the WWE Hall Of Fame rather than WWE and TNA. Oh and he’s half of the greatest team of all time. And he’s Calfzilla. And handsome. The fans chant for Dhesi, which has Ray threatening to leave for the United States. Ray promises that Dhesi will never put him through a table so Dhesi strikes away, including a jumping knee to the face. Dhesi knocks him out to the floor but Ray gets in a mic shot to the face.

Back in and Ray rakes at the eyes before grabbing a kendo stick to keep up the beating. Ray calls a fan an “old bag” and gets in a low blow but stops to yell at the referee. That’s enough for Dhesi to get in some kendo stick shots before sending the referee up to play D-Von in What’s Up. The table is brought in but the referee gets bumped, meaning Dhesi putting Ray through the table doesn’t matter. Cue QT Marshall to drop Dhesi and put him on the broken table…which is enough to give Ray the win at 8:52.

Rating: C-. This was more about the What’s Up spot than anything else, which wasn’t anything overly special. Ray has a longstanding tendency to get wins like this for the sake of heat from the crowd, but it’s rare that he gets any kind of comeuppance. Now he already has a minion in Marshall and that isn’t boding well for the rest of his time around here.

Post match Ray loads up a chair but Bhupinder Gujjar makes the save.

Ad for TNA Bound For Glory.

We preview next week’s AEW Dynamite, because Tony Khan’s stuff has to be in everything.

Gisele Shaw is ready to face Miyu Yamashita before her ROH Women’s Title shot tomorrow.

Gisele Shaw vs. Miyu Yamashita

If Yamashita wins, she is added to the Ring Of Honor Women’s Title match on Night Two. Feeling out process to start, with Yamashita working on the arm but getting reversed into a hammerlock. Back up and Shaw misses a charge so Yamashita can kick away in the corner. Shaw knocks her out to the floor but Yamashita manages a posting for a needed breather.

Back in and Shaw ties her in the ropes for some knees to the ribs, setting up the chinlock. That’s broken up so Shaw settles for two off a sitout powerbomb instead. Yamashita is back with a springboard enziguri but Shaw backbreakers her into a Downward Spiral for two more. They strike it out with Shaw getting the better of things, only for Yamashita to tell her to bring it. That’s fine with Shaw, who hits a running knee for the pin at 12:35.

Rating: B-. This was one of the better matches on the show and it was good enough for the spot. Shaw had long since felt like she was ready to become the next star in the TNA women’s division but it never went on to the next level. Beating Yamashita gives Shaw some momentum on the way to tomorrow’s title shot, but it’s probably going to take more than that to get the title off of Athena. For now though, good match.

Video on Athena, the longest reigning champion of any kind in Ring Of Honor history.

We run down the Night Two card.

Video on Konosuke Takeshita vs. Mike Bailey.

Konosuke Takeshita vs. Mike Bailey

Takeshita runs him over to start but Bailey pops up and fires off some kicks. A running hurricanrana sends Takeshita outside and there’s the running hurricanrana through the ropes. The triangle moonsault drops Takeshita again and the bouncing kicks have him in more trouble back inside. They’re already back on the apron, where Takeshita catches him with a Death Valley Driver to leave both of them on the floor.

Back in and we hit the chinlock until Bailey fights up, only to get planted with a DDT for two. Bailey fights up again and fires off the kicks, setting up the running shooting star press for two of his own. The standing moonsault hits raised knees though and Takeshita hits a crazy release German suplex. They both miss kicks and counters until Bailey scores with some moonsault knees for a breather. Bailey fires off more kicks but Takeshita pulls him up for a rather devastating forearm.

Takeshita misses a running charge to crash out to the floor, allowing Bailey to hit a big springboard corkscrew dive. Back in and Bailey misses the Ultimate Weapon, allowing Takeshita to launch him face first into the middle buckle. A powerbomb out of the corner puts Takeshita down and a shooting star legdrop (just go with it) gets two. Bailey knocks him out to the floor but Takeshita is right back with another huge forearm.

Back in and Bailey’s hurricanrana staggers Takeshita, who counters the tornado kick into a very spinny Blue Thunder Bomb for a near fall. A wheelbarrow suplex into a hard clothesline gives Takeshita two more but Bailey kicks him into the corner. The tornado kick sets up the Ultimate Weapon for two but the Flamingo Driver is countered into a kneeling tombstone for two. Takeshita hits his running knee or two and Raging Fire is finally enough to put Bailey away at 24:31.

Rating: A-. I’m not a big Bailey fan but he knows how to have some rather entertaining matches, which was the case here. These guys beat the living daylights out of each other until Takeshita put him away, which is all you can hope to see. It’s the kind of main event that people will notice and for the first big match the promotion has ever presented, that’s more than enough.

Josh Alexander comes out for a staredown with Takeshita before their title match tomorrow.

Overall Rating: B. The opener and the main event are both good and the stuff in the middle is mostly acceptable. The one match that doesn’t work very well is the tables match but you kind of know what you’re getting into with that. Otherwise, I had a good time with this show as they didn’t do anything insane. There was no big angle or storyline as they focused on the wrestling instead, which is a smart move. I’ll be checking out the second night as well and they’ll be coming in off a nice start with this part.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Forbidden Door 2024
Date: June 30, 2024
Location: UBS Arena, Elmont, New York
Commentators: Excalibur, Nigel McGuinness, Taz

It’s back to the pay per view schedule with one of the biggest shows AEW presents every year. This is built around the international guest stars, including several stars from New Japan and CMLL. The main event will see Swerve Strickland defending the World Title against Will Ospreay in a pretty big showdown. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Kyle Fletcher vs. Serpentico

Bonus match (on a card that already has 14 matches). Fletcher runs him over to start and poses a bit before going after the mask. The comeback is cut off with another kick to the face, followed by a running kick to the back. The piledriver plants Serpentico but Fletcher would rather put him on the ropes. An El Generico brainbuster in the corner finishes for Fletcher at 3:12.

Rating: C-. Total squash as I guess Fletcher gets some heat back after losing the ROH TV Title in Mexico on Friday. The match was nothing to see as Serpentico gets wrecked again, but it also didn’t make me any more interested in Fletcher. He does well enough in the ring, but there is little about him that stands out in any significant way.

Zero Hour: Private Party vs. House Of Black vs. Tomohiro Ishii/Kyle O’Reilly vs. Gabe Kidd/Roderick Strong

O’Reilly and Black go to the mat to start before trading shots to the ribs. Ishii comes back in to a nice reaction and gets to chop it out with King. Kidd tags himself in and Strong adds a running shot to the face. Quen tags himself in as the rapid fire tags continue, only to be sent outside. Kidd comes back in to chop away (and bark) at O’Reilly, who gets caught in the corner for an exchange of chops from Kidd and Strong.

The team argues over who gets to chop him so it’s off to Ishii for a double clothesline. The House kicks Ishii down before everything breaks down. Quen hits a Trouble In Paradise on Black, who is back with a jumping knee to the face. Kidd brainbusters Ishii but gets chopped by King. Private Party hit stereo running flip dives before Kassidy rolls King up, with tights, for two, only to get Ganso Bombed for the pin at 8:35.

Rating: B-. This was the wild match that you would have been expecting and that’s not a bad thing. There is something to be said about getting a bunch of people in the ring and letting them fly all over the place to go nuts, which is what we got here. Good choice to fire the fans up, as this kind of thing almost always tends to be. The House winning is the right choice too as they’re the bigger of the two regular AEW teams.

Zero Hour: Willow Nightingale/Tam Nakano vs. Momo Watanabe/Kris Statlander

Stokely Hathaway is here with Watanabe and Statlander. Nakano takes Statlander down to start and hits a quick dropkick before it’s off to Nightingale. That means Statlander runs off to Watanabe, who is quickly dropkicked down for two. Watanabe and Nakano slug it out until Nakano hits a heck of a superkick. A Hathaway distraction slows things down though and Statlander gets in a belly to back suplex.

Statlander’s delayed vertical suplex gets two and Watanabe hits a hard shot to the back of the head. Nakano finally manages a quick shot and brings Nightingale back in to beat up Statlander. That lasts for all of ten seconds before the threat of the Pounce means it’s back to Watanabe. A hard spinebuster gives Nightingale two but Statlander offers a distraction, allowing Watanabe to get in a kick to the head.

Nightingale is back up with a dropkick, only for Nakano to miss a high crossbody. Nakano’s German suplex gets two on Statlander and a tiger suplex plants her again. That leaves Nightingale to hit a super Death Valley Driver for two on Watanabe, followed by a heck of a Pounce. Nakano comes back in and grabs a bridging German suplex to pin Watanabe at 10:23.

Rating: B-. Another good one here, though a middle rope Death Valley Driver not being the finish is a bit ridiculous, especially when the finish came a minute later. Either way, this was more about teasing Statlander vs. Nightingale, which does feel like a personal feud and a big rivalry. Throw in the fans loving Nightingale and things are even bigger.

Zero Hour: Women’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Mariah May vs. Saraya

Toni Storm and Harley Cameron are here too. May sends her into the corner to start and hits some running uppercuts, setting up a rather spinning side slam for two. A Stratusphere plants Saraya again and a missile dropkick gets two more. The hip attack takes too long though and they fight up to the top. May gets sent crashing out to the floor, leaving Saraya to do some jumping jacks until she gets back in.

A double knockdown gives them a breather and they slug it out from their knees. May sends her into the corner for the running hip attack but Storm has to cut off Cameron. Saraya’s superkick into the Rampaige gets two but the Scorpion Crosslock is broken up. Instead Saraya rams her face first into the mat over and over but a suplex is countered into a bridging rollup to give May the pin at 8:28.

Rating: C+. That was the only way this should have gone as May winning the whole tournament to set up a title match against Storm at All In is not the worst idea. At the same time, May gets a nice boost here and beats another former champion in Saraya. Good enough match here, though I’m not sure why it needed to be on this show.

Zero Hour: Los Ingobernables de Japon vs. Mistico/Lucha Bros

Fenix and Titan start things off with Fenix knocking him down and springboarding around, setting up a double flip into a standoff. The fans greatly approve as it’s off to Penta vs. Tsuji, with the latter blocking Cero Miedo. Penta isn’t having that and sends him into the corner for the running dropkick, only to be stomped face first onto the mat. Back up and they chop it out before trading shots to the face.

