FunKay the Inevitable
People Like Me, We Don't Play
Catchy title eh?
So this happened on Sunday and as it was presented for the very first time in English, with Jim Ross and Matt Striker handling commentary duties, I figured why not give it a go? I’ve seen select bits and pieces of New Japan over the years and matches from a few of the guys (Kota Ibushi for example) but never sat through a full show. So this will be a unique experience for me, someone who has been raised on the western version of wrestling for close to fifteen years now.
General Thoughts
This is obviously meant to be the Japanese equivalent of WrestleMania and it shows. The entrance ramp/stage looks impressive and it helped add something to the presentation of the event. One thing that was made immediately clear by the presentation was that this is something that is treated less as an entertainment product, and much more like a legitimate, serious sport. The fact that most of the matches are athletic competitions of a solid standard, the distance between the ring and the fans, the barrier between the announcers and the ringside area, the young boys offering ice and cold spray after matches and the separate exits for competitors all made this seem like serious sport. Different for sure.
It also seems that while this traditional/sports stuff is in play, some western influences are creeping in. Some of the entrances (Nakamura’s being the obvious example) offered real bravado and some of the gimmicks are very obviously western influenced (Nakamura again, Honma’s Hogan inspired attire, Okada’ s ‘Rainmaker’ stuff etc...), so this is a real crossroads in the history of this company it seems, making for some interesting viewing.
Regarding the commentary, I thought Striker and Ross complimented each other fairly well, though JR did seem to have to reign in the overly smarky Striker at times (his more or less telling Striker to tone it down when he used the term ‘swerve’ was very entertaining). Striker suffered from his usual issue of trying to sound like he knew everything and thus came off as up himself somewhat – his liberal use of words such as ‘legendary’ and phrases like ‘the best wrestling in the world’ made it difficult to stand him at times – though he was informative for the most part.
It was also clear why JR doesn’t do this full time anymore; he clearly just hasn’t got the energy he used to. His trying to sound extremely excited at the conclusion of the main event was a pale shadow of what he once would’ve achieved. That all said they did a solid overall job calling the action.
The Matches
Fourway for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championships – reDRagon (C) defeated Time Splitters, Forever Hooligans and The Young Bucks
Fast paced action to kick things off and Striker ran down each team’s time in the business and New Japan itself, allowing for some background which was of course welcome. The match was decent and it entertained, allowing for an easing in for viewer s such as myself who were fresh to the product – these guys were mostly working a fast paced western style multi-man tag encounter, only one of the participants was in fact Japanese.
Some of the action between reDRagon (what’s with that spelling?) and Forever Hooligans came across as sloppy though The Young Bucks seemed crisp especially with their superkicks. The miscommunication spot where one of the Bucks just about decapitated the other with a running kick looked painful as all hell. reDRagon’s finisher looked, if I may so, rather silly and contrived (what did the kick add to the move?) though I can appreciate a good brainbuster.
Grade: C+
Six Man Tag Team Match – Tomoaki Honma, Hiroyoshi Tenzan and Satoshi Kojima defeated The Bullet Club (Bad Luck Fale, Jeff Jarrett, Yujiro Takahashi)
The rapid pace at which we moved into the next match set the tone for the night though did surprise me and cause problems as I needed a break from time to time to get a refreshment (or two). Having The Bullet Club explained by Striker made sense, although actions later in the evening seemed to contradict what he was saying (these guys use ‘western shenanigans’ to win matches and yet guys like Nakamura are essentially doing the same thing – see my point earlier about the apparent westernisation of the product).
Match was short, though the back stories provided were nice (Takahashi being Bullet Club’s sole Japanese member who turned his back on the New Japan way, Tenzan & Kojima fighting to defend that honour with plucky underdog Honma by their side). Fale looked like a slow but impressive superheavyweight. He’s almost in a Vader esc mould – minus the highflying of course. Honma was a lot of fun and JR’s line about not wanting him to do his tax returns had me chuckling. His headbutts explained his character very well and I was drawn to his natural underdog charisma. He was fun and the match was designed to showcase and reward him for his continued losses at the hands of the Bullet Club (I imagine). He was one of my favourites coming out of the show.
