Superstar Sleeze

AJPW Triple Crown Champion Mitsuharu Misawa vs Toshiaki Kawada - AJPW 1/22/99 Kawada breaks his arm about 10 minutes into the match on a Tiger Driver of all things. You can actually see him clutch on camera if you pay close attention. On the second Tiger Driver he pays closer attention to how he falls. He basically has not use of his right arm for the rest of the match. What a trooper. Misawa is coming off his first loss in the series and it is important he gets out to a big lead. Kawada tries a leg attack (which worked in 98) and Misawa elbows through it. Nice diving elbow through the ropes. Nobody is better at this than Misawa. Kawda kicks him hard in the head as he is coming off the top rope. Misawa sells this so swell rolling to the outside writhing in pain. He is only topped by Kawada's selling of his foot. He sells it so well I thought Kawada broke his foot. I knew he broke something in this match but couldn't remember what. So I stopped the match to look up that he broke his arm. Now that's great selling. Kawada basically kicks Misawa in the face a lot like a lot and it is glorious. Wicked spinning back chop by Kawada to Misawa's back of Misawa's head. Misawa is pissed and rattles off a wicked Roaring Elbow. Misawa comes out with a pair of Tiger Drivers (arm-breaker is the first one) Kawada powders and he is clutching arm in pain. Somersault plancha and then a Tiger Suplex inside. OW! Kawada gets up and flops like a fish. Roaring Elbow misses and it is a BACKDROP DRIVER! Kawada looked like he was about to get squashed before that opening. He pounces on the leg with nasty roundhouse kicks to the knee. Misawa is able to keep Kawada at bay from applying a figure-4 or a single leg crab at first. Kawada hits a kneecrusher and Misawa is left standing elbows the shit out of Kawada and Kawada reverse the Tiger Suplex with ONE arm and hits kick to the knee to set up two stretch plums. The knee psychology has been really good to set up Kawada's headshots and bombs. It is not too overwhelming either. Misawa has established a certain level of selling and is sticking with it. I like the elbows, missile dropkick, only for Kawada to roundhouse kick the knee and get a figure-4. Basically it becomes can Kawada leverage the knee injury to a victory or can Misawa basically elbow through it to a win. They leave a lot of the Misawa and Kawada spots out of this. Misawa pissed at Kawada kicking his leg and starts furiously kicking Kawada's leg. Epic flick of sweat from the brow. Roaring Elbow but cant capitalize due to knee and he walks into a barrage of enziguiri, wicked spinning heel kick. Misawa has one last gasp with a German suplex but cant hold bridge due to knee. Kawada powers out of Tiger Driver with one arm and the Kappo Kick sets up the BRAINBUSTER!!! Misawa never really recovers. Here we go! Why this match is famous...GANSO BOMB~! It is every bit as sick as I remember it. Should have been the finish. I remember it as the finish. Kawada hits the Brainbuster to win after some token Misawa elbows (great sell of the enziguiri falls right into the ref). Incredible match! I was expecting it to be all about the GANSO BOMB~! but this was a vast improvement over 1998. Kawada's whole objective was to kick Misawa's head off and if Misawa gets any momentum he just kicks him in the knee. The first transition was all because Kawada knows Misawa so well. Besides the one Misawa control segment around 1/3-1/2 point, this was all Kawada. Misawa looked like he was going to blow Kawada out of the water. Again Kawada knows Misawa so well and ducks the Roaring Elbow to hit the backdrop driver. Before using the knee for the rest of the match to set up his bombs and headshots. When Misawa is poised to make the world-famous comeback, he cant follow up the Roaring Elbow and he cant hold the German Suplex pin this leaves him open to the Kappo Kick and finally the GANSO BOMB~! Not a perfect match, but a classic nonetheless and early All Japan match of the eyar candidate for 1999. ****1/2