The Fear Factor is broken up so Penta kicks him to the floor instead. It’s off to Mistico to face Takahashi and the fans greatly approve again. An early mask tear attempt is blocked so Mistico sends him outside instead. Tsuji and Titan come in to stomp away but Mistico breaks that up and hits a dive onto Takahashi. Back in and the Bros strike away, setting up Mistico’s Swanton for two on Takahashi. Titan and Tsuji send the Bros outside for dives, followed by a running sunset bomb from Takahashi to send Mistico onto the floor.

Back in and Mistico fights off all three of them at once, allowing the tag back to Penta. Everything breaks down and Fenix’s assisted splash off of Penta’s shoulders gets two on Titan. We hit the parade of big knockdowns until Titan tornado DDT’s Fenix into a superkick for the six way knockdown. Mistico hits the big dive to the floor and the spike Fear Factor hits Takahashi, who rolls out to the floor. Back in and La Mistica finishes Titan at 12:05.

Rating: B. I’m not sure why this wasn’t on the main show, or maybe just make this the only Kickoff Show match. It had the action, but having Mistico, a CMLL star, and the Lucha Bros, best known as AAA guys, on the same show is a big deal that you do not see very often. Almost like it would be….forbidden.

The opening video looks at the major matches and how big this night really is.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Hechicero

MJF is of course the big hometown boy and gets a hero’s welcome, even doing a bit of crowd surfing. Hechicero takes him to the mat to start for a quickly broken cross armbreaker. Back up and MJF shakes his hand, which allows for a kick to the ribs and a “yeah of course I did” shrug.

MJF flips (yes flips) away into a double eye poke ala Roddy Piper. They head outside with MJF setting him in a chair and hitting a running boot to the face. Back in and Hechicero snaps the arm across the top rope to take over and we hit the armbar. MJF fights up but the Heatseeker is blocked, allowing Hechicero to plant him down for two. A running knee in the corner connects for Hechicero and the fans are NOT happy.

MJF manages a quick clothesline before spinning around into a piledriver for a needed breather. Hechicero is right back up with a springboard spinning dropkick before grabbing the cross armbreaker. That’s broken up as well so MJF tries the Salt Of The Earth, which is reversed into a double arm crank with Hechicero’s legs. The ropes are reached for the break so MJF hammers away in the corner and even bites the mask. A Canadian Destroyer into the brainbuster gives MJF the pin at 9:48.

Rating: B-. The match could have been worse, but it still feels like quite the waste of MJF in a spot where he could have been doing something more important. At the same time, it made Hechicero look great all over again, as he has more than enough talent to be a star anywhere. That kind of thing will always work, though I’m not sure if it was the best idea in this spot.

We get a rather praise-heavy Young Bucks video (with Kenny Omega’s face blurred in a nice touch) which mocks the Acclaimed and Hiroshi Tanahashi.

Elite vs. Acclaimed/Hiroshi Tanahashi

Caster’s rap mocks President Biden at the debate and Okada’s use of the word b****. Okada and Caster start things off but Okada decks Tanahashi off the apron, meaning it’s time for a historic standoff. Instead of doing anything though, it’s off to Matt, who gets taken down with a middle rope crossbody into some air guitar. Bowens comes in to take Matt into the corner, where some running elbows put him in even more trouble. Nick is brought in and it’s a double Scissor Me Timbers for a nasty crash.

Back up and Okada gets in a cheap shot to take over on Caster, with Matt putting on the headphones so Okada can dance. Caster gets caught in a camel clutch so Nick can run the ropes and then kiss his brother on the cheek. The slow beating continues in the corner as we get a few CM PUNK chants. That turns into a HE GOT FIRED chant as Caster knocks Matt off the top and hits a high crossbody.

Okada comes in and gets dropped as well, allowing the tag off to Bowens for the house cleaning. Okada gets dropped with a right hand and a spinning torture rack slam gets two on Matt. Bowens is taken down as well though and it’s a double tag to bring in Okada and Tanahashi. The dragon screw legwhip sets up the Texas Cloverleaf on Okada but the Bucks make the save.

Everything breaks down and the Rainmaker is countered into the Arrival into the Mic Drop. The High Fly Flow is broken up though and the rather delayed version hits raised knees. A superkick puts Tanahashi down again and the Bucks hit stereo slingshot dives to take the Acclaimed down on the floor. Okada hits his top rope elbow but the Rainmaker is countered into a small package for two. Back up and the Rainmaker finishes Tanahashi at 13:02.

Rating: C+. Tanahashi was trying here but those knees are just not holding him up any longer. Other than that, it was about what you would expect with the Bucks and the Acclaimed, which was only going to go so far. We still have the title match to come between the teams and that probably should have been here, but instead we get this feud extended even further.

We recap Bryan Danielson vs. Shingo Takagi.

Men’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Bryan Danielson vs. Shingo Takagi

McGuinness is already on Danielson, as you knew he would be. Danielson goes after the arm to start before tying up Takagi’s leg. That’s broken up in the ropes so Danielson takes him down again and grabs a surfboard. As usual, that doesn’t last long and it’s Takagi dropping him down hard. A backsplash gives Takagi two as McGuinness compares Danielson to Mozart and Napoleon, both of whom were FAR more successful.

Danielson gets knocked out of the corner but manages to send Takagi outside. The suicide dive doesn’t quite work though and Takagi catches him with a hanging fisherman’s neckbreaker,. Danielson lands on his head, because Danielson, and we pause for the medics to check on him. Thankfully he gets back up and beats the count back in, where Takagi drops a knee to the back of the head. Danielson fights up and they trade shots to the face until Takagi hits a clothesline.

Another kick to the head gives Danielson a breather and he goes up top. Takagi is right there with him, so Danielson grabs a belly to back superplex for the big double knockdown. Danielson’s triangle choke is muscled up into a powerslam and they’re both down again. Back up and Takagi superplexes him into a heck of a sliding lariat for two.

Made In Japan is broken up but Danielson misses a charge into the corner. Now Made In Japan can connect for two more, with McGuinness being left speechless. Danielson can barely get up so Takagi hits a running shot to the side of the head. Another sliding lariat is loaded up but Danielson reverses into a Fujiwara armbar.

That’s switched into the LeBell Lock but Takagi slips out. A reverse fisherman’s suplex puts Takagi down and the running knee gives Danielson two. Danielson stomps away at the head and grabs a triangle choke but Takagi powers up. That doesn’t work though as Danielson pulls him into a Disarm-Her for the referee stoppage at 19:58.

Rating: B+. These guys beat the fire out of each other and it’s another awesome Danielson match. At some point he needs to win a few of these things and this was a goo example of how to make it work. Rather awesome match here and Danielson gets to move on towards what could be a rather deep run in the whole thing.

We recap Toni Storm defending the Women’s Title against Mina Shirakawa. The bigger story though is the battle over Mariah May, as both of them want her too.

Women’s Title: Mina Shirakawa vs. Toni Storm

Storm is defending and Mariah May is in a neutral corner. As you might expect, Storm is dressed as the Statue Of Liberty. May refuses to pick before the match so they circle each other instead. Shirakawa stops to dance and gets a hip attack to the face for her efforts. That just earns her more dancing before Shirakawa drops Storm knees first onto the mat. The Figure Four around the post goes on and McGuinness thinks May needs a hug. Back in and a dropkick to the leg keeps Storm in trouble but she’s back with a fisherman’s suplex for two.

There’s the running hip attack to put Shirakawa on the floor but another one only hits the steps. Shirakawa uses the breather to hit a big dive, only to have Storm catch her with a super chokebomb back inside. Storm misses a charge though and Shirakawa grabs the Figure Four to stay on the bad leg. They sit up and slap it out until Storm manages to escape.

Back up and they slug it out with Shirakawa getting the better of things and going up top. Storm is right there for another forearm off until Shirakawa hits a super DDT for two more. Shirakawa’s Glamorous Driver is broken up and Storm snaps off a release German suplex. Another hip attack gives Storm another two but Shirakawa is right back with the Glamorous Driver for her own near fall. Storm gets in a quick rollup for two, followed by Storm Zero to retain at 11:38.

Rating: B. Storm continues to feel it in these big pay per view matches, but May was more or less just window dressing. That’s normally a good thing, but she’s the entire point of the story in the first place. The match was good, though it was hard to believe that Shirakawa was going to be the one to end Storm’s reign.

Post match Storm and May look at each other and Shirakawa wants a handshake. Respect is shown and we get the big hug and we get the three way kiss. So May’s choice of a side was to not pick a side. Got it.

We recap Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Orange Cassidy.  Sabre isn’t over Cassidy pinning him last year and Cassidy is having a rough time but is ready to fight again.

Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Orange Cassidy

They go technical to start with Cassidy not being able to get very far with some arm cranking. Instead Cassidy bails out to the floor for a breather before rolling back inside, with Sabre holding the ropes open. Back in and they fight over a cross arm choke until Cassidy ties him up on the mat.

That’s broken up as well so they trade rollups for two each. Sabre ties him up in a headscissors but Cassidy makes it over to the ropes rather quickly. Sabre does his own slow kicks but Cassidy takes out the knee to put him down for a change. Cassidy twists on the leg outside and again inside, setting up a top rope DDT for a rather near fall.

Sabre is right back with a kick to the arm and some finger snapping to put Cassidy down. The double arm crank goes on but Cassidy escapes and goes back to the leg. The Texas Cloverleaf is broken up so Cassidy hits the Beach Break for two instead. Back up and the Orange Punch is blocked so Sabre pulls him back into the European Clutch for two. Cassidy tries the Mouse Trap but Sabre reverses into a….well he tied up all four of Cassidy’s limbs at the same time with Cassidy having to give up at 16:20.

Rating: B. I’m still not sure I get why Cassidy was so upset coming into this one but he was holding his own out there well enough, only to get tied up by Sabre. It was a good back and forth match, with Sabre being able to do things in there that no one else can make work. Cassidy needs something new though, and I’m not sure what that is going to be coming off this loss.