Grade: C
Eight Man Tag Team Match – Toru Yano, Mikey Nicholls, Shane Haste, Naomichi Marufuji defeated Suzukigun (Takashi Iizuka, Shelton ‘X’ Benjamin, Lance Archer and Davey Boy Smith Jr.)
Striker had a fairly major commentating gaff when he described Benjamin as more ‘smash-mouth’ in Japan as opposed to athletic and then proceeded to refer to him as ‘athletic’ multiple times in the match. Pick a narrative and stick to it son. Nice to see the foreign team as face I recognise from the States. Match was fairly meh and while the backstory of Iizuka turning on his tag partner Yano made sense, it was odd not to see Yano get revenge by scoring the winning pin though it was explained that the NOAH guys (the other guys on Yano’s team being from that promotion instead of New Japan) were essentially to be showcased. It looks like Nicholls & Haste are going to feud with Archer & Smith after this and that should be interesting.
Grade: D
Singles Match where the winner could only be decided by submission, knockout or referee stoppage – Minoru Suzuki defeated Kazushi Sakuraba
The multi-man showcases were becoming repetitive so this was a welcome change of pace. The shoot-style of the match made for a fun spectacle and it became clear immediately who Suzuki was – an ice-cold killer. He even looked out of his mind. Sakuraba looked like an old guy out of shape though he performed better. The hyperbowl that JR was trying to feed about them being protégés of one of the Gotch’s and another older wrestler was nice though when he said ‘some people have waited their entire lives for this match’ it felt like complete horse manure.
Selling on Suzuki’s part was good, though again the commentary felt forced here with Striker declaring he had a broken arm in spite of the fact he could move it well enough to grab a sleeper and not show any sign of agony. It was an intriguing if not wholly memorable bout between two older guys with the finish being a bit too quick – Suzuki was getting dominated and then suddenly he slipped out of getting pounded and slapped on a sleeper to choke him out really quick. Hmmmmm. The respect handshake was a good touch, especially with Suzuki’s hesitation. He comes across as a guy to look out for in spite of his status as an older guy and his age.
Grade: C
Singles Match for the NEVER Openweight Championship – Togi Makabe defeated Tomohiro Ishii (C)
It was very odd indeed to see a worked shoot match followed by what was more or less a wrestling match version of a fight. The Brody comparison to Makabe was apparent even without the commentators beating to point to death (as they did). Ishii looked to be in an Abdullah the Butcher like shape though worked far better than I’ve ever seen ‘The Madman from Sudan’ and so I recalled watching Butcher and Brody tear each other apart. Was a good old fashioned stiff as fuck match with some of those shots looking sore as all hell. The story concerning Ishii more or less being held together with tape allowed me to naturally sympathise with him though Makabe’s alignment had me confused – I assume he’s a face, in the Steve Austin sense.
Makabe’s assault on Ishii towards the end got a tad sickening to watch and the final lariat he delivered was sick in both good and bad senses, though again Striker’s overselling was unnecessary– ‘he might have broken his neck’...no Matt, no he didn’t. Makabe’s finishing him off seemed brutal and the cheap shot he got in after was to further confuse me over his status as good guy or villain. Still a fun and stiff encounter that was a welcome match and up to this point, clearly the best match on display.
Grade: B
Singles Match for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship Match – Kenny Omega defeated Ryusuke Taguchi (C)
Omega being compared to Brian Pillman made me roll my eyes if only because so many people are compared with Pillman if they’ve got a little ‘loose cannon’ in them, but with Omega that seemed naturally given his physique and look as well as his slightly weird persona. His nickname ‘The Cleaner’ doesn’t really translate very well to wrestling though. I know what it means but it’d work better for someone who isn’t madcap. Taguchi in turn reminded me of Eddie Guerrero both because of his use of the Three Amigos but also his general look (green tights, white wrist tape and facial hair etc...)
Both guys worked their parts well with Taguchi being the honest if not fun babyface and Omega being a cruel and weird bad guy. The arm stubble/rake/saw thing was a decent idea in theory but the way Omega delivered it made me laugh rather than anything else. It was just plain weird...though I’ve heard Omega’s that kind of cat. Nothing overly spectacular here but solid...as has been a recurring theme.
