Impact Wrestling
Date: July 22, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Matt Striker, D’Lo Brown

We are finally done with Slammiversary, which wound up being a heck of a show with a lot of surprises. Kenny Omega retained the World Title by defeating Sami Callihan but New Japan’s Jay White showed up to end the show in a big surprise. It’s time to start the long form crawl towards Bound For Glory so let’s get to it.

Here is Slammiversary if you need a recap.

We open with a long recap of the title matches at Slammiversary.

Opening sequence, with a new version of the theme song. Dang the other one was catchier.

Chris Bey vs. Rohit Raju

Shera is here with Raju and this is fallout from both of them losing Ultimate X. Feeling out process to start with Raju grabbing a headlock. That goes nowhere as Bey takes him down, followed by both of them catching a boot to the ribs at the same time. Back up and they run the ropes until Raju sweeps the leg to take him down. Raju is sent to the apron, where he manages to snap the back of the neck over the ropes.

Back in and Raju faceplants him into a basement clothesline to the back of the head. A snap suplex gives Raju two and the chinlock goes on. That doesn’t last long so Raju takes him into the corner, where he misses a Cannonball. Bey is back with a Fameasser and a kick to the head in the corner. Raju’s jumping Downward Spiral gets two and he counters the Art of Finesse into the Crossface. That’s broken up so Bey hits him in the back of the head, setting up the Art of Finesse for the pin at 6:39.

Rating: C. Bey continues to feel like a star, but he needs to win something of note again sooner rather than later. He has been in a bit of a holding pattern since he lost the X-Division Title so maybe he can get somewhere else. Raju continues to stun me as I still can’t get over how far he has come in such a short amount of time. That’s very impressive and deserves some attention.

Post match, Bey runs into Jay White, who has sent him a message. White, the leader of the Bullet Club, says the team is always looking for talented guys. Bey says he has always been about himself, but White asks how that has been going for him.

Don Callis brags about Kenny Omega’s win and mocks Tommy Dreamer and Scott D’Amore over being more powerful than they are. Callis isn’t happy that Jay White is here, but the title is more valuable anyway.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

Here is Mickie James for a chat (Striker has already called her beautiful and a wonderful human being). Mickie is glad to be back and hear that song one more time. She is here to change the business and make it better, so she would like Knockouts Champion Deonna Purrazzo to come out here right now.

Cue Purrazzo, who isn’t happy that Mickie kicked her in the face at Slammiversary. Mickie offers her a match at NWA Empowered, but Purrazzo thinks Mickie is in this for herself. Cue Gail Kim, to say everyone wants this to be the biggest, and thinks Purrazzo should accept. Mickie talks about how Purrazzo needs to cement her legacy, and it can start with this. Purrazzo shakes her hand so the match is on.

The Drama King is coming.

Jake Something/Matt Cardona/Chelsea Green vs. Tenille Dashwood/Sam Beale/Brian Myers

Kaleb With A K is here with the villains. Jake throws Beale around to start and works on the arm before Cardona comes in for the flapjack. Cardona hammers on Myers in the corner but a Beale distraction lets him drop Cardona onto the buckle. The beating doesn’t last long though as Cardona gets over to Green to beat up Dashwood. A Backstabber plants Dashwood but Kaleb With A K breaks up the Unprettier. Cue the returning Taylor Wilde to take care of Kaleb With A K, leaving Green to hit the Unprettier for the pin on Beale at 4:04.

Rating: C-. Just a quick match here with Green getting a win on Impact now that she is back. It’s fine enough to have her pin Beale too as he’s there to be a lackey and nothing more at the moment. The quality wasn’t the point here and it managed to keep a few matches going at the same time. Throw in Wilde being back and this was completely adequate.

We look at W. Morrissey using a chain to beat Eddie Edwards.

Eddie Edwards isn’t done with W. Morrissey and he’ll be waiting in the parking lot.

Post break, Morrissey heads to the parking lot and the fight with Edwards is on. Eddie cracks him in the back with a trashcan but Morrissey is back with an ice chest. Choking ensues and there’s another ice chest shot. Eddie manages to find a pair of Kenny the Kendo Sticks and some shots have Morrissey running away.

Brian Myers says he and Tenille Dashwood are ready for the homecoming tournament because she is under his learning tree. Just like Sam Beale, which has Dashwood pointing out the obvious problems. Dashwood is done with the tournament, so Beale promises to find a new partner. He even gets to talk to a girl! Beale: “Hi Gia.” Gia Miller is not impressed.

Here is Jay White for a chat. After we see a clip from after Slammiversary, with White being attacked by FinJuice but taking David Finlay out with the Blade Runner (swinging Downward Spiral), White introduces himself and lists off his nicknames and accomplishments. He is the real belt collector and he is here for one man: David Finlay. They have a match on August 14 and Finlay is trying to fix his family name. White: “Daddy must not be very proud.” Finlay already beat him in the New Japan Cup and that is never happening again. While he’s here though, he wants to see the Bullet Club fans, meaning the Good Brothers.

Those two have only ever mattered since they have been able to attach themselves to the Club’s name. Their application to rejoin the team is turned down, but if they want to appeal….and here is the Elite to interrupt. Don Callis talks about how the real Bullet Club went, and it was when these people were in it. We hear about White being a young boy and how this Bullet Club is a bunch of midcarders. If White was smart, he would be wanting to join the Elite.

White points out that he beat Kenny Omega the last time they faced each other but the Good Brothers say they have this. The Brothers take credit for the Bullet Club’s success, including heading to America so White and his friends could make a living. All they want is a thank you, but White says this is all the Brothers ever did.

White knows Anderson’s career peaked when he lost the 2012 G1 Climax. He is what they want to be, so the beatdown is on…..with Striker explaining the differences between the versions of the Club rather than talking about the fight taking place in front of his eyes. Chris Bey runs in for the save, with Striker babbling about how if you invert the initials of Bullet Club, you get CB, for Chris Bey! GET JOSH MATTHEWS BACK ALREADY!!! As for the segment, it was the latest example of “Japan is AWESOME” piece theater.

Josh Alexander says nothing is changing for him, because he’ll knock down the next challenger. Kenny Omega pops up to say he doesn’t think so.

The Good Brothers rant about Jay White, who is ungrateful. How about a tag match next week?

Ace Austin/Madman Fulton vs. FinJuice

Austin shoulders Finlay down to start but Finlay is back up with some arm cranking. Robinson comes in for a delayed vertical suplex, setting up the posing. Finlay’s backsplash misses though and it’s Fulton coming in as we take a break. Back with Finlay not being able to fight out of the corner as Fulton tosses him back in. Austin kicks him in the face for two and we hit the chinlock. A backdrop gets Finlay out of trouble though and it’s back to Robinson to clean house. The big left hand drops Austin but Fulton pulls the high crossbody out of the air. That’s fine with Robinson, who reverses into a sunset flip for the pin at 8:05.

Rating: C. This was another “hey we’re back” win from FinJuice. They’re growing on me as they do work well together when they get in the ring. Fulton and Austin losing again is a bit much, but at least they lost to a good team. The match itself wasn’t the point here, but rather reminding you that FinJuice is pretty snazzy, which worked well.

Post match, FinJuice fends off a beatdown but Shera and Rohit Raju run in for the real beating.

Rich Swann and Willie Mack don’t like Violent By Design blaming them for losing the Tag Team Titles. They know what it’s like to lose titles so if they want a fight, come see them next week. The lights go out and Violent By Design comes in for the beatdown.

Moose demands Scott D’Amore give him a rematch with Chris Sabin. Cue Sabin to say he’s in, with D’Amore making the match for next week.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Knockouts Tag Team Titles: Fire N Flava vs. Rosemary/Havok

Rosemary and Havok, with the rest of Decay, are defending after winning the titles on the Slammiversary preshow. Kiera Hogan yells at Rosemary to start and gets taken down without much effort. Rosemary misses a spear though and Hogan shakes a finger at her. A side slam gives Rosemary two and it’s off to Havok for the power.

Havok crushes Tasha Steelz in the corner and hands it back to Rosemary. That means Hogan needs to offer a distraction to break up the Upside Down so the champs can be in trouble for the first time. Steelz hits some not very loud chops before stomping Rosemary down, setting up the camel clutch.

Rosemary pops up with the Sling Blade but doesn’t tag, allowing Hogan to take her back into the corner. The slugout is on until a double crossbody puts Rosemary and Hogan down. Havok comes in off the tag to clean house again until Steelz’ distraction lets Hogan get in a choke. It’s already back to Rosemary, but Steelz superkicks Hogan. A spear/Russian legsweep combination finishes Hogan at 11:32.

Rating: C. Another perfectly fine match which got a little time. Fire N Flava didn’t need to win here, though it seems like they might be done in the near future. What we got here worked out well enough though, as Rosemary and Havok needed a first defense. Who else were they supposed to beat?

Overall Rating: C. They hit the ground at least jogging after Slammiversary and that is something Impact does not do well most of the time. White felt like a huge star, but you’re only going to get so far with the Good Brothers. It seems like we are heading for another Bullet Club story, which may or may not have your highest level of interest. I get why Impact is doing this, but it would be nice to drop the outsiders for a little while. They won’t (and probably shouldn’t), but it would be nice.

Results
Chris Bey b. Rohit Raju – Art of Finesse
Chelsea Green/Matt Cardona/Jake Something b. Sam Beale/Brian Myers/Tenille Dashwood – Unprettier to Beale
FinJuice b. Ace Austin/Madman Fulton – Sunset flip to Fulton
Rosemary/Havok b. Fire N Flava – Spear/Russian legsweep combination to Hogan

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

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Wrestle Kingdom XV Night Two
Date: January 5, 2021
Location: Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan
Attendance: 7,801
Commentators: Rocky Romero, Chris Charlton, Kevin Kelly

It’s the second half of the biggest New Japan show of the year and as usual, the card is stacked. The main event will see new IWGP Heavyweight/Intercontinental Champion Kota Ibushi defend against Jay White, along with pretty much everything else that wasn’t featured on Night One. They have a lot to live up to so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Note that there were two Stardom dark matches which were not broadcast due to various rights issues.

The opening video runs down the card, in order.

King Of Pro Wrestling Provisional Title: Toru Yano vs. Chase Owens vs. Bad Luke Fale vs. Bushi

So this is a new thing that started last year, where you have to become the Provisional Champion and then defend it throughout the year, with whoever is the final champion at the end of the year winning a trophy. Then the whole thing starts over. Yano was the first champion and this is one fall to a finish. Bushi and Yano chill on the floor to start so Fale heads outside to hammer on Yano while Owens does the same thing to Bushi inside.

Everyone gets inside with Yano rolling Bushi up for two. Yano isn’t having this wrestling stuff and pulls off the turnbuckle pad to continue his tradition. Owens saves Bushi from getting hit in the face but Bushi rakes him in the eyes for offering an alliance. Fale and Owens start double teaming Yano but Bushi is back in to low bridge Fale to the floor.

A fisherman’s neckbreaker gives Bushi two on Owens as Yano slams Fale in the back of the head. Well he never has seemed like the smartest person. Owens blocks Bushi’s top rope Codebreaker but can’t hit the package piledriver. Fale comes back in to hit the Grenade Launcher on Bushi but Owens won’t let him have the pin. They go after the referee, allowing Yano to come in with the low blow and steal the pin on Bushi for the title at 7:34.

Rating: C-. This wasn’t supposed to be anything serious and was more or less a warmup match for the rest of the show. It was quick, it gave the fans a smile at the end and lets Yano do his thing. There was no reason to believe that this was going to be anything special and they had a perfectly acceptable match.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles: Suzuki-Gun vs. One of Eight

That would be El Desperado/Yoshinobu Kanemura (defending) vs. Ryusuke Taguchi/Master Wato after the challengers (with Hiroyoshi Tenzan) have beaten the champs twice. Wato and Desperado start fast with Wato knocking him to the floor for the big dive. It’s off to Taguchi who runs the ropes a lot until Kanemura takes him to the floor for a whip into the barricade. Back in and Kanemura takes advantage of a distracted referee to send Taguchi’s knee into a chair.

We settle down a bit with Desperado dropkicking Taguchi’s knee out and easily avoiding the hip attack. Taguchi gets over for the tag to Wato though and it’s a springboard uppercut to drop Kanemura. The referee is sent into Wato for a distraction, allowing Kanemura to hit an enziguri. Desperado comes back in and gets pulled face first into the back of Taguchi’s tights over and over (that’s his thing you see). The running hip attack puts Desperado down again and Three Amigos do it one more time.

Desperado and Taguchi counter a few things each until Taguchi grabs a cobra clutch suplex. That just earns him a Stretch Muffler but Taguchi reverses into an ankle lock. A double chickenwing gutbuster gets two on Desperado but he and Taguchi trade rollups for two each. With the other two being knocked outside, Desperado hits Angel’s Wings (which had a Spanish name I couldn’t make out) to finish Taguchi and retain the titles at 13:21.

Rating: C+. This is the kind of match that seems to come and go most years without having much long term meaning. The Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles offer some fun matches but they don’t exactly seem the most important. It’s nice to see the champs retain to let their reign grow a bit and seeing Taguchi lose always makes me smile just a little bit. Pretty nice match too, but it didn’t hit anything great.

Never Openweight Title: Shingo Takagi vs. Jeff Cobb

Shingo is defending and Cobb is part of the Empire. They shove each other around to start and then go to the forearm off, as is the custom for the title. Shingo hits a hiptoss and runs him over with a shoulder but Cobb is right back with a dropkick. That’s enough to send Shingo to the floor for some whips into the barricade, followed by a heck of an overhead belly to belly. Back in and an elbow to the face gives Cobb two and we hit the bearhug. That’s broken up in a hurry so Cobb suplexes him down again.

They slug it out until Shingo suplexes him out to the apron. Shingo joins him and has to slip out of a Razor’s Edge attempt (must fear a bad case of death) before knocking Cobb out to the floor. The big flip dive hits Cobb again and an elbow drop gets two back inside. It’s Cobb’s turn to hurt him, meaning it’s the rolling gutwrench suplexes into a sitout Razor’s Edge powerbomb for a big two. Shingo is right back with a Death Valley Driver as they’re trading bombs here.

A top rope superplex sends Cobb flying again and there’s a German suplex to make it worse. They trade t-bone suplexes and forearm it out until Shingo hits a clothesline but falls to the floor in exhaustion. Shingo dives back in, earning himself a quick piledriver for two more. Tour of the Islands is broken up so Shingo hits Made In Japan for his own near fall.

Cobb snaps off a rebound German suplex into Tour of the Islands but the knee gives out to delay the cover. They’re both down with Cobb’s knee still bothering him but he’s fine enough to hit a backflip fall away slam (Does that mean it’s still an away slam?). Tour of the Islands is blocked again and Shingo hits a kind of fall away suplex. A big lariat turns Cobb inside out and Last of the Dragon (kind of a reverse Samoan driver) retains the title at 21:13.

Rating: A. Oh yeah this was amazing as these two just beat the fire out of each other for twenty one minutes. There was nothing scientific about it and there wasn’t supposed to be. This was all about two big, strong guys hitting each other really hard and Cobb is born for that kind of match. Great stuff here and if you want one of those old school hoss fights with suplexes thrown in, check this one out, because it’s awesome.

Sanada vs. Evil

They’re former partners but Evil (with Dick Togo tonight) turned on him to become Heavyweight Champion. Feeling out process to start with Sanada being thrown outside but he jumps back in as Evil goes to the floor. Back in and Sanada loads up the Paradise Lock for the running kick, sending Evil outside again. This time Evil catches Sanada to drive him into the barricade and some chairs are brought out as well.

Evil and Togo set up a table and Sanada is taken back inside….only to be taken outside again for a whip into the barricade. That’s good for two back inside but Sanada gets in a shot to the knee to put Evil down for a change. A dropkick does it again so Sanada has the chance to dive onto Togo. Back in and Togo trips Sanada but Evil can’t put him through the ringside table. Instead, Sanada misses a springboard, having to settle for a hanging swinging suplex.

A tiger suplex gives Sanada two but Evil drives him hard into the corner. Evil gets him up top for a superplex into the Scorpion Deathlock, with Sanada diving for the rope. Darkness Falls gets two on Sanada but Evil misses a charge into an exposed (When did that happen?) corner. Sanada’s belly to back suplex gets two, only to have Evil swing Sanada’s leg into the referee. Togo comes in to beat on Sanada, who kicks Evil into the ropes to crotch Togo (Togo: “OH S***!”) out to the floor.

Sanada moonsaults over Evil into Skull End (dragon sleeper), which he lets so for a moonsault instead. He tries a second but this time Evil gets his knees up to put them both down. Skull End goes on again so Evil grabs the referee, allowing Togo to choke with a wire from the apron. That’s broken up though and Sanada dropkicks Evil into Togo through the table (There it goes!). Evil panics, kicks out of a rollup, and blasts Sanada with a clothesline for two of his own. Skull End is broken up again so Sanada hits his own Everything Is Evil (Evil’s finisher), setting up a pop up TKO. The moonsault finishes Evil for good at 23:45.

Rating: B+. This is as easy of a story as you can get, with the tag team splitting up and one of them needing to prove that he is the better man. That’s what we got here, with Sanada wrestling the clean match to overcome the villains, including using Evil’s own finisher. Rather good match here, and it’s easy to see why this was one of the featured showdowns.

We recap Hiromu Takahashi (Best of the Super Juniors) vs. Taiji Ishimori (IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion) for the title. Takahashi won a #1 contenders match against El Phantasmo last night and now he has his title shot.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title: Hiromu Takahashi vs. Taiji Ishimori

Ishimori is defending and they run the ropes to start, with Takahashi being sent outside. Ishimori’s dive is broken up on the apron as Takahashi cuts him off and hits a superkick. The sunset bomb is countered as well so Takahashi powerbombs him hard onto the apron. Takahashi goes WAY up the ramp and runs down but his dropkick is countered into a suplex to cut him down.

Ishimori nails a moonsault down to the floor and then sends Takahashi shoulder first into an exposed turnbuckle (Is that the same buckle from the Yano match? They never replaced it???). The shoulder is banged up but the legs are fine enough to snap off a running headscissors to put Ishimori down. A running dropkick off the apron sends Ishimori hard into the barricade for two back inside but he’s back up with the sliding German suplex.

The YES Lock stays on Takahashi’s bad arm until a foot on the rope is good for the break. Takahashi counters a charge into a belly to belly into the corner and they’re both down for a deserved breather. It’s Takahashi up first with a wheelbarrow into a Downward Spiral, followed by the running Death Valley Driver. Ishimori’s handspring is countered into a German suplex but he’s right back up with a Canadian Destroyer for another double knockdown.

They slug it out from their knees and then from their feet until Ishimori sends him shoulder first into the post. A shoulderbreaker sets up the YES Lock with Takahashi needing the ropes to keep him alive. Ishimori tries the YES Lock again but this time gets faceplanted down for a delayed two instead. They both try what looks to be a suplex until Ishimori takes him down into a Gargano Escape. With that almost broken, Ishimori lets it go and tries the YES Lock, only to be reversed into a suplex into a faceplant. That lets Takahashi get back up for the Time Bomb 2 for the pin and the title at 25:31.

Rating: A-. This was another slugout as both of them were barely able to hang in there until the end, with Takahashi’s shoulder nearly doing him in. Takahashi coming back from his injury and winning the title again was a great moment and a great story. Granted it wasn’t as spiffy again as the second time, but Takahashi has turned into a huge star around here and the win felt special and was made even better by an awesome match.

Takahashi takes his time getting the title.

We recap Jay White vs. Kota Ibushi for the IWGP Heavyweight and IWGP Intercontinental Titles. Ibushi won the titles last night but lost to White a few months ago. White is the most evil man in the company and it’s time to fight him off.

IWGP Heavyweight Title/IWGP Intercontinental Title: Kota Ibushi vs. Jay White

White is challenging and has Gedo with him. White bails to the floor to start but then gets back in for the trash talk. They lock up nearly two minutes after the bell and an early Gedo distraction lets White stomp away. The headlock goes on for a bit but the threat of a big kick to the head sends White bailing to the floor. Gedo offers another distraction on the way back in though, allowing Kota to grab a DDT. A suplex onto the apron bangs up Kota’s back and that means a rather long count on the floor.

Back in and a knee to the ribs gets two and the waistlock goes on. Rib stomping ensues and it’s a tranquilo pose to keep White’s cockiness high. A hard DDT plants Kota again and White yells at the referee as the champ pulls himself up. That’s enough for Kota to get in a shot of his own, followed by the standing moonsault for two. They head to the floor with Ibushi’s ribs going into the barricade to cut him off again.

Back in and Kota’s powerslam looks to set up the middle rope moonsault but White crotches him instead. That means it’s time to start working on the leg, followed by a swinging brainbuster for two. Kota manages to send him outside but the knee gives out on the springboard attempt. White shoves him out to the floor and then suplexes him into the corner for two more. Kota grabs a desperation half nelson suplex and they slug it out again. The kneeling Tombstone gives Kota two and they’re both down.

It’s White up first with a snap belly to back suplex into a Rock Bottom for his own two. Back up and Kota hits his own belly to back for two, followed by a kick to the head. Gedo’s distraction breaks up another moonsault though and it’s time to go up to tease a dragon superplex (geez). Thankfully that’s broken up and White goes after the knee instead. A leglock goes on to put Kota in trouble but he’s in the rope in a hurry. White kicks him in the face a few times and gets a “dude really” look from Kota, who gets back to his feet.

Ibushi strikes him down into the corner and tells White to come on. That’s fine with White, who is knocked right back down. They do the same thing again, with White getting knocked to the floor. Back in and Kota says hit him but White lays down, telling Ibushi to pin him. Instead, Ibushi unloads on him until the referee tries to intervene, allowing White to get in a low blow. They head outside again with Ibushi going ribs and back first into the barricade and apron.

White gets back inside and tells Ibushi to bring it, earning Kota some German suplexes. It’s back to the apron (Kelly: “Oh no.”) with Ibushi gets in a kick to the head to rock White for a change. A super German suplex brings White back in for two for a rather near fall but he grabs a sleeper suplex. White hits another one and a RegalPlex is good for two. Blade Runner is broken up but Kota reverses into the big knee to the face for two and the applause.

The phoenix splash connects but Gedo pulls the referee, sending Kelly into hysterics. Gedo’s brass knuckles shot is countered into a big knee to the face so Kota sends the referee back in. The delay lets White hit the Blade Runner for a very close two (first time anyone has ever kicked out) so he pulls Kota down into what looks like a reverse Figure Four.

Kota is nearly to the rope but White pulls him back into the middle. That’s not going to happen though as Kota makes it back to the rope again. Bloody Sunday looks to set up another Blade Runner but Kota nails a jumping knee to the face. Another jumping knee sets up a hard lariat into a pair of big knees to retain the titles at 48:05 (the longest match in Dome history).