Post match Sabre actually gives him the sunglasses back.

We recap the Learning Tree vs. Samoa Joe and company. Joe and company are sick of Chris Jericho and want a fight, with Jericho bringing in Jeff Cobb to replace the injured Bryan Keith.

Learning Tree/Jeff Cobb vs. Samoa Joe/Hook/Katsuyori Shibata

Jericho is sure the fans don’t really want him to retire as he starts with Shibata. Before that goes anywhere though, it’s already off to Bill to face Shibata instead (third time tonight we’ve seen the “heel tags out instead of fighting” sequence). Chopping ensues with neither being able to get the better of things so it’s off to Cobb vs. Joe for the hoss showdown.

Cobb takes over by powering Joe into the corner and Jericho comes in to rake the eyes. Cobb comes back in and Joe gets the better of things for a change, allowing the tag off to Hook. Jericho chokes him on the ropes to cut him off and Cobb adds a standing moonsault. Hook manages to fight back and brings Shibata back in, with the good guys taking over on Cobb in the corner.

Jericho comes back in to take over on Shibata as everything breaks down. Shibata gets posted and Hook goes up top for an ax handle to Bill. The referee gets distracted though and Jericho hits Shibata low, setting up the Walls. That’s broken up so Cobb comes back in for the Tour of the Islands, only to have Hook t-bone him. The Codebreaker gives Jericho two on Hook but Hook comes back up with his own Judas Effect for the pin at 13:38.

Rating: C+. Hook gets a nice rub off the ending but this was the least interesting match n the card and the match didn’t make things much better. While the ending would suggest something of a downgrade for Jericho and the Learning Tree, that doesn’t seem to be the most likely outcome. Perfectly fine match, but it could have been on any AEW TV show instead.

TNT Title: Jack Perry vs. Dante Martin vs. El Phantasmo vs. Mark Briscoe vs. Lio Rush vs. Konosuke Takeshita

Ladder match for the vacant title. Takeshita drops Perry to start and everyone else goes after ladders. With that not working, the fight heads outside instead with Briscoe grabbing various toys. Perry goes up a ladder but Rush makes the fast save. A ladder is thrown outside and almost hits Briscoe, leaving Rush to go up the ladder for a change. Phantasmo goes up but Martin makes the save and climbs as well.

That’s broken up but Martin dives onto Phantasm on the way down. Back up and Takeshita brainbusters Martin onto the side of the ladder, only for Briscoe to come in with the ladder around the neck. Briscoe grabs a chair and hits a step up flip dive onto a ladder onto Takeshita on the floor for the big crash. Perry goes up but Phantasmo walks across a bridged ladder to cut him off on top.

Martin gets taken down and bangs up his leg, leaving Perry to set up a table. Briscoe and Takeshita brawl on the floor until Rush dives onto the latter. That leaves Briscoe to go up a ladder for a splash but he lands on his feet, instead hitting a forearm on Perry on the table, which doesn’t break (similar to how Adam Copeland broke his leg).

Back in and Takeshita powerbombs Rush onto a ladder before pulling Phantasmo into a knee to the face. One heck of a Blue Thunder Bomb puts Phantasmo through the tables but Briscoe cuts off the climb attempt. Briscoe plants Takeshita onto the ladder and goes up, only to have Perry breaks up Briscoe’s climb. Perry beats on Briscoe with the chair and then wins the title at 16:48.

Rating: B-. That was a ladder match alright. Looked like it had about six people, some ladders, a chair and some tables too. There really isn’t much else to say about this, as it featured pretty much exactly what you would expect and had the most likely winner getting the title in the end. That’s pretty much exactly what was expected the second the match was announced and while it was ok enough, it was hardly thrilling.

We recap Mercedes Mone vs. Stephanie Vaquer, which is winner take all for the TBS Title and the New Japan Strong Women’s Title respectfully.

TBS Title/NJPW Strong Women’s Title: Mercedes Mone vs. Stephanie Vaquer

Title for title. We get the referee’s instructions and Vaquer headbutts her to start. They trade rollups for two each until Vaquer grabs a wristlock and hits a very springboardy wristdrag. Mone gets in a quick breather and hits a Meteora for two. Vaquer is right back up with a shot of her own but Mone grabs Two Amigos, with Vaquer countering the third. Vaquer starts in on the leg and ties her legs around Mone’s head for some rams into the mat to wake the crowd up.

Mone fights up again and knocks her into the corner for the running knees and a springboard DDT gets two. The Mone Maker is countered into a DDT from Vaquer and she drops a leg for two more. Another shot from Mone leaves them both down so it’s a double nip up for the forearm exchange. Vaquer grabs a crossface but Mone reverses into a Bank Statement. That’s broken up as well, with the fans mostly cheering for Vaquer now.

Some knees to the ribs put Mone down but Vaquer can’t follow up. The fans give us a F*** THE CELTICS (as in Mone’s hometown team) chant as Mone goes up, only to dive into raised boots. Vaquer dragon screws her into the corner as the fans move on to the Red Sox. Mone’s crossface is countered, as is the Mone Maker, only to Mone pull her into the crossface for the tap at 16:47.

Rating: B-. This is where the Forbidden Door concept stops working for me. The action was fine enough, but it was really hard to get interested in a match between Mone, who has only wrestled here a handful of times, and Vaquer, who has had one short match in the promotion. It didn’t feel like a feud or a rivalry, but rather two people who don’t have a history around here having a match. It was good, but I had no attachment to either of them and it kept me from getting into this one.

Post match Mone celebrates….and Britt Baker returns to a hero’s welcome.

We recap Jon Moxley defending the IWGP World Title against Tetsuya Naito. Moxley took the title from him a few months ago and it’s time for the rematch.

Jim Ross is back for the last two matches.

IWGP World Heavyweight Title: Tetsuya Naito vs. Jon Moxley

Moxley is defending. They slug it out to start with Moxley going after the knee to take Naito into the corner. Some corner clotheslines have Naito in more trouble and they head outside with Moxley dropping him onto the announcers’ table. Back in and Naito spits in his face so Moxley slaps him down for two. A piledriver gives Moxley two more and he puts Naito on top for a rake to the back.

Naito slips between the legs though and shoves Moxley down to the floor for the big crash. They go outside with Naito grabbing a piece of the barricade to beat on Moxley, sending JR into a hilarious frenzy about that not being tranquilo. Back in and Naito has to fight out of a Figure Four, turning it into a small package for two. Moxley’s Death Rider attempt is countered into a springboard tornado DDT for two more and they’re both down.

Moxley gets up and tries a sleeper, only to be reversed into Destino for…no cover, as Naito tries it again but gets reversed into a Death Rider. They slug it out again until Moxley hits a heck of a lariat into the Death Rider for two. With nothing else working, Moxley grabs a chair, which is quickly taken away by the referee. Destino and the Death Rider are both blocked, only for Destino to to give Naito the pin and the title back at 16:41.

Rating: B-. Much like the previous match, this was a feud that has been taking place elsewhere and the match was only taking place here because it had to. Naito getting the title match is a good thing, if nothing else to get it away from AEW, which doesn’t need another title floating around. The match was good and it feels like a big deal when Moxley loses in AEW, but it wasn’t overly interesting.

We recap the AEW World Title with Swerve Strickland defending against Will Ospreay. Strickland is the reigning champion but Ospreay is the hot new star so it might be time for a changing of the guard.

AEW World Title: Swerve Strickland vs. Will Ospreay

Ospreay is challenging and his International Title isn’t on the line. They fight over a lockup to start before both of them flip out of hurricanrana attempts. Missed kicks to the head leave us with a standoff and the fans are WAY into this. Swerve kicks away but Ospreay chops him into the corner to cut that off. They head outside with Ospreay striking away, only to get caught with the middle rope elbow to the back of the head back inside. Swerve slows things down and chops away as Prince Nana is a bit worried.

They go outside again and Swerve loads up something on the barricade, only to be hurricanranaed back down. Back in and Swerve manages a short armscissors but Ospreay slips out. Swerve hammers away but Ospreay gets up and they forearm it out. The Hidden Blade and House Call both miss, with Ospreay grabbing a Styles Clash for two. The Oscutter is countered into the Swerve Stomp as we cut to Daniel Garcia watching in a sky box.

They go up top again with Strickland grabbing something like a super Angle Slam for the big crash and a near fall. Swerve takes it to the apron, where the Oscutter misses, sending Ospreay crashing onto the apron. The Swerve Stomp is loaded up but Ospreay rolls away before it can launch, leaving Swerve to hit the Stomp onto a standing Ospreay against (not through) the announcers’ table.

A piledriver onto the barricade (geez) rocks Ospreay again and the JML Driver gets two back inside. Another Swerve Stomp takes too long and Swerve gets crotched, setting up a springboard Oscutter for a very near fall. The Hidden Blade is blocked and the Oscutter is as well, leaving Swerve to go after the arm. That’s broken up and now the Oscutter connects, setting up the Storm Breaker for two. Ospreay scores with a headbutt but the Tiger Driver 91 is countered into a cradle to give Swerve two of his own.

The Hidden Blade connects for Swerve but he misses a Swerve Stomp. The referee gets hit by another Hidden Blade, followed by another to Swerve….and Don Callis is here. Nana won’t let Callis use a screwdriver so Ospreay goes after him, only to let him go. Back in and the House Call into the Swerve Stomp gets two more with a second referee. Swerve snaps the arm and another House Call (that looked great) gets a VERY near fall. Another House Call sets up a JML Driver to retain the title at 27:04.

Rating: A-. This was pretty easily the best match on the show and I might even be underrating a bit. They beat the living daylights out of each other but took their time to get there, with Swerve getting to show just how awesome he can be. Swerve needed a big win like this and even Callis being around didn’t bring it down. Awesome stuff here and a heck of a main event.

Medics check on Ospreay and Swerve shows respect to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. The main event pulled it up a lot and there is nothing really bad on the show, but this is absolutely not my show and it never has been. The amount of matches and the parade of guest stars isn’t something that draws me in, as it feels more like Tony Khan getting to run loose in a candy store and do a show he finds fun rather than something for everyone else. As usual, the wrestling is more than good enough to hold up, but you could pretty easily chop off almost all of the pre-show and not lose anything.