Grade: C+
Tag Team Match for the IWGP Tag Team Championships – Hirooki Goto & Katsuyori Shibata defeated The Bullet Club (Karl Anderson & Doc Gallows) (C)
This match wasn’t exactly that impressive. Anderson seems like a guy who is great at what he does and JR calling him more or less the modern Arn Anderson merely reinforced that point. However Gallows has never been that remarkable to me and while it was nice to see the reference to Demolition (face-paint and spiked leather) he again seemed to be nothing more than a so-so talent. Goto & Shibata also didn’t exactly scream superstar tag team even that that appears to be what was being sought after. At least their storyline to this point sounded good – tag partners who grew up together, separated to feud and then reunited to become champions.
Grade: C-
Singles Match – AJ Styles defeated Tetsuya Naito
At this point I was starting to think that this show seemed to be structured an awful lot like WrestleMania XIX – the big matches are coming up later in the card and after a little bit of digging it would seem that this is indeed the traditional format of New Japan shows which, given the reserved nature of the Japanese fans does in fact make sense in this context.
Match wasn’t a classic or anything really close to that but worked as a main event level match which is what I think was the intention. Styles still doesn’t work for me as a heel as his move set and look just scream babyface to me, but he did a good job to try and present himself as evil, going for the Styles Clash early and often, which we were reminded frequently had legitimately broken people’s necks in the recent past.
Naito was a guy who seemed like Dolph Ziggler to me – he’s good at his job, but he seems too sure of himself and that means I don’t like him even though he’s supposed to be the babyface. Ziggler has worked past this problem recently with WWE booking him well enough to get past that hurdle over the last couple of months, but Naito didn’t have the time to do that here and while he seemed technically sound, I was rooting for Styles. The finish seems obvious from the moment they were on the top turnbuckle, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing and the Clash looked good from up there. AJ still seems to be one of the world’s most polished workers.
Grade: B-
Singles Match for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship – Shinsuke Nakamura (C) defeated Kota Ibushi
We got our first video package to hype this match. Now again confusion set in because of the language barrier because I was sure Nakamura was a heel during the video package (getting jumped by the clearly face Ibushi and his reaction after taking a German Suplex were heelish enough to convince me) but he was described as a huge babyface and was clearly immensely popular. JR’s explanation that Nakamura was a massive fan of Freddy Mercury and Michael Jackson though went a long way to explaining the character though and I was on board from that point. His entrance was elaborate and the trademark ‘Yea-Oh!’ rockstar entrance thing was cool.
I’m a fan of Ibushi having seen many of his matches with Prince Devitt/Finn Balor, Dick Togo and others and so I was looking forward to this. Intriguingly the story between the two came across really well in the ring even though I didn’t know what the background was – Ibushi is the plucky up and comer who Nakamura has to teach a lesson on being a heavyweight too but might underestimate and subsequently lose the belt to. Nakamura played his role perfectly here and Ibushi was also terrific with both guys working in their move-sets well, not spamming their finishers in a way I felt they would – though Ibushi’s sit-out Last Ride is a fucking odd looking move from a guy that size.
I really had fun with this and Nakamura and Ibushi really tore the house down. They clearly worked hard and Nakamura winning surprised me a little bit though I expect Ibushi to eventually get his hands on the belt. The post-match fist-bump of respect was cool too. I feel a rematch is in order...
Grade: B+
Singles Match for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship – Hiroshi Tanahashi (C) defeated Kazuchika Okada
Main event time and again a video package leads us in. The video package comes across a bit like Rock/Cena as we parallel the two guys roads here with Tanahashi showcased as the guy who goes to school rallies and is uber-passionate about what he does with Okada being the guy who is just that damn good and a pure streamlined bad-ass who won his way on talent and skill. Plus that haircut is cool. Very good video package and made me like both guys.