Rating: A. It says a lot that you don’t feel a match running nearly fifty minutes but this felt like nothing close to that. Ibushi had a pair of great performances and it makes him look like an even bigger star. White is the kind of heel you want to see get destroyed and having him get kneed in the face works very well. This was a heck of a match and lived up to the main event spot, with the time being a great addition, especially fast the whole thing felt.

Post match here’s Sanada to issue the (very respectful) challenge for the titles. Kota talks about how he is more powerful than ever and agrees to the match. With Sanada gone, Kota gives his big speech to wrap it up. Commentary applauds him as he leaves.

The long wrapup ends the night.

Overall Rating: A+. This was an interesting one as I wasn’t feeling it as much as the first night but aside from the not exactly serious opener, this was one great match after another with nothing being close to bad and a bunch of classics. It’s the kind of show that you expect from Wrestle Kingdom and that is a very hard reputation to achieve. Absolutely awesome show though and somehow better than the very good Night One, which is hard to pull off. Yeah it’s annoying to have back to back shows this long, but it’s once a year so I can’t get mad, especially when it’s this. Check both nights out, because they’re worth the time.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: Ring of Honor Wrestling

Ring of Honor
Date: July 15, 2020

We’re dropping down the ladder around here, with this week’s show focusing on Vincent.. In other words, it’s like a look at Luke Harper right after he broke away from the Wyatt Family. That’s a pretty far cry from some of their previous offerings, and I’m almost scared to see what we get soon. Let’s get to it.

Video on Vincent to start.

Vincent talks about how he has grown up in Ring of Honor and used a lot of stepping stones to get here. That all started back at Final Battle 2016 so that’s where we’re going first.

Six Man Tag Team Titles: Kingdom vs. Kushida/Jay White/Lio Rush

The titles are vacant coming in and I still have no idea which one is TK O’Ryan and which is Vinny Marsegila. Before the bell, Corino says the Father (likely meaning Kevin Sullivan) said the evil was coming and that’s clearly Cody. Things start very fast with Rush hitting a standing C4 and frog splash for a pretty hot two.

After a break on the floor, White takes O’Ryan down until it’s off to Kushida for a dropkick to the head. Rush comes in for some YES Kicks but Taven sneaks in for a DDT to take over. O’Ryan adds a spear for two as things settle down into your normal formula. The first hot tag brings in Kushida for the Hoverboard Lock but O’Ryan is quickly in the ropes.

The announcers are nice enough to start explaining why we should care about the Kingdom as Kushida scores with a double Tajiri handspring elbow. Everything breaks down and White gets two off a missile dropkick. To really pick things up a bit, White gets caught in a half crab from the top rope, only to have Kushida put Vinny in the Hoverboard Lock on the top for the save.

A superplex breaks the submissions which don’t count because they’re in the ropes and it’s time for Rush to get to show off because ROH LOVES that guy. Kushida gets in a big dive to take all of the Kingdom down, only to have Taven dive onto the even bigger pile. Back in and Rush has Vinny beaten so TK dives off the top to take out the referee. Rush goes crazy with his strikes but the triple powerbomb crushes Lio to give the Kingdom the belts at 15:22.

Rating: C+. This is a good example of just throwing titles out there and not bothering to put anything important behind them. There’s no reason to care about Six Man Tag Team Titles when there were barely any trios in the first place. It comes off like someone else did something so now we’ve got Trios Titles. That doesn’t mean it works and the match wasn’t great either, making this the finals of one heck of a waste of time, especially with the winners being a reincarnated stable that is missing all the parts that made it work in the first place.

Then someone attacked TK O’Ryan and Vincent. Matt Taven demanded answers, but it was Vincent of course. Vincent took out Taven as well, setting up their big showdown at Final Battle 2019.

Matt Taven vs. Vincent

Taven goes straight at him to start and sends Vincent outside for the suicide dive. Kelly rapid fires off Taven’s resume as Vincent is backdropped over the barricade. That means a dive from Taven and a jumping enziguri in the corner back inside rocks Vincent again. There’s a powerbomb for two and a freaky leglock works on Vincent’s leg. That’s broken up so Taven grabs a DDT for two more but Vincent sends him outside for a drop onto the apron.

A suplex onto the exposed concrete bangs up Taven’s back even more and they head back inside. Instead of staying on the back though, Vincent starts in on the ankle with stomps and bending around the rope. That’s broken up though and Taven sends him to the floor for the Flight of the Conqueror, followed by a top rope splash to the apron for two.

Back in and Vincent grabs a Side Effect, followed by Redrum for a near fall of his own. A quick Climax gives Taven two more and a second gets the same, leaving Taven stunned. With that not working, naturally it’s time for a hatchet but the attempted murder is countered into a Dudley Dog to finish Taven at 13:32.

Rating: C+. I’m as shocked as you are that Taven is working so well as a face. He really does seem to have been missing the point all this time and while he isn’t a huge star, he’s good enough to work in a spot like this. I could go for more of him, but his ankle injury would put him on the shelf for a long time. That’s a shame too, as he’s more interesting than he ever has been around here.

Post match Bateman comes out and helps Vincent crush Taven’s ankle.

Vincent and Chuckles the Clown talk about being righteous and hating their lives. They’ll drink to that.

Someone pulls a woman out of a car and she shouts about how much she hates him. Vincent sits down next to her and says he can help her. She comes with him.

Vincent and the woman go to meet Chuckles, who is sharpening a knife. Using said knife, Vincent cuts her hand open and she cringes a lot.

Vincent talks about how he isn’t carrying Taven any longer.

Now it’s time for the team to come together. From ROH TV, February 26, 2020.

Vincent/Bateman vs. Dalton Castle/Joe Hendry

Chuckles and Vita are in Vincent/Bateman’s corner. Bateman and Castle stare at each other to start until Castle takes him into the corner so Hendry can work on the arm. A fireman’s carry into a running shoulder has Bateman in trouble and a jumping knee gives Hendry two. Castle drops a middle rope knee and we hit the waistlock. Vincent holds out Matt Taven’s crutch for a distraction though, which just lets Hendry clothesline Bateman to the floor. Vincent finally comes in and posts Castle as we take a break.

Back with Hendry in trouble as Bateman and Vincent take turns kicking him in the ribs. Vincent gets two off a Side Effect and grabs a guillotine choke for a bonus. That’s broken up with a suplex and the hot tag brings in Castle. House is cleaned with suplexes until Vincent puts Castle on the top.

That goes nowhere as Castle slips down and catches him in a release German suplex. Vincent knocks him outside, only to have Castle get over to Hendry. That means a double fall away slam so Hendry can show off quite a bit as everything breaks down. A reverse Sling Blade puts Bateman down and there’s the facebuster to Vincent, only to have Chuckles pull Castle to the floor. Vincent hits a Dudley Dog for the pin on Hendry at 12:38.

Rating: C+. They were working hard here with Vincent and Bateman continuing to be more interesting than the Kingdom ever was. Castle and Hendry’s oddball stuff isn’t exactly thrilling and the two of them have been doing the same stuff for months now. At least we got a good match out of it though and that’s more than some people can say.

Vincent says a journey is a path we all must take. This is a Righteous beginning. Dig what he is saying?

Overall Rating: B-. The action was fine but at the same time, there is only so much that can be done with a lower level name like Vincent. He might be something one day and he knows how to talk, but I’m not sure what they were expecting here. That being said, I do like the idea of focusing on someone a little lower on the card like this. Let them have the spotlight for a change and plan for the future. Not a bad show by any stretch, but not the most thrilling.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: New Japan Pro Wrestling

Wrestle Kingdom 14 Night Two
Date: January 5, 2020
Location: Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan
Attendance: 30,063
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Chris Charlton, Gino Gambino

It’s the second of two nights here and that means we’re in for the real main events of the whole show. This time around it’s going to be about the World Title again as Tetsuya Naito tries to get back to the top against champion Kazuchika Okada. Other than that, it’s Jushin Thunder Liger’s retirement match and that’s going to be an emotional one. Let’s get to it.

Here are Night One’s results if you need a recap.

As usual, I don’t follow New Japan incredibly closely so there is a good chance I won’t know every storyline point of the show. Please bear with me as I’m mostly going off what commentary tells me.

Never Openweight Six Man Tag Team Titles: Gauntlet Match

Five team gauntlet with the Most Violent Players (Togi Makabe/Toru Yano)/Ryusuke Taguchi defending and entering last. Bullet Club (Bad Luck Fale/Yujiro Takahashi/Chase Owens) is in at #1 and Chaos (Tomohiro Ishii/Yoshi-Hashi/Robbie Eagles) in at #2 to get things going. Chaos jumps them before the bell and the fight is on in a hurry. Fale loads up a Razor’s Edge but Hashi slips out and it’s time for the rapid fire superkicks on the monster.

A running clothesline puts Fale down and the rapid fire offense continues. The Club gets smart by focusing on Ishii but Eagles is right back to wreck things. Owens actually wins a slugout with Ishii off a clothesline and a jumping knee to the head but Eagles is back in for the save. The clothesline and brainbuster give Ishii the pin on Owens for the first elimination at 3:40.

Suzuki-Gun (Taichi/Yoshinobu Kanemaru/El Desperado) are in at #3 and the brawl is on in a hurry again. Ishii gets caught alone and tries as much as he can but eventually gets kicked down, setting up a spear from Desperado. Eagles and Hashi come back in for the save but it’s Taichi taking off his pants (no Garza, no all caps) to….well very little really.

Ishii clotheslines him down but can’t follow up as they actually bother to go with the tagging for a change. Granted it lasts all of ten seconds but it did in fact happen so we can call these Tag Titles. In the chaos (pun….yeah we’ll say intended), Eagles rolls up Kanemaru for the pin at 8:32.

Los Ingobernables de Japon (Evil/Shingo Takagi/Bushi) are in at #4 and of course they brawl in a hurry again. Eagles spinwheel kicks Bushi but Bushi is back with a dropkick and a Spinarooni back up to take over. We settle down to Evil taking Eagles down into the corner for the Bronco Buster and a near fall. Shingo gets caught in a snapmare driver (cool) and it’s back to Hashi to pick up the pace.

A running dropkick to the back gets two on Shingo but he’s back up for the slugout with Hashi. Ishii and Evil come in for the slugout and Ishii’s bad night continues as Hashi has to make another save. Everything Is Evil is broken up and Ishii nails a headbutt. Instead it’s Darkness Falls to finish Ishii at 16:00 (with some confusion as to whether it was two or three).

Ishii keeps brawling with Evil as the champs are in at #5 to complete the field. Yano wastes no time in trying the rollups so Bushi kicks him in the head. Serves him right. Shingo gets two off a suplex and it’s Bushi coming back in to work on the nerve hold. That’s broken up and Makabe comes in to start the hard hitting.

Makabe and Shingo slug it out this time with Makabe getting the better of the clothesline off. Taguchi comes in for the rolling suplexes and a double chickenwing faceplant gets two on Shingo. The ankle lock is broken up and Bushi gets in a mist shot, setting up Made In Japan (pumphandle driver) to give Shingo the pin and the titles at 23:25.

Rating: C-. I’ve never been a fan of these matches but I get the point of them. I’d rather see these than the multiple eight man tags, which do little more than filling in time on a long show. These titles certainly don’t mean very much, but they’re something that exist and a way to get a bunch of people on the show. It’s a fun opening, though dropping a team might have been nice.

The opening video is the usual card rundown format and it does its usual good job of making me want to see the show.

Ryu Lee/Hiromu Takahashi vs. Jushin Thunder Liger/Naoki Sano

This is Liger’s retirement match, Sano is one of his oldest rivals, and Yoshiaki Fujiwara (yes THAT Fujiwara and Liger’s trainer) is here as well. Lee is better known as Dragon Lee and has the ROH TV Title with him. Takahashi looks near tears as Liger makes his big entrance. I’m not even the biggest Liger fan (respect him but he hasn’t had a big impact on me as a fan) but this is an incredible moment.

Liger and Takahashi lock up to start with the ropes giving us a break. It works so well that they do it again, followed by Liger pulling him into the surfboard (it’s nice to see him playing the hits one last time). Lee comes in but Tanahashi knocks Sano off the apron and Liger gets beaten down in a rather heelish act. We settle down to Lee cranking on both arms at once, setting up Tanahashi’s Fujiwara armbar.

Liger tries to come back with chops but gets chopped right back down, only to have Liger snap off the tilt-a-whirl backbreakers. Sano comes in to kick away so Lee takes off his shirt and starts the slugout. Liger and Tanahashi take their places for their own slugout with Tanahashi getting the better of it. A powerbomb brings Tanahashi out of the corner though and it’s time to slap away at the back of Tanahashi’s head.

Lee’s big running flip dive hits Tanahashi by mistake and it’s Liger getting two off a powerbomb. A Shotei drops Tanahashi for two with Lee making the save and hitting a suicide dive on Sano. Tanahashi’s Falcon Arrow gets two on Liger and it’s a pair of running knees to the head for the same. The Time Bomb is countered into a sunset flip for two on Tanahashi, who is right back up with a running clothesline. Now the Time Bomb connects to retire Liger for good at 12:18.

Rating: C. Just like yesterday, this wasn’t about the wrestling at all and was all about the moment and the big feeling. That’s all it was supposed to be and there is something appropriate about Liger’s career ending with something involving time running out. Liger is a legend of the highest degree and there’s nothing I can say that will make this appropriate enough. I’m very glad he got this kind of a moment and him going out on his back to a young up and comer is as logical as it gets for him. Not even a bad match either.

The video cuts out a bit and we’re clipped to Liger and Sano walking up the aisle, posing with Fujiwara, and leaving like it’s any other match. That seems to fit him in a way.

Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles: Roppongi 3K vs. Bullet Club

The Club (El Phantasmo/Taiji Ishimori) are defending and Rocky Romero is with the challengers. 3K jumps them before the bell with a double dropkick to the floor, setting up the big flip dive to take the champs down again. Back in and the champs are beaten up again, meaning it’s already time for a breather on the floor. We settle down to Phantasmo kneeing Sho in the back to put 3K in trouble for a change.

Ishimori’s sliding German suplex drops Sho again and there’s a knee to the back to make it worse. Phantasmo walks the ropes for a moonsault back rake (that’s a new one), setting up a Lionsault on Sho and a suicide dive on Romero to really rub it in. Sho gets tied in the Tree of Woe and that means some sliding dropkicks to the face and a double standing on the crotch. Yoh gets tied in the same corner for a double crotch stomp but Sho gets in a spear for a breather.

The hot tag brings in Sho to send both champs to the floor for the dive onto both of them. Back in and Ishimori hits a springboard spinning kick to the face but Sho is right back up with rolling German suplexes, including one to both champs at once. Phantasmo is back up with a spinning torture rack neckbreaker to give Ishimori two more.

The champs try their own version of 3K (3D) but Sho reverses into a Canadian Destroyer to plant Phantasmo instead. Ishimori and Yoh are knocked outside, leaving Phantasmo to hit a Styles Clash for two on Sho. Romero breaks up a belt shot so Phantasmo hits Sho low….to no effect because there’s a cup in play. A piledriver into a dragon suplex drops Phantasmo and a spike arm trap piledriver gives us new champions at 14:10.

Rating: B-. It’s so weird as I couldn’t stand 3K when they were the Tempura Boyz in Ring of Honor and now they’re some of the most consistently entertaining guys in this company. They’re very smooth in the ring and feel like stars instead of coming off as annoying guys who just happen to be there because New Japan tells them to. Good match here and I had another good time, as I always do with 3K.

Post match Romero celebrates with them, seemingly as the mastermind behind the cup idea.

We recap Zack Sabre Jr. defending the British Heavyweight Title against Sanada. Sabre is a cocky yet incredibly talented champion but Sanada has beaten him a few times to set this up. Sanada has never won a singles title in NJPW and wants to prove himself, even though it’s the Rev Pro Title.

British Heavyweight Title: Sanada vs. Zack Sabre Jr.

Sabre is defending and starts in on the arm as he is known to do. Sanada keeps flipping out of the armbar so they head to the mat and wind up with a staredown, as seems appropriate. A quick pinfall reversal sequence barely gets a one apiece and it’s another standoff as they seem evenly matched, which doesn’t sit well with Sabre.

Sanada gets pulled down into a crossarm choke but reverses into one of his own as Sabre just can’t take over here. Sabre bails to the floor and needs a breather as Sanada is in his head here. Back in and Sabre can’t even keep an abdominal stretch as Sanada reverses into one of his own, only to have Sabre crank on both arms at once with the modified Rings of Saturn. That’s broken up with a boot on the ropes but Sabre has his confidence back. Sanada kicks the leg out and twists the knee around for a bonus.

Sabre bails to the floor so Sanada follows with a slingshot dive, setting up Skull End back inside. The moonsault misses so Sabre kicks him in the head, only to bang up the leg even more. They go back to the pinfall reversal sequence for some near falls until Sabre gets two off the European Clutch. That’s countered into the dragon sleeper but Sabre flips up again, this time into another European Clutch to retain at 12:33.

Rating: B. I wanted more from this one as their counters were getting awesome in there. Sabre continues to be one of the most entertaining people in all of wrestling as he can just do whatever he wants out there and make it look as smooth as anyone ever has. I’m not sure I wouldn’t have had Sanada take the title here, but I’m not going to argue watching Sabre do something like that because he’s just so awesome at what he does.

US Title: Juice Robinson vs. Jon Moxley

Moxley is defending and I’ll only mention him as a champion despite Juice being half of the Tag Team Champions. This is a pretty long time coming as Moxley initially targeted Robinson and won the title last year. This is the rematch after Moxley lost and regained the title thanks to weather and at the expense of Lance Archer. Robinson jumps him to start (a common theme tonight) and sends Moxley into the barricade before he can even get inside.

Moxley sets up a chair at ringside and gets sent face first into it because that’s how chairs work around the world. They get in for the first time with Moxley sending him over the top again, meaning the chairs can work this time. Back in and Moxley hammers away, bows to the referee for daring to suggest that’s not fair, and then puts on a camel clutch. That’s broken up so Moxley drops a running elbow for two but Robinson is back up with a powerbomb for his own near fall.

The Juice snap jabs are cut off in a hurry with Moxley slapping on a Figure Four. That’s broken up in the traditional way so Moxley wraps the leg around the post a few times. The Hart Breaker goes on for a few seconds (as it tends to do) but Moxley would rather put a chair around Juice’s neck.

A running shot with a chair is cut off by a left hand and Robinson gets two off a Jackhammer. Pulp Friction is countered into a release German suplex but the Death Rider is countered into a rollup to give Juice two. Moxley tells Juice to hit him and the slugout is on again. Moxley’s running knee just fires Juice up enough for some hard left hands. Pulp Friction is countered again though and it’s the Death Rider to retain the title at 12:49.

Rating: C+. These two hit each other rather hard and I’m still surprised by how much better Robinson is. I know I see that every year but I still see CJ Parker in him at times, which is cleared out as soon as I watch his matches. You can see how much more fun Moxley is having here though and that’s what matters most for him. He just wasn’t clicking in WWE at the end and Moxley seems a lot more appropriate for him than Dean Ambrose.

Post match here’s Minoru Suzuki to go after Moxley and the fight is on. Suzuki grabs the Gotch style piledriver and talks about how he’s the king of pro wrestling, plus the king of the United States. This would be your HOKEY SMOKE THEY’RE REALLY DOING THIS moment of the show and it’s working as usual.

We recap Kenta vs. Hirooki Goto. Kenta is the horrible jerk who has been needling Goto for not being tough enough. Goto wants to fight him for honor and the title.

Never Openweight Title: Hirooki Goto vs. Kenta

Kenta is defending and gets jumped before the bell as Goto is not playing around here. A bunch of shots to the back get two and we hit the chinlock early. Kenta is back up with a kick to the face and some whips into the barricade to put Goto in trouble for a change. A DDT on the ramp knocks Goto silly for a nineteen count so Kenta throws him outside again.

This time Goto is back in for a kick to the back and a Too Sweet sign, setting up a chinlock. Kenta calmly kicks away and shrugs a bit, only to walk into a discus clothesline. They trade forearms in the corner until a HARD forearm drops Kenta in a heap. Kenta is back up with a powerslam and the tornado DDT throat snap across the top. More kicks to the head fire Goto up so Kenta plants him with another DDT.

Goto comes back with the fireman’s carry backbreaker, only to get pulled into the LeBell Lock. A rope is reached so Kenta drops him with a hanging DDT (popular move in this match). The running knee connects for two but Kenta can’t hit Go To Sleep (this guy is a create a wrestler come to life) so Goto headbutts him down. They take turns screaming at each other after some clotheslines but it’s Goto reversing a slap into a failed GTR attempt. GTW connects for two on Kenta instead so now it’s the GTR to win the title at 16:14.

Rating: B-. This was a rather surprising one as Kenta was best known as the one with no personality in NXT but here he was a great heel and I wanted to see him get punched in the mouth. Goto has never been my favorite but it was nice to see him fight like this. Good match as Kenta impressed far more in one match than he did in almost his entire NXT run.

Here are the upcoming big shows, including the G1 Climax, which is being moved to October due to the Olympics.

Jay White vs. Kota Ibushi

Basically the third place match in the Double Gold Dash and White has Gedo with him. White heads to the floor to start, as is his custom, so Gedo can offer a distraction. That doesn’t work either as Ibushi catches the invading White with kicks tot he ribs and a standing moonsault for two. White scores with some forearms though and an ax handle knocks Ibushi off the apron and hard into the barricade.

Another whip sends Ibushi chest first into the barricade to make it even worse and it’s time to choke back inside. The chinlock makes it worse, as White gets in some trash talk for a bonus. Ibushi fights up though and snaps off a hurricanrana to the floor, meaning it’s a big slingshot dive for a bonus. Back in and a springboard missile dropkick connects as Ibushi starts getting more comfortable with the high flying.

White grabs a DDT and Death Valley Driver for two each but Ibushi is fine enough to hit a kneeling Tombstone to put them both down. Ibushi knocks him into the corner and gets that serious look on his face as this is about to get more violent. A forearm knocks White down so Ibushi pulls him up so White can get in his own forearm. White’s shot has no effect as Ibushi knocks him back down even harder.

Ibushi charges into a Downward Spiral though and a German suplex knocks him sillier. The Kiwi Crusher gets two and a snap Saito suplex puts Ibushi on his head again. With Ibushi half out of it, White completes the knock out with a super swinging Rock Bottom. Just being knocked cold doesn’t matter around here though as Ibushi is right back with a V Trigger for the double knockdown. A bridging German suplex gives Ibushi two and there’s Kinshasa for the same.

White pulls him into the referee though, because White matches have a lot of screwiness. Gedo’s chair shot has no effect on Ibushi and a single shot to the chest drops him. The sitout Last Ride knocks White silly for no count because the referee is still down. The big knee looks to finish but Gedo pulls the referee at two. Gedo tries to bring in some brass knuckles but it’s a ruse for White to hit Ibushi in the face with a chair. That and the brass knuckles shot have Ibushi down and it’s the Blade Runner to give White the pin at 24:58.