Results
Kyle Fletcher b. Serpentico – Brainbuster onto the turnbuckle
House Of Black b. Tomohiro Ishii/Kyle O’Reilly, Gabe Kidd/Roderick Strong and Private Party – Ganso Bomb to Kassidy
Willow Nightingale/Tam Nakano b. Momo Watanabe/Kris Statlander – Bridging German suplex to Watanabe
Mariah May b. Saraya – Bridging German suplex
Lucha Bros/Mistico b. Los Ingobernables de Japon – La Mistica to Titan
Maxwell Jacob Friedman b. Hechicero – Brainbuster
Elite b. Acclaimed/Hiroshi Tanahashi – Rainmaker to Tanahashi
Bryan Danielson b. Shingo Takagi via referee stoppage
Toni Storm b. Mina Shirakawa – Storm Zero
Zack Sabre Jr. b. Orange Cassidy – Arm and leg crank
Hook/Samoa Joe/Katsuyori Shibata b. Learning Tree/Jeff Cobb – Judas Effect to Jericho
Jack Perry won the TNT Title Ladder Match
Mercedes Mone b. Stephanie Vaquer – Bank Statement
Tetsuya Naito b. Jon Moxley – Destino
Swerve Strickland b. Will Ospreay – JML Driver

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It’s that time again as we have the show built around the idea of gust stars from a variety of other promotions. You get to wrestlers from around the world coming in to compete against the stars of AEW, which can make for some rather interesting situations. The buildup to the show is not often the strongest but you can see one heck of a night of action. That should be the case again so let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Kris Statlander/Momo Watanabe vs. Willow Nightingale/Tam Nakano

This, along with the other two Zero Hour matches, were not important enough to be announced on Dynamite but rather a few hours later on Twitter. I’m not sure I get the thinking, but it isn’t exactly making me interested in what we’ll be seeing here. In this case, Statlander vs. Nightingale is the big draw, as they are already set to face off in the Women’s Owen Hart Tournament.

I’ll go with Statlander and Watanabe winning here to give a bit of doubt about Nightingale being able to make it to the finals of the tournament. That should make for a good match here, but Watanabe and Nakano are people who have not been around AEW very much over the years. That doesn’t exactly make for a big time match, but that is kind of the point in having the match on the Zero Hour show.

Zero Hour: Women’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Mariah May vs. Saraya

It’s a little weird to have May on the show when she already has a major role in another, bigger match on the card. For now though, we could be in for a nice match as either of them going forward could be an interesting way to go. Both of them could make for an a solid choice for the next round, though there is some logic that comes into play here which should determine the winner.

At the end of the day, May being involved in the Toni Storm vs. Mina Shirakawa match is a lot more important and there is pretty much no reason for her to go into that spot as a loser. May going over here makes a lot more sense and while there is something to the idea of Saraya going on towards a title shot in London, it isn’t the best option that they have available here.

Zero Hour: Los Ingobernables de Japon vs. Mistico/Lucha Bros

The big draw here is that Mistico and the Bros have never teamed together before. That isn’t the biggest draw in the world but it is certainly a cool enough moment and better than nothing. In other words, this feels like an excuse to get Mistico onto the show and that is not a bad idea. The match itself is only so important here, but that is often the case on Zero Hour.

There is pretty much no reason for Mistico and the Bros to lose here as Mistico can do his stuff and pop the crowd. There are some talented people in Los Ingobernables but it feels like they are here for the sake of making Mistico look that much bigger. It’s not a bad idea either, so hopefully they at least have an entertaining match on the way to the main show proper.

Zero Hour: House Of Black vs. Tomohiro Ishii/Kyle O’Reilly vs. Gabriel Kidd/Roderick Strong vs. Private Party

Yes there is a fourth match on this show, which was added during this week’s Collision. This feels like little more than a way to get a bunch more people onto the card, which is often not the most thrilling way to go. In this case we do have some big names who probably should have been on the show, but that doesn’t exactly make for the most exciting match possible.

I’ll take the House Of Black here, as they’re the biggest of the two regular teams (at least in AEW) and it makes the most sense to give them the win. This is going to be the insane match with everyone going nuts all over the place and trying to get in as much as they can, which isn’t going to be easy given how many people are involved. Odds are it should be fun though and that’s what you want out of a match like this one.

Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Orange Cassidy

We’ll start the main card here as Sabre wants revenge on Cassidy for beating him at last year’s show in a four way match. The other idea is that Cassidy isn’t good enough to beat Sabre on his own and is going to need some kind of special trick to pull it off. I’m not sure what that is going to be, but then again that’s kinds of the point of watching the match in the first place.

As much as I want to take Sabre here, it feels like a situation where Cassidy is coming in as the huge underdog but manages to pull it off somehow anyway, as tends to be his custom. It might not be the most thrilling way to go but that has never really stopped AEW with Cassidy before. It’s always fun to see whatever Sabre can do to torment someone else so we should be in for a good one here with Cassidy winning.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Hechicero

This is a bit early for a match involving someone as big as MJF but it isn’t like AEW has treated it like anything important. For the second year in a row, MJF’s Forbidden Door match feels like it was thrown on for the sake of giving him something to do and I do not get the thinking behind that move. It’s MJF’s first pay per view match since December and he’s more or less an after thought. That’s quite the odd way to go, but at least it’s an easy pick.

Save for some wacky interference, there is no reason for Hechicero to win here so we’ll take MJF in what should be an easy one. MJF will probably get in some trouble here but then wind up winning anyway, because there is pretty much no reason for Hechicero, who is probably not sticking around, to beat one of the biggest stars in the company. I’m still not sure I get the thinking here, but MJF wins.

Men’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Bryan Danielson vs. Shingo Takagi

The roller coaster that is the last full time year of Danielson’s career continues and that means we have another match against a hard hitter. That is kind of his trademark at this point and in this case he actually has a better chance to pull it off. It’s quite the way to go for a first round match in a #1 contenders tournament, but Danielson has a tendency to go a bit nuts anyway.

While Danielson might not have the best win/loss record, there is no reason to believe he goes down here. Takagi is another guy who isn’t likely to be around for the long term, which would likely include another match in the tournament. That leaves Danielson to win a heck of a fight, which isn’t something you get to say very often in AEW but it makes all the sense in the world here.

Learning Tree/Jeff Cobb vs. Samoa Joe/Hook/Katsuyori Shibata

Cobb is substituting for an injured Bryan Keith as Jericho’s latest weird character gets a pay per view match. The good thing about Jericho being in the match is that he can’t talk, which would be about as bad as it could get around here. Joe vs. Cobb is the hoss fight fans would want to see while the rest…well they’re all involved as well, no matter how odd it might be.

I’ll take the Learning Tree and Cobb to win here, as it seems like we’re going to be seeing Jericho do his thing for a long time to come, no matter how much of a mess it might be. That doesn’t go well if he loses his big match as part of the team, so odds are Cobb pins Shibata to get the win, giving Jericho something else to talk about. The match itself should be ok, but egads this has been a rough sit for a good while now.

Elite vs. Acclaimed/Hiroshi Tanahashi

Tanahashi is replacing Billy Gunn for the sake of it’s Forbidden Door and therefore Tanahashi has to be on the show. Much like the Learning Tree match, the good thing here is that if the Bucks are in the match, they can’t be talking (in theory at least) and that should make things a bit less annoying. This feels like a match that should be on Dynamite but here we are instead, though at least the addition of Tanahashi makes it feel more special.

It’s hard to imagine the Bucks losing a big match until Blood And Guts at the earliest so we’ll say the Elite wins here and keeps things going. Odds are we get a rematch of this later on with Gunn in there rather than Tanahashi, but for now at least we should be in for something good enough. The Elite go over though, as they’re a bigger deal than another makeshift team.

TNT Title: Konosuke Takeshita vs. Dante Martin vs. El Phantasmo vs. Mark Briscoe vs. Lio Rush vs. Jack Perry

Here we have a ladder match for the vacant title as Adam Copeland decided that jumping off a cage and landing on his feet was a good idea. The ladder match part makes it all the more eye roll inducing because it’s such a cliché at this point, but it also lets someone potentially steal the title without having to get a pinfall. That opens up some doors, but I think you know where this is going.

As much as I’d love to see someone like Martin, who could actually be made by something like this, get the title, this feels like it’s Perry all day. AEW is obsessed with getting this guy over one way or another and it feels like he’ll do it here as a way to become that much bigger of a deal. The match will be the usual car crash, meaning it’s only going to be so good, but it should be exciting.

Women’s Title: Toni Storm(c) vs. Mina Shirakawa

This is both a title match and part of a love triangle, as both of them are trying to woo Mariah May. That has made for quite the unique story but it is something that has been set up well enough that I’m curious to see where it goes. The match quality itself might be up in the air as Shirakawa doesn’t have a long track record in AEW, but that is far from the most interesting part here.

I’ll go with Storm to win of course, as the title isn’t likely changing hands here, though the question becomes what happens with May. It would not surprise me at all to see her side with Storm before eventually winning the Owen Hart Tournament and getting a shot against Storm at Wembley. For now though, all is right in the world as May signs with Storm and moves forward, though it could be quite the path there.

AEW TBS Title/NJPW Women’s Strong Title: Mercedes Mone(c) vs. Stephanie Vaquer(c)

We’re going title for title here and…I have almost no idea what to expect here as all I’ve seen from Vaquer is most of an eight minute match this week on Collision. Other than that it’s been all hype videos and promos from Mone, which isn’t the best way to go. What matters though is that we have what could be a huge match which could go either way, as the title vs. title stipulation shakes things up.

While there is a chance that Vaquer wins, I can’t imagine Mone loses anywhere near this close to her AEW debut. AEW knows that she is a star and isn’t about to have her lose a big match, or any match for that matter, here. They have also hyped up the idea that she needs to win the NJPW belt, even if that means we are going to be seeing another title running around AEW, because we haven’t had that in a bit.