Okada’s entrance was bad-ass with the tron and the door stuff. I only found out afterwards the backstory to this match (something which JR and Striker failed to mention really which was odd given its status as main event) and the idea of who is the (f)ace of New Japan so my impact was less than perhaps a hardened viewer the first time of asking, though I enjoyed it more upon a repeat viewing after learning about the backstory. Tanahashi seems like a guy who is just great at what he does though that air guitar thing is just a bit odd for me. This did indeed feel like a big deal and had vibes of Austin/Rock; the two biggest guys in the company going toe-to-toe in the biggest main event of their companies year.
Match was not as panty-wettingly good as some will say it was, but it delivered on the (ten minutes of) hype I had seen. Okada’s dominance earlier only helped emphasise the character I had built for him in my mind as the cool, clinical superstar while Tanahashi’s selling worked nicely. The High Fly Flow from the top rope, over the barricade, and onto Okada was indeed a cool moment. I was a tad fed up of Tanahashi spamming that move by match’s end though.
The kick-out of the Rainmaker should’ve been a bigger deal or at least conveyed as a bigger deal by the commentary team who only briefly mentioned the fact that no one had ever kicked out of it before. Tanahashi’s win also felt strange because it sort of came out of nowhere – he had worked on wearing Okada’s knees out and then just spammed his finisher again and pinned him. It wasn’t natural but maybe I’m just not used to Tanahashi’s style. I felt for Okada and his crying was a nice touch, though it was Tanahashi’s sort-of gloating promo post match that made me side with Okada fully. Again I get the feeling that these two will meet again and I wouldn’t be disappointed by that in the slightest.
Grade: A-
Closing Thoughts
It’s clear the guys in New Japan know what they’re doing. The crowd is into the show, the wrestlers deliver good in-ring contests and the stories seem to flow very nicely. The show didn’t exactly make me a massive puro fan – many of the cultural differences are just plain confusing at this stage and the lack of English-language commentary going forward could hurt things for a viewer such as myself – but it definitely got my attention and I’ll be paying attention to NJPW for sure. Might have to invest in a Rainmaker shirt as well given the cheap nature of New Japan’s European shop too...
Grade: B+
I’ve no idea if this will become a regular thing or not, but I thank you for reading oh and KB, sorry aboutstealing borrowing your grading system it just works better than doing the stars.
New Japan Pro-Wrestling: Wrestle Kingdom 9
So this happened on Sunday and as it was presented for the very first time in English, with Jim Ross and Matt Striker handling commentary duties, I figured why not give it a go? I’ve seen select bits and pieces of New Japan over the years and matches from a few of the guys (Kota Ibushi for example) but never sat through a full show. So this will be a unique experience for me, someone who has been raised on the western version of wrestling for close to fifteen years now.
General Thoughts
This is obviously meant to be the Japanese equivalent of WrestleMania and it shows. The entrance ramp/stage looks impressive and it helped add something to the presentation of the event. One thing that was made immediately clear by the presentation was that this is something that is treated less as an entertainment product, and much more like a legitimate, serious sport. The fact that most of the matches are athletic competitions of a solid standard, the distance between the ring and the fans, the barrier between the announcers and the ringside area, the young boys offering ice and cold spray after matches and the separate exits for competitors all made this seem like serious sport. Different for sure.
It also seems that while this traditional/sports stuff is in play, some western influences are creeping in. Some of the entrances (Nakamura’s being the obvious example) offered real bravado and some of the gimmicks are very obviously western influenced (Nakamura again, Honma’s Hogan inspired attire, Okada’ s ‘Rainmaker’ stuff etc...), so this is a real crossroads in the history of this company it seems, making for some interesting viewing.
Regarding the commentary, I thought Striker and Ross complimented each other fairly well, though JR did seem to have to reign in the overly smarky Striker at times (his more or less telling Striker to tone it down when he used the term ‘swerve’ was very entertaining). Striker suffered from his usual issue of trying to sound like he knew everything and thus came off as up himself somewhat – his liberal use of words such as ‘legendary’ and phrases like ‘the best wrestling in the world’ made it difficult to stand him at times – though he was informative for the most part.
It was also clear why JR doesn’t do this full time anymore; he clearly just hasn’t got the energy he used to. His trying to sound extremely excited at the conclusion of the main event was a pale shadow of what he once would’ve achieved. That all said they did a solid overall job calling the action.