Kenta Kobashi vs Vader - AJPW 1/15/99 Vader's first major singles match in All Japan and after that double hot performance at the Real World Tag League Final, I had high hopes for this one. Kobashi vs. Monster is one of my all time favorite match types (vs Hansen in mid-90s and Takayama in 00s) and it is a shame we did not get more. This was a bit more sluggish and kind of mechanical than I expected, but it still delivered on the things we expect. At the Real World Tag League, Vader felt like a rabid grizzly bear with Kobashi & Akiyama urgently doing all they could to survive the vicious, relentless onslaught. Here Vader is a monster, but he is more the kind that stalks his prey. I felt like they were very respectful of each other's control segments. I am going to beat you up now and transitions and then you beat me up. There is nothing wrong with this. It is just quite basic. Big Kobashi chants to start as he has a massive bandage over his head. Vader wrestles him to the ground and smothers him. I do like that Vader forces the Pillars to change up their style as the house style was getting stale around this time. Kobashi blocks head shots and beats the mask right off him. Big shoulder tackle and then cross armbreaker attempt, but Vader makes ropes. I like a little bit of shine early. Vader powders and he is making a big show of the ref moving Kobashi back, he takes a wicked cheapshot at the bad right eye/forehead of Kobashi. That was awesome. Dragon sleeper by Vader, he is trying to keep up. Splash only gets two. Kobashi dropkicks the knee and dragon leg screw. This is when I feel like they are matching that same energy before. When it happened in the last match, it felt like the biggest deal ever because Kobashi & Akiyama FINALLY had an opening. Here it just felt like any other match. Vader comes up swinging with a wild right and connects. I loved injured Vader. Vader powerbombs the shit out of him on the floor and then smashes a chair right into his head unprotected. Damn. Instead of the Holy Shit chant, "Ko-Bash-I" chants rings out, I love Japan. Vader misses a charge and Kobashi hits a DDT. Spinning back chop and Vader yelps and falls to the mat. Vader is so great. Kobashi hits a slingshot plancha and is giving Vader no room to breathe. The vertical suplex on Vader gets a pop. Missile dropkick. BODYSLAM! FIST PUMP! Crowd roars...crashes & burns on moonsault. Weirdly he gets up and hits a Russian Legsweep. Rips off bandage and double clothesline knocks both men. Vader takes his bodyslam off the middle rope and now the moonsault connects, but not much of a pop. It did not feel like he earned it. It felt given. The whole match feels like a gift by each man. Not the Gift of Jericho, DRINK IT IN, MAAAAANNNNNN, either. Vader smacks Kobashi in the bad part of the head. VADERSAULT!!!! Gets two! KO-BASH-I Chants...MONSTAH GERMAN SUPLEX...drags the limp carcass for not one, but two Vaderbombs, kick out, Vader splash wins it. That felt very backwards. If you were to lay out a match between Kobashi & Vader listed these moves, it sounds like a classic, but I just did not feel all the little pieces were there. The struggle, the urgency, the emotion were missing. I think Vader has lost a step and Kobashi did not step up his game. He was content with being Kobashi and Vader did his best. Like I said I felt like everything was given by each man to the other. It felt like a respectful war with each man allowing the other to hit stiff shots on the other. Also, the Kobashi false finish run was just really weird. Did not quite get to great but still featured plenty of badass spots and told the basic story of Vader as a world-beater and Kobashi as a resilient underdog. ***3/4

Awesome individual Kevin Owens performance. Great control segment on knee and trash talking. Great cutoff coming back to knee. Looked like an ass with Suck It and then missing the senton on the table. He was not that great at making Rollins shine, but heel bumping, stooging and heel selling is a lost art. Still a great Owens performance. Rollins has horrible instincts. I really thought turning him face would make him great. He has great babyface offense when he really turns it on. The shine was lukewarm. Then after all that knee work he does his KENTA million miles per hour tribute. They do this AJPW sequence with a Package Piledriver attempt, high knee, superkick, enziguiri. In AJPW that would have taken a minute with all the struggle, this was done in 10 seconds. When he should speed up, he does not and when he should slow down he speeds up. Finish run after the senton was a ton of fun. The Gift of Jericho, Drink It In, MMMAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNN! He should be Owens' full time manager. Nothing Ill ever want to watch again, but hey I have think I have totally come around on Kevin Owens so that's a plus. ***1/2