Rating: B-. I wasn’t feeling this one as much and seeing Ibushi lose again took something out of the show. Ibushi can go to a different level when he hits that point when he feels like a force of nature but then he just lost again, this time to a bunch of cheating that felt out of place in New Japan. I keep thinking Ibushi will get his chance but losing twice in a row at Wrestle Kingdom doesn’t give me the most confidence.

Post match White hits another Blade Runner just to be evil.

We recap Chris Jericho vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi. There isn’t much of a story here, as Jericho just showed up to challenge Tanahashi to the latest dream match. Tanahashi accepted, Jericho attacked him, and then offered Tanahashi an AEW World Title shot if Tanahashi could win.

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Chris Jericho

Non-title. Jericho’s not great physique is on full display here but with that kind of star power, what difference does it really make? They trade poses to start and circle each other a bit before it’s a trip to the mat. That means a staredown, so Tanahashi throws in some air guitar to mess with the rock star. Tanahashi works on an armbar and cranks away, setting up the middle rope spinning crossbody to put Jericho down. Tanahashi even does the ARROGANT COVER with a COME ON BABY!

Jericho doesn’t stand for gimmick infringement and throws Tanahashi outside for a whip into the barricade. A DDT onto an announcers’ table makes it even worse as Jericho is in full on brawling mode (which is quite the positive). Back in and Jericho drops a middle rope knee for two and a butterfly backbreaker messes with the back some more. Jericho goes up top, plays his own air guitar, and misses a frog splash. The comeback is on with a flying forearm to Jericho, but he pulls the referee in the way of a splash in the corner.

Jericho gets in a low blow and a whipping with the weightlifting belt as commentary is finally back after Jericho cleared them out earlier. Tanahashi avoids a charge in the corner and hits the middle rope flip splash for two. With Jericho down on the floor, Tanahashi hits a high crossbody and they’re both in need of a breather.

That’s only good for a nineteen on Jericho and it’s a dragon screw legwhip over the rope on the way back in. More legwhips have Jericho in big trouble but he gets the knee up to block the High Fly Flow. The Lionsault connects but the banged up knee means it’s only good for two. Jericho grabs the Walls and cranks back, only to have Tanahashi crawl through the legs to escape.

A Sling Blade looks to set up a high crossbody but Jericho pulls him into the Codebreaker for two more. The Judas Effect misses though and Tanahashi hits his own Codebreaker for his own two. Jericho gets the Walls again but this time it’s reversed into Twist and Shout. Another Sling Blade gives Tanahashi another two and the high crossbody connects, only to be reversed into the Walls to make Tanahashi tap at 22:27.

Rating: B+. I know Jericho is older and not in quite the shape that he used to be in but sweet goodness he can still have a heck of a match with the right opponent. Maybe that is due to the atmosphere or just the amount of star power that Jericho can bring but it works very well. These two beat each other up and I wanted to see if Tanahashi could pull it off. Jericho feels like a legend (which he is) and that shows very strongly on the big stage.

We recap the title for title main event. Tetsuya Naito has been World Champion before and is now back to prove he can do it again and claim his destiny as the star of the company. Kazuchika Okada is the greatest World Champion ever though and Naito has to overcome a lot of history (losing the title to Okada in his first defense, having his World Title match be voted as the main event) to reach the top again. It’s actually a heck of a story and commentary explains the whole thing rather well.

IWGP Heavyweight Title/Intercontinental Title: Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito

Title for title and Naito is serious tonight with the white suit. They stare at each other for a good while and there is no contact for the first two minutes. A lockup goes into the corner and Okada taps him on the chest. Okada takes him down with a running elbow but they’re still firmly in first gear. A DDT gives Naito one and we hit a pretty quickly broken chinlock. Naito slugs away and hits a running dropkick to the back, setting up a slingshot dropkick in the corner.

A neckbreaker off the apron to the floor drops Okada again and a regular version gets two back inside. Naito wraps his legs around Okada’s shoulders to crank on the neck even more, followed by a cravate to stay on it. Okada boots him down and hits a flapjack, setting up White Noise onto the knee. A top rope elbow gives Okada two but it’s way too early for a Rainmaker.

Naito is back with a spinebuster but Okada is right back up with a running dropkick to put them both down. It’s Naito getting up first and heading to the top, meaning Okada dropkicks him right back out to the floor. Naito’s knee goes into the barricade and it’s banged up pretty badly, calling back to the injury it took last night. Naito drops him knee first onto the announcers’ table as well and Naito has to dive back in.

Okada is ready with a missile dropkick for two but Naito uses the good knee to hit a springboard tornado DDT. A super reverse hurricanrana gives Naito two more but Okada blocks Destino as things crank up a lot. Destino is blocked again and Okada hits a dropkick, only to have Naito grab Destino for two.

Another dropkick gives us a double knockdown and we have a chance to look at the title belt. They slug it out from their knees and then from their feet with Naito not backing down an inch. Okada hits a discus lariat for two and it’s the jumping Tombstone into the Rainmaker for two. The frustration is setting in so Okada starts ramming the knee into the mat.

Okada grabs the wrist and hits some clotheslines (Rainmakers, without the spin or the big step, because again, it’s a clothesline) but the big version is countered into Destino for two more. A corkscrew moonsault gets two on Okada and they’re both down again. Destino is countered so Naito drops him on his head, setting up Destino for the pin and the title at 35:40.

Rating: A. You might remember earlier when I said that I didn’t know a lot of the stories coming into this show. This match, with commentary helping, showed me exactly what they were going for and I wanted to see Naito pull it off. He seems more compelling than Okada, who is an incredible performer but we’ve seen him do this for so long now. It’s an outstanding match and I got into the drama though, which says a lot given how little I knew coming in. Outstanding storytelling here with some great action included.

Post match they both stagger up and Okada is helped to the back. Naito grabs the mic and offers a rematch, with Okada raising his fist up. Naito is presented with both belts and says he knows what he’ll do with them. I think he says a catchphrase before promising to move forward into the future. He puts over Los Ingobernables….and Kenta runs in to jump him and ruin his moment, sending commentary completely over the edge. Kenta lays him out and sits down on Naito’s chest to pose with the belts. Cue Bushi to chase Kenta off, sending Kenta up the aisle to taunt the fans as Naito is helped out to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. I’m not even surprised at this show being great anymore. I’ve gotten used to these guys tearing the house down when the lights are on bright and that’s what they did again here. There might not have been as many blow away matches as in previous years, but this show felt huge and that’s it lived up to its hype. Definitely see the main event as it’s the best storytelling I can remember seeing from New Japan and one of the only times I felt like I got the long, epic story they were going for (not their fault as it’s designed to be built over years, not with a single show a year).

This felt more like a Wrestle Kingdom and made me think that we didn’t need the two night structure. While there was some great wrestling on Night One, it felt like a show that didn’t need to exist to do Night Two, which is where the important stuff all paid off. They’re both outstanding shows and worth watching, but this is the only one that you need to watch. What mattered most was how big it felt though and that’s where Wrestle Kingdom tends to shine.

As usual, I won’t be watching the company full time but this has been must see wrestling for a long time now and I don’t see that changing. It could be interesting to see where Naito can take the company long term, though you can almost guarantee Okada will get the belt back as he has a long, long career ahead of him. Couple the great main event with the emotion of the Liger finale and this hits on multiple levels. Check it out, plus one or two matches from Night One.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: New Japan Pro Wrestling

Wrestle Kingdom 14 Day One
Date: January 4, 2020
Location: Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan
Attendance: 40,008
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Rocky Romero, Chris Charlton, Gino Gambino

Here we go. It’s time for the biggest non-Wrestlemania show of the year and this time around it’s being split over two nights. There are several major draws this time around, with the first being Jushin Thunder Liger’s final two matches. He’s been around for a mind blowing thirty five years and is still performing at a high enough level but what better place to go out than the biggest stage of them all? Other than that we have the Double Gold Dash, which sees both major singles titles defended Saturday and then the winners and losers facing off on Sunday. Let’s get to it.

As usual: I don’t follow New Japan all that closely so I’ll know a few things but not every detail. If I miss a major plot point or historical point, I apologize in advance. I’m mainly going off of what commentary tells me and nothing more, save for maybe a quick Wikipedia search.

There was a Stardom tag match before the show started, though it was not filmed due to broadcasting rights issues.

Pre-Show: Toa Henare/Karl Fredericks/Clark Connors/Alex Coughlin vs. Togi Makabe/Tomoaki Honma/Yota Tsuji/Yuya Uemura

It’s a battle of the dojos with Henare’s team from Los Angeles and Makabe/Honma’s teams from Japan. Connors headlocks Uemura to start and it’s off to Coughlin to chop him down into the corner. They chop it out again with Coughlin getting the better of things and Fredericks slams him down. Uemura gets in a dropkick and the hot tag brings in Makabe to get a breather.

Everything breaks down with Honma and Makabe hammering away in the corner until Fredericks grabs a spinebuster. Henare and Tsuji come in to slug it out and it’s Henare getting beaten up by all four at once. A falling headbutt gives Honma two and it’s the other three diving in for the save. Tsuji gets a Boston crab on Henare and Coughlin’s chops have no effect in breaking it up. A spear takes Coughlin down but Henare is back up with a kick to the face and the Toa Bottom (exactly what you think it is) finishes Tsuji at 7:38.

Rating: C. Perfectly watchable eight man tag as the Young Lions are a concept that takes some getting used to but it serves a good purpose. That’s what we had here and the fans seemed rather pleased with what they were getting. It helps to have the Lions get to hang in there with the veterans, which is exactly the point. Perfectly fine opener and it didn’t overstay its welcome.

Nanaba Nakanishi/Yuji Nagata vs. Tencozy

It’s a brawl to start with Nakanishi getting double teamed, only to suplex both of them down at the same time. You know, because a guy who turns 53 later this month can do that. A splash gets two on Kojima and it’s off to Nagata for the kicks to the chest. Kojima’s DDT gets him a breather and Tenzan comes in for two off a brainbuster.

Nagata shrugs off a rake to the eyes and suplexes Tenzan down, setting up the next double tag. Everything breaks down and Nakanishi beats up both of them with a clothesline getting two on Kojima. A 3D gets two on Nakanishi and he’s right back up, only to have Kojima hit a running clothesline for the pin at 5:48.

Rating: D+. I wasn’t feeling this one and it just kind of ended in a hurry instead of having much else being set up. This felt like another instance of getting the legends on the card and there’s nothing wrong with that. The match certainly wasn’t terrible and all four could probably have a passable match in their sleep, but it wasn’t much to see aside fro Nakanishi looking like an old monster.

Post match respect is shown.

The announcers run down the card to send us to the regular show.

The opening video hypes up the Double Gold Dash and everything else, including Liger’s retirement. As usual, we get the matches in order and as usual, I’m not sure if I like that or not.

Naoki Sano/Shinjiro Otani/Tatsuhito Takaiwa/Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Jushin Thunder Liger/Tatsumi Fujinami/Great Sasuke/Tiger Mask

Kuniaki Kobayashi and El Samurai (legends) are the seconds and this is much more about the pageantry than anything else. The fans sing along with Liger’s music and the red and white is on full display for an awesome visual. Norio Honaga (another legend) is guest referee. We get some Big Match Intros, which really is just a way to get everyone one big moment in front of the huge crowd and that’s just fine.

Liger and Sano, the old rivals, start things off with Liger cranking on the arms early on. Sano dropkicks him to the floor though and hits an old man suicide dives and it’s Otani coming in for the Facewash in the corner. Given how old that mask is, Liger’s face might need a good washing. Liger palm strikes Otani down and it’s Takaiwa coming in to Death Valley Drive Tiger Mask and take over.

Taguchi comes in for the hip attacks, setting up Takaiwa’s top rope elbow drop for two. Mask is right back with a quick tiger driver and it’s Fujinami coming in to snap off the dragon screw legwhips. Sasuke misses the Swanton but Sano misses his top rope double stomp. A superplex drops Sasuke though, allowing Liger to come in and hammer away on Taguchi.

Everything breaks down and it’s Taguchi enziguring Liger, who pops right back up. A second slows him down a little more and a double chickenwing faceplant finishes Liger at 8:54. I know Liger probably handpicked the finish but they had to let TAGUCHI pin him??? The popcorn vendor in the fifth row wasn’t available?

Rating: D+. This is a match where the wrestling was completely not the point and it was all about letting Liger go out there with his friends one more time. They could have went out there and had a sandwich and everything would have been fine because it was all about letting Liger do whatever he wanted. Like I said, this was all about the pageantry instead of the match (which wasn’t bad or anything) and that’s all it should have been. Cool moment, with the big one coming over the next two days.

Post match a lot of respect is shown.

Suzuki-Gun vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon

That would be Zack Sabre Jr./Minoru Suzuki/Taichi/Desperado vs. Evil/Sanada/Shingo/Bushi this time around. Suzuki-Gun attacks during the intros as usual. I watch this company 2-3 times a year and even I knew that was coming. Evil knocks Suzuki into the corner and hits a Bronco Buster for an early two. A badly timed charge lets Suzuki tear away at the arm and there’s the first chair shot to Evil’s back.

Back in and Evil has to fight out of the Gotch style piledriver so it’s Desperado coming in for a double arm crank to keep Evil in trouble. We’ll make that a camel clutch with Sanada putting a boot in Evil’s face for a cheating bonus. Shingo comes in to clean house and trades kicks to the face with Taichi, who gets to take off his pants. I prefer Angel Garza thank you. They trade more shots to the head and everyone is down for a bit.

We settle down to Sabre vs. Sanada (who face off for the British Heavyweight Title tomorrow) but Desperado comes in and gets Paradise Locked. Something like an abdominal stretch puts Sanada in trouble but it gets reversed into a pinfall reversal sequence. A dropkick to Sabre’s knee puts him down and it’s Bushi coming in with a missile dropkick. Sabre gets triple teamed but the rest of the team comes in for the save, leaving Sabre to grab the cranked up Rings of Saturn for the tap from Bushi at 8:40.

Rating: C+. There are very few wrestlers that I would stop to watch but Sabre is one of them. He does things in the ring that I can barely understand let alone describe and it is so much fun to watch. When you add in the fact that he is one of the most punchable guys in the industry, it’s hard not to enjoy watching him so much.

Post match Sabre won’t let go until Sanada makes the save.

Chaos vs. Bullet Club

Hirooki Goto/Tomohiro Ishiii/Toru Yano/Yoshi-Hashi vs. Kenta/Bad Luck Fale/Yujiro Takahashi/Chase Owens here. Yano wants to start, sees Fale, and screams. Some running shoulders don’t work as Fale runs him over, meaning it’s time to go for the turnbuckle. With that broken up, it’s Owens coming in instead but Hashi is right there to clean house instead. Takahashi pulls Hashi to the floor as everything breaks down again. We settle down to Fale stepping on Hashi’s chest for two.

Ishii gets tired of waiting and comes in to start beating people up. Fale slams him down and beats up Yano for a bonus, leaving Hashi to hit a neckbreaker on Takahashi. The hot tag brings in Goto to clean house and everything breaks down again. Fake hits Ishii in the face so Ishii headbutts the heck out of him to rock Fale for the first time (that was awesome) and hits a suplex. Goto comes in for the GTR to finish Takahashi at 8:17.

Rating: C. Pretty standard eight man tag here but I loved that headbutt to Fale. There’s something awesome about Ishii being the kind of guy who would just hit a monster in the face and beat him up. The action was fun and Bullet Club seems to be on a downward spiral at the moment, which is probably a good thing given their rather lackluster lineup at the moment.

Post match Kenta stares at Goto before their Never Title match tomorrow.

Tag Team Titles: Juice Robinson/David Finlay vs. Guerrillas of Destiny

Juice and David (FitJuice) are challenging after winning the World Tag League while the champs have Jado in their corner. The brawl starts on the ramp and Juice gets backdropped onto the ramp with Finlay nowhere to be seen. They head inside with Juice in trouble and a dropkick getting an early two.

Juice finally gets in a DDT on Loa and the hot tag brings in Finlay to start taking over. A middle rope elbow to the face puts Loa down again but a Tama distraction lets Loa pull Finlay off the top. Some slingshot sentons have Finlay in more trouble but a spear lets him bring in Juice to take over. A pair of Cannonballs have the champs rocked in the corner but Tama kicks him in the face and snaps off a German suplex.

Everything breaks down with a running dropkick getting two on Tama. Back in and Loa powerbombs Finlay to set up Tama’s top rope splash for two with Finlay making a save. The belly to back neckbreaker gets two more on Finlay and it’s a Magic Killer for Robinson. A super powerbomb is countered with a hurricanrana and the Gun Stun is broken up. Finlay’s Stunner gets two and there’s Pulp Friction to Loa. Finlay hits a Dudley Dog to Tama for the pin and the titles at 13:40 (seven years in a row that the titles have changed here).

Rating: B-. This was the first match that felt a little bit bigger than the rest. Maybe it was having fewer people in the match or the titles changing hands, but I was more into this than any other match on the show. FitJuice doesn’t feel like long term champions and the titles changing hands here is becoming predictable, but beating the Guerrillas is still an accomplishment.

US Title: Jon Moxley vs. Lance Archer

Moxley is challenging, having lost the title due to not being able to make a defense due to travel issues. This is a Texas Deathmatch, meaning you win by a ten count knockout or submission. Moxley wastes no time in throwing the chairs inside but Archer brings his own trashcan lids to start swinging. Hang on though as Archer needs to clear out the Young Lions at ringside.

Moxley runs at him with a knee to hit Archer early before sidestepping him to the floor. That means a dive and you can tell how fired up Moxley is to be here. Some whips into the barricade have Archer in trouble and it’s kendo stick time. That earns him a chair pelted at his head and some trashcan lid shots for a bonus. The kendo stick has Moxley down again and there’s a big shot to the chest in the corner.

Old School doesn’t work for Archer so Moxley unloads on him with the stick. A running trashcan shot to the head puts Archer down again and it’s a running knee to send Archer sprawling on the floor. It’s enough for Archer to drop Moxley on the apron and then throw a Lion at him. Archer isn’t done and hits a big running dive over the top to take out Moxley and the Lions in a big crash. Some chairs are set up in the ring and it’s an Iconoclasm through them for huge pain and a nine count.

Archer grabs a Claw but gets reversed into a cross armbreaker. That’s reversed with a suplex so Moxley plants him with a DDT and some knees to the face. Archer is back up with a hard running shoulder and a chokeslam onto the chair, causing Moxley to writhe around in pain. There’s a big boot and it’s time to put the plastic bag over Moxley’s face, good for two arm drops. Some tables are set up at ringside but Moxley starts fighting back on the apron, meaning it’s a Death Rider (Paradigm Shift/Dirty Deeds) through the tables to give Moxley the title back at 14:27.

Rating: B. These guys beat each other up for a good while and it felt like a fight. Archer felt like a short term champion to Moxley and there is nothing wrong with that when Moxley only lost the title due to the travel issues. Moxley was fighting as hard as he could here and Archer was a heck of a dragon for him to slay. This was a lot of fun and the show is starting to crank up.

Post match Moxley says he’s leaving Tokyo with everything or nothing. We’ll find out which it is tomorrow when he defends against Juice Robinson.

We recap Will Ospreay vs. Hiromu Takahashi. Osprey is defending and Takahashi is trying to get the title back after he lost it due to a broken neck in 2018. These two have worked well together before so hopefully we get another classic between these two.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title: Hiromu Takahashi vs. Will Ospreay

Ospreay is defending and takes him straight to the mat with some amateur stuff before slapping him on the back of the head. Takahashi doesn’t think much of Ospreay chilling on the top so it’s time for an exchange of forearms. A rather snappy hurricanrana puts Ospreay down but there’s no sunset bomb to the floor. There is a powerbomb to the apron though and Takahashi hits a running dropkick off the apron for a bonus.

Back in and Takahashi misses a shoulder to the ribs, allowing Ospreay to hit a double stomp to the back of the head. A hanging DDT gets two on Takahashi and Ospreay bends the neck over the barricade like a villain should. Back in and a Koji Clutch stays on the neck with Takahashi having to get a foot on the rope. Takahashi scores with some chops so Ospreay kicks him in the face to send things back to the apron.

Ospreay misses a flip dive to the floor, flips out of a German suplex onto the ramp, dives back in, and hits a Sasuke Special for one of those crazy sequences that about two people in the world can do. Back in and Pip Pip Cheerio gets two but Takahashi dropkicks him into the corner. A springboard double stomp to the back of the neck crushes Takahashi again though and a missile dropkick to the back of the head gets two.

The Kawada kicks set up the Cheeky Nandos kick but Takahashi manages to grab a super victory roll for his own two. Ospreay is right back with the Robinson Special for two of his own and it’s a hooting star press to Takahashi’s back. The Oscutter connects for two more and they’re both down again. Takahashi grabs a pop up sitout powerbomb for another breather and they slug it out.

Ospreay tries a springboard but gets countered into a German suplex. Takahashi’s Canadian Destroyer gets two more but the Time Bomb is blocked. That’s fine with Takahashi as he superkicks him down, only to have to counter the Stormbreaker. Ospreay grabs a C4 into the Hidden Blade but Stormbreaker is countered into a Code Red for two more. Now the Time Bomb connects for the big near fall so it’s a modified Emerald Flosion to give Takahashi the pin at 24:34.

Rating: A. Yep this was great and I continue to get all of the love for Ospreay. He’s as smooth as you can get in the ring and can fly as well as anyone in the world. Then you have Takahashi, who has impressed me before but never at this level. This was about getting Takahashi back to the top and reaching that goal again, which told a great story and had Ospreay doing stuff that only he could do. Incredible match here and the best thing on the show by a lot.

We recap the Intercontinental Title match. Tetsuya Naito is trying to reclaim his status on top of the roster and he has to win the Intercontinental Title to start. Jay White is defending but everyone hates him so Naito is the huge favorite. The winner is not only champion but also gets the World Title shot tomorrow.

Intercontinental Title: Jay White vs. Tetsuya Naito

Naito is challenging and White has Gedo with him. White bails to the floor to start so Naito grabs Gedo to draw White in. Back in and Naito scores with a dropkick, meaning we hit that Tranquilo pose. Naito catches him coming in and hits a neckbreaker off the apron to put White down again. They go inside again but this time Gedo grabs a boot so White can finally get something in.

Another grab from Gedo lets White crotch Naito against the post and Gedo gets in a chair shot to the knee. The knee gets wrapped around the barricade and White gets to flip into his own Tranquilo pose, plus a Too Sweet for some flavor. The Muta Lock goes on until Naito makes the rope, despite White fish hooking his jaws. A Russian legsweep gives Naito two and there’s the basement dropkick in the corner to make it worse.

Naito ties his legs around White’s arms to crank on the neck some more but White is in the ropes after a pretty freaky looking hold. White can’t hit the Blade Runner so Naito grabs the arm and hammers away at the neck. A Downward Spiral into a German suplex plants Naito though and a legsweep sends him face first into the top turnbuckle. White goes old school with a dragon screw legwhip over the rope and Naito can’t even run the ropes.