The Matches
Fourway for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championships – reDRagon (C) defeated Time Splitters, Forever Hooligans and The Young Bucks
Fast paced action to kick things off and Striker ran down each team’s time in the business and New Japan itself, allowing for some background which was of course welcome. The match was decent and it entertained, allowing for an easing in for viewer s such as myself who were fresh to the product – these guys were mostly working a fast paced western style multi-man tag encounter, only one of the participants was in fact Japanese.
Some of the action between reDRagon (what’s with that spelling?) and Forever Hooligans came across as sloppy though The Young Bucks seemed crisp especially with their superkicks. The miscommunication spot where one of the Bucks just about decapitated the other with a running kick looked painful as all hell. reDRagon’s finisher looked, if I may so, rather silly and contrived (what did the kick add to the move?) though I can appreciate a good brainbuster.
Grade: C+
Six Man Tag Team Match – Tomoaki Honma, Hiroyoshi Tenzan and Satoshi Kojima defeated The Bullet Club (Bad Luck Fale, Jeff Jarrett, Yujiro Takahashi)
The rapid pace at which we moved into the next match set the tone for the night though did surprise me and cause problems as I needed a break from time to time to get a refreshment (or two). Having The Bullet Club explained by Striker made sense, although actions later in the evening seemed to contradict what he was saying (these guys use ‘western shenanigans’ to win matches and yet guys like Nakamura are essentially doing the same thing – see my point earlier about the apparent westernisation of the product).
Match was short, though the back stories provided were nice (Takahashi being Bullet Club’s sole Japanese member who turned his back on the New Japan way, Tenzan & Kojima fighting to defend that honour with plucky underdog Honma by their side). Fale looked like a slow but impressive superheavyweight. He’s almost in a Vader esc mould – minus the highflying of course. Honma was a lot of fun and JR’s line about not wanting him to do his tax returns had me chuckling. His headbutts explained his character very well and I was drawn to his natural underdog charisma. He was fun and the match was designed to showcase and reward him for his continued losses at the hands of the Bullet Club (I imagine). He was one of my favourites coming out of the show.
Grade: C
Eight Man Tag Team Match – Toru Yano, Mikey Nicholls, Shane Haste, Naomichi Marufuji defeated Suzukigun (Takashi Iizuka, Shelton ‘X’ Benjamin, Lance Archer and Davey Boy Smith Jr.)
Striker had a fairly major commentating gaff when he described Benjamin as more ‘smash-mouth’ in Japan as opposed to athletic and then proceeded to refer to him as ‘athletic’ multiple times in the match. Pick a narrative and stick to it son. Nice to see the foreign team as face I recognise from the States. Match was fairly meh and while the backstory of Iizuka turning on his tag partner Yano made sense, it was odd not to see Yano get revenge by scoring the winning pin though it was explained that the NOAH guys (the other guys on Yano’s team being from that promotion instead of New Japan) were essentially to be showcased. It looks like Nicholls & Haste are going to feud with Archer & Smith after this and that should be interesting.
Grade: D
Singles Match where the winner could only be decided by submission, knockout or referee stoppage – Minoru Suzuki defeated Kazushi Sakuraba
The multi-man showcases were becoming repetitive so this was a welcome change of pace. The shoot-style of the match made for a fun spectacle and it became clear immediately who Suzuki was – an ice-cold killer. He even looked out of his mind. Sakuraba looked like an old guy out of shape though he performed better. The hyperbowl that JR was trying to feed about them being protégés of one of the Gotch’s and another older wrestler was nice though when he said ‘some people have waited their entire lives for this match’ it felt like complete horse manure.
Selling on Suzuki’s part was good, though again the commentary felt forced here with Striker declaring he had a broken arm in spite of the fact he could move it well enough to grab a sleeper and not show any sign of agony. It was an intriguing if not wholly memorable bout between two older guys with the finish being a bit too quick – Suzuki was getting dominated and then suddenly he slipped out of getting pounded and slapped on a sleeper to choke him out really quick. Hmmmmm. The respect handshake was a good touch, especially with Suzuki’s hesitation. He comes across as a guy to look out for in spite of his status as an older guy and his age.