So I am right before the main event now...quick thoughts... New Day/Club was an awesome bomb throwing sprint. Great urgency and everything was about winning from the get go. Best New Day match in a year. **** Perkins/Kendrick started fine but became way too much gymnastics. *** Sheamus/Cesaro is why I am a pro wrestling fan. Match #2 was the best match of the series, but this was pretty friggin awesome. I hope this leads to a Sheamus/Cesaro heel tag team that runs roughshod on RAW like a modern day Road Warriors (a tag team that can main event) **** I drink in the Gift of Jericho, MMMAAAAAANNNNNNN when he is on the mic, but when he is wrestling I zone out. I have been really agreeing with Winged Eagle...Zayn needs to be the WWE equivalent of a blood feud. Women's triple threat was great, another **** affair on a very good card. Call me crazy, but Charlotte is the best womens wrestler on RAW. Banks is "all flash, no cash" (thanks Charlotte). Charlotte is way smoother in the ring now, works awesome control segments and was totally directing traffic. I feel like Banks has really retrogressed. Becky is still best woman on the roster, but Charlotte is closing the gap. Reigns/Rusev that hot brawl at Summerslam got me excited, but this was just a very good RAW match in fact the real RAW match from August was better than this. I am a huge Reigns fan, but winning the US Champion feels like a step backwards. They really ought to turn him heel. Should have stuck with him Hunter/Steph, cant beat him, join em deal. ***1/2 Ok, main event time, here we go...

Burning vs Vader & Stan Hansen Big monster gaijin is exactly what has been missing from AJPW since about 1995. Vader is looked awesome here. By 2001, I thought he was showing his age, but he definitely had no trouble keeping up with the All Japan boys. Hansen has lost a step, but he brought the sadism when it is called on. Vader & Hansen felt like two big bulldozers and we were transported back in time where Kobashi was that plucky underdog babyface. Everything in this match felt so urgent. Kobashi & Akiyama recognized they were up against an unstoppable force. They had to press any advantage given to them lest they be swallowed up whole by these two Great White Sharks. Vader initiated a test of strength against Kobashi you dont see that too often. Kobashi throws some vicious chops and Vader does not even flinch. Vader throws one haymaker and sends Kobashi flying. Kobashi tries to fight fire with fire but Vader is just Too. Much. Man. Vader & Hansen double team. Their double shoulder block looked so good. Kobashi comes charging and hits Vader from behind. I like how chippy this is. Kobashi tags out. Akiyama tries his best but ends up in the corner taking those big Vader bear paws. Akiyama gets a high knee from the middle rope and quickly tags out to Kobashi. Kobashi comes flying in, hits a couple bombs tries for the pin. Nada. Goes for suplex and Hansen hits him hard in the side. There is way more respect for Vaders size in this match (three early suplex attempts and none landed). Kobashi gets his ass kicked by Vader & Hansen. It is all simple, but wicked effective. Just using their body weight and hard parts of their body to beat him up. It is like Vader & Hansen are the best possible Demolition. Kobashi gets a quick lariat and tags out. Akiyama gets a missile dropkick. He is flying around, but ends up taking a wicked back elbow from Hansen. I am loving how the faces cant get anything started against these two monsters. Just when you think there is hope, It is extinguished by sheer brutality. Vader flying body attack on the outside. Vader misses a charge in the corner. Akiyama dropkicks the knee! Akiyama tags out. Kobashi charges at the knee! Here is their chance! Single leg crab. Hansen saves. Kobashi charges. Hansen is persistent. DDT and then Vader splash. This is so not fair! There is a real sense of injustice that after all that work to gain the advantage that not it being taken away from them. Now we enter the finish run with lots of double teams from the Big Boys. Vader splash and hard Hansen elbow on prone Kobashi. Hansen throws Akiyama into a Vader body attack and Hansen DDT on Akiyama on floor. Things do not look good for out heroes. Hansen with douchey kicks to the head. Vader body attack into Back Drop Driver and then Vader powerbomb only gets two. They set up for Vader to whip Kobashi into Hansen lariat, but Kobashi fights out and Akiyama hits a flying knee to the back. Kobashi clobbers Hansen with a clothesline for the win. Excellent monster vs plucky underdog match. Kobashi & Akiyama wrestled with the urgency necessary to beat these monsters. Hansen & Vader really did feel like an unstoppable force. I thought the finish run was a bit overkill that all those moves should have killed Kobashi. I did like the actual finish with Akiyama hitting the knee from behind. It felt like a fun action movie finish. I thought they did a really good job making you doubt Burning would win. One of the all-time great Summer Action Blockuster matches . Definite top 5 1998 All Japan match of the year. ****1/2