IWGP World Title: Jon Moxley(c) vs. Tetsuya Naito

This is the other World Title match on the show, which is arguably a bigger match than the main event. Thankfully AEW has managed to avoid treating this as such a big deal, as that would be about as bad of a result as you could get for the AEW World Title. Moxley is already one of the biggest stars in AEW, but that brings up the question of whether or not he gets to retain the title here.

This one could go either way, but I’ll take Naito to win here, as I can’t imagine Moxley being the next big thing in AEW. Naito can get back the title that Moxley took fro him and we could be in for a rather good match on the way there. It also gives the other promotions their big win on the show, which very well could otherwise be dominated by AEW. This one could go either way of course, but I’ll take Naito to get the title back.

AEW World Title: Swerve Strickland(c) vs. Will Ospreay

Here we have the biggest match on the card and thankfully the best built up story. It’s an idea that has been done before, as you have Ospreay as the new ace of the company and Strickland being the “not so fast” champion. Ospreay has pretty much been able to do no wrong so far in AEW and Strickland can work well with anyone. That opens up the door for something great, but there is one thing in the way.

That thing is the Don Callis Family and unfortunately I’m expecting them to be what costs Ospreay the match here. Ospreay getting the World Title at some point seems to be an inevitability, but I would hope that Strickland gets at least one successful defense in the main event spot. Strickland has done incredibly well in this role and this could be another great one, though odds are the Family gets involved to cost Ospreay. It’s predictable, but that’s about all I can expect to happen.

Overall Thoughts

As you can probably tell from here, this is going to be a very long show. Fourteen matches and a show that could go around six hours makes for one heck of a marathon and I’m worried about things getting bogged down by sheer volume. There is a great show in there somewhere but AEW has a tendency to put in way too much on any pay per view. Hopefully they can find a way around it, but they’ve got a big challenge in front of them.

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Collision
Date: June 29, 2024
Location: KeyBank Center, Buffalo, New York
Commentators: Excalibur, Nigel McGuinness

We’re a day away from Forbidden Door and that means it is time for the big final push towards the show. That could go in a variety of ways but with most of the show already set, this is likely going to be about pushing things that have already been set up. That could still make for a good show so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Orange Cassidy/Tomohiro Ishii vs. TMDK

Haste wants to check on Cassidy’s pockets to start but with nothing happening, it’s off to Ishii instead. They go head to head to no avail so we’ll try Eagles vs. Cassidy instead. Cassidy takes him down without much trouble and sends Eagles into the corner so many times that Eagles has to grab the referee. Tis but a ruse though, as Haste drops Cassidy onto the apron, allowing Eagles to hit a bit flip dive as we take a break.

Back with Cassidy kicking Haste into Eagles, allowing the tag off to Ishii to clean house. Haste’s kick to the face is shrugged off and Ishii grabs a Saito suplex for two. Ishii and Cassidy hit the alternating strikes in the corner and Cassidy’s top rope elbow gets two. Back up and a Falcon Arrow plants Cassidy but he’s back with Stundog Millionaire. Eagles plants him again but Ishii makes the save. Cassidy kicks Haste into the corner though and grabs the Beach Break for the pin at 10:46.

Rating: C+. This was about getting Cassidy in the ring with Zack Sabre Jr.’s teammates and little more, which made for kind of a weird match. Cassidy is working rather hard as of late and might be more than a bit worn down for Sabre, which tends to be exactly what he tends to do most of the time. Not bad at all here, but it feels a bit off from the matches Cassidy and Ishii have tomorrow.

We get a Hangman Page vignette as he sits and drinks in his empty house. That very well could be the wildcard from the Elite. Or he’s just a loner drunk again.

The Learning Tree is in the back and walks into the trainer’s area to complain about faulty wrist taping. Chris Jericho also advocates stealing tape.

Stephanie Vaquer vs. Lady Frost

Non-title and here is Mercedes Mone to watch. Vaquer puts her down to start and then spins out of a wristlock. An STF sends Frost over to the ropes and they head outside, where Frost snaps off a hurricanrana. Frost tries a handstand on the apron but gets superkicked, leaving us with a Mone/Vaquer staredown as we take a break.

Back with Frost hitting some faceplants to send Frost into the mat but Frost kicks her in the head. A twisting high crossbody gives Frost two, with Mone approving at ringside. Vaquer is back with a spinning DDT for two and some headbutts in the corner have Frost in more trouble. A package backbreaker finishes Frost at 7:58.

Rating: C+. Well at least they finally got Vaquer in the ring for once before her title match against Mone. That’s what we’ve been needing since the match was announced as Vaquer hasn’t wrestled in AEW prior to this, which doesn’t give fans much to go on. This was better than nothing, but the story is only going to be so interesting going into tomorrow.

Post match Mone comes in for the staredown but Vaquer leaves. Vaquer’s partner, Zeuxis, comes in to jump Mone, allowing Vaquer to lay Mone out.

The Lucha Bros are ready for Forbidden Door when Los Ingobernables de Japon come in to challenge Death Triangle. The Bros are going to pass because Pac is in the Owen Hart Cup, but they’ll team with Mistico instead. Los Ingobernables are cool with that. Well Takahashi isn’t, as he’s kind of panicking over the Mistico idea.

Serena Deeb vs. Kelly Madan

Deeb chops away to start and hits a neckbreaker over the middle rope. A hammerlock lariat into Deebtox finishes Madan at 1:15.

Post match Deeb says she isn’t going into wrestling purgatory and wants some competition. And cue Riho for the staredown, because it’s time to pretend she’s amazing again.

The Learning Tree critiques hand washing techniques.

Post match the Learning Tree tries to ride a Zamboni machine but get beaten up by Samoa Joe and pals. The fight heads into the arena, where Jeff Cobb runs in to even things out so the Learning Tree can stand tall.

Video on Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Orange Cassidy.

Cassidy says his world is falling apart but he’s here, unlike Sabre. Cue Sabre to say he knows what Cassidy is going to do, so Cassidy offers to pin him with his hands in his pockets. Cassidy grabs him by the shirt, with Sabre saying he’s already won.

Hechicero vs. Kevin Blackwood

Hechicero takes him down and ties up the leg before switching to an ankle lock. Some elbows to the face and a flapjack set up a Mad Scientist Bomb to rock Blackwood again. The Rings of Saturn with the legs makes Blackwood tap at 2:22.

The Patriarchy wants the Trios Titles so here is the Bang Bang Gang for the argument. Jay White mocks the team but gets why Christian Cage wants to latch onto him.

Daniel Garcia vs. The Butcher

They’re both from Buffalo. They fight over a lockup to start until Butcher powers him into the corner for some stomping. Garcia fights back but gets taken outside for a ram into the barricade. Garcia’s running boot is countered into a backdrop onto the barricade and we take a break. Back with the fans declaring this awesome as Butcher keeps Garcia in trouble. Garcia fights back and grabs a swinging neckbreaker for the breather. Back up and Garcia shrugs off a big boot before dropping Butcher with a clothesline. The piledriver finishes for Garcia at 9:00.

Rating: C+. The fans were into it, but I’m really not sure what the point is in having the fans split between two hometown stars before Garcia gets his big title match next week. Garcia isn’t likely to win, but this wasn’t the best way to get the fans behind him on the way there. Then again there have always been some rather odd choices for Garcia in AEW.

Post match dancing ensues and respect is shown.

The Don Callis Family interrupts Will Ospreay, who still says he can win the World Title on his own. That works for Callis and we pan out to show Rush standing with the Family.

Brodie Lee is getting his own custom shoe.

Jack Perry wants the TNT Title but doesn’t want to wrestle tonight. Christopher Daniels pops in to say Perry wrestles tonight or he’s out of the title match. Fans chant for CM Punk.

Women’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Hikaru Shida vs. Deonna Purrazzo

They fight over wrist control to start before switching to an exchange of forearms. Purrazzo gets knocked into the corner with an enziguri and then out to the floor, with Shida hitting a big dive. Back up and Purrazzo kicks her down and we take a break. We come back with Shida hitting some running knees for two but Purrazzo legsweeps her down. The Fujiwara armbar goes on but Shida slips out again. A step up kick to the head drops Purrazzo and the Falcon Arrow connects. The Katana finishes Purrazzo at 9:09.

Rating: B-. I’m a bit surprised that Purrazzo lost here as she was on something of a roll. That being said, Shida is possibly the most successful star in the history of AEW’s women’s division so losing to her is hardly some career killer. They did well here with Shida getting another win, and while I can’t imagine her winning the whole thing, someone will get a nice boost from beating her.

Post match Purrazzo jumps Shida again but Thunder Rosa runs in for the save.

We get another rather serious video from Jeff Jarrett, talking about what it means to honor Owen Hart’s legacy. The rest of Jarrett’s friends are ready to have his back, though he wants to go to the ring on his own. They all seem ok with this and will be with him in spirit.

We get a very slow pan up Toni Storm as she talks about how she is ready to beat Mina Shirakawa. As you might expect, this is rather over the top, as only Storm can do.

Mark Briscoe/Dante Martin/Lio Rush vs. Konosuke Takeshita/Jack Perry/El Phantasmo

Rush and Perry start things off but let’s try Takeshita instead. Rush gets two off a quick rollup before getting kicked in the face for his efforts. Phantasm comes in and all three opponents send him into the corner for some running clotheslines. We settle down to Rush’s suplex getting two on Phantasmo but he fights back up for a breather. Hold on though as Perry drops to the floor instead of tagging. Briscoe dropkicks Perry through the ropes and we take a break.

Back with Martin hurricanranaing Phantasm and Takeshita at the same time, allowing the tag back to Briscoe. Phantasmo kicks Briscoe in the head so Rush can come back in to pick up the pace. A suicide dive take Takeshita down but Phantasm and Martin hit dives of their own. Back in and Martin’s frog splash gets two with Perry making the save.

Briscoe’s running flip dive from the apron misses though and Takeshita comes back in to clean house. Martin catches him on top with a super hurricanrana, only o have Perry break up something on top. The distraction lets Takeshita hit the Blue Thunder Bomb into the running knee to finish Martin at 10:51.

Rating: B-. This was the preview for the ladder match which has nothing to do with ladders but that’s how ladder matches are built up. It’s hard to imagine anyone but Perry winning but at least there is quite the lineup of talent involved. It also helps that it was the best match of the night so far, though the lineup has only been so good this week.