A Rock Bottom gets two so White goes even bigger with a Saito suplex over the top. Back in and the Kiwi Crusher gets two more as Naito won’t die. The reverse Figure Four goes on and Naito is in trouble, meaning it’s the long crawl to the rope. Naito somehow fights up with a Liger kick, only to walk into a spinebuster. Another comeback is cut off by Gedo getting inside, only to have Naito score with an enziguri on White.

A super hurricanrana drops him again and Gloria (pumphandle slam) gives Naito two. The referee gets bumped so Gedo brings in a chair, only to get kicked low. White pelts a chair at Naito though and snaps off a dragon suplex. Naito shrugs that off though and hits Destino to put them both down. Another Destino gets two more and it’s a brainbuster into a third Destino to give Naito the pin and the title at 33:53.

Rating: B. It was awesome, though the interference near the end felt really out of place. White is still good, though I can see what some of his critics say. There is another gear that I haven’t seen from him, though maybe it’s due to the match going longer than he should have for him. It’s a rather good match, but not great, even though Naito winning is the right call because he seems to be the big story of the weekend (other than Liger).

We recap Kazuchika Okada vs. Kota Ibushi for the IWGP World Title. Okada is the great champion and Ibushi won the G1 Climax, but again it’s really just a semifinal for the match with Naito, so enjoy it while it lasts.

IWGP Heavyweight Title: Kazuchika Okada vs. Kota Ibushi

Okada is defending and of course has the incredible entrance that he is known for. They stare at each other for a long time to start with the first lockup taking nearly a minute and a half. Ibushi takes him down by the leg as we hear about Okada having a bad arm. A headscissors gets Okada out of trouble and we’re up with a standoff. Okada’s headlock takeover keeps Ibushi down as they’re certainly in first gear to start.

A shoulder drops Ibushi and he’s up in less than a second. The strike off goes to Ibushi and a standing moonsault gives Ibushi two. We hit a one armed camel clutch so Okada makes the rope (with the arm over the leg just to show off). Okada is back up with a running elbow to the face and a DDT gets two. The hanging DDT plants Ibushi again for one as he’s starting to get fired up.

Okada knocks him right back down and puts on the chinlock, only to have Ibushi fight up and hit the dropkick. A powerslam into the middle rope moonsault gets two and they get a breather. They head outside with Okada kicking him over the barricade and following with a heck of a running crossbody. Back in and a modified STF makes Ibushi scream but a rope grab calms things down a bit. Okada drops a top rope elbow and we get the Rainmaker pose (and camera shot).

That’s broken up and the Tombstone is as well, allowing Ibushi to hit his kneeling Tombstone for two. With Okada on the floor, Ibushi hits a springboard moonsault to near perfection (and to Okada). Back in and Ibushi loads up a Kinshasa (complete with pose) but Okada cuts him off with a dropkick. Ibushi shrugs off the forearms and uppercuts and hits Okada in the face. A right hand to the face (a rarity) drops Okada and Ibushi beats him on the ground.

Okada rolls to the apron so it’s a deadlift German superplex, which is countered out of a high fear of death. Instead Okada Tombstones him onto the apron for the big knockout shot, mainly because Ibushi is completely insane. Ibushi beats the count and it’s Heavy Rain (looked like a high angle TKO) for two more. Another Rainmaker attempt is countered with a heck of a lariat to put Okada down for a change.

Now the deadlift German superplex drops Okada on his head for two more but he pops back up with another Tombstone. Ibushi is right back up with his own Rainmaker and the big knee….gets one. Another big knee gets two and the fans are freaking out over the near falls. A third knee is cut off by Okada’s dropkick and they’re both down. They forearm it out again with Okada going down but he’s able to forearm Ibushi off the top.

Okada dives into a powerbomb though, only to avoid the Phoenix splash. Back to back Rainmakers get two and two more connect but Ibushi ducks the fifth. A kick to Okada’s head sets up a knee to the face but Okada is right back with a sitout Tombstone. Another Rainmaker finishes Ibushi to retain the title at 39:18.

Rating: A. I know I get on him about his finisher a lot but dang Okada is incredible to watch. Put him in there with someone as insane as Ibushi and there was no way this wasn’t going to work. Outstanding stuff here and worthy of a Wrestle Kingdom main event, or at least the first of two in a row. Okada can do some amazing stuff and Ibushi is (probably) going to get his chance one day. Awesome main event as they fought over who wanted it more and eventually one of them gave out. Great story, great action, great all around.

Post match Naito comes out and lays his belt down, saying he’s leaving with both titles tomorrow. Naito leaves so Okada thanks Ibushi for the fight and promises to win tomorrow.

The announcers recap the event and talk about the champions.

Overall Rating: A-. They really are great about building things up on these shows, which is where the structured card offers a lot of help. It’s a great show and there are two incredible matches on here, which almost feels weak for a Wrestle Kingdom. I’m still not wild on the double nights though as there were things on here that could have been skipped for the sake of one big show, but that’s the case with every show that goes on for such a long time. Check out the main event and Ospreay vs. Takahashi of course, but the bigger stuff seems to be coming tomorrow.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: Ring of Honor Wrestling

Ring of Honor/G1 Supercard
Date: April 6, 2019
Location: Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Colt Cabana, Ian Riccaboni

My goodness it feels wrong to be typing that for another company. This is the indy/non-WWE main event of the weekend and the only show that stands a fighting chance to topple NXT for best event of the weekend. It’s a combination Ring of Honor/New Japan card and the first time New Japan gets to take the big stage in the big time. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Honor Rumble

This is a 30 man Royal Rumble with one minute intervals and the winner gets a future ROH World Title shot. Kenny King is in at #1 (by request) and Minoru Suzuki is in at #2. There is some horrible static during Suzuki’s entrance and it’s kind of distracting, though you can hear the roar over it just fine. For some reason King tries a chop and the fans know pain is coming. King runs the ropes a bit before the forearm connects and it’s Cheeseburger (erg) in at #3. He tries to chop both of them and gets knocked down, leaving the other two to fight as the announcers make hamburger jokes.

Beer City Bruiser is in at #4 and punches at all three guys before biting Cheeseburger, despite barely having any teeth. Suzuki kicks right back and it’s Sho of Roppongi 3K in at #5 for some dropkicks. Suzuki gets to kick him down in the corner though and it’s Shingo Takagi in at #6. He goes right for Sho to renew their rivalry and it’s Bushi, Shingo’s partner, in at #7. They double team Sho again until Yoh, Sho’s partner, is in at #8 for the greatest coincidence in Rumble history.

Yoh takes over on Shingo and Bushi as the ring is getting too full. A double dropkick connects (well half connects as Yoh’s half clearly wasn’t close) Shingo and Bruiser is the first elimination. Shaheem Ali is in at #9 and people start pairing off with Ali getting in some offense. It’s Rhett Titus in at #10 doing his best Chris Masters impression. He immediately poses in the middle of the ring until King kicks him in the head.

We’ve got King, Suzuki, Cheeseburger, Show, Takagi, Bushi, Yoh, Ali and Titus at the moment with LSG coming in at #11. More brawling against the ropes ensues and it’s Ryusuke Taguchi in at #12 (please get him out of here in a hurry). Taguchi starts throwing his rugby ball around and hits the hip attack until Will Ferrara is in at #13. The Dawgs have a mini reunion and it’s Chase Owens in at #14 as the ring is WAY too full, mainly due to the entrances coming far too fast.

No one comes close to an elimination again so it’s Rocky Romero in at #15 to complete the trio. He and Taguchi stare each other down because that nightmare of a match they had at Rev Pro wasn’t bad enough. The Forever Clotheslines start and everyone gets involved to hit Bushi for about thirty seconds straight. Romero tosses Bushi and it’s Brian Milonas in at #16. Milonas gets rid of Ali and LSG, meaning he isn’t worthless this time around. Bad Luck Fale is in at #17 to get rid of Roppongi 3K.

Cheeseburger gets thrown over but his friends catch him so he’s still in BECAUSE HE’S SMALL AND FUN AND WE ALL LOVE HIM SO FREAKING MUCH. Cheeseburger gets back in as Jonathan Gresham is in at #18. Shingo gets rid of Titus but Suzuki tosses him as the ring is thankfully clearing out a bit. Tracy Williams is in at #19 and with nothing going on, Yoshi-Hashi is in at #20 as Taguchi is eliminated. That gives us King, Suzuki, Cheeseburger, Ferrara, Owens, Romero, Milonas, Fale, Gresham, Williams and Hashi as Williams trades headbutts with Suzuki.

PJ Black is in at #21 and Ferrara is out as Black and Owens try to double team Suzuki. You just don’t do that as Suzuki eliminates Owens. Jushin Thunder Liger is in at #22 and you know the place is going nuts for that one. Liger fires off the palm strikes and gets rid of Milonas on his own. TK O’Ryan is in at #23 and Vinny Marseglia is in at #24 because of course. The Kingdom gets together and tosses Williams as Delirious is in at #25. The booker gets himself onto the biggest card in the company’s history? I’m as shocked as you are.

His entrance takes so long that it’s Tomohiro Ishii in at #26. Now this guy has to get rid of at least a few people. Black is out first and it’s Toru Yano in at #27….or not actually as he runs over to commentary and gives his spot to Colt Cabana in a nice moment. Yano sits in on commentary and let’s put the camera on that instead of the ring. Hirooki Goto is in at #28 as Romero and Hashi are tossed. Everyone gets together to get rid of Fale and it’s freaking King Haku in at #29 (Yano: “VERY SCARY!!!”).

It’s a Tongan Death Grip for Cabana, who waves Yano down for the save. Yano comes in…..and it’s THE GREAT MUTA in at #30 to complete the field. Sweet goodness the one year I don’t go to Wrestlemania weekend and I miss Muta and Liger. The final grouping is King, Suzuki, Cheeseburger, Gresham, Liger, O’Ryan, Marseglia, Delirious, Ishii, Cabana/Yano (I’m not sure which you count as legally in), Goto, Haku and Muta. We get confirmation that Yano is in at #31 because why not.

Muta tosses Delirious and Yano accidentally hits Cabana with a buckle pad, allowing Suzuki to get rid of both of them. Gresham is out and it’s Goto and Suzuki going to the apron. Suzuki kicks Goto out and gets back in, giving us the required slugout with Ishii. They go to the ropes with Suzuki going for the armbreaker but Ishii pulls him up for the lariat and the elimination. We’re down to eight….and King is nowhere in sight so you know where this is going. Cheeseburger takes House of 1000 Corpses and gets tossed (I like this so much better all of a sudden) and Haku gets the same, minus the corpses.

Rating: D+. The one thing that this showed me was how much better New Japan’s roster is than ROH’s even in the undercard. Look at the biggest names in this match from both sides. Who from ROH was interesting here? King? The Kingdom? On the other side you have legitimate legends like Muta and Liger, plus stars like Ishii and Suzuki. This was one sided and the ending was just annoying as I was digging the visual of Liger and Muta, which is probably the only time they’ll ever be here.

As for the match itself, it felt like every WWE Rumble trick known to man packed into one match. Between the partners coming in on consecutive numbers to the #1 entrant lasting until the end to the always annoying “oh he’s not eliminated”, I’m pretty sure I just saw five Royal Rumble in one package. It’s fine to let everyone get on the card (Cabana’s face in the ring while he was soaking things in genuinely made me smile) but come up with something fresh instead of just copying WWE.

Post match Muta gives King the mist for a cool moment.

The opening video features the New Japan wrestlers talking about what it means to wrestle in Madison Square Garden. Fair enough man, as I still can’t believe I’m seeing it.

We’ve got pyro. But WWE can’t afford it right?

The announcers run down the card.

Never Openweight Title vs. ROH TV Title: Will Ospreay vs. Jeff Cobb

Title for title. They shake hands before the bell and Cobb wastes no time in shouldering him out to the floor. Ospreay gets in a shot for a breather and runs back in for a Flying Space Tiger Drop, which is pulled out of the air. Whatever Cobb was trying is countered into a tornado DDT on the floor but he’s fine enough for the delayed vertical superplex for two back inside. There’s a hue toss across the ring as the power vs. speed is on full display early on.

We hit the bearhug with Ospreay having to elbow his way to freedom and nailing a spinwheel kick to the face. Pip Pip Cheerio gets two but it’s way too early for Stormbreaker as Cobb reverses into a fall away slam. The Samoan drop into the nip up into the standing moonsault gets two as Cobb gets to show off. Ospreay grabs the ropes to avoid the Tour of the Islands and it’s the Spanish Fly to drop the monster. A missile dropkick to Cobb’s bad shoulder keeps him in trouble but Code Red only gets two.

The Oscutter is broken up and Cobb turns him inside out with a clothesline. In a scary sight, Cobb goes up but misses the frog splash. The Oscutter is countered with Ospreay being thrown into the corner, where he bounces right back to make it connect on a second attempt for two. A hook kick to the head drops Cobb and there’s the Cheeky Nandos kick. Ospreay makes the mistake of trying a super Stormbreaker though because it’s a super Tour of the Islands to crush Ospreay dead. A regular version gives Cobb the pin and both titles at 12:56.

Rating: B. That was fun and the perfect choice for an opener. Cobb looked like a star who survived everything Ospreay could throw at him and hit his crazy power moves to retain/win. Power vs. speed is almost as basic as you can get in wrestling and when you do it right, it’s a very cool match, just like this one was.

Rush vs. Dalton Castle

Rush dropkicks him into the corner and hits a pair of Bull’s Horns for the pin at 19 seconds. I was wondering how they would handle this and they handled it by making Rush look awesome.

Post match Castle snaps and beats up the Boys.

Mandy Leon joins commentary because Delirious still runs this company.

Juice Robinson has been attacked.

Women’s Title: Mayu Iwatani vs. Kelly Klein

Klein is challenging after they’ve traded wins over the last few months. Kelly sends Camp Kelly to the back so it’s one on one. An exchange of wristlocks doesn’t go anywhere so Klein gets smart by going after Iwatani’s bad knee. The leglock goes on with punches to the knee but Iwatani reverses into a rear naked choke. Klein breaks that up and catches a diving Iwatani in a fall away slam.

That’s not going very far though as Iwatani sends her outside and hits a big dive (good one too) but gets her throat snapped across the top rope. Back in and Klein wins an elbow off and drops Iwatani on her head in a release German suplex. She pops back up for the knockdown though and we get a quick breather. A dragon suplex sends Klein into the ropes but Iwatani misses the moonsault. Klein powerbombs her out of the corner and K Power gives her the title back at 10:16.

Rating: C+. Ok. It’s another title change between women I know next to nothing about. Klein certainly did beat her though and apparently that’s all ROH thinks we need to know, because it’s all they’ve given us in the year the title has been around. It doesn’t matter who holds the thing if we have no reason to care about (positively or negatively) about either of them and ROH doesn’t get that.

Post match Angelina Love and Velvet Sky (the Beautiful People, who Madison Rayne wanted to team with and then left anyway) debut and Leon comes to the ring. The three of them beat Klein down and do the same to an invading Stella Gray and Jenny Rose. A graphic pops up on screen dubbing them The Allure. Good. They’re already the most interesting thing in the division’s history because they’re known characters with personalities and the ability to talk. Now DO SOMETHING WITH THEM.

Caprice Coleman joins commentary because we need to keep that four person booth.

Here’s Mega Ran to perform the theme song. QUIT COPYING WWE ALREADY! The fans boo the heck out of this and here’s Bully Ray to interrupt. Mega begs off and gets beaten up anyway, but now we need a replacement opponent. Guess who’s here.

Flip Gordon vs. Bully Ray

Of course it’s Gordon because ROH has no idea how to end a feud. Gordon starts fast but Ray knocks him down and goes for an early table. Cue Silas Young and Shane Taylor though (oh here we go) and the beatdown seems imminent, but Juice Robinson and Mark Haskins run in for the save, complete with a bucket of weapons. Wait if Robinson is fine three minutes into the match, why was Gordon needed in the first place? I’m going to go with “that’s what the script said” and move on.

Flip Gordon/Mark Haskins/Juice Robinson vs. Bully Ray/Silas Young/Shane Taylor-

It’s now a six man with Juice unloading on Ray until a thumb to the eye lets him take over. Haskins and Gordon get together to take on Taylor but it’s the villains surrounding Gordon with kendo sticks. Gordon takes a shot, flips off Ray, and demands more. Haskins and Robinson come back in with more sticks and the good guys take over, leaving Ray down 3-1. The bailing up the ramp is quick but Robinson makes the stop. That earns him a low blow….and a superkick? From BULLY RAY?

Taylor helps clean house and sets up a table (Fans: “THAT’S NOT D-VON!”) for the powerbomb to put Gordon through. Ray gets crotched by Haskins, giving us the always funny “OW MY BALLS!”. Taylor brings in a wooden pallet but Robinson saves Haskins. Robinson Cannonballs Taylor through it instead and Ray takes What’s Up from Haskins (Ray: “OW MY BALLS!” Dang rough night for him.). Gordon adds the 450 for the pin at 14:59.

Rating: D+. This is a match that happened, even though we’ve seen Gordon beat Ray one on one before. I have no idea why we needed Gordon to do this again but I’ll go with ROH not knowing how to go anywhere else. You have an open challenge available and can’t have Ishii or Suzuki come out there and destroy him? At least they’re pushing Gordon, and that’s what matters most. Young and Taylor could have been any two warm bodies here, as Young was barely a factor at all.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title: Dragon Lee vs. Bandido vs. Taiji Ishimori

Ishimori is defending and this is going to be insane. The champ gets knocked outside to start and it’s Bandido with a pair of hurricanranas to Lee. The running flip dive takes Lee down but it’s Ishimori back in to crank on Bandido’s neck. Lee hurricanranas Bandido outside as they’re already crazy fast to start. Ishimori moonsaults onto both of them and they all head back in with Lee powerbombing Ishimori for two. Lee’s top rope double stomp is countered by Bandido’s super hurricanrana, earning himself a Canadian Destroyer as Lee popped right back up.

Ishimori knees Lee down but walks into a pop up cutter for two. Now Lee hits the top rope stomp on Bandido but his suplex is countered into a hurricanrana for two from Ishimori. The Bloody Cross gets two on Lee and they head up top with Bandido on his feet as well. Bandido catches them both for a SUPER DOUBLE FLOATOVER FALL AWAY SLAM (Cabana: “THAT’S NOT A REAL MOVE!!!”). After two on Lee, Bandido hits….something on Ishimori that we miss because the camera was looking at the crowd looking at itself on the screen. Lee knees Ishimori to the floor and hits a fisherman’s suplex powerbomb on Bandido for the pin and the title at 8:56.

Rating: B+. Oh come on like this was going to be anything but awesome. It was a pure spotfest and that’s exactly what we should have been getting here. Any of these guys could have left as champion and I’d bet on all three of them being champion at some point again. Just do more of this and they’ll be fine.

Ishimori puts the best on the new champ in a display of sportsmanship.

IWGP Tag Team Titles/ROH Tag Team Titles: Guerrillas of Destiny vs. Villain Enterprises vs. Evil/Sanada vs. Briscoes

The Guerrillas have the IWGP Titles and Enterprises have the ROH Titles, winner take all. Just to make sure PCO is ready, he’s strapped into an electric chair for some extra fire. The Briscoes start in a hurry and Jay is backdropped out to the floor. PCO suicide flip dives onto him and it’s a wild brawl all over ringside. The champs get back inside for the slugout but the Briscoes pull the Villains outside.

Sanada ties Tama in the Paradise Lock for the running dropkick but the Briscoes are back in to take him out. King comes in to crossbody both of them so here’s Loa for the big man showdown. King hits his own running flip dive (no hands) and it’s Mark with his own corkscrew dive (you never see that). Jay’s running Blockbuster off the apron drops Sanada and Tama kicks Jay outside.

Evil wraps a chair around Tama’s head and hits it with another chair for the big knockdown. The Briscoes break up the Magic Killer and it’s the Jay Driller into the Froggy Bow for two with King making a save. PCO hits the Cannonball onto Mark on the apron and the fans go nuts as he’s been trying to hit that since he debuted. King’s Ganso Bomb into PCO’s moonsault crushes Mark again with the Guerrillas making the save.

The Guerrillas are done playing and powerbomb PCO over the top onto the floor (nothing to break the fall)….and he sits up, which actually shocked me. He falls back down, but I think he won the point already. Back in and the Gun Stun to King sets up the Superbomb to give the Guerrillas all the titles at 9:56.

Rating: B. Much like the previous match: let them go nuts and give the fans what they wanted. The Guerrillas winning isn’t exactly a surprise but how cool is it for PCO to make it back to the Garden as a champion? That’s the greatest career renaissance of all time and there’s nothing close to it.

As the match ends, Enzo Amore and Big Cass jump the barricade to flip off the crowd and yell, earning a beatdown from the Briscoes and Bully Ray. It wasn’t clear if this was a work or a shoot, but ROH retweeting a video of it should clear up the confusion. If anything could make me give up on this company, it’s having to listen to Enzo again.

The celebration is on and Toru Yano steals the IWGP Tag Team Titles. Why the Guerrillas don’t go after him isn’t clear. Colt: “He’s going to need a partner right???”

The announcers make sure to not talk about Enzo and Cass, though you can hear the fans booing them. We go to a shot of the video screen to fill in time. They’re getting booed, but I have a feeling it’s not the kind of heat that is going to translate well to ROH TV. The announcers do talk about “people trying to make a name for themselves.” It’s real people.

British Heavyweight Title: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Zack Sabre Jr.

Sabre is defending and Tanahashi has bad knees coming in. Taka Michinoku is here with Sabre as the hype man. Taka asks who is going to win and then says Sabre doesn’t just win this one, but EVERY match. Feeling out process to start with Tanahashi tentatively going to the mat and getting spun around into a wristlock. Tanahashi goes with a kick to the ribs and a middle rope crossbody to some better success.

Sabre is right back with a cross armbreaker into a Disarm-Her but Tanahashi makes the rope. It’s time to start in on the shoulder (for now) and the cocky kicks bring Tanahashi back to his feet. Sabre throws him over the top and the shoulder keeps Tanahashi from skinning the cat. Never to miss an opportunity, Sabre grabs a cross armbreaker with Tanahashi in the rope. Tanahashi is back with a running dropkick and a middle rope Swanton for two.

The Cloverleaf doesn’t go on but an abdominal stretch does, leading to a fight over who can keep the hold. Sabre goes to the rope in a ruse, allowing him to crank on the arm some more. Tanahashi grabs a dragon screw legwhip for a break but can’t keep the Cloverleaf. Instead Sabre pulls him down into a triangle choke, which is reversed into the full Cloverleaf. Sabre is in the ropes almost immediately because he’s good at escaping as well as applying.