AJPW Triple Crown Champion Holy Demon Army vs Burning - AJPW 10/11/98 I can see people's point that this is a retread and that there shows a clear lack of progress. Akiyama goes from Misawa's junior partner to Kobashi's junior partner. At best it is a lateral move, at worst he is being demoted to being the junior partner of the second best babyface rather than the Ace. I actually think Akiyama is best suited to being a slight heel like Kawada and that NOAH got it right in 2000. I think Akiyama leading a second heel army would have been great. I thought this was great as we have seen many times before. Holy Demon Army overwhelms Akiyama by cutting him off as he is getting in the ring with DDT and then double teaming on the floor. Holy Demon Army both had been recently defeated by Kobashi in Triple Crown match so you know they are looking for revenge. They work over Akiyama's leg and then Kobashi saves in the submission holds. Taue runs into a belly to belly and here comes Kobashi. Spinning back chops for everyone! Kobashi goes sleeper and Kawada comes running at him. Taue wants the NODOWA and we go into the long, very entertaining finish stretch. I will say the back end of this while very familiar is a ton of fun and great stuff. The Nodowa/Backdrop Driver combination is attempted but Akiyama saves. Kobashi powerbomb & Akiyama double arm DDT on Kawada, but Taue saves. Kobashi bodyslams, fist pump, but crashes and burns on moonsault. It is a pile up of bodies. Akiyama EXPLODER on Kawada! Great dead weight selling by Kawada. NODOWA BELLY TO BELLY! DDT ON APRON! NODOWA INTO TURNBUCKLES!!! NODOWA OFF TOP ROPE! DYNAMIC BOMB~! That was fucking awesome. God Bless Taue! Kobashi saves. Akiyama tries an Exploder on Kawada, but Taue comes flying in with a NODOWA! Taue is the MVP of this match. NODOWA/Backdrop Driver only gets two! I feel like they are toast but this has been pretty much all Holy Demon Army. Kawada powerbomb is broken up by Kobashi and BURNING LARIAT TO TAUE! Well that solves that problem. Powerbomb, elbow out of Exploder, Brainbuster, Akiyama does stagger around sell before an enziguiri drops where he stands for the victory. Super hot finish run. Holy Demon Army looked impressive against the newly minted super team of Burning. No new ground was broken, but it was good fun. ****

WWE World Tag Team Champions New Day vs The Club - WWE Clash Of The Champions 2016 Holy Shit what a sprint! I came in expecting another mediocre New Day tag and this was awesome! I am pretty indifferent to all four of these guys (used to love Big E, but now he is kinda meh). They came out throwing bombs and never looked back. Gallows decked Big E on the outside and Anderson hit a running Liger Bomb. The Club came to play! Gallows really laid in his punches in the corner. Loved Kofi dropkicking to create separation in doing so he still kept Gallows in between him and his own corner. Everything felt urgent and desperate. Once Big E gets in he just throws muthafuckas around and then hits his big splash. I am loving this pace and the bomb throwing. Big E goes for his spear through the ropes, but Anderson meets him with a knee. Big E just keeps on trucking. Anderson smokes him with a single leg dropkick. Hell Yeah! Big E is now FIP. Club quickly sets up the Boot of Doom. Everything is focused on getting the victory quickly. I love that urgency to win. You can see how much more the crowd is into it. Gallows hits a MASSIVE CHOKESLAM on Kofi. Now they go for the Magic Killer and Kofi desperately fights out. But there is no one to tag. Big E pops up and tags himself in like a good tag partner. Good shit. Kofi flies and Xavier hits Anderson with Francesca and The Big Ending double team version wins. No wasted motion. Everything was building to the climax, great use of bombs and awesome pacing. Great match! Best New Day match in forever! ****