Post match Perry decks Takeshita, who gets superkicked by Phantasmo, who gets Stunnered by Rush, who gets in a tug o war with Martin, who is knocked down by a ladder shot from Briscoe, who climbs the ladder and throws the title onto the pile before hitting a flip dive onto everyone.

Forbidden Door rundown.

We get the weigh-in for the World Title match between Swerve Strickland and Will Ospreay, with Prince Nana as moderator. Ospreay weighs 220 and Swerve weighs 230. They go nose to nose and pose for photos before Ospreay says they are 24 hours away from ushering in a new era. Swerve talks about how he’s a businessman and offers Ospreay’s wife a contract. That’s enough for the fight to be on, with all of the seconds getting into it as well. Ospreay manages a quick Hidden Blade and poses over Swerve to end the show. This has been the best built match on the pay per view, but I’m worried that it’s going to get overshadowed.

Overall Rating: B-. The ending segment was good, but this was a show that seemed more designed as a big preview for tomorrow’s event. While that makes sense on paper, there is only so much that you can get out of having a preview of what is supposed to be a bunch of one off special matches. It also doesn’t help that this was a two hour show which came the day before an hour long show and the day before a four plus hour pay per view (with an hour and a half pre-show). Not a bad show, but not one you really needed to watch.

Results
Orange Cassidy/Tomohiro Ishii b. TMDK – Beach Break to Haste
Stephanie Vaquer b. Lady Frost – Package backbreaker
Serena Deeb b. Kelly Madan – Deebtox
Hechicero b. Kevin Blackwood – Rings of Saturn with legs
Daniel Garcia b. The Butcher – Piledriver
Hikaru Shida b. Deonna Purrazzo – Katana
Konosuke Takeshita/Jack Perry/El Phantasmo b. Mark Briscoe/Dante Martin/Lio Rush – Running knee to Martin

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Rampage
Date: June 28, 2024
Location: PPL Center, Allentown, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Ian Riccaboni

We are two days away from Forbidden Door and that means the card is mostly set up. While there is a chance that we could see something else for the pay per view, there is a good chance that we are going to be seeing a few minor pushes towards Sunday and little more. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Orange Cassidy vs. Outrunners

Cassidy works on Magnum’s arm to start and then mocks the double bicep pose. Floyd comes in and manages a running shoulder to drop Cassidy, meaning we get the REAL double bicep. Back up and Cassidy knocks both of them down, setting up the double dropkick. The referee almost gets hit but gets hugged instead, with the distraction causing Cassidy to get caught in a double belly to back suplex. A double slam gives the Outrunners two but Cassidy rams them into each other. Floyd is sent outside for a dive and the high crossbody hits Magnum. The Orange Punch gives Cassidy the pin on Magnum at 6:05.

Rating: C. That’s quite the odd choice to give Cassidy a win on his way into a showdown with a technical master like Zack Sabre Jr. The Outrunners are little more than a couple of comedy goofs and it isn’t a bit deal to see Cassidy beat them. Nothing much to see here and I’m not sure I get the thinking behind this one.

The Learning Tree has a new partner for the six man tag at Forbidden Door and we’ll find out who it is on Collision.

Gabe Kidd/Roderick Strong vs. Infantry

The Kingdom and Trish Adora are here too. Kidd runs Bravo over with a shoulder to start and it’s Strong coming in for some hard chops in the corner. Strong gets caught in the wrong corner but cuts Dean off with a backbreaker as we take a break. Back with Dean caught in the wrong corner but a missed double clothesline allows the diving tag to Bravo. A slingshot cutter gets two on Kidd and there’s an ax kick to put him down again. Strong breaks up Boot Camp though and Kidd hits a quick piledriver to pin Bravo at 6:27. Not enough shown to rate but it was a competitive enough match.

There is going to be a Brodie Lee commemorative shoe.

TNT Title Qualifying Match: El Phantasmo vs. AR Fox

They run the ropes to start until Phantasmo snaps off a headscissors into a dropkick. A very springboardy hurricanrana takes Fox down but he avoids a dive and knocks Phantasmo outside. The big dive connects but Phantasmo is back up with a running forearm. An atomic drop into a Russian legsweep has Fox down as Nigel notices the Bret Hart homage. Phantasmo’s Lionsault gets two but Fox enziguris him into a twisting brainbuster. Fox puts him up top but takes too long, allowing Phantasmo to come back with a middle rope Canadian Destroyer. A faceplant finishes for Phantasmo at 5:24.

Rating: B-. Nice, fast paced match here, though it’s kind of hard to get behind the idea that Fox is going to win anything of value. Phantasmo is the New Japan representative in the title match, though it’s hard to imagine that he is going to win. For now though, I’ll take a pretty good match on TV with two talented stars.

Deonna Purrazzo is ready for the Owen Hart Tournament and her first round match against Hikaru Shida.

Dalton Castle vs. Shingo Takagi

They fight over a lockup to start until Takagi runs him over and we take an early break. Back with Takagi hitting a backsplash and driving in some elbows to the head. Castle is back up with a suplex and a spinning elbow to the head, followed by a reverse Sling Blade for two. Takagi grabs a Gory Bomb into a DDT, setting up Made In Japan to finish Castle at 7:49.

Rating: C+. The more I see Castle out there doing his awesome stuff, if nothing else his entrance, the more amazed I am that he is little more than a jobber to the stars. I know his back is messed up, but how do you look at someone with his unique set of talents and have nothing better for him? It’s one of the bigger shames in AEW and while I’d love to believe that it’s going to get better, it’s hard to believe that is a realistic option.

Saraya isn’t worried about Mariah May.

Skye Blue vs. Queen Aminata

They start fast with Blue missing a big boot and getting German suplexed for an early two. An exchange of rollups doesn’t go anywhere so Aminata grabs a pair of vertical suplexes. Back up and Blue hits some running knees to put Aminata outside, setting up the dive to the floor.

We take a break and come back with Aminata hitting a PK for two, followed by a heck of a running boot against the rope. Another suplex on the apron rocks Blue but the running hip attack only hits the steps. Blue suplexes her off the steps for a change of pace and a near fall back inside. Skyfall is broken up and Aminata headbutts her for the pin at 9:45.

Rating: C+. What an odd choice for a main event. There is almost nothing going on with these two, at least in AEW, and yet they get the main event slot and longest match on the show. Aminata seems likely to be in line for a Women’s Title match in Ring Of Honor, but I’m not sure why she is getting this kind of a spot on a pay per view weekend.

Aminata tries to show respect post match but gets superkicked for her efforts. Red Velvet runs in for the save to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. In theory this was a preview for Forbidden Door with some other stuff thrown in, though Kidd isn’t on the pay per view card at the moment and Phantasmo is going to be one of a bunch of people in a ladder match. In other words, this was the usual somewhat random assortment of matches that tends to fill out Rampage. It’s not a bad show at all, but there were a few times where I was wondering why something was taking place.

Results
Orange Cassidy b. Outrunners – Orange Punch to Magnum
Gabe Kidd/Roderick Strong b. Infantry – Piledriver to Bravo
El Phantasmo b. AR Fox – Faceplant
Shingo Takagi b. Dalton Castle – Made In Japan
Queen Aminata b. Skye Blue – Headbutt

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Forbidden Door 2023
Date: June 25, 2023
Location: Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Excalibur, Kevin Kelly, Chris Charlton, Taz

It’s time for the annual crossover show as we have a bunch of AEW vs. New Japan matches. The entire build to the show as well as the show itself are a total side trip away from what AEW normally does but it is one heck of a side trip, with an absolutely stacked card that has some serious potential. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Mogul Embassy vs. Best Friends/Rocky Romero/El Desperado

Kaun takes Romero into the corner to start but gets dropped with a hurricanrana. The Best Friends come in for a double elbow so it’s off to Toa, who gets high crossbodied. Everything breaks down and the villains are sent to the floor for the big series of dives. Trent caps it off with a moonsault onto Toa as the fans are rather pleased.

Back in and Toa hits a pop up Samoan drop to cut Trent off, followed by a whip over the corner to the floor. Kaun hits the slingshot hilo and Cage hits the Death Valley Driver on the apron. Trent suplexes his way out of trouble but the Embassy does the pull his partners to the floor thing.

Strickland takes over on Trent but a quick shot allows the tag to Desperado. A shot to Cage on the apron causes everything to break down and Strickland plants Desperado for two. We hit the parade of everyone hitting something until Cage accidentally discus clotheslines Swerve. Strong Zero gets two on Swerve but Cage is back in for the F5 into Swerve’s cutter. The Swerve Stomp finishes for Swerve at 12:24.

Rating: C. It’s always nice to see Swerve getting a pin, even if it is one of the less important matches of the show. What mattered here was starting the fans off with something fun and the Best Friends will always get that kind of a reaction. I’m still not sure why Swerve has to be stuck with these guys, as the Gates continue to feel worthless and Cage isn’t going anywhere, but at least he got a little something here.

Zero Hour: Women’s Owen Hart Foundation Tournament First Round: Billie Starkz vs. Athena

Athena’s ROH Women’s Title isn’t on the line. Starkz fires off the kicks to start and a suplex brainbuster gets two. A headscissors into the corner gets Athena out of trouble and we slow it down as Athena prefers. Athena stays on the ribs with some more kicks but the O Face is countered into a Death Valley Bomb for two.

Starkz gets caught on top though and it’s a pop up powerbomb into a kick to the face for two, leaving Athena annoyed. Back up and they trade dropkicks until Athena misses a standing moonsault. Starkz misses a Swanton onto the apron and crashes hard, setting up a spinning gutbuster to give Athena the pin at 7:48.

Rating: C. That’s all it should have been, as Athena is on a roll and Starkz isn’t in here league yet. Athena didn’t quite run her over but it was hard to believe that there was any danger in this one. Not exactly a classic match, but Athena is on fire right now and any excuse to get her out of ROH and into AEW is a good thing.

Zero Hour: El Phantasmo vs. Stu Grayson

They shake hands to start before Grayson takes him into the corner to hammer away. Grayson pounds away and they stand there for the exchange of chops. Then Phantasmo grabs the nipples to take over, setting up a springboard spinning crossbody. Grayson is sent outside for the suicide dive into the barricade, followed by the springboard Swanton for two back inside.

Phantasmo catches him with a kick to the head on top and snaps off a super hurricanrana. The top rope splash (and a good one at that) gives Phantasmo two but Grayson kicks him back down. A 450 gives Grayson two but Phantasmo is back with a springboard tornado DDT. Something like Diamond Dallas Page’s old Pancake (with the arms held back) finishes Grayson at 7:17.

Rating: C. Of all the matches on the card, this one felt the most like “here’s a way to get more people on the card”. Grayson has been in the middle of an ordeal with the Dark Order on Ring Of Honor for weeks now and isn’t exactly a big star. Phantasmo is a bigger name, but I don’t know how many people were going to sit home if he wasn’t on the show. Fine match, but something that could have been dropped with no consequence.

Zero Hour: United Empire vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon

United Empire: Jeff Cobb/TJP/Kyle Fletcher
Los Ingobernables: Bushi/Hiromu Takahashi/Shingo Takagi

Bushi gets double teamed to start and his comeback is quickly cut off by the numbers game. Cobb comes in to power Bushi around but a dropkick to the knee puts Cobb down. Takahashi comes in to clean house until Cobb pulls him into an overhead belly to belly. It’s off to Takagi, who gets kicked in the face by Fletcher so TJP can come in with a high crossbody. Everything breaks down and Takagi hits TJP with a pop up Death Valley Driver. Cobb has to make a save so Bushi dives onto Fletcher. Takagi’s Last Of The Dragon is blocked so TJP kicks him in the face, earning a discus lariat. Made In Japan finishes TJP at 7:22.

Rating: C+. Best thing on the Kickoff Show and a lot of that probably has to do with the people involved. There were some talented names in this match and I could have gone for a bit more of it. The Empire losing is a bit weird as they’re around AEW more often, but it isn’t like the result truly matters in the grand scheme of things.

The opening video gives a quick look at the major matches.

AEW World Title: Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi

MJF, who still believes New Japan is an indy company, is defending. Tanahashi takes him down to start so MJF bails to the floor, saying he’s already done. A COWARD chant is enough to bring him back in and a knee to the ribs cuts Tanahashi off. MJF grabs a bearhug into the abdominal stretch with a grab of the ropes keeps Tanahashi in trouble. Tanahashi fights out and knocks MJF down for the middle rope Swanton and a near fall.

MJF catches him on top for a good looking superplex and a near fall. The Heatseeker is blocked though and MJF bangs up his knees. MJF is right back up with a double underhook shoulder breaker, which only hurts the knee even more. Tanahashi is down so MJF calls him a joke (and a fan calls MJF a coward), which is enough to start the comeback.

The bad knee is taken out and the Texas Cloverleaf sends MJF bailing to the ropes. Twist and Shout into the Sling Blade sets up the High Fly Flow, which only hits the raised knees. They’re both down for a bit until MJF rolls outside and grabs the title. The referee takes it away and Tanahashi grabs a rollup for a VERY delayed two. Another referee distraction lets MJF hit Tanahashi with the diamond ring to retain at 16:20.

Rating: B-. Good opener here but the ending didn’t do it any favors. The ribs vs. the knees worked well for a story here as Tanahashi isn’t as fast as he was before so it gave him a reason to slow down. MJF gets over for his talking abilities but it is nice to see him being able to easily hang in a match like this. Nice choice for the first match on the main card here, as the fans still buy into MJF’s antics.

Men’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: CM Punk vs. Satoshi Kojima

The fans are NOT pleased with Punk and commentary acknowledges the not so positive reaction. They start rather slowly with Kojima’s headlock not doing anything. Kojima goes after the back to take over and stops to pop his pectoral muscles. Punk sends him outside and pops his own pecs before going outside or some chops. A leg sweep knocks Punk down on the apron but he’s right back with a knockdown of his own.

The legdrop connects and we get the required Hogan references. They strike it out in the corner until Punk whips him hard into said corner. Punk hits his own Kojima style lariats in the corner (while shouting “KOJIMA” over and over), setting up a belly to back suplex for two (with quite the evil grin during the cover). A missed splash in the corner lets Kojima fire off his rapid fire chops and then he does it again in another corner. Kojima’s top rope elbow gets two and a DDT plants Punk again.

Punk knocks him down again though and drops a top rope elbow for two of his own. The Anaconda Vice goes on until Kojima hits him in the back of the head to break it up. The GTS is broken up and Kojima fires off his double chops into the Koji Cutter to drop Punk. Kojima’s lariat is countered into a neckbreaker for two more but the GTS is blocked again. A brainbuster gives Kojima two but Punk kicks him in the head, setting up the GTS to finish Kojima at 13:33.

Rating: B. They beat each other up rather well here and Kojima gave him more of a run for his money than I was expecting. If nothing else, it was a lot of fun to see Punk laying into the heel stuff, as he can shift from one side or the other like few in wrestling today. This got physical at the end and it wound up being a rather entertaining match.

International Title: Orange Cassidy vs. Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Katsuyori Shibata vs. Daniel Garcia

Cassidy is defending (Shibata’s ROH Pure Title/Sabre’s NJPW TV Title aren’t on the line) and it’s one fall to a finish. They all block kicks to start until Sabre and Shibata are both sent outside. The Dragontamer has Cassidy in trouble until Shibata makes the save. Shibata Figure Fours Cassidy until Garcia makes a save and grabs a hold of his own. That’s broken up as well and everyone but Cassidy strike it out. Cassidy comes back in and everyone is knocked down for a bit.

Back up and Cassidy and Garcia grab holds, only to have Shibata and Sabre slug it out with said holds still on. With that broken up, Cassidy hits a Stundog Millionaire but Sabre twists the arm around to hit Cassidy in his own ribs. Garcia grabs a belt to knock Shibata silly for two but Cassidy clears Garcia out. That lets Cassidy and Shibata sit down to slap each other until an Orange Punch drops Shibata.

Cassidy’s hand is too banged up to cover so it’s the Beach Break for two. The Mousetrap to Sabre is countered into a double arm trap with a save being made. Sabre pulls Cassidy back into the hold until Shibata makes a save of his own. Everything breaks down again and Garcia pildrives Sabre. Shibata hits the PK on Garcia but Cassidy steals the pin to retain at 11:32.

Rating: B. The match was almost all action and Cassidy continues to show that he can hang with just about anyone. That being said, I’m not sure how many times the story has been “Cassidy is banged up and facing overwhelming odds” but he retains anyway. The point has long since been made and it’s time for someone to beat him for the title. He isn’t really gaining much more by doing it over and over again, yet here we are (after another rather entertaining match).

IWGP World Title: Sanada vs. Jungle Boy

Jungle Boy, with Hook, is challenging and gets run over by the champ. The threat of a Snare Trap sends Sanada straight to the ropes and Jungle Boy is already looking frustrated. Jungle Boy’s attempt at a Paradise Lock is broken up and Sanada gets one of his own, setting up the running dropkick for two. Back up and Jungle Boy fights back before a double knockdown gives them both a breather.

They chop it out until Jungle Boy gets Sanada’s own Skull End, slowly sending him over to the ropes. Sanada is right back up with a TKO for two but a moonsault doesn’t work as well. Jungle Boy snaps off a poisonrana but Sanada is right back with the swinging Skull End. Sanada’s poisonrana sets up a Shining Wizard for two, followed by a moonsault to retain at 10:37. There seemed to be a bit of confusion on the ending there, as the referee checked the shoulders and the bell didn’t immediately ring.

Rating: C+. This was a step down from the rest of the show, but there was only so much that could be done with the idea of Jungle Boy getting a World Title shot. He wasn’t going to win here and it fits in with his recent struggles. Commentary referred to this as a learning experience for Jungle Boy and that’s rather accurate, as he wasn’t going to win but could still get something out of it.

Post match Jungle Boy seems banged up but is fine enough to turn on Hook (Taz is LIVID). The fans give a very loud YOU F***** UP chant as this team with three whole matches together is done.

Blackpool Combat Club/Konosuke Takeshita/Shota Umino vs. Elite/Tomohiro Ishii/Eddie Kingston

Umino takes Page into the corner for some pats on the chest, plus a forearm to annoy Page a bit. Takeshita comes in instead and takes over, only for the Bucks to come in and pick up the pace. A neckbreaker/backbreaker combination hits Yuta (One of the Bucks: “See you in h***!”) and it’s off to Kingston vs. Moxley for one heck of an audience reaction. They stare each other down and then go to the big chop off as the other eight just watch from the floor.

Realizing that doesn’t make a ton of sense, the others come in for a big slugout of their own until the Bucks hit stereo dives to the floor. Page adds the moonsault as Kingston and Moxley are still chopping away. Castagnoli comes in to drop Kingston as Moxley goes outside to pour water on his chest. Takeshita comes in and BLASTS Ishii (on the apron) with an elbow before Kingston is caught in the wrong corner for some elbows from Castagnoli.

Kingston lariats his way out of trouble but Moxley is right there to cut him off. Stereo lariats connect and Moxley’s banged up chest keeps him down even longer. Ishii comes in to run Yuta over and slips out of a Hart Attack attempt. A back suplex drops Umino and a diving tag brings in Page for the big comeback. The Bucks hold Takeshita over the floor so Page can hit a running shooting star press from the apron.

Takeshita is back up but the Bucks start firing off the superkicks. The Blue Thunder Bomb Takeshita two on Matt and a wheelbarrow suplex drops him again. Castagnoli’s swing into Yuta’s dropkick gets two with a bunch of people making the save. Nick breaks up…something from Yuta and a rather cold tag brings Ishii back in as everything breaks down. Moxley cutters Ishii but the Bucks superkick their problems away again. Yuta ducks the Buckshot lariat and Ishii takes his head off with a lariat of his own. The brainbuster finishes for Ishii at 21:22.

Rating: B+. This was the all action match of the night and that’s all it needed to be, as the score (unofficially) is evened up between the Elite and the Club. You can book Blood & Guts from here and it should be rather epic. It was also rather nice to not have the match turn into a wild brawl, as they already covered that at Double Or Nothing. Heck of a fight here, and the storytelling with Kingston/Moxley/Castagnoli worked well. Throw in Takeshita looking like a main eventer and it was even better.

Post match Kingston isn’t having anything to do with his partners and leaves, as he didn’t want to hurt Moxley.

Video on Toni Storm vs. Willow Nightingale. Storm is so mean that even Nightingale doesn’t like her!

AEW Women’s Title: Toni Storm vs. Willow Nightingale

Storm, with the Outcasts, is defending and Nightingale’s NJPW Women’s Strong Title isn’t on the line. They run the ropes to start until Nightingale counters a hiptoss into a cradle for two. Nightingale drops her to the floor but stops to yell at the Outcasts, allowing Storm to hit a hip attack on the way back in. The seated full nelson keeps Nightingale in trouble and Storm forearms her in the back to cut off a comeback.

Back up and they head to the apron with Nightingale hitting a Death Valley Driver to plant her hard. Nightingale goes up but the Outcasts throw in the spray paint. That’s enough for a double ejection but the delay causes Nightingale to miss the moonsault. The hip attack into a DDT gives Storm two, only to have Nightingale pull her into an Indian Deathlock. With that broken up, the Pounce sends Storm outside but she’s right back with a poke to the eye. Storm Zero retains the title at 11:03.

Rating: C+. This was more of the same from the Outcasts, but at least Storm was able to cheat on her own to retain here. Nightingale losing isn’t a surprise but it’s certainly annoying, as it seems to happen far too often. Odds are we’re coming up on Storm vs. Jamie Hayter for the title at All In, but at least Nightingale didn’t get squashed.

We recap Will Ospreay challenging Kenny Omega for the IWGP US Title. Omega escaped with the title at Wrestle Kingdom but now Ospreay is back and more dangerous for the rematch.

IWGP US Title: Kenny Omega vs. Will Ospreay

Ospreay is challenging and seems to be the big favorite. Omega takes him down into an early chinlock but Ospreay reverses into an arm crank. They chop it out but it’s way too early for the One Winged Angle. The Oscutter is countered as well and Omega has to duck a kick, leaving us with a standoff. Omega takes him down and hits a moonsault but here is Don Callis with his “military grade security” for the distraction.

That’s enough for an ejection but said distraction lets Ospreay send him into the barricade and take over back inside. Some shots to the back have Omega in trouble and Ospreay stays on said back for two. Omega manages to hit a quick Kitaro Crusher but Ospreay drapes him over the top rope. That sets up a shooting star press to the back and the Oscutter on the apron keeps Omega rocked. They head outside with Ospreay ramming him hard into the announcers’ table to knock Omega even sillier.

Omega is sent through the table’s covering and is busted rather open, allowing Ospreay to lick the blood off of his own arm. Ospreay V Triggers him to the floor and grabs the Canadian flag to clean himself, ala Shawn Michaels in 1997. That’s enough for Omega to knock him hard to the floor, where Ospreay is sent hard into the steps to bust him open as well. A DDT onto the steps knocks Ospreay silly again and Omega elbows away at the cut to make the blood flow even more freely. Ospreay powerbombs his way out of a choke and they’re both down.

Back up and Omega hits a V Trigger, only for Ospreay to grab the standing Spanish Fly for two. A rather terrible Sharpshooter sends Omega to the ropes but Ospreay pulls him back in and switches to a Crossface. With the rope break getting Omega out of trouble, Ospreay kicks him in the head a few times. The Oscutter is blocked (perhaps shouting OSCUTTER in advance was a bad idea) and Omega hits some Snapdragons. A piledriver gives Omega two and there’s the V Trigger to the back.

Omega tries a super One Winged Angel but Ospreay counters the chance of death into a Cheeky Nandos kick. Ospreay hits a skytwister to the floor, followed by a Liger Bomb for two back inside. Omega knocks him down again but here is Don Callis (the fans are NOT pleased) at ringside. A knee to the face hits Ospreay as Callis hides behind security. Callis’ distraction doesn’t stop the V Trigger but he manages to slip Ospreay a screwdriver.

The One Winged Angel is broken up with the screwdriver to the head and the Hidden Blade into the Stormbreaker gives Ospreay….two. Well that was ridiculous. Ospreay’s One Winged Angel gets one so Omega loads up his own version, only to switch into a German suplex for two. Ospreay Tiger Driver 91’s him for two and it’s a Hidden Blade into Stormbreaker to finally finish Omega at 39:07.

Rating: A. What else do you want here? They sold the idea of two people leaving it all in the ring until one of them couldn’t stand any longer and it felt like a violent war. That’s exactly what this should have been and on almost all accounts, it would have been a bit better without the (awesome) false finish off back to back finishers. That was a bit much and should have been the finish, but that’s a rather nothing complaint all things considered.

Omega has to be helped out due to obvious reasons.

Sting/Darby Allin/Tetsuya Naito vs. Chris Jericho/Minoru Suzuki/Sammy Guevara

Guevara flips over Naito to start before hitting a dropkick to take over. Naito sends him outside though and that’s enough for the Tranquilo pose. Allin comes in to yell at Guevara but gets Suzuki instead. That doesn’t go well for Allin so it’s off to Jericho vs. Sting for the big staredown. Sting takes over without much trouble and hits the Stinger Splash into the Scorpion Deathlock.

Guevara makes the save with a cutter and we get a triple Le Suzuki Gods pose. Naito is back in to clean things out and we settle down to Naito’s Gloria being broken up. Everything breaks down and the villains grab triple chokes, which are quickly escaped. Allin hits a dive onto Suzuki but Jericho hits the Judas Effect to cut off Allin’s sequel dive.

Jericho brings out a table (of course) and puts Sting on it before ordering Sammy to hit the 630 off the top to drive him through it. Naito rolls Jericho up for two but Destino is countered into the Walls. Sting is back up for the save so Jericho gives Naito the Codebreaker for to instead. Naito and Sting beat on Suzuki and it’s an atomic drop into a rollup to finish Suzuki at 15:02.

Rating: C. This one didn’t do much for me and it felt like they were just kind of going through the motions in some places. I’m also guessing that Sting was supposed to get up before that 630 but just didn’t in time, which would explain (not excuse, but explain) his quick save. The match wasn’t bad, but nothing you need to see.

Post match Jericho grabs the bat but Sting clears everyone out.

We recap Bryan Danielson vs. Kazuchika Okada. In summation, it’s Bryan Danielson vs. Kazuchika Okada.

Bryan Danielson vs. Kazuchika Okada

Danielson comes out to Final Countdown for a special moment. Okada goes for the arm to start but Danielson reverses into a surfboard with a double knee stomp to leave Okada a bit annoyed. An elbow to the face drops Danielson and they go to the floor, where Danielson starts working on the arms. Some shots to said arms have Okada in trouble and Danielson cranks away at both back inside. Okada fights up and lets Danielson kick him, which just wakes Okada up even more.

The forearms don’t work because of the arm but it’s fine enough to catch a charging Danielson in a flapjack. They fight to the floor again and this time Danielson is sent into the crowd. Okada is right after him with a big running clothesline, setting up a neckbreaker onto the knee for two back inside. Danielson pops back up and hits a missile dropkick before it’s time to strike it out again.

Okada shotgun dropkicks him into the corner, followed by another dropkick for two. Back up and Danielson goes for the arm again, this time getting in a Disarm-Her. With that broken up, Danielson sends him outside but misses the dive. The Rainmaker is blocked and Okada gets dropkicked up the ramp. The YES Kicks rock Okada but he’s right back with a Tombstone onto the ramp.

Danielson is mostly out of it and the Rainmaker is loaded up. Hold on though as we pause for the doctor, who says Danielson can go, despite convulsing. Danielson is cleared and immediately hits a knee to drop Okada. Danielson declares it time to kick his f****** head in and stomps away but Danielson’s arm seems to have given out.

The YES chant is loaded up but Okada cuts off the running knee with the dropkick. The Landslide sets up the Rainmaker for two but two more attempts miss. Danielson tries the LeBell Lock, only to opt for some weird double arm lock. Okada can’t reach the rope so Danielson lets go and hammers him in the face. The double arm crank goes back on and Okada taps at 27:33.

Rating: A-. This was great in a different way than the Omega vs. Ospreay bloodbath in that this felt more like a traditional classic wrestling match. You had Danielson tearing the arm apart all match while Okada worked on the neck, only to have Danielson get the better of things and tie him up for the win. I had a great time with it, but the lack of a story other than “hey let’s have a classic” slowed it down a bit.

Danielson is banged up to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. The two big matches and the ten man tag are more than enough to carry this, but it doesn’t quite get to that all time level. There are some matches on here that don’t exactly feel epic, but the good stuff is so, so good that it carries the rest. Definitely check out Okada vs. Danielson and Ospreay vs. Omega, but the rest you might want to pick and choose (save for the Zero Hour stuff, which added pretty much nothing). Another awesome show here, as we now veer back into the normal AEW material.

Results
Mogul Embassy b. Best Friends/Rocky Romero/El Desperado – Swerve Stomp to Romero
Athena b. Billie Starkz – Gutbuster
El Phantasmo b. Stu Grayson – Arm trap faceplant
Los Ingobernables de Japon b. United Empire – Made In Japan to TJP
Maxwell Jacob Friedman b. Hiroshi Tanahashi – Diamond ring to the head
CM Punk b. Satoshi Kojima – GTS
Orange Cassidy b. Daniel Garcia, Zack Sabre Jr. and Katsuyorhi Shibata – Crucifix to Garcia
Sanada b. Jungle Boy – Moonsault
Elite/Tomohiro Ishii/Eddie Kingston b. Blackpool Combat Club/Konosuke Takeshita/Shota Umino – Brainbuster to Yuta
Toni Storm b. Willow Nightingale – Storm Zero
Will Ospreay b. Kenny Omega – Stormbreaker
Sting/Tetsuya Naito/Darby Allin b. Chris Jericho/Sammy Guevara/Minoru Suzuki – Rollup to Suzuki
Bryan Danielson b. Kazuchika Okada – Double arm crank

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