So, like most young Americans on a Friday/Saturday night, I was recovering from my drunken madness at 3AM. Of course, I dreamed many dreams of seeing Kenny Omega and Okada wrestle once again, and that match did not disappoint whatsoever.
It was simply a tremendous match. It’s amazing how high these two keep raising the bar with each outing, but god damnit they do. All aspects of this match were superb, the wrestling, the selling, the presentation. For the past two years, these two athletes have taken us on an emotional journey and I was on the edge of my seat during the whole match. SEE THIS MATCH. This will not only be the best match of the year, but it’s the best match I’ve seen in years. It’s just that damn good. Omega and Okada should be proud of themselves for delivering such a spectacle. At the end of the day, you don’t need a convoluted story with numerous twists and turns; you can have a simple, but compelling story that can grab you from beginning to end.
The rest of the show was great from beginning to end. Hirooki Goto vs. Michael Elgin vs. Taichi, David Finlay and Juice Robinson vs. Jay White and Yoshi Hashi were fine matches. The weakest matches of the night, but only by NJPW standards as each match served a purpose and had a story.
El Desperado and Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. “Roppongi 3k” Sho and Yoh, Toru Yano and Tomohiro Ishii vs. Minoru Suzuki and Zack Sabre Jr., and Rey Mysterio, Jushin Liger, and Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Cody, Marty Scurll, and Hangman Page were really fun matches with the Yano/Ishii/Suzuki/Sabre Jr match the standout between the three. I can watch Suzuki and Ishii beat the shit out of each other all day and never get bored. The end with Sabre Jr and Yano was really cool as well.
Evil and Sanada vs. “The Young Bucks” Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson for the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Titles was a great tag team match. My only gripe is the Bucks winning the titles so quickly. The Bucks should have been in chase mode for at least a couple of months before winning the heavyweight titles for the first time. The Young Bucks winning here felt “just because”. The Bucks continue to prove that tag team wrestling can be money. I don’t mean to go on a WWE bashing tirade here, but it frustrates me how little the company cares about their tag team division at the moment. I know that many think the Bucks are “overrated”, but these guys are great at getting you invested into their matches inside the ring and they are good storytellers as well. Evil and Sanada were no slouches here themselves.
Will Ospreay vs. Hiromu Takahashi for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship was another fantastic match and the second best of the night. I was a bit stunned at Ospreay losing, but Hiromu is on fire right now.
Last, but certainly not least, Chris Jericho and Tetsuya Naito put on a strong match. I loved that this was more of a fight than a match and I’m really digging this crazed New Japan Jericho. His clockwork orange inspired wardrobe was cool.
All in all, this was a fantastic show from top to bottom. My only gripe is the 5-hour window. I’m a firm believer in quality over quantity and while every match served a purpose, I just don’t believe a wrestling show should be 5 hours long. I will say this, at least each match was different and it didn’t feel like a 5-hour marathon. If you’re pressed for time, then you can skip the undercard and start with the Bucks match.
If you’re on the fence about watching New Japan Pro-Wrestling then you need to hop that fence and see what you’ve been missing. I’m not asking you to stop watching WWE because I get it. We all need some sports entertainment in our lives. Who doesn’t love moments like an old lady giving birth to a hand or Triple H raping an innocent doll at its funeral. Ignore the strictly WWE fans who dismiss Independent wrestling as “vanilla midgets” who flip and flop without reasoning or care. NJPW has a roster full of talented wrestlers who know how to craft an entertaining story inside (and out) the ring. These wrestlers are anything but “boring” and the booking for NJPW is well-crafted and smart. Give NJPW a try. Hopefully you won’t be disappointed.
So what do you think? Do you agree? Or do you think I’m an idiot who’s wrong about everything? Feel free to comment below. Follow me at
https://twitter.com/dragon1_elite or
https://www.instagram.com/elitedirector/ and we can talk about stuff!