Volk Han vs Yoshihisa Yammamoto - RINGS 6/17/95 To me what separated Han from Yammamoto was his selling. When he got trapped in a submission hold, the way he squirmed, lunged for the ropes or would quickly counter made that hold matter so much more. Yammamoto is just 24 at the time of this match and at the beginning it shows in a completely kayfabe way. He is just doing things that are stupid and giving Han opportunity after opportunity to put him away. He drops to his back like he is a fucking Gracie and Han shows him up completely stepping on his ankle and applying the craziest single crab. He was all over Yammamoto before he got to the ropes. For a while Yammamoto just felt outclassed by the technical wizardy of Han (the way he finds organic ways to put on pro wrestling holds is great) however Volk Han does get caught napping. In a Scorpion Deathlock, Yammamoto picks the ankle and applies a heel hook that sends Hand scrambling for the ropes. I love that selling there. Treat the holds with respect and the match gets treated with respect. That is the story of the match in a nutshell, Han is clearly superior, but he is giving Yammamoto enough rope to hang himself. You see Yammamoto come up with some very nice counterwrestling that makes you believe Han could lose. I really liked the Han STF. Han loves using the double wristlock as his base to create offense and one time just rips Yammamoto down in the hold. Wicked takedown that gets the doctors involved. I thought this was a red herring and that Yammamoto was going to get the win. BOOM! Blast him in the face with a palm strike and Han was down for a 8. Han gets right up shakes it off, but is clearly woozy. Yammamoto actually applies a tight guillotine choke that looks to be it, but Han wriggles out and gets the cross armbreaker for the submission victory. Told a great little story of Han's dominance, but Yammamoto perseverance through counterwrestling, but ultimately coming up short. The last 90 seconds after the double wristlock takedown was sweet and you totally did not know which way it was going to go. Great shoot style match ****1/2

I agree and should have phrased that better. However, if the commentary pointed to that (it might have; I don't speak Japanese) it is still just one interpretation. We have to call them as we see it.

Russian Daydream, If you pay attention really closely they actually both roll through those DDT attempts and I don't think them as much as no sells as there was no impact. It is one of those "Did the move hit or not?" spots that can really go either way. One of those times that either knowing Japanese or English commentary would be helpful. I noticed the "super-enthusiastic girls" too! They looked like they were having the time of their lives. AJPW Triple Crown Champion Kenta Kobashi vs Akira Taue - AJPW 9/11/98 Kobashi is so versatile. We see him work great underneath against Kawada and Akiyama and now as champion he works so well on top against Taue. This is not easy for any wrestler to do especially still maintain babyface status. Really well-worked Clash of Titans match everything was built around bombs and EARNING those bombs. Taue is the only Pillar that can match Kobashi in the power game due to his sheer size. He works a great headlock and it is very hard for Kobashi to escape. Taue goes for NODOWA~! early, but Kobashi freaks out and hits a big spinning back chop and then a delayed vertical suplex. I love that Taue is looking for the win early this freaks Kobashi out and motivates him into action. Kobashi works through his awesome, basic opening match offense and now he is ready to go for his bomb, the powerbomb. Taue is now pressed into action and takes a page out of his partner's book with a big spinning heel kick that wipes out Kobashi. AIR TAUE!!! So clumsy and so awesome! Taue using a lot of dropkicks to inflict damage and keep Kobashi off balance. Kobashi tries to escape to the apron. Bad idea as Taue is the greatest apron worker of all time. He wants the death blow: Nodowa From The Apron. Kobashi is like HELL NO! DDT on apron, but as he climbs the top rope Taue meets him and wants the Nodowa from the top to the floor (That would be the ultimate holy shit moment) Kobashi hits a spinning back chop and then a Powerbomb on the floor for his big bomb. He is the first to score. That transition took roughly 2.5 minutes. It made that Powerbomb feel so much more important. I thought Kobashi did a great job working through suplexes with struggle, another powerbomb before moving to the moonsault and again Taue is spurred into action to save himself and hits a Tenryu enziguiri as he scales the ropes. Taue clobbers Kobashi with a big kick to the head. Kobashi's great selling actually gets this over as a big nearfall. Seriously that move should have been a nearfall with no heat but Kobashi makes the spot. Greatest. Wrestler. Ever. TAUE HITS THE NODOWA FROM THE APRON TO THE FLOOR!!! If this was 1995, that would be a death knell for Kobashi and we would be seeing a new champion. NODOWA~! HUGE KOBASHI CHANTS!!! The Women in the front row are losing their minds. DYNAMIC BOMB~! Kick out. Yep, Taue is toast. Taue wants a running kick or something but if you give Kobashi an inch then he will take a mile and it is a Lariat. However, Taue is up first! To quote The Body "That's just depressing as hell." NODOWA/LEGSWEEP COMBO!!! LOVE IT! I liked how Taue looks progressively more and more fatigued with his sumo slaps. Taue misses the big boot in the corner. All Japan & modern wrestling in general needs more missed moves as transitions. Big fight breaks out and Kobashi wins with a Big Lariat. KOBASHI PUMPS THE FISTS! MOONSAULT~! Only two! BURNING LARIAT~! WOMEN LOSE THEIR MIND! 1-2-3!!! Right up there with their 2004 GHC classic. The women in the front row having the time of their lives makes this match. Loved Kobashi being able to work so strong for the first 15 minutes and then play that classic underdog babyface that he does so well. Every bomb is earned. At first both try, but that spurs the other into action. Until finally the NODOWA FROM THE APRON HITS! now Kobashi has to come from behind and he shows resilience and it is not just one Lariat but he has to fight through Taue's offense to the bitter end before winning. Excellent match. ****1/2