Grade: C
Singles Match for the NEVER Openweight Championship – Togi Makabe defeated Tomohiro Ishii (C)
It was very odd indeed to see a worked shoot match followed by what was more or less a wrestling match version of a fight. The Brody comparison to Makabe was apparent even without the commentators beating to point to death (as they did). Ishii looked to be in an Abdullah the Butcher like shape though worked far better than I’ve ever seen ‘The Madman from Sudan’ and so I recalled watching Butcher and Brody tear each other apart. Was a good old fashioned stiff as fuck match with some of those shots looking sore as all hell. The story concerning Ishii more or less being held together with tape allowed me to naturally sympathise with him though Makabe’s alignment had me confused – I assume he’s a face, in the Steve Austin sense.
Makabe’s assault on Ishii towards the end got a tad sickening to watch and the final lariat he delivered was sick in both good and bad senses, though again Striker’s overselling was unnecessary– ‘he might have broken his neck’...no Matt, no he didn’t. Makabe’s finishing him off seemed brutal and the cheap shot he got in after was to further confuse me over his status as good guy or villain. Still a fun and stiff encounter that was a welcome match and up to this point, clearly the best match on display.
Grade: B
Singles Match for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship Match – Kenny Omega defeated Ryusuke Taguchi (C)
Omega being compared to Brian Pillman made me roll my eyes if only because so many people are compared with Pillman if they’ve got a little ‘loose cannon’ in them, but with Omega that seemed naturally given his physique and look as well as his slightly weird persona. His nickname ‘The Cleaner’ doesn’t really translate very well to wrestling though. I know what it means but it’d work better for someone who isn’t madcap. Taguchi in turn reminded me of Eddie Guerrero both because of his use of the Three Amigos but also his general look (green tights, white wrist tape and facial hair etc...)
Both guys worked their parts well with Taguchi being the honest if not fun babyface and Omega being a cruel and weird bad guy. The arm stubble/rake/saw thing was a decent idea in theory but the way Omega delivered it made me laugh rather than anything else. It was just plain weird...though I’ve heard Omega’s that kind of cat. Nothing overly spectacular here but solid...as has been a recurring theme.
Grade: C+
Tag Team Match for the IWGP Tag Team Championships – Hirooki Goto & Katsuyori Shibata defeated The Bullet Club (Karl Anderson & Doc Gallows) (C)
This match wasn’t exactly that impressive. Anderson seems like a guy who is great at what he does and JR calling him more or less the modern Arn Anderson merely reinforced that point. However Gallows has never been that remarkable to me and while it was nice to see the reference to Demolition (face-paint and spiked leather) he again seemed to be nothing more than a so-so talent. Goto & Shibata also didn’t exactly scream superstar tag team even that that appears to be what was being sought after. At least their storyline to this point sounded good – tag partners who grew up together, separated to feud and then reunited to become champions.
Grade: C-
Singles Match – AJ Styles defeated Tetsuya Naito
At this point I was starting to think that this show seemed to be structured an awful lot like WrestleMania XIX – the big matches are coming up later in the card and after a little bit of digging it would seem that this is indeed the traditional format of New Japan shows which, given the reserved nature of the Japanese fans does in fact make sense in this context.
Match wasn’t a classic or anything really close to that but worked as a main event level match which is what I think was the intention. Styles still doesn’t work for me as a heel as his move set and look just scream babyface to me, but he did a good job to try and present himself as evil, going for the Styles Clash early and often, which we were reminded frequently had legitimately broken people’s necks in the recent past.
Naito was a guy who seemed like Dolph Ziggler to me – he’s good at his job, but he seems too sure of himself and that means I don’t like him even though he’s supposed to be the babyface. Ziggler has worked past this problem recently with WWE booking him well enough to get past that hurdle over the last couple of months, but Naito didn’t have the time to do that here and while he seemed technically sound, I was rooting for Styles. The finish seems obvious from the moment they were on the top turnbuckle, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing and the Clash looked good from up there. AJ still seems to be one of the world’s most polished workers.
Grade: B-
Singles Match for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship – Shinsuke Nakamura (C) defeated Kota Ibushi
We got our first video package to hype this match. Now again confusion set in because of the language barrier because I was sure Nakamura was a heel during the video package (getting jumped by the clearly face Ibushi and his reaction after taking a German Suplex were heelish enough to convince me) but he was described as a huge babyface and was clearly immensely popular. JR’s explanation that Nakamura was a massive fan of Freddy Mercury and Michael Jackson though went a long way to explaining the character though and I was on board from that point. His entrance was elaborate and the trademark ‘Yea-Oh!’ rockstar entrance thing was cool.
I’m a fan of Ibushi having seen many of his matches with Prince Devitt/Finn Balor, Dick Togo and others and so I was looking forward to this. Intriguingly the story between the two came across really well in the ring even though I didn’t know what the background was – Ibushi is the plucky up and comer who Nakamura has to teach a lesson on being a heavyweight too but might underestimate and subsequently lose the belt to. Nakamura played his role perfectly here and Ibushi was also terrific with both guys working in their move-sets well, not spamming their finishers in a way I felt they would – though Ibushi’s sit-out Last Ride is a fucking odd looking move from a guy that size.
I really had fun with this and Nakamura and Ibushi really tore the house down. They clearly worked hard and Nakamura winning surprised me a little bit though I expect Ibushi to eventually get his hands on the belt. The post-match fist-bump of respect was cool too. I feel a rematch is in order...
Grade: B+
Singles Match for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship – Hiroshi Tanahashi (C) defeated Kazuchika Okada
Main event time and again a video package leads us in. The video package comes across a bit like Rock/Cena as we parallel the two guys roads here with Tanahashi showcased as the guy who goes to school rallies and is uber-passionate about what he does with Okada being the guy who is just that damn good and a pure streamlined bad-ass who won his way on talent and skill. Plus that haircut is cool. Very good video package and made me like both guys.
Okada’s entrance was bad-ass with the tron and the door stuff. I only found out afterwards the backstory to this match (something which JR and Striker failed to mention really which was odd given its status as main event) and the idea of who is the (f)ace of New Japan so my impact was less than perhaps a hardened viewer the first time of asking, though I enjoyed it more upon a repeat viewing after learning about the backstory. Tanahashi seems like a guy who is just great at what he does though that air guitar thing is just a bit odd for me. This did indeed feel like a big deal and had vibes of Austin/Rock; the two biggest guys in the company going toe-to-toe in the biggest main event of their companies year.
Match was not as panty-wettingly good as some will say it was, but it delivered on the (ten minutes of) hype I had seen. Okada’s dominance earlier only helped emphasise the character I had built for him in my mind as the cool, clinical superstar while Tanahashi’s selling worked nicely. The High Fly Flow from the top rope, over the barricade, and onto Okada was indeed a cool moment. I was a tad fed up of Tanahashi spamming that move by match’s end though.
The kick-out of the Rainmaker should’ve been a bigger deal or at least conveyed as a bigger deal by the commentary team who only briefly mentioned the fact that no one had ever kicked out of it before. Tanahashi’s win also felt strange because it sort of came out of nowhere – he had worked on wearing Okada’s knees out and then just spammed his finisher again and pinned him. It wasn’t natural but maybe I’m just not used to Tanahashi’s style. I felt for Okada and his crying was a nice touch, though it was Tanahashi’s sort-of gloating promo post match that made me side with Okada fully. Again I get the feeling that these two will meet again and I wouldn’t be disappointed by that in the slightest.
Grade: A-
Closing Thoughts
It’s clear the guys in New Japan know what they’re doing. The crowd is into the show, the wrestlers deliver good in-ring contests and the stories seem to flow very nicely. The show didn’t exactly make me a massive puro fan – many of the cultural differences are just plain confusing at this stage and the lack of English-language commentary going forward could hurt things for a viewer such as myself – but it definitely got my attention and I’ll be paying attention to NJPW for sure. Might have to invest in a Rainmaker shirt as well given the cheap nature of New Japan’s European shop too...
Grade: B+
I’ve no idea if this will become a regular thing or not, but I thank you for reading oh and KB, sorry about