The High Fly Flow is broken up and there’s a Pele to the arm. Another dragon screw legwhip is countered into the European Clutch for two and there’s the PK to drop Tanahashi again. The Zack Driver is countered into another legwhip and Twist and Shout has Sabre in trouble. Sling Blade gets two but the dragon suplex is countered into something like an Octopus Hold and then a double arm crank with the legs (almost a full nelson) to make Tanahashi tap at 15:17.

Rating: B. Well of course it works. There’s something so fun about watching Sabre take someone apart like that, even if it’s Tanahashi. This was a great rub for Sabre, who could have a very long career on top if he keeps evolving. Those holds are deadly and of course Tanahashi will be fine as he’s been a legend for years now.

We recap Tetsuya Naito vs. Kota Ibushi for the Intercontinental Title. Ibushi beat Naito in the New Japan Cup to earn a shot and it’s time to tear the house down.

Chris Charloton joins commentary.

IWGP Intercontinental Title: Tetsuya Naito vs. Kota Ibushi

Ibushi is challenging and Naito has the white suit on so you know it’s serious. I love the New Japan zoom in at the bell. Naito ducks a pair of charges to start and they lock up a minute in. Kelly’s summation: “They seem to enjoy dropping each other on their heads.” Naito grabs a headlock into a headscissors but Naito rolls out and hits the Tranquilo pose for the expected reaction. Ibushi’s hurricanrana sends Naito outside but he’s right back in for a baseball slide to put Ibushi out there instead.

A whip into the barricade has Ibushi in trouble and another one sends him into the crowd. Ibushi is back in at 11 (20 counts and titles can change hands on a countout) and Naito gets two off a neckbreaker. We hit the cravate as Naito stays on the neck until Ibushi is back up with a dropkick. Some kicks into a standing moonsault gives Ibushi two and it’s a running kick to the head to knock him outside.

Ibushi hides his head from the referee so Naito hits a reverse DDT onto the knee. Naito gets kicked off the top though and they fight to the apron, where Naito runs into a hurricanrana out to the floor in a crazy cool looking spot. Back in and Naito is fine enough for the tornado DDT for another near fall and frustration seems to be setting in. Gloria (arm trap belly to back on the back of Naito’s head) gets two but Ibushi blasts him with a clothesline.

To mix things up a bit, a dead lift German superplex from the apron gives Ibushi two more. The big knee to the face is blocked and a kind of kneeling piledriver from the mat (dropping Ibushi on his head again) gets another two. They slug it out from their knees and Naito spits in his face. That’s too much for Ibushi but Naito hit s a reverse hurricanrana into Destino for two and Naito is stunned. Another Destino is countered into a kick to the head and a pair of Kinshasa knees knock Naito sillier. The Gold Star Bomb gets two and the big knee to the face finishes Naito at 20:43.

Rating: A. As much as I was cringing at all those head shots, I wasn’t taking my eyes off of this as they were hitting each other as hard as they could and it was nothing short of outstanding. Ibushi fighting through for the sake of achieving his goal was great and this should free Naito up to go after the World Title again. Great stuff and exactly what the New Japan fans wanted on this show.

We recap the ROH World Title match. Jay Lethal is champion, Marty Scurll is crazy popular and has never been champion and Taven is cutting the same I SHOULD BE CHAMPION AND YOU’RE ALL AGAINST ME promos he’s been on for over a year. Taven and Lethal went to an hour long draw last month so he’s earned another shot while Scurll won the Survival of the Fittest. It’s a ladder match so there can be no biases from the referees.

NWA World Champion Nick Aldis joins commentary.

Ring of Honor World Title: Jay Lethal vs. Matt Taven vs. Marty Scurll

Lethal is defending in a ladder match and Taven is played to the ring via piano. The ring announcer makes it clear that this ladder match is ONE FALL. You can tell Lethal is fired up to be here, as he should be. Marty goes straight for a ladder so Jay baseball slides it into him. Taven is right there with the no hands dive to take them both down but bangs up his wrist in the process. Lethal goes with some chairs and bridges a ladder between some in the aisle.

That takes too long so Marty jumps him from behind and goes inside to put a pair of ladders in a pair of corners. Lethal and Taven are back in with Jay hitting both of them with ladders to take over. Instead of going up, he bridges a ladder over the bottom rope and of course gets sent face first into it. Marty ties Lethal in the Tree of Woe in the ladder and blasts it with a chair a few times. Lethal is mostly dead so Marty sets up a ladder in the middle, grabs the umbrella, and goes up.

That takes a bit too long though and it’s Taven making the save with a superkick. Taven knees the ladder around Lethal’s neck but it’s Marty going up the ladder. Lethal ties him up in a Figure Four in the ladder but they have to let go so Taven can be stopped. Marty takes a cutter on the apron and Taven powerbombs Lethal onto the bridged ladder in the aisle. This gives Aldis another chance to be the best analyst in wrestling today because he ACTUALLY ANALYZES THINGS.

Back in and Marty gives Taven a 619, which further injures his knee. Taven ladders Marty down and the fans are all over him, because Taven is as popular as a bad fungus. For some reason Taven climbs a ladder in the corner, earning himself a superplex back down. Lethal comes back in and flips out of the chickenwing attempt. With Marty down, Lethal goes up, punches Taven down, and gets caught in the chickenwing on the ladder.

Taven goes up as well and gets his fingers snapped but Lethal kicks them both off the ladder. A Lethal Combination sends Taven into the ladder and Lethal misses a charge, putting one ladder through another in the corner. Marty drops Taven onto the X between the ladders but walks into the Lethal Injection. Lethal throws the double ladder outside and it nearly knocks out half of the first row. Fans: “THAT’S A LAWSUIT!”

Scurll gives Lethal a brainbuster on the floor and loads up a table as Aldis is suddenly very anti-Lethal. Taven is back up and spears Marty off the apron and through the table. They’re both down so Lethal pulls out another table and the big ladder, setting up Hail to the King for the crazy spot of the match. Lethal and Marty go up but Taven busts out a big purple ladder. They all get knock down as Aldis has to explain to Riccaboni why a taller ladder is a good idea. Taven climbs up, hits Lethal in the head with the title, and wins at 29:38.

Rating: B-. This was good for the most part but it’s the worst possible outcome that deflated the crowd. The fans just do not want to see Taven on top of the company and have made that very clear. Instead, he gets the World Title because ROH had put so much time and energy into him that they just did it anyway. The match was entertaining but could have been at least ten minutes shorter on an already long show where New Japan has already lapped ROH five times.

We recap the IWGP World Title match. Jay White rocketed up the ranks and defeated Kazuchika Okada at Wrestle Kingdom before winning the title, partially due to Okada’s manager Gedo switching sides. Okada is back to his old self, having won the New Japan Cup, and is out for revenge and the title. Works for me, as New Japan stories are more about being well told than too complicated.

IWGP World Title: Kazuchika Okada vs. Jay White

White is defending and completely loathed by the crowd. The champ bails to the floor to start so it takes a little bit for the lockup. A shoulder puts Okada down but a Gedo distraction lets White grab a headlock takeover. Back up and Okada kicks him in the face, setting up a neckbreaker for one. They head outside and White goes hard into the barricade before going over the barricade.

Another Gedo distraction lets White drive him into the post and we hit the reverse chinlock back inside. A belly to back gets and a DDT has Okada down again. We go old school with the Muta Lock but Okada is right next to the ropes. Okada nips back up and hits a DDT of his own for two of his own. White’s kicks to the head just get on Okada’s nerves and there’s the dropkick to send White outside.

A Helluva Kick sends White over the barricade again and Gedo is tossed on top of him. The big dive over the barricade takes both villains down to a nice reaction. Back in and White escapes something and snaps off a Saito suplex. The White Noise onto the knee puts White down again and Okada gets angry with the shotgun dropkick into the corner.

The top rope elbow connects but White sits down to avoid the Rainmaker (thankfully we get the awesome zoom out). A Downward Spiral and a German suplex put Okada down again and White suplexes him into the corner. The Kiwi Crusher (White’s ROH finisher) gets two and Okada is right back with the Tombstone.

It’s time for the forearm exchange but Okada misses the dropkick. The second attempt connects but the Rainmaker is countered into a suplex. The Blade Runner is countered and the Rainmaker into the Rainmaker gets two, stunning the crowd. When is the last time you saw someone kick out of a pair of clotheslines?

Now Blade Runner connects for no cover as White is done. They forearm it out from their knees as we hit the thirty minute mark. Gedo offers another distraction and it’s a low blow to Okada. Both finishers are countered again so Okada goes with the dropkick. Two Rainmakers, a spinning Tombstone and another Rainmaker gives Okada the title back at 33:44.

Rating: A-. It was the most obvious ending in the world and White, while great, isn’t great enough to go all the way up to this level. Okada is one of the best of all time and is going to need a top challenger now that he has the title. That would seem to be Naito, which is as good of a match as you’re going to get right now. Let them do their thing and White can rebuild. He’ll be back.

Overall Rating: B. This one was a cut down the middle of a show as you’re going to get. We’ll start with the good. New Japan looked incredible here and showcased themselves on the biggest stage of American. Their stars looked like stars and the gave you enough of a set of styles that there was something for everyone. I don’t know what else there is to say here because everything they did worked in one way or another.

Then there’s Ring of Honor and it’s a bad night if you’re a fan. You got Kenny King, Kelly Klein and Matt Taven pushed as big deals (along with Rush and Gordon, the only good things to come out of this show for the company) pushed as big deals and those three people have one thing in common: ROH fans don’t care about them. King is the same guy they’ve been trying to milk something out of for years, Klein is boring and Taven is Jeff Jarrett without a Tennessee accent.

For ROH, this was a night of pessimism as they try to push whatever they can think of to get success without remembering what got them here in the first place. Tonight felt like they were trying to be WWE at times (Enzo and Cass) while also forcing us to accept ideas that we’ve already rejected (Taven). The future looks bleak at the moment and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. It’s like ROH doesn’t get it and that has been the case for way too long in the bigger situations. I still have some hope in Lifeblood, but other than that it’s a bad sign as they choke at the big show. Again.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: New Japan Pro Wrestling

Wrestle Kingdom XIII
Date: January 4, 2019
Location: Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan
Attendance: 38,162
Commentators: Don Callis, Chris Charlton, Kevin Kelly

Well this is a big one. It’s the Japanese equivalent of Wrestlemania and the biggest non-WWE show of the year. This year’s card is absolutely stacked (tends to be the case) and while I’m not the biggest New Japan fan, there’s a very strong chance of this show being nothing short of incredible. Let’s get to it.

As always, please note that I don’t watch NJPW regularly. I know the basic stories and looked up a few things beforehand, but I’m going to miss some details and character motivations in some parts.

Gauntlet Match

The winners get a Never Openweight Six Man Tag Team Title shot, I believe at tomorrow’s New Year’s Dash show. The Elite (Yujiro Takahashi, Marty Scurll and Hangman Page with Chase Owens in their corner) and Yuji Nagata/David Finlay/Jeff Cobb start things off with Cobb sporting a taped up shoulder. Scurll headscissors Nagata to start and gets smart by kicking the knee out instead of trying a slugout. The finger snap is broken up but so is Nagata’s reverse Figure Four.

Cobb comes in and gets triple teamed to the floor, with Page adding the shooting star from the apron. Back in and Cobb tosses Page in a fall away slam, allowing the tag to Finlay. Everything breaks down and Finlay hits a Rock Bottom backbreaker on Takahashi as everyone else heads to the floor. Owens grabs Finlay’s foot for a save but accidentally gets kicked down by Page. The distraction is enough for Finlay to roll Takahashi up for the pin and the elimination at 4:43.

Next up is Chuckie T/Beretta/Hirooki Goto with Goto and Nagata slugging it out in the middle. Chuckie and Beretta break it up and there’s a big flip dive from Chuckie onto Cobb and Finlay. Beretta adds an Asai moonsault onto both of them, leaving Goto to hit the fireman’s carry backbreaker for two on Nagata. Things settle down with Chuckie and Beretta getting in a huge to set up a double elbow drop.

Nagata scores with an exploder suplex and it’s off to Cobb to clean house. We get the big clotheslines from Cobb and Goto until some double teaming slows Cobb down. That’s fine with him as he suplexes both of them down without much effort. Chuckie’s piledriver gets two on Finlay but he misses the moonsault, allowing Finlay to grab a quick rollup for the pin at 13:40.

Minoru Suzuki and the Killer Elite Squad are in fourth and of course the brawl is on in a hurry. Nagata and Suzuki slug it out (well duh) with the revolving slaps until Nagata gets two off a t-bone suplex. Smith comes in but gets kicked in the leg, allowing the hot tag to Cobb for the hoss battle. The Angle Slam sets up the standing moonsault but Smith gets away as everything breaks down. The Killer Bomb finishes Finlay at 18:34.

Ryusuke Taguchi/Togi Makabe/Toru Yano are the final team so it’s time for COMEDY! The Squad beats the funny out of them in the aisle though and Suzuki goes after commentary due to reasons of evil. We settle down to Smith kicking Taguchi in the face, hitting the Hulk Hogan poses, and dropping a leg for two. Archer comes in for an Undertaker rope walk, though he spices it up a bit with a tag while on the ropes. It’s off to Suzuki, who actually gets knocked down so Makabe can come in for some power.

Suzuki runs him over again but the kicks seem to fire Makabe up. A double clothesline allows the double tag to Yano and Smith so Yano can go straight for the buckle pad. Archer comes in for the Hart Attack, followed by a side slam/middle rope splash combination for a near fall each. Suzuki tries the Gotch piledriver on Makabe but gets taken down by Taguchi’s hip attack. The Squad goes after Makabe but it’s a double low blow from Yano to set up the rollup pin on Smith for the title shot at 27:48.

Rating: C-. This was ok and a good way to get a bunch of people on the show without having a battle royal. I’m really not a fan of Yano (repetitive comedy gets old in a hurry) but the fans love him and that’s enough of a reason to give his team the win here. The length was fine and it’s an acceptable Kickoff Show match, which is exactly the right idea. Nothing great, but fine.

Video on the Best Of 2018, including various attendances for the bigger shows.

Ads for upcoming shows, including one in Dallas at the American Airlines Center on July 6 and a show in England on August 31. Also, next year’s New Year’s Dash will be in the Tokyo Dome as well.

We get the video running down the card, featuring the show order. This is rather stacked, as always.

Never Openweight Title: Will Ospreay vs. Kota Ibushi

Kota is defending and egads what an opener. They start with Ibushi being monkey flipped to the floor, leaving Ospreay to hit the superhero pose. Ibushi dives back in and blocks the Oscutter and we’re now forty five seconds in with a standoff. The kick to the chest misses Ospreay so Ibushi dropkicks him to the floor, only to miss the middle rope moonsault in a big crash as Ospreay somehow gets to the apron and kicks him out of the air.

The Space Flying Tiger Drop has Ibushi in even more trouble and a backbreaker gives Ospreay two. Ibushi is right back up with a hurricanrana to the floor, setting up a top rope corkscrew Asai moonsault (good grief) to drop Ospreay again. Back in and Ibushi nails a rolling German suplex but Ospreay scores with a handspring spinning kick to the head. Ospreay hits a Cheeky Nandos Kick for two more and it’s time to trade forearms. Ibushi gets the better of it but neither can hit a powerbomb.

Instead Osprey kicks him in the chest and grabs a Spanish Fly to put both of them down. Stormbreaker is countered into a hurricanrana for two and there’s the sliding knee to Ospreay’s head. The sitout Last Ride gives Ibushi two more but Ospreay catches him on top with the knee getting caught in the Tree of Woe. They slug it out from there (as in with Ibushi hanging upside down) until Ospreay kicks him in the face to take over.

What looked to be a super Stormbreaker is countered but Ospreay flips out of a German superplex, which seems to be a callback to a recent match. Ibushi’s straitjacket suplex gets two and they trade some heavy shots to the head. Stormbreaker is countered again into an exchange of counters, capped off by Ibushi hitting a kneeling tombstone. Somehow he’s up first and hits a heck of a running back elbow to the back of Ibushi’s head. Ibushi is DONE and the Stormbreaker gives Ospreay the pin and the title at 18:14.

Rating: B+. Well we’re off to a great start. This was an awesome “I hit something big then you hit something bigger” exchange with Ospreay being in his element with that style. Ibushi is still one of the best high fliers ever and looked great here, but Ospreay winning makes sense given how much star potential he has. Excellent opener with some very hard hitting action.

Ibushi is taken out on a stretcher and apparently had a legit concussion.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles: Roppongi 3K vs. Suzuki-Gun vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon

Suzuki-Gun (Yoshinobu Kanemaru/El Desperado) are defending and Roppongi 3K (Sho and Yoh) has Rocky Romero in their corner. Los Ingobernables (Bushi/Shingo Takagi) start the brawl before the bell but get sent to the apron for the running flip dives from 3K. Kanemaru and Desperado break up a second set of dives and it’s Desperado chinlocking Yoh to take over. Back up and a superkick allows the tag to Sho as they’re certainly moving early on. An AJ Styles drop down into a dropkick hits Desperado and Shingo tags himself in and starts in with some hard strikes.

Sho German suplexes Shingo who German suplexes Kanemaru at the same time but Desperado nails a spear. 3K’s double jumping knees put Desperado down and a backbreaker/middle rope knee drop combination makes it even worse. With Desperado in trouble, 3K loads up….uh 3K actually but has to duck a double shot of whiskey and black mist, allowing Shingo to hit Sho with a Gory Bomb. The Big Bomber (hard lariat) gets two on Sho and Bushi dives onto Yoh. Last of the Dragon (a modified Samoan driver) gives Shingo the pin and the titles at 6:49.

Rating: C+. That was certainly short. It was entertaining while it lasted but they didn’t have time to do much. That being said, they crammed in as much as they could with 3K and Shingo looking like stars. This division has finally moved past the Young Bucks and the matches are a lot of fun. It might have been better with the less time here though as it didn’t have time to die down, which seems to be the point of a match like this.

Rev Pro British Heavyweight Title: Tomohiro Ishii vs. Zack Sabre Jr.

Ishii is defending and I saw him take the title from Sabre in New Orleans in an awesome match so this should be fun. Sabre’s manager Taka Michinoku handles the hype efforts before the match. Sabre goes straight for an abdominal stretch attempted but gets hiptossed out. An enziguri misses for Ishii and Sabre takes him down into a cross armbreaker, sending the champ to the ropes after some good cranking.

Sabre’s kicks to the chest are shrugged off so he slaps on another armbar to send Ishii right back to the ropes. Those cocky kicks to the side of Ishii’s head just wake him up (like Flair’s chops to Sting) but Sabre takes him over with a northern lights suplex. They trade ankle locks until Ishii shoulders the heck out of him for a breather. Another suplex takes Sabre down this time and the delayed vertical superplex keeps Sabre in trouble. He holds onto the arm though and stomps on it before crashing to the side because Sabre can do things like that.

Rating: B+. This needed more time to hit their full potential but the monster Ishii vs. the villain submission machine is one of the best combinations I’ve seen in a very long time. Sabre is so crazy smooth in the ring and Ishii is one of the best tough guy wrestlers I’ve seen in a long time. I could watch these two fight for months and this was another great one from both guys.

Sabre is presented with a new title.

IWGP Tag Team Titles: Young Bucks vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon vs. Guerrillas Of Destiny

The Guerrillas are defending with Los Ingobernables (Evil and Sanada here) having won the World Tag League. They then requested that the Bucks be added because they wanted to avenge past losses. The champs also have Bad Luck Fale and Jado in their corner. Tama and Matt start things off with Tama showing off his new “good guy” persona by offering a handshake.

Evil uses the distraction to tag himself in and pull Tama to the floor. Everything breaks down and Matt gets slammed onto the ramp to bring up his annual back injury. Back in and the Guerrillas beat up Evil with Loa hitting a top rope headbutt, only to have Tama’s version broken up. The Bucks get in their shots on Evil as well to continue his bad night. Matt grabs the Sharpshooter as Nick dives onto Sanada. Evil makes the rope and comes back with a running clothesline to Matt.

It’s off to Sanada to clean house on everyone, including the slingshot dive onto the Bucks. That’s enough selling from the Bucks though as they’re right back up with a springboard Blockbuster/Russian legsweep combination on Sanada but the Guerrillas come back in to start wrecking things (again). The Tower of Doom sends Matt back first onto the mat, leaving Nick to hit a 450. Fale and Jado come in and are dispatched by the Bucks just as quickly but Los Ingobernables get up for Everything Is Evil and the Magic Killer. Sanada moonsaults onto Nick for the pin and the titles at 10:16.

Rating: C+. This was similar to the Junior Tag Team Title match with a lot of stuff crammed in. That’s not the worst thing in the world but it’s another quick match in a series of them tonight. Evil and Sanada have been awesome for a long time now though and it makes sense to put the titles back on them. Now just keep the things on them for awhile this time around.

IWGP United States Title: Juice Robinson vs. Cody

Cody, in Jacksonville Jaguars colors for a nice touch, is defending and I think you know where this is going. A pre-bell belt shot misses and Juice starts hammering away until Cody grabs his knee. Juice isn’t buying it and stays on him with a gutbuster. That’s enough for Juice to go up top but Brandi covers Cody up to prevent the dive. Pulp Friction on the apron is broken up with a shove into the post and Juice is holding his shoulder. Back in and Cody busts out some jumping jacks before stopping for a kiss from Brandi.

Speaking of Brandi, she hits a spear with her bionic shoulder but the referee tosses her. Pulp Friction is countered into Cross Rhodes for a close two and Cody is getting frustrated. Another Pulp Friction is reversed into Cross Rhodes on Cody, who of course hits a Pulp Friction of his own for two more. Cody whips him with the weightlifting belt but tells Robinson to get up. That’s just what Juice does before hammering away with left hands. Pulp Friction connects and Robinson adds a second for the pin and the title at 9:05.

Rating: D+. Brandi aside, this was pretty bad with the match flying by and not having any time to do anything. It felt like they skipped the beginning and most of the middle and just went to the finish, which didn’t make for much of a match. Robinson getting the title back is fine, but egads can something other than the opener get fifteen minutes tonight?

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title: Taiji Ishimori vs. Kushida

Ishimori, of Bullet Club, is challenging here. And here’s a mini Kushida….and Doc Brown comes out to get him. Doc pulls out a remote control and seemingly blows mini Kushida up, turning him into the real thing. Eh I love Back to the Future so I’m good, even if that didn’t make much sense. Kushida starts in on the wristlock before kicking at the arm in a smart move. The cartwheel into the dropkick has Ishimori in even more trouble but it’s too early for the Hoverboard Lock.

Ishimori grabs the LeBell Lock in the middle of the ring and the crawl to the rope takes its time. A springboard seated senton keeps Kushida in trouble and the sliding German suplex, ala John Morrison, keeps Kushida down. Kushida grabs a triangle choke but Ishimori fights up and spins around for a failed Crossface attempt. A Tombstone into a Codebreaker is countered and Kushida kicks him down again. Another Codebreaker gives Ishimori two but Kushida reverses a suplex into the Hoverboard Lock.

That’s rolled through into an AA as Kushida isn’t able to do much with the rather unstoppable Ishimori. Kushida grabs a quick Back to the Future and tries another but Ishimori blocks (I’m not sure that’s how it’s supposed to work) so Kushida blasts him with a right hand. That’s shrugged off as well and the Bloody Cross gives Ishimori the title at 11:16.

Rating: B-. Geez this hasn’t been a good night for the champions so far. The problem for Kushida is there’s nothing left for him to do as a junior heavyweight so what is there left for him to do in the entire promotion? Ishimori looked like a killer here and could be a heck of a champion for a long time. Or until next Wrestle Kingdom when every champion loses again.

We recap Kazuchika Okada vs. Jay White. Okada was the king of the company for a few years but manager/adviser Gedo turned on him in favor of White. That sent White onto a great heel run where he wants to prove that he’s the best and now it’s time for him to face the huge challenge. Also, Okada has been shaken up since losing the World Title but is back in form tonight.

Jay White vs. Kazuchika Okada

Okada’s trunks have returned, because it’s the old, amazing version again tonight. They don’t go straight at each other to start so Gedo distracts Okada and White stomps away. Okada is right back up with an elbow to the back of the head but White suplexes him out to the floor. Back in and White gets two off a belly to back suplex and we hit the cravate. Okada fights up and gets all ticked off though as the fans start getting into this again.

White gets sat on top for the dropkick to the floor, followed by a running big boot to send him over the barricade. Okada isn’t done and sends Gedo out next to White for a running crossbody to take them both down. Back in and Okada hits the Rainmaker pose but gets caught in a German suplex. A Rock Bottom gives White two but Blade Runner is blocked. It’s time to cheat as Gedo puts a chair in the ring and tries to come in, only to have the chair shot miss.

Okada scores with the dropkick but walks into a suplex onto the back of his head. Another Blade Runner is countered into a Tombstone for two as White’s kicking brings the fans back up to cheer for Okada. Yet another dropkick connects and it’s a series of counters until the Rainmaker connects. Okada isn’t done though and tries it again, only to get countered into the Blade Runner for the completely clean pin at 14:21.

Rating: B. That’s the kind of story to a match that this show has been needing with White beating Okada at his best (which was specified multiple times throughout the night). They made a star here and that’s exactly what they needed to do. It helps that I’ve been a White fan since I saw him debut in ROH so this was really cool to see. They told a story here and it’s the kind of career defining win that someone like White needs. Well done here with a very good story, especially with the usually cool Okada being out for revenge instead of the win because Gedo has gotten into his head. Very good all around here.

We recap Chris Jericho vs. Tetsuya Naito, which is a long running feud after Jericho took Naito’s Intercontinental Title. Jericho has since said that he scared Naito into his shell and gone into his usual Jericho awesomeness, attacking Naito at every chance and saying he’ll end Naito’s career. Naito has basically responded with “eh, it’s cool”, which fits him perfectly.

Intercontinental Title: Tetsuya Naito vs. Chris Jericho

Jericho is defending and this is No DQ. Since he’s Chris Jericho, he comes to the ring in a black hat, a spiked leather jacket and wearing Crow inspired face paint. In other words, it somehow suits him perfectly. Naito jumps him before the bell as payback for Jericho doing the same thing in their previous match. The referee rings the bell with them on the floor because he knows they’re not getting inside anytime soon.

Naito piledrives him on the ramp and takes him inside for the removal of a buckle pad. A hurricanrana takes Jericho (with the long hair again) down and a clothesline puts him right back on the floor. Naito’s dive is blocked with a kendo stick shot though and it’s time for the stick shots. The springboard dropkick knocks Naito off the apron and Jericho grabs a camera for some filming of the downed Naito. They head into the announcers’ area with Jericho hitting one of the scariest looking DDT’s I’ve ever seen, with Naito landing on the top of his head with a CRACK.

Jericho rings the bell but the referee won’t stop the match, even though Naito seems a bit dead. A high crossbody gives Jericho two and it’s time for some listening to the crowd, because Jericho knows how to be a huge villain. The Lionsault gets two and there’s the belly to back suplex into the arrogant cover for the same. Naito comes back with some right hands and shrugs off some kicks to the face.

Some spit in Jericho’s face sets up a neckbreaker for two but the Walls put Naito right back in trouble. Naito slips out and kicks Jericho away before hitting something like a pump handle suplex for two. Destino is reversed into the Walls again (Jericho: “ASK HIM!”) until Naito finds the kendo stick for the break. A baseball swing with the stick drops Jericho again but he scores with a Codebreaker for a close two. Some chairs are thrown in and piled up but the powerbomb onto them are countered into a DDT near them.

Naito hits his own Codebreaker for two and a German suplex onto the chairs makes it even worse. Destino is countered again though and Jericho shoves the referee (not really necessary) so a low blow can stop Naito. There’s the Codebreaker for a heck of a near fall so Jericho grabs the belt. That’s countered into a hot shot into the exposed buckle, setting up Destino for another white hot near fall. Naito blasts him with the belt and now Destino gives Naito the pin at 22:34.

Rating: A-. This felt more like the Jericho vs. Omega match as Jericho was the angry veteran who could still hang in there and show how vicious he could be. It was entertaining stuff with Naito showing that he could do it on this stage and win the big one over the veteran. I had a really good time with this and Naito came off like the star they want to make the future center of the promotion, which he pretty much is.

Jericho storms off as Naito is awarded the title.

We recap Kenny Omega vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi for the IWGP World Title. Champion Omega is the new breed while Tanahashi is the old dog who is having yet another career resurgence to prove that he’s still got it one more time. He won the G1 Climax tournament to earn the shot and Omega doesn’t seem to be taking him completely seriously while promising to destroy Tanahashi once and for all.

IWGP World Title: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kenny Omega

Omega is defending and has the Young Bucks with him, plus an NES inspired entrance to make him a bit more awesome. Tanahashi on the other hand has a cool ring jacket with the shape of the title cut out around the waist. There’s no major contact for the first minute and a half so Tanahashi gets in a slap. Omega drives him into the ropes so Tanahashi slaps him again. A very early attempt at the One Winged Angel is countered into an abdominal stretch before Tanahashi starts in on the knee.

They slap it out with Omega’s leg tied up and Omega gets in a shot of his own to take over. He starts hammering on the back as the announcers go over Tanahashi’s main event history, including talking about how bad business was when he took over the top spot. A running kick to the back sets up more slaps to the face and a belly to back sends Tanahashi to the floor. There’s a belly to back suplex onto the apron as Omega is a full on heel here. Tanahashi gets in a dropkick but Omega drives him back first into the apron to take over again.

They head into the Japanese announcers’ area with Omega running over a commentator and raising his hand as an apology. It’s table time with Omega setting one up on the floor before taking the fight back inside for the chop off. A dragon screw legwhip takes Omega down again and the middle rope Swanton gets two. Omega is fine enough to hit the running Fameasser and Tanahashi falls outside. It’s too early for the Rise of the Terminator so Tanahashi breaks it up, only to be thrown outside for the big running flip dive. Omega’s foot hits him in the face but Omega lands hard on the edge of the ramp.

Back in and Omega hits a pair of snapdragons and the first V Trigger (I’ll put the over/under at 15). The One Winged Angel is countered and Omega’s knee gives out. There’s another legwhip, followed by Twist and Shout into the Texas Cloverleaf to stay on the knee. For a flashback, a Styles Clash plants Omega but the High Fly Flow (sounds like a shower setting) hits knees. Another V Trigger hits the buckle though and a third dragon screw, this time over the rope, has Omega in more trouble.

The Sling Blade on the apron puts him down again and Tanahashi puts him on the table. Another High Fly Flow misses Omega though and they’re both near death outside. Back in again and Omega hits a top rope double stomp to the back. Two powerbombs get two each and the sitout version gets the same. The frustrated Omega chokes away so Tanahashi comes back with a Sling Blade and it’s time to slug it out again. Omega has to cover up until some knees to the ribs cut Tanahashi off.

Tanahashi shrugs off a German suplex but gets caught in a Sling Blade to switch things up. Omega drops a High Fly Flow of his own for two and there’s another V Trigger to rock Tanahashi again. A regular knee to the head is called a V Trigger and the reverse hurricanrana connects. The….whatevereth V Trigger connects but the One Winged Angel is countered into a reverse hurricanrana from Tanahashi.

A high crossbody sets up the real High Fly Flow for a crazy close two. Tanahashi goes up again and gets caught with another V Trigger. The super dragon suplex (with Tanahashi flipping over and landing on his face to avoid the whole broken neck thing) sets up another V Trigger but the One Winged Angel is countered into something like a leg lariat. Another Sling Blade sets up another High Fly Flow for the pin and the title in an upset at 39:14.

Rating: A. Very good though not outstanding match here. That might not be the biggest surprise given that Omega seems to be leaving the promotion soon, but it’s still a heck of a performance. Tanahashi getting the title back is a great story with him reclaiming his place at the top of the mountain, but it was still missing a little something that made the previous main events that much better. Still though, great match, as you knew was coming the second the match was announced. Oh and Omega kept the V Triggers to what is considered reasonable by his standards, which is quite the plus.

Post match Omega is carried out and Tanahashi gets the big show closing address. He thanks the fans and wasn’t sure he could get to this level again. Okada helped get him here and he can’t believe it. He thanks the fans one more time and uses everything he has left for some air guitar before collapsing. One final thank you wraps us up.

Overall Rating: A. First and foremost: the show was just over four hours long instead of the usual five and that’s pretty close to the sweet spot. I could have gone for some of the matches being longer, but I’ll take the show going short rather than long every time. The big matches all delivered and while there were a few weak spots (Cody’s match in particular), the great matches are more than enough to make this a classic. It’s the highest rating I’ve given the show in four years and it was also the easiest show to watch in a long time.

Overall this show felt like a changing of the guard/resetting, with every title changing hands. Maybe those titles go right back where they were soon enough, but it certainly seems that things are changing around here. Given the startup of AEW and WWE wanting new talent, we might not be seeing some of these people on this stage again. That makes things very interesting, but more importantly it means they get to go out on a high note. Great show, and the best I’ve seen them do in a long time.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: Ring of Honor Wrestling

G1 Climax Special In San Francisco
Date: July 7, 2018
Location: Cow Palace, San Francisco, California
Commentators: Jim Ross, Josh Barnett

We’re back stateside now and that means we should be in for a fun show. Last year’s version of this saw the crowning of the first ever United States Champion and the title is on the line again tonight. However, the main event is of course for the World Title with new champion Kenny Omega defending both the title and the leadership of the Bullet Club against Cody. Let’s get to it.

The announcers, in front of a mostly empty arena, welcome us to the show.

The opening video looks at the show a year ago and then tonight’s five title match. This has a very old school WCW feel to it and that’s not a bad thing. As expected, this mainly focuses on Cody vs. Kenny Omega in tonight’s main event.

Bullet Club vs. Chaos

Bullet Club: King Haku/Tama Tonga/Tonga Loa/Yujiro Takahashi/Chase Owens

Chaos: Yoshi-Hashi/Gedo/Rocky Romero/Sho/Yoh

Yes THAT Haku, the father of the Tongans (the Guerrillas of Destiny). Yujiro doesn’t have his ladies with him, making his existence far less important. Haku and Yujiro start things off and a running dropkick puts Haku down. The Tongans come in for a triple headbutt and it’s off to Romero vs. Loa. That’s it for the one on one as the Guerrillas splash the heck out of him in the corner.

A piledriver gets two and it’s Loa staying in to beat on Romero even more. Owens comes in and gets two off a backbreaker before quickly leaving so the more interesting Tongans can take over again. JR mistakenly calls Takahashi a junior heavyweight, again showing the level of research he puts into these shows.

Romero hurricanranas both Owens and Loa down at the same time and it’s Yoh (not Hashi JR) coming in to clean house. A reverse DDT gets Yujiro out of trouble and it’s Tama running Sho and Yoh over again. Everything breaks down with an exchange of kicks to the face and Romero suicide dives Loa into the barricade. Back in and Haku Death Grips Gedo, leaving Tonga to Gun Stun him for the pin at 9:24.

Rating: C-. Perfectly acceptable opener here, JR’s issues with knowing what he was talking about aside. The Guerrillas are still one of the coolest teams around and Haku adds the legendary/HE’S GOING TO KILL ME vibe to the team. Chaos continues to be a thing that just kind of exists around here and that’s actually kind of an important role to play. Fine for an opener.

Tomohiro Ishii/Toru Yano vs. Minoru Suzuki/Zack Sabre Jr.

Chaos vs. Suzuki-gun in a rematch from last month’s Dominion where Suzuki and Sabre won. Ishii and Suzuki hit each other in the face over and over to start, as they are required to do, likely by law. Suzuki actually gets knocked into the corner and tags out early on, giving us Sabre vs….Yano. Great. Ishii sends Suzuki into the post as Yano gets his hand cranked a bit.

The hiding in the ropes doesn’t work as Suzuki is right there to yell in his face. Sabre starts in on a modified Indian Deathlock as the eternal battle between Suzuki and Ishii continues on the floor. Suzuki comes back in and grabs a few double submissions on Yano. I enjoy seeing him in extreme pain far too often. Somehow that’s not enough or a submission so it’s back to Ishii to knock Suzuki into the corner.

This time it’s Suzuki getting the better of it and knocking Ishii off his feet, only to kick him in the face. You don’t do that to Ishii, who shrugs off the sleeper and suplexes Suzuki. Yano comes in and takes off the buckle pad again (Yano? Doing the same spots?), leaving Ishii and Suzuki to fight on the floor. The low blow is blocked but Ishii comes back in with a clothesline to knock Sabre into the cover to give Yano the pin at 9:42.

Rating: C. Ishii vs. Suzuki is always entertaining but egads I can’t stand Yano. It’s the same series of stuff over and over again and I really don’t need to see any of it ever again. Sabre didn’t get to do anything here and that’s a waste of someone with a very unique set of talents. Oh and he even got to eat the pin from Yano. How lucky he is.

Suzuki beats up a Young Lion to blow off some steam.

Quick video on a meet and greet yesterday.

Hangman Page/Marty Scurll vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi/Kushida

Bullet Club vs. Taguchi Japan because everyone is in a stable around here. Kushida and Scurll start things off as JR starts listing UK wrestlers. Scurll gets taken down without much effort but manages to grab a quickly broken Octopus Hold. Back up and Kushida spins around Marty to get on his nerves so it’s off to Tanahashi vs. Page.

Tanahashi starts cranking on the arm and scores with a middle rope crossbody. That means some air guitar, with JR saying he played his own earlier today. We’ll move on from that as fast as possible with the Club sending both guys to the floor with Scurll hitting an apron kick, followed by Page’s shooting star from the apron as well. They even beat up Ryusuke Taguchi for fun.

Back in and Kushida nails Marty with the handspring elbow, setting up the hot tag to Tanahashi. House is cleaned in a hurry but Tanahashi has to fight out of a crossface chickenwing. Instead Kushida comes back in and dropkicks Scurll down. A Sling Blade puts Page down as well and Kushida grabs the Hoverboard Lock on Scurll. Page sends Tanahashi to the floor though and comes in with the save off the Buckshot Lariat. The Rite of Passage ends Kushida at 9:52.

Rating: C. Perfectly fine tag match here and I can always go for more Kushida. Page continues to look like a star and that’s going to serve him well in the future. I’m not sure how far he’ll go in Japan, but the look alone should be enough to get him somewhere. Tanahashi continues to be the guy you can put into high profile spots and get something out of him even though his time on top is over, which is incredibly valuable.

Never Openweight Title: Hirooki Goto vs. Jeff Cobb

Cobb is challenging after asking for a title shot. Goto’s entrance always feels epic and it’s cool to see it in America for a change. Cobb powers him around to start so Goto pounds him in the back. That makes Cobb take his hair down and a hard shoulder rocks the champ. An overhead belly to belly shows off Cobb’s power so Goto gets smart by low bridging him to the floor.

A toss into the post has Cobb’s head bouncing off the steel (DING!) and it’s off to the neck crank back inside. JR of course starts comparing Cobb to Steve Williams, because Williams played football at Oklahoma. Cobb fights up and hits a spinning belly to back for two but misses the standing moonsault.

Goto muscles him up for a suplex of his own but Cobb is right back with an Oklahoma Stampede. Dang maybe JR isn’t as much of a rambling old man as I thought. The Tour of the Island (spinning powerslam) is countered into a sleeper from Goto as JR wants to know why Goto isn’t working on Cobb’s heavily taped shoulder. Instead it’s the fireman’s carry backbreaker for two and the GTR to retain the title at 12:17.

Rating: C-. There were some flashes of what could have been in there with Cobb looking like the monster (say an Aztec monster for example) he could and should be. Goto was his usual self, making this feel more like a wasted opportunity than anything else. Cobb can be a heck of a performer and while he was getting close in there, it didn’t feel like he was unleashed as he should have been.

Very quick video of the Young Bucks promising to retain their titles.

IWGP Tag Team Titles: Young Bucks vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon

Los Ingobernables (Evil/Sanada) are challenging here after losing the titles to the Bucks last month. Sanada and Nick get things going and they knock the other’s partners off the apron before even going at it. Instead everyone runs in and misses something, setting up a triple headscissors with Matt Scorpion Deathlocking Evil and turning everyone ever for a near Human Centipede. A double dropkick has Sanada in trouble but Evil comes back in, allowing Sanada to superkick Matt in the hip.

It’s Matt in trouble and a backsplash gives Evil two. We hit the bow and arrow hold as the announcers talk about how much punishment the Bucks can take. Fair enough actually. Nick dropkicks his way to freedom but Sanada runs around and pulls Matt off the apron. Good idea, though the hot tag brings Matt in about ten seconds later. Matt wastes no time in going for the Deathlock but his back spasms flare up again.

Nick is back up though and hits the slingshot X Factor on Evil, but Sanada catches his moonsault in a dragon sleeper. I’d still love to see someone just step aside ala Samoa Joe. That’s broken up as well and Evil eats a pair of superkicks, only to have Sanada springboard in with a double dropkick. Back up and Sanada puts on a SWINGING DRAGON SLEEPER with Nick making a fast save.

The 450 gets two and Matt gets the Deathlock again. Sanada does a pretty awesome dramatic crawl for the ropes, which you wouldn’t expect from a heel. The Bucks are sent into each other and it’s Evil coming in with some German suplexes. Darkness Falls (sitout Samoan drop slam) gets two and there’s a Magic Killer for two on Nick.

Rating: B. I liked the match (as usual the Bucks are much better in Japan) but there were a lot of superkicks and that Tombstone onto the chair only getting two was a lot to take. Throw in Matt being up all of thirty seconds later and it’s a bit much to take. I wasn’t expecting a title change here or anything so I can easily settle for a nice match between teams with chemistry.

New Japan will be back in America in September and November (twice).

And now, a fifteen minute intervention, complete with an ad for the merch stands.

JR and Barnett preview Hiromu Takahashi vs. Dragon Lee (JR: “I worry about their long term safety.” Oh my indeed.).

Video on Jay White vs. Juice Robinson for the US Title. White accuses Robinson of spending too much time focusing on the fans and not enough going for the big wins.

Yesterday at the press conference, Cody talked about being criticized for his in-ring abilities. Kenny Omega said let’s have a big match. Not exactly strong promos here but that’s not what New Japan does (not a bad thing).

Video on Cody vs. Omega, focusing on Cody wanting to take over Bullet Club and Omega defending the team. Omega says this has happened before, showing clips of AJ Styles becoming IWGP World Champion and then getting kicked out of the team. The Young Bucks are on Omega’s side but cost him the match against Cody at Supercard of Honor. Cody is obsessed with becoming champion so Kenny says bring it. Now this was very good and caught me up on the story while making me want to see the match.

The announcers recap the first half of the show.

Kazuchika Okada/Will Ospreay vs. Tetsuya Naito/Bushi

Chaos vs. Los Ingobernables and egads Okada looks strange without the title. Naito and Okada start things off and the fans are rather appreciative. Hang on though as Naito takes about a minute and a half before he’s willing to lock up. Apparently the delay suits him as he sends Okada outside and rolls into the pose. JR compares it to the People’s Elbow and….yeah I can actually get that one.

Bushi and Ospreay come in with a hurricanrana sending Bushi flying. Naito comes in with a dropkick as everything breaks down in a hurry. We settle down to Naito dropkicking Ospreay in the corner and Bushi coming back in for a choke with a shirt. Ospreay gets in an enziguri to set up the hot tag to Okada so things can slow down a bit. A high crossbody gets two on Naito but the Tombstone is escaped.

Okada misses the dropkick as well but Destino is countered. The Tombstone is countered again so it’s the over the shoulder neckbreaker onto the knee instead to put Naito down. Bushi comes in and suckers Ospreay into a kick in the corner and gets two off the running Codebreaker. Okada comes back in for a missed Rainmaker on Naito but does hit that perfect dropkick. The Stormbreaker is enough to put Bushi away at 11:59.

Rating: D+. This uh, wasn’t very good with neither team exactly seeming thrilled to be out there. It was a bunch of signature stuff and Ospreay finishing with his big move, which isn’t exactly what you would want on a major shot. Instead it came off like a post show dark match with the guys putting in no more than the minimum effort. That being said, Okada and Naito at low speed is still better than most anyone else in the world.

Very quick video on Hiromu Takahashi.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title: Hiromu Takahashi vs. Dragon Lee

Lee is challenging and his CMLL World Light Heavyweight Title isn’t on the line. These two are longtime rivals so the history is built in. Takahashi puts his Best of the Super Juniors trophy and Darryl (stuffed animal) on the announcers’ table so Lee hits a running hurricanrana over the apron to kick start things. You know it’s not slowing down already as a heck of a suicide dive sends Takahashi into the barricade.

Back in and Lee mocks Naito’s pose, instantly turning him into the heel for the match. Or at least for the next few seconds. A very long dropkick puts Takahashi down but he’s right up with a hurricanrana to send Lee outside. Takahashi followed with a top rope seated senton to take Lee down again. They head to the apron and then the top rope with Takahashi getting knocked backwards so his legs are tied in the ropes.

The top rope double stomp absolutely crushes Tanahashi but they get back inside at the same time. Back in and they trade a series of hard German suplexes to drop each other on their heads. They’re nice enough to mix it up a bit with some kicks to the head and a double clothesline to put both guys down. They pull themselves to their feet and chop it out so hard that we pause for the sake of regaining feeling in their chests. Those loud chops never get old.

Lee charges into an overhead suplex into the corner and Takahashi has a scary look on his face. One heck of a C4 plants Takahashi but he reverses a suplex into a triangle choke. Lee can’t powerbomb his way to freedom so he pulls Tanahashi up and throws him backwards in a suplex, dropping Tanahashi on his head. That would result in a neck injury that would put him on the injured list for about a year. Lee isn’t done as he suplexes him into a powerbomb for two. Another powerbomb is countered into a Canadian Destroyer though and a very week Time Bomb (understandable) finishes Lee at 16:20.

Rating: B+. Well that worked, save for the whole nearly broken neck and all that jazz. These guys were going nuts with the high spots and obviously have some serious chemistry together. Takahashi has found his groove and Lee is a heck of a luchador, making this about as good of a matchup as you can get. You could see the life go out of Takahashi at the end though and that’s pretty understandable given how horrible the injury was.

We recap Juice Robinson vs. Jay White. Robinson is on a quest for his first title and White is trying to prove that he’s the best around. White has also broken Robinson’s hand to make this much more personal. Robinson on the other hand has promised to win the American title clad in red white and blue with stars on his nipples.

US Title: Jay White vs. Juice Robinson

Robinson is challenging and does indeed wear red, white and blue, along with a rather feathery hat. During the introductions, it’s made clear that Robinson can be disqualified for using the cast on his left hand. They go straight for the brawling to start with Robinson sending him outside for a flip dive from the apron. White gets thrown into and then through a barricade before being taken back inside for the snap right hands. A belly to back suplex drops Robinson right back over the top and White whips him hard into the barricade, knocking it off again.

After a little mocking of/flipping off the crowd, it’s time to start in on that bad hand. Robinson gets suplexed down again and we hit the Muta Lock. After a rope grab, Robinson is tied in the same ropes for some chops and a running shot to the head. Robinson gets the better of a chop off and hits some running corner clotheslines. A German suplex cuts Robinson off and it’s time to crank on that bad left hand. A trip to the floor goes badly for Robinson, who is sent into the barricade again.

This time though it goes HARD into JR’s ribs (Josh to White: “You done f***** up now.”) and Josh gets up and into White’s face. JR is wondering where his hat is and complains about the producers as White misses a chair shot to the hand. Robinson hits a good looking spinebuster to drive White into the apron but he trips Robinson face first onto the apron.

Back up and White can’t hit the German suplex off the apron (because we’ve already had one horrible neck injury tonight) so he settles for a Russian legsweep instead. That’s good for a nineteen count with the announcer getting anxious as he gets closer to the twenty count. Robinson is fine enough to hit a superplex for two but White punches him in the head over and over.

The Blade Runner is broken up but Robinson nearly runs over the referee. That’s enough of a distraction for White to hit a low blow and since wrestling referees are very fragile, he’s down long enough for Robinson to get in a cast shot. The jumping Unprettier gives Robinson two and White’s back to back half nelson suplexes get the same. Another Blade Runner attempt is loaded up but Robinson reverses into a rollup for the pin and the title at 23:22.

Rating: B. There was a great story here with both guys being willing to go as far as they could to leave with the title and hitting one big move after another to get there. The ending though as the hard gear shift, which is one of my favorite things to see in wrestling. They both used every big thing they could but couldn’t put the other away, so Robinson used a surprise wrestling move to win. That’s very cool and I always love seeing it.

Robinson is thrilled to win, even though JR thinks his name is Jay White.

We recap Omega vs. Cody. Omega has done everything he could to get here and says it represents pro wrestling. Cody though has been a thorn in his side though and is even trying to take over the Bullet Club. They fought earlier this year at Supercard of Honor where Cody won with an accidental assist from the Young Bucks. That was on Cody’s turf though and now it’s Omega’s turn to have a home court advantage.

IWGP World Title: Kenny Omega vs. Cody

Omega is defending and I do love the way they show every champion before the match. It doesn’t take long and is a nice nod to history. Cody has Brandi with him, but hang on as he needs to sit on a throne which is carried to the ring. Sounds like an homage to King Haku to me. Omega on the other hand has the Bucks in his corner. You can debate the importance of the IWGP World Title vs. the WWE Championship but sweet goodness that is a great looking belt.

The fans are behind Omega and they stare each other down at the bell. There’s no contact in the first minute as Cody is too busy glaring down at the Bucks. We get a hard lockup to start with Cody going to the eyes to take over early on. Cody doesn’t follow up though, instead pausing and then going for another lockup. Omega hits a hard shoulder but Cody’s actually knocks the champ down. A hard chop stuns Cody but he’s fine enough to uppercut Omega out to the floor. The brawl heads outside with the fans all over Cody with some very un-PG language.

Back in and the snap powerslam (Cody has been watching Goldust matches) gets two as they’re starting to get out of first gear. Omega’s running jumping Fameasser sends Cody outside again, only to have him hide behind Brandi. They change places and Cody hits a big springboard dive (without any twisting and instead just crashing down onto Omega, which suits someone of Cody’s size and style) but Omega sends him over the barricade and onto a table.

The double stomp through the table crushes Cody and let’s set up a second table at ringside. Cody can get away before Omega tries the big dive and a table shot to the ribs doubles Omega over. Back in and Cody kicks at the leg before grabbing a cravate. A hurricanrana gets Omega out of trouble and sends Cody to the floor where he turns over the table in frustration. Apparently a wood lover, Omega takes him down with a big flip dive, followed by a springboard missile dropkick back inside.

The first (of many) V Trigger connects and there’s the Snapdragon, only to have Cody come back with one of his own. The Figure Four goes on and Cody is quite a bit better at it than his daddy. Omega however is just as good as any Flair opponent and turns it over without much effort. Since we’re out of things to do, it’s time to bring in a ladder, which feels completely out of place here. Cody drops him ribs first onto the ladder, drawing the Bucks over to check on Omega.

With Omega on the table, Cody goes up the ladder in the ring (as JR rants about the guy who set up the barricades tonight) but Omega is right back up. The superplex through the table is teased but Cody doesn’t feel like going through traction so he superplexes Omega back down. Cody grabs the belt but gets caught in a reverse hurricanrana. The ref gets bumped (of course) and it’s time for Cody to pick the belt up again. He drops it and hits a messy Cross Rhodes for two (from a second referee) instead.

There’s another V Trigger and a second connects in the corner. Make it four in about a minute but Cody blocks the fifth, showing that the first four weren’t exactly impressive. Omega can’t get him up for the One Winged Angel so he switches to a running powerbomb over the top onto the table…..which doesn’t break. That was good for some solid cringing. Cody is DONE so Brandi comes in to cover him up, allowing Cody to blast Omega with a clothesline. Two more knees have Cody in trouble and a Jay Driller gets two. The One Winged Angel retains the title at 34:16.

Rating: B. It’s good, but there’s a far cry here than so much of what Omega is capable of doing. The tables were one thing but that ladder felt like an unnecessary crutch that was used for a single spot. Cody just doesn’t seem capable of doing these bigger matches (save for one with Okada) and that hurts things when he’s in this kind of a match. Omega was doing his thing here but it’s not like the title ever felt like it was in any real danger. The first match going to Cody made this one obvious and it wasn’t bad, but nothing great.

Post match everyone comes in to check on Cody and Omega with Cody leaving him to pose. Omega says he’s proud of having his first title defense in front of these people in this historic building. We’re all people though and we all deserve a second chance, including Cody. Omega does the goodnight and goodbye and goes up the ramp, where Haku and the Guerrillas of Destiny come out to celebrate. Massive posing and too sweeting ensue…..and the Tongans jump Omega and the Bucks!

Tama Tonga pulls off his Bullet Club shirt to reveal a Firing Squad (new stable name) shirt. Tonga Loa and Haku have them as well as the destruction continues. Adam Page and Marty Scurll run in but get beaten down too as Tonga shouts that Omega did this. Chase Owens and Yujiro Takahashi come in and get taken out as well. The bell keeps ringing, which JR thinks is just annoying the Tongans even more.

Cody staggers back out and gets handed a chair, which he uses on the Tongans. That lasts all of five seconds before he gets beaten down, including a spike piledriver on a chair. The Tongans leave, saying there is no leader of Bullet Club. In the ring, Cody helps Omega to his feet for the big hug. In other words, Bullet Club is fine. At least this part of it. The Club poses on the stage and the announcers wrap up the night. It’s kind of odd to see the team get beaten down and then stand up for the focus like that. Really good closing angle here, which helped make up for a main event that didn’t live up to its hype.

A quick highlight package closes things out.

Overall Rating: B-. The show was trying hard and it had its strong points, but there were several points that didn’t work so well. The first few matches were completely skippable and the big tag match was disappointing. There are some very good points though, with Lee vs. Takahashi being entertaining, the main event/post match angle, the Bucks’ match and the US Title match all being strong.

It’s a good show that is nowhere near the level of their big pay per views, though it’s not supposed to be that kind of a show. New Japan’s expansion is taking its time, but having a good show like this is going to be a strong starting point. Things are going to start picking up in the next few months with the G1 Climax and that’s going to be a lot of fun. Omega as the World Champion is the right call and if they keep things going in the right direction, I’m curious to see where things are going, especially in America.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/07/23/new-book-kbs-complete-2003-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Wrestle Kingdom XII
Date: January 4, 2018
Location: Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan
Attendance: 34,995
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Don Callis

It’s that that day of the year (not even time for this show) as we’re at New Japan’s biggest show of the year. The main event is IWGP World Champion Kazuchika Okada defending against former champion Tetsuya Naito in what should be a pretty obvious ending, but the match that has gotten almost all of the attention is a dream match between Kenny Omega vs. Chris Jericho. Not only have they set the match up but they’ve actually done some rather hot angles to help build the thing. Let’s get to it.

Please note that I don’t watch much New Japan. I have a decent idea of what’s going on and do follow the stories and developments, but there’s a good chance that I’m going to miss a thing or two.

Pre-Show: New Japan Rumble

This is a Royal Rumble with one minute intervals and pin/submission/over the top eliminations. Katsuya Kitamura (the reigning Young Lions Cup winner who is in crazy shape) is in at #1 and Bushi is in at #2. Kitamura shakes the ropes to start and is quickly choked in the corner with a shirt. Delirious is in at #3 and comes in after a quick lap around the ring. Some chops have no effect on Kitamura so grunting ensues and Delirious is dropped in the corner. Leo Tonga, a 6’10 monster and the Guerrillas of Destiny’s brother, is in at #4 and grabs a lifting Downward Spiral for two on Kitamura.

Delirious and Bushi trade some kicks until Manabu Nakanishi, a former IWGP World Champion, is in at #5. Nothing of note happens for not (standard battle royal in other words) and Chase Owens (an honorary Tongan) is in at #6 as the intervals are already way out of whack. Owens gives Delirious a quick package piledriver for the first elimination to clear the ring out a bit. Nakanishi has Bushi in a torture rack before tossing him out as Yuji Nagata is in at #7.

Nagata and Nakanishi, current partners, do the old man slugout with the latter getting the better of it. A double pin gets rid of Tonga, Nagata rolls Nakanishi up for a quick pin and Owens/Kitamura get together to pin Nagata in the span of thirty seconds. A package piledriver eliminates Kitamura and it’s Taka Michinoku in at #8 to go one on one with Owens. Since Taka takes forever to get to the ring, Yoshinobu Kanemaru (Taka’s stablemate in Suzuki-Gun) is in at #9 in short order. Owens is double teamed until Desperado, also of Suzuki-Gun, is in at #10.

Chase actually hangs on until a shot of booze to the face is good for an elimination to leave Suzuki-Gun alone in the ring. That should mean a big name coming in and it’s Jushin Thunder Liger in at #11 (with the always awesome theme). Jushin gets in some palm strikes but tries the surfboard for some reason, allowing the triple teaming to start all over. Suzuki-Gun goes for the mask but it’s Tiger Mask in at #12.

Desperado goes for Mask’s mask, only to have Tiger switch places and almost get Desperado’s mask off instead. A tiger driver gets two on Desperado and it’s Gino Gambino, a rather large Australian, is in at #13. Desperado and Tiger lose their masks, which seems to be a double elimination. Liger, Kanemaru and Taka are pinned in short order, leaving Gambino to face Toa Henare, another Young Lion, who is in at #14. A Samoan drop gets two on Gambino as Yoshi-Hashi is in at #15. Hashi chops at Henare for one (Were you expecting anything more off a chop?) and David Finlay is in at #16.

Finlay wastes no time in Stunning Gambino for an elimination. Henare is put out again, leaving Finlay to roll Hashi up for another pin (despite his shoulder being WAY off the mat). Yujiro Takahashi is in at #17 with a rather good looking woman in a leather bunny mask. A clothesline gets rid of Finlay in short order and Takahashi is all alone. Cheeseburger is n at #18 because of course he is. The tiny man gets in a bulldog and a stomp as Satoshi Kojima (quite a legend in his own right) is in at #19.

Yujiro grabs a fisherman’s buster on Kojima but goes after Cheeseburger instead of following up. Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Kojima’s longtime partner, is in at #20. The rapid Mongolian chops have Takahashi in trouble and it’s Masahito Kakihara (a cancer survivor of UWFI fame) in at #21 for the last entrant. A 3D plants Yujiro and a lariat gets rid of him, leaving us with Kakihara, Cheeseburger, Kojima and Tenzan. Kojima shows Cheeseburger how to throw some machine gun chops but he’s smart enough to roll away from a splash.

Back up and Cheeseburger and Kakihara try chops to the chest with Cheeseburger’s having no effect (BECAUSE HE’S REALLY SMALL! LIKE MUCH SMALLER THAN EVERYONE ELSE BUT HE NEVER GIVES UP! DO YOU GET THE IDEA YET???) and a double low bridge eliminate Tenzan and Kojima. A quick STO ends Cheeseburger at 32:06 to give Kakihara the win.

Rating: D+. The ending was a nice touch with Kakihara being a feel good story after his illness. The rest of the match was the usual mess, though this isn’t the kind of match where you’re looking for a big story. People got their stuff in and were able to appear at the show, which is all you can ask for. I wasn’t wild on the multiple instances of people being eliminated in short order but again, that’s not the point in a match like this. It accomplished its goal, despite not being the most thrilling thing in the world.

Post match Kakihara puts on a shirt in honor of Yoshihiro Takayama, who was paralyzed in a match back in May. Cool moment there, especially for a cancer survivor like Kakihara.

The opening video runs the card down. There’s something cool about having the match order announced in advance. I like wondering what order some WWE shows go in but this does help a lot if you’re looking for a single match.

As usual, the Dome looks great with attendance up pretty strongly from last year. That’s always a good sign.

A female announcer seems to welcome us to the show.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles: Young Bucks vs. Roppongi 3K

3K (Ring of Honor’s Tempura Boyz, Sho and Yoh) is defending and has Rocky Romero in their corner. Nick shoves Yoh around to start and it’s already time for a Sharpshooter attempt (WWE did it so the Bucks can too!). Yoh actually grabs one of his own, drawing in the partners so Matt can put Sho in another Sharpshooter. That means a slap off for a unique spot, followed by 3K popping up for stereo dropkicks.

Romero actually calls a play (which is a further step than you see most managers take), leading to double flip dives to the floor. Yoh comes up with a bad back though and it’s time for a glorified handicap match in the vein of the Bucks vs. Roppongi Vice from last year. Nick dropkicks Sho down and Romero gets powerbombed onto the ramp. Yoh gets thrown inside and then powerbombed onto the apron as the announcers go over the Bucks’ history at the show.

Matt hurts his own back on a dive so it’s Nick stomping on Yoh at a fairly slow pace. A pretty weak backbreaker has Yoh in trouble so Nick takes Yoh to the ramp for a piledriver. Yoh backdrops his way to freedom and Nick dives onto his brother by mistake. The hot tag brings in Sho to clean house with kicks and suplexes. He even German suplexes both Bucks at once in a surprising display of power.

Nick’s superkicks don’t get him very far so it’s a leg lariat which knocks Sho into the ropes, only to have him lariat Nick down. Yoh and Matt have matching back injuries but Matt is still able to powerbomb him into the corner. A hanging DDT with Nick flipping onto Yoh’s back at the same time is good for two and it’s off to the Sharpshooter. Yoh grabs the rope and More Bang For Your Buck is countered into a rollup for two.

We hit stereo half crabs from the champs with Nick having to hold his brother’s arm up. Eventually Nick kicks his hold away to break up the one on Nick and everyone is down. The healthy guys take turns kicking at the bad backs before Nick superkicks Sho down, followed by a corkscrew dive to the floor. Back in and the Meltzer Driver into the Sharpshooter gives the Bucks the belts for the seventh time at 18:49.

Rating: B. I like this version of the Bucks, but unfortunately you don’t see them that often. This team was a lot more crisp and with only a handful of superkicks throughout a nearly twenty minute match, it was far from the usual drek. What I could go for is something slightly fresher than the same stuff they did with Roppongi Vice in at least two matches I’ve seen. It’s not lazy storytelling but rather long form storytelling and in this case they did change things up enough to make it work. A fresh idea is probably needed now, along with someone other than the Bucks and their opponents of the month in the title picture.

Never Openweight Six Man Tag Team Titles: Gauntlet Match

Bad Luck Fale/Guerrillas of Destiny are defending. Two teams start, the winning team keeps going, last team standing leaves with the belts. Suzuki-Gun (Zack Sabre Jr./Taichi/Takashi Iizuka with Desperado, Taka Michinoku and Yoshinobu Kanemaru) and War Machine/Michael Elgin start things off after Iizuka is lead to the ring on a leash. Suzuki-Gun jumps the simply named trio to start but run into the power of Elgin.

Somehow Elgin is still able to slingshot in with a splash for no cover. A not very delayed suplex on Iizuka is enough to bring in Hanson to rake the eyes a bit. Taichi gets in a few shots as well until a cartwheel gets Hanson over to the corner for the hot tag to Rowe. Everything breaks down in a hurry but Rowe misses a moonsault. Sabre grabs a quick triangle choke and Rowe is choked out at 6:05.

Next up are Beretta, Toru Yano and Tomohiro Ishii and the brawl is on in the aisle. They get in with the beating only lasting a few seconds until Yano gets in a low blow and rolls Taichi for the pin at 9:12 (including the time between falls). Next up is Taguchi Japan, consisting of Togi Makabe, Ryusuke Taguchi and Juice Robinson.

The brawl is on in a hurry with Robinson firing off right hands but having to catch the turnbuckle pad that Yano unhooked. Makabe runs over Yano with a lariat for two and now it’s everyone clotheslining Yano in the corner. A springboard hip attack gets two and Makabe runs more people over. Taguchi channels Shinsuke Nakamura with the gyrating before a running knee, only to charge into a rollup to give Yano his second straight pin at 14:06.

That leaves us with Bad Luck Fale and the Guerrillas of Destiny to complete the field and again the fight is on in a hurry. Tonga Loa gives Trent an AA on the apron but Fale misses a splash in the corner, meaning a hot tag can bring in Ishii to do what a monster is supposed to do. He can’t lift the huge Fale though and that earns him a big splash in the corner. A chokeslam is broken up and Ishii headbutts him backwards, followed by an impressive suplex.

The Guerrillas come back in and hit Guerrilla Warfare on Beretta. Instead of covering though, they try a belly to back superplex but get elbowed away. Beretta isn’t out of the woods yet though as he moonsaults right into a cutter for a very near fall. Fale and Ishii clothesline each other down but Beretta hits a quick Dudebuster to pin Loa for the titles at 21:46.

Rating: C-. I’m never a fan of gauntlet matches for the most part as there’s too much going on in too little time, which mainly means nothing has the chance to build or really go anywhere. They did manage to make Beretta look like a resilient fighter by making a comeback at the end, which helps push him up the heavyweight ranks, but that’s really the only thing that made an impact here. It’s not bad or anything but too much going on and too many people.

Ticket info for the Long Beach event is released tomorrow. That’s cool to see but they still need to do a lot more if they want to really expand into America (which isn’t exactly necessary).

Cody vs. Kota Ibushi

Not much of a story here, though there’s a good chance that it’s designed to help build Ibushi for an eventual mega match against former partner Kenny Omega. Cody has Brandi (sweet goodness) with him and still has the bleach blond hair. After Cody puts his ring in a box, we’re ready to go.

Cody’s headlock is countered with a nip up so Cody flips him off. That’s not the nicest gesture in the world and Ibushi is so disgusted that he gets caught in an American Nightmare lock. Ibushi makes the rope and Callis is wondering why he didn’t have that better scouted. Fair question actually as Callis shows how to be an intelligent commentator.

Cody gets sent outside and Brandi is down so Ibushi checks on her, only to be suckered into a right hand. Back in and the Disaster Kick starts working on Ibushi’s always bad neck and we hit a double underhook neck crank. Brandi takes Kevin’s chair and distracts the referee so Cody can get in some shots to the neck.

Despite that likely KILLING IBUSHI, he’s back up and hitting a moonsault press to the floor to take Cody down again. Back in and Kota’s rapid strikes into a standing moonsault gets two. Brandi grabs the foot to break up a suplex though (Callis: “She’s been watching her Bobby Heenan footage!”) and Cody hits Cross Rhodes off the apron to drop Ibushi HARD onto his head in a great looking crash. Somehow Ibushi beats the count so Cody hits his own springboard hurricanrana for a very close two.

Cross Rhodes is countered though and Ibushi lawn darts him into the buckle. Ibushi can’t follow up so they slap it out with Kota getting the better of it, setting up the sitout Last Ride for two more. A hard lariat (staying on the neck) gives Cody two and a straitjacket German suplex gives Ibushi the same. He doesn’t let go though, instead kneeing the heck out of Cody. The Phoenix splash is good for the academic pin on Cody at 16:08.

Rating: B. Another well done match here as Ibushi fought through the neck injury (with Cody focusing on the neck almost the entire time) and coming out on top at the end. That’s a great way to set up the eventual match against Omega and hopefully Ibushi gets a great run out of this. He’s incredibly smooth in the ring and that makes the matches very easy to watch. Good stuff here as you could get a sense of what they were going for, which is hard in any wrestling match.

IWGP Tag Team Titles: Evil/Sanada vs. Killer Elite Squad

Evil and Sanada are challenging after winning the World Tag League last year. Lance Archer (partner of Davey Boy Smith Jr.) is a cowboy so a lot of beer is sprayed over the crowd. The champs jump them to start and a Killer Bomb (full nelson slam into a sitout powerbomb) gets a very early two on Evil (as in less than fifteen seconds in). Evil is basically dead so Archer pounds away, allowing Davey to get two while posing.

That’s enough for the Squad as they head outside and beat up the young boys for fun. Archer chokeslams Evil onto everyone else before taking Sanada back in for a headscissors of all things. A side slam/middle rope splash gets two and Archer just blasts Sanada with a clothesline. Sanada dropkicks Davey in the knee but it’s still not enough for the hot tag off to Davey as Lance makes the save. The announcers declare this over so get the new nameplates ready for the belts.

Archer’s Rock Bottom gets two but he charges into a hurricanrana. The hot tag FINALLY brings Evil in for some clotheslines with the third finally taking Archer down. Smith misses his middle rope moonsault (because of course he can do one of those and land on his feet) but Sanada gets chokeslammed for two. Another Killer Bomb gets the same but Evil breaks up a third attempt. Archer gets sent outside and the Magic Killer gets two on Davey. A quick moonsault press puts Davey away to give us new champions at 13:17.

Rating: B-. Good come from behind win here as Evil (what a name for a face) and Sanada are good as the plucky rag dolls who get destroyed but still manage to come back in the end. The Squad looked awesome here and I was into their heel act, which really wasn’t something I was expecting coming in. Good match here and while it’s a step beneath some of the stuff on the show tonight, another solid performance and a title change that makes sense.

Never Openweight Title: Hirooki Goto vs. Minoru Suzuki

Suzuki is defending, no seconds allowed and hair/title vs. hair, which never sounds fair whatsoever. I’ve never gotten much out of Suzuki so hopefully this is an upgrade. Goto walks into a shot to the face to start but comes back with one of his own to get us back to even. An early standing choke doesn’t get Suzuki very far so he grabs another while standing on the second rope. That’s enough to bring the doctor in, only to have Suzuki clear the ring again.

Goto is sent outside which seems to wake him up, meaning Suzuki can hit him in the back with a chair because he feels like it. For some reason Goto decides to roll back in and a hard forearm to the head cuts him off again. A running knee in the corner rocks Goto but a running kick to the chest is caught….so Suzuki hits him in the head again. Goto does manage a spinwheel kick in the corner and a bulldog, followed by a Saito suplex for two.

Suzuki grabs his choke again but keeps trying the Gotch Style piledriver. Instead Goto reverses into a fireman’s carry backbreaker so here’s Suzuki-Gun to interfere (standard operating procedure). Goto fights them off but walks into a hard dropkick to keep Suzuki in control. A long series of rapid fire strikes to the face sets up the choke again but Suzuki again opts for the piledriver.

Goto reverses that as well but gets caught in a guillotine choke with Suzuki standing on the ropes. That’s reversed into a super fireman’s carry backbreaker for two (fair enough as the ropes didn’t really add anything) so Goto headbutts the heck out of him. The GTR (an Eye of the Hurricane onto the knee) is enough to end Suzuki at 18:04.

Rating: C+. I’m still not a fan of this beating each other up and hitting each other over and over until one of you can’t stand up anymore style. It’s never been my thing and it probably never will be. Goto is more interesting than Suzuki so I can get behind the title change, but at the same time I could have gone for a slightly different story than repeating what we saw in the previous match: champion completely overpowers the challenger until a few well timed shots give him an opening. It felt like the same layout in back to back matches and that’s a bit annoying.

Suzuki is carried away by his guys but walks back to the ring for the haircut, which he does himself in humiliation.

Ads for upcoming shows.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title: Will Ospreay vs. Kushida vs. Hiromu Takahashi vs. Marty Scurll

One fall to a finish and Scurll is defending. These four have been the only champions since November 2016 so there are a lot of stories tied together in the whole thing. Scurll and Ospreay are mortal enemies, Takahashi had Kushida’s number (though Kushida finally beat him to win the title back) and Ospreay took the title from Kushida a few months back. Marty comes out with WINGS for a heck of an entrance. The champ heads outside to start so it’s Ospreay flipping over Kushida to start.

Kushida flips over into a dropkick for two with Marty running in for the save. Back up and Ospreay moonsaults in to kick Scurll and Kushida down at the same time. Everyone heads outside with Ospreay climbing the set and moonsaulting down onto the other three. Back in and Kushida catches Ospreay’s springboard in a cross armbreaker but Ospreay comes back in to grab the chickenwing.

Kushida slaps the Hoverboard Lock on Takahashi at the same time and it’s a game of chicken (Wing?). It’s Scurll letting go of Ospreay to make the save with a superkick to Kushida. Back up and everyone hits everyone really hard for the four way knockdown. They strike it out from their knees until Ospreay kicks Scurll down, only to have the Oscutter countered into the chickenwing.

That’s broken up as well and Takahashi suplexes Kushida into the corner. Kushida gets caught upside down in the corner for a superkick (called the Chicky Nandos kick, a case where I doubt I want the backstory), followed by Ospreay going up. His shooting star is countered into a cutter though and Scurll gets two off a Last Shot. The Oscutter gets the same on Ospreay and Scurll heads outside to tape Takahashi to the barricade. He throws in a finger break, only to have Kushida and Ospreay break fingers on both of his hands.

Kushida triangles Ospreay but gets lifted up and powerbombed into the corner for his efforts. Now it’s Scurll grabbing some powder to blind Kushida, who is still able to hit the small package driver for two with Ospreay diving off the top for the save. Takahashi has somehow gotten free and catches Ospreay in a German suplex, followed by running sunset bombs to Ospreay and Scurll. The Time Bomb gets two on Scurll but it’s Ospreay coming in for the save.

Ospreay and Scurll take turns kicking the heck out of Takahashi and Kushida, only to have Takahashi missile dropkick Ospreay for two. Now it’s Kushida back up with a running sunset bomb on Takahashi. Ospreay hits an imploding 450 for two on Takahashi but a Time Bomb gets the same with Scurll making the save. Some umbrella shots have the challengers in trouble but the Oscutter takes Scurll down for the pin and the title at 21:22.

Rating: A-. Like I said, there were a lot of stories in this match and Ospreay FINALLY beating Scurll was probably the biggest of them all. On top of that this was a heck of a fight with all four stealing the spotlight for at least a little while. Ospreay looked awesome here and was only a few steps ahead of the other three. There’s not much to say here, other than they were rocking the house and that’s what a match like this was supposed to do.

We recap (first time tonight) Hiroshi Tanahashi defending the Intercontinental Title against Jay White. Jay had been a Young Lion who left on his foreign excursion (mainly to Ring of Honor, where I was a big fan) and returned in November at Power Struggle. White talked about watching Tanahashi for years and now he wants to prove himself against the best. He attacked Tanahashi and received a title shot, which is about as simple as you can get. Tanahashi is older now (41) and banged up but he’s still one of the best the company has.

Intercontinental Title: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Jay White

Tanahashi is defending. White has a cool entrance with a knife falling on the ground to play up his Switchblade moniker. They fight over arm control to start and it’s an early standoff with Tanahashi throwing in some air guitar. Not only will he wrestle you, but he’ll throw in some musical entertainment. Usually that costs more. A forearm White down but he gets in a shot to the knee to really take over for the first time.

The knee is wrapped around the barricade to make things even worse. Back in and Tanahashi has to fight from his back so White can pretty easily slap on something like an Indian deathlock. Kelly starts talking about Tanahashi’s history at this show as the basic leg work continues. Tanahashi finally escapes and hits a dragon screw legwhip for a breather, followed by a middle rope Swanton for two.

The Sling Blade misses but Tanahashi is right back on the leg to keep White at bay. A high crossbody to the floor drops White again but he’s right back up with a German suplex inside. White hits a brainbuster (not really) onto the apron before driving some knees into the corner (White: “Is this the Ace? Is this the Ace?”). Tanahashi’s comeback is countered with a suplex into the corner for two as frustration is starting to set in.

A twist of White’s knee takes him down this time but he catches Tanahashi on top. That just earns him a super swinging neckbreaker (Twist and Shout), followed by back to back Sling Blades for two. The High Fly Flow misses and the knee is banged up again. White’s Kiwi Crusher gets two but the Switchblade (looked like Sister Abigail) is countered into a dragon suplex for two more. High Fly Flow is good enough to end White at 19:44.

Rating: B-. You kind of knew they weren’t going to have Tanahashi lose three straight Wrestle Kingdom matches so the ending isn’t the biggest surprise. That being said, the idea of pulling the trigger on White seemed very, very intriguing though I get why they couldn’t go through with the title change.

However, this was little more than average with White’s offense not being anything impressive (he has a very solid look and presence though and the offense certainly wasn’t bad) and Tanahashi never feeling like he was in any serious danger. The Crusher only getting two and barely being treated as a near fall didn’t bode well and while the match was good, it was nothing compared to what Tanahashi has done in the past.

We recap the real main event of Chris Jericho vs. Kenny Omega. Basically Omega needed a top opponent and Jericho appeared in 2017, challenging him to a match. They’ve attacked each other in recent weeks and there’s actually a lot of hype for the match. Jericho used to wrestle in New Japan before he went to WCW so this is a homecoming in a way. But yeah, the entire story here is “Jericho vs. Omega.” Does it need to be anything else? Omega’s US Title is on the line and it’s about as important as Ric Flair’s Intercontinental Title when he fought HHH in a cage at Taboo Tuesday 2005.

IWGP US Title: Chris Jericho vs. Kenny Omega

No DQ, Jericho is challenging and he brought the light up jacket to Japan. His hair has also grown out a bit and is now close to what it was looking like back in 2004/5, which isn’t the best idea in the world. Instead of the Terminator, Omega has what looks to be a Loki helmet and a big freaking gun, along with the Young Bucks at his side. Not that they matter as they’re ejected almost immediately in a good idea.

Jericho jumps him during the entrances and shoves the young boys out of the way. They immediately slug it out with Omega getting the better of it and hammering away on the mat. Jericho grabs the referee for a cheap shot and chops away as Callis is WAY more excited than he….eh never mind. An early Walls attempt sends Omega to the ropes and for some reason the referee breaks it up. Know the rules chum.

Omega baseball slides him over the barricade but the big springboard dive only hits table for a great looking crash. Jericho grabs the Walls on the floor and shoves the referee before putting a young boy (referee’s son for a nice touch) in the Walls as well. A monitor shot cuts Jericho off but he knocks Omega again. Jericho: “ALPHA!” Nice touch to play up that Alpha vs. Omega idea.

Speaking of Omega, he puts a table on top of Jericho and climbs a structure for a double stomp as the announcers try to figure out if they’re on the air. Both guys beat the count back in and Jericho’s springboard dropkick to the knee cuts off Omega’s springboard. Jericho heads back outside and sets up a table. The powerbomb is initially blocked so Jericho powerbombs him on the floor instead. Hang on as Jericho stops to grab a camera for some shots (as in photos), including some of his flipping off the fans.

Back in and a chair is wedged in the corner but Jericho goes with the Lionsault for a delayed two instead. One heck of a clothesline puts Jericho back on the floor and there’s the big flip dive to take Jericho down again. Omega scores with the V Trigger but the snap dragon is reversed into the ropes. This time Omega goes to the corner but grabs the cold spray stored there to blind Jericho for the escape. The blind Jericho is still able to send Omega head first into the corner, meaning it’s time to stop for some posing. That gets some great heat from the crowd and Jericho sending Omega into the chair again makes things even better.

Omega is busted and you know Jericho is going to follow up on that. A snap dragon gets Omega out of trouble but it’s way too early (despite being twenty two minutes in) for the One Winged Angel. Another chair shot puts Omega down and some not great shots to the back keep him in trouble. Omega has to pull himself up and Jericho is nearly reveling in his pain. Jericho takes too long going up though and a V Trigger knocks Jericho off the top and through the table.

Back in and Omega knees the heck out of him, followed by a double underhook piledriver for a close two. The One Winged Angel is countered into another Walls and then the Liontamer for some extra mustard. Omega crawls over to the ropes and Jericho lets go with no orders from the ref. Two more V Triggers into the One Winged Angel is good for two with Jericho grabbing the rope.

Back up and Jericho is dropped face first onto the top turnbuckle but comes back with a Codebreaker for a delayed near fall. For some reason Jericho decides to lay a chair on Omega, who pops up with a shot to the back. The One Winged Angel onto the chair is enough to finish Jericho off at 34:36.

Rating: C-. And that didn’t work. Between the really stupid rope breaks (Jericho yelled about them earlier and then just let it happen twenty five minutes later), the lack of any, you know, wrestling, the V Triggers going all over the place and Omega not knowing how to do more than about five moves while being treated as some kind of wrestling deity, this was nowhere near as good as it should have been. I’m sure the “real” wrestling fans will drool over the whole thing without seeing what’s right in front of them because they don’t want to look at the actual details. Maybe Jericho can have one more WWE run, but this didn’t help things.

To really sum up the problem with the whole thing, you had Kevin Kelly telling the critics of Kenny Omega where they could go. It’s the standard slurping of the overrated guy who really isn’t as great as he’s built up to be, but that’s almost the case for Japan. Let me guess: 94.75 stars, which will be debated for years because some people saw it as 94.25 stars while King Dave chuckles the whole time? I give it four toasters out of ten lobster specials. Does that count?

Omega is helped out and looked happier than he ever has been over his win.

We recap the IWGP World Title match. Tetsuya Naito won the 2017 G1 Climax Tournament to earn this shot and I think I’ve typed enough now to sell the idea that I gave my actual thoughts on the previous match and wasn’t just putting that to see how many heads I could get to explode. Jericho vs. Omega was an A- with two guys beating the heck out of each other for about five minutes longer than they should have but it was still a blast. They hid Jericho’s physical limitations very well (dude is 47) and had a great match with some nuclear heat (almost Lana levels) from the crowd. Anyway, to continue the charade for those who don’t pay attention: Okada has held the title for a year and the guard needs changing.

IWGP World Title: Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito

Okada is defending but Naito comes out rocking that white suit as only he can. The champ’s entrance shows him flipping a gold coin and walking away, though I’m more curious about why the Japanese title has English writing on its plates. Okada is also wrestling in long pants (not tights) which is a look I’ve never seen from him before. The fans are WAY into this from the bell and the dueling chants begin.

No contact in the first minute and Naito backs up from a lockup attempt. Okada finally gets to him just under two minutes in but Naito dropkicks the knee. Some armdrags have Naito in trouble but he lands in his signature pose for a nice touch. We hit the stall button as you have to guess they have a ton of time here.

Kelly talks about betting sites having the over/under for this match at five stars. As my eyes roll back into my head, I catch a glimpse of Naito elbowing him in the head to take over but getting dropkicked off the top and out to the floor. Ok so my eyes roll rather slowly. Naito comes right back with a neckbreaker over the barricade (Okada has had a bad neck for the better part of a year) but the champ is back in before the twenty count. A missile dropkick gets two and Naito hammers on the head to work over the neck some more.

We hit the cravate to keep the champ in trouble but Okada throws him down and nips up. Okada nails a hanging DDT off the barricade but charges into a reverse DDT onto the knee. A flapjack cuts Naito off again as they’re kind of doing the Bret vs. Shawn formula from Wrestlemania XII with Bret having a planned offense to pick Shawn apart but Shawn making up whatever he’s doing on the fly because he’s just that naturally talented.

It’s WAY too early for the Rainmaker so Okada settles for a cobra clutch instead. Naito can’t flip him away but he can get his foot on the ropes (and now, it actually makes sense). Back up and Naito hits a hanging neckbreaker, followed by a super reverse hurricanrana for the first near fall. A corkscrew moonsault only hits mat though and both guys are down. The battle of the forearms goes to Naito and a Liger kick staggers the champ.

There’s a flying forearm (hey Naito is supposed to be Shawn) but Okada breaks up a superplex. He misses a missile dropkick though and Naito has another opening….which is rapidly closed by a Rainmaker for two. Kelly: “Naito kicked out of the Rainmaker!” Well duh. I mean, it’s the Wrestle Kingdom main event and there’s the whole it’s just a clothesline issue. The tombstone is countered into Destino but Naito is too spent to cover. The slow slugout from their knees goes to a draw so they slug it out on their feet instead.

A hard slap puts Okada down and something like a swinging neckbreaker gets two. Destino is countered into another Rainmaker but Okada picks him up instead of covering. That means another Destino for another two and we keep going. The dropkick into the tombstone looks to set up another Rainmaker but Naito reverses into Destino. He won’t cover though and tries another Destino, only to be reversed into the tombstone. Another Rainmaker actually retains the title at 36:37.

Rating: B+. Uh….ok then. I would have thought this was the biggest layup of the show but Okada winning does have some potential. The key thing here is that while Omega and Naito have failed, whoever finally DOES beat Okada is going to be the biggest kingslayer of all time. It’s an interesting way to go, though it’s also quite risky.

The match itself was quite good, though I really wasn’t feeling some of the drama near the end. I think given how much it seemed Naito was a lock to take the title here, a lot of the near falls didn’t really get me interested. There were some good counters and Naito’s neck stuff all made sense, but it wasn’t up to the highest level in the world. That doesn’t mean it’s not great (it’s just barely into the great level but it’s there) but it needed a little more to get there. Very good match, just lacking some of the emotion that it needed.

Gedo yells at Naito as he stumbles up the ramp. Okada says something to Naito, which seems to be about respect. The champ addresses the fans and since I have no idea what’s being said and since no one translates it, we’ll wrap things up here with me assuming Gedo gave a recipe for Mexican spaghetti while telling Okada they need to buy Christmas ribbons while they’re on sale. Okada likely sang the Kenan and Kel theme song.

Overall Rating: A-. As usual, it’s a heck of a show but this one felt like it was lacking something here and there. The main events were both very strong and there were some other outstanding matches up and down the card. The energy was great throughout and above all else (maybe), the show really didn’t feel that long. This might be the first time I’ve ever knocked the whole thing out in a day and I never felt like it was going on forever, which is almost always the case.

There are some minor problems with the show, including a lack of much feeling like it mattered. The three top titles all stayed with their original holders and there’s really no one fresh left to challenge Okada (you can imagine Omega and Naito getting more shots but we’ve covered both of them rather recently). Ospreay is probably the biggest title change and he held the title as recently as November. Bushi and Evil winning was a cool moment, though I’d hope you can have something a bit more impactful than new Tag Team Champions. Have one of those three big titles change hands and the show feels more important.

Overall, the show was a lot of fun but I don’t think it’s going to be up there on the list of all time greatest Wrestle Kingdoms. There’s a lot of stuff that felt like it was built up to be big but was there to move us forward to something else. That’s not to say it’s a bad idea, though I’d kind of like something to actually feel important at the biggest show of the year. It’s worth seeing, as long as you realize that it’s been done better before.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume VI: July – December 1999 in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/11/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-and-thunder-reviews-volume-vi/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Ring of Honor
Date: November 22, 2017
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Colt Cabana

We’re less than a month away from Final Battle and, for the first time in forever, Ring of Honor feels like they’re on a roll. The last few weeks have been incredibly entertaining with some great promos to set up some of the bigger matches at the pay per view. It’s hard to say what you’re going to get around here but hopefully the last two weeks are a good indication. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Jay White vs. Matt Taven

In theory this is one of White’s last matches with ROH before heading back to New Japan. Taven punches him at the bell and we start in a hurry. White is right back with a forearm into a Muta Lock (kind of early) to send Taven scurrying over to the ropes. They head outside with Taven getting caught in a heck of a suicide dive as we take a break.

Back with White uppercutting away and hitting a brainbuster from the floor to the apron. That looked like a heck of a bump but of course Taven is right back in and kicking out of a Saito suplex. Taven’s spinning kick to the face sets up a missed Lionsault and Jay grabs a DDT for no cover. The Kiwi Crusher is loaded up but White has to stop due to a spitting Vinny Marseglia. A spinning Rock Bottom gives Jay two instead but Marseglia offers another distraction, setting up a Super Climax to give Taven the pin at 8:50.

Rating: C. I still don’t care for the Kingdom but they’re a lot easier to deal with when they’re not talking. Taven is the best of the three in the ring though one of the more annoying talkers around. Just let them be a trio instead of constantly whining or sounding like nitwits and they’ll be fine. That’s probably it for White, which is a shame as he’s become one of the more entertaining guys on the roster. His feud with Punishment Martinez was good and I hope he comes back here again at some point.

White gets beaten down post match.

Flip Gordon recruits Coast to Coast to help him fight the Bullet Club next week. They need a fourth man.

Shane Taylor vs. Cheeseburger

Caprice Coleman is on commentary. The winner goes on to the TV Title match at Final Battle. Taylor talks a lot of trash and shoves Cheeseburger down as we wait on the inevitable. Cheeseburger’s sleeper doesn’t work but some palm strikes stagger the big man. Taylor runs him over without much effort and a right hand puts Cheeseburger away at 2:27. Can we please get rid of Cheeseburger already? The joke isn’t funny anymore and it’s more embarrassing than anything else.

Post match the Dawgs come out with some coins to buy off Taylor but he pours them over Will Ferrara’s head. PLEASE tell me we’re not in for Cheeseburger/Taylor as a team.

We recap Mark Briscoe injuring his elbow and his brother costing him the TV Title match last week.

Silas Young is ready to beat Jonathan Gresham and become #1 contender to the TV Title.

Scorpio Sky joins Gordon’s team.

Adam Page vs. Dalton Castle

Cody is on commentary and freaks out as Dalton dives outside onto Page at the bell. Page gets sent hard into the barricade and it’s all Castle to start. Back in and Castle loads up another dive but does his strut again, sending us to a break. We come back with Page sending him into the barricade and moonsaulting down to the floor onto Castle. A catapult sends Dalton throat first into the top rope as this is a fight instead of a match.

Cabana calls Page Adam Cole by mistake as they head back inside for some SD Jones references. Back in again with Castle suplexing him down a few times and getting all fired up, especially at Cody. We come back with a second break with Page flipping out of a German suplex and scoring with a superkick.

The Bang-a-Rang connects but Cody dives out of his chair to pull the referee outside. Castle gives chase and runs right into a shooting star off the apron. The Rite of Passage is countered though and Page is set into Cody, setting up a seated armbar with a choke to make Page tap at 12:37.

Rating: C+. The more I see of Page the more I like him as he’s turned into quite the scrappy guy. That’s rather impressive when you consider how worthless he was just a few years ago. He’s fine for the guy you send out to soften up bigger stars, even if he rarely wins a match like this one. Good enough stuff here and it helps advance Cody vs. Dalton ahead of their match in New York.

Cody and Page beat Castle down post match.

We recap Bully Ray’s injury and possible retirement at the hands of Jay Briscoe. Things have intensified since then but it looks like Ray may be done. Tommy Dreamer came in to speak on Ray’s behalf and Jay’s brother Mark seems to be against him too.

Here’s Bully to say he’s very proud of what he accomplished here in the ECW Arena but he’s every bit as proud of ROH. He has a few comments to read and pulls out a piece of paper….complete with the old Bubba Ray glasses. But eh, who needs a script. It’s time to walk away, but first he wants to say how proud he is of this company. ROH COO Joe Koff gets in the ring to say the company loves him.

Cue Jay Briscoe to ask if Ray is really going out like this. Jay knocks Bully’s hat off and Koff actually shoves him away, only to have Jay deck Bully. Tommy Dreamer comes in as Velvet Sky (Ray’s real life girlfriend) comes out to check on him. Mark Briscoe is here as well….and he kicks Dreamer low to turn full heel. A 3D to Bully ends the show. I’m still digging the heck out of this story and while I would have gone with Bully vs. Jay, this works very well too.

Overall Rating: B-. They’re getting hot at the right time and that’s one of the most important things there is to do. The big Bully/Dreamer vs. Briscoes story is doing good things for me and the World Title feud is solid as well, despite Castle not being the most serious character in the world. I want to see Final Battle, and that’s a lot more than I would have expected to be saying.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume VI: July – December 1999 in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/11/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-and-thunder-reviews-volume-vi/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6