Jun Akiyama vs Yoshinari Ogawa - AJPW 9/11/98 Just rewatched this and this fun as fuck. Don't usually describe AJPW in the 90s as fun, but this was wicked fun. Budokan was totally 100% behind the Rat Boy Cinderella as he Lied, Cheated, Stole their hearts. The DDT at the beginning got a massive pop and when Akiyama rammed his shoulder into the post the crowd was cheering. Surreal. Ogawa did a great job working some nifty submissions and outsmarted Akiyama on a drop down sequence. You know how I know he pointed to his head. Akiyama had enough of this bullshit and just throwing elbows and murdered him with a high knee. Rat Boy never says die and hits a freaking superplex and then a fucking TIGER DRIVER! The crowd loses their shit! Just starts chanting Ogawa! He was having so much fun. Nice cradle back drop driver and he cant believe he did not get three. Akiyama fires up off Ogawa punches, but cant get Exploder and we get a barrage of Ogawa cradles including the jackknife pin that won him the six-man. This was a super hot sequence! Of course, Akiyama finally wrangles him in and DESTROYS RAT BOY WITH EXPLODERS. Awesome, fun match. A great fucking way to spend 12 minutes of your life. Both wrestlers played their characters to a tee and the Budokan was AWESOME! ****1/4

I thought about this some more and I agree with Stacey this more of an outstanding individual performance than a great match. Like if this was cinema, AJ Styles would be nominated for best actor, but the movie itself would not fare well. Still I feel the match should be rewarded. So I retract 5 stars and will downgrade to ****1/2, but I am glad I overreacted and got you all to watch. It was a fun conversation. We should do it again sometime!

AJPW Triple Crown Champion Kenta Kobashi vs Jun Akiyama - AJPW 7/24/98 I love that even something as well-defined as the All Japan canon can still be re-evaluated and hidden gems found. Before the release of the 98 yearbook in 2014, I had never heard this match discussed in the same breath as Kobashi/Kawada from this year or as an All Japan classic. Watching it now, I definitely it belongs in the same class as the other All Japan epics. At the Champions Carnival 98 Akiyama developed a penchant for attacking the knees of his opponent and with Kobashi having one of his knees heavily taped, you know this will come into play as soon as the first dragon leg screw is attempted within the first five minutes. Akiyama is aggressive as fuck in this match. The beginning is pure intensity. He just elbowing through everything. Kobashi is fighting back, but Akiyama just keeps coming and coming with those vicious elbows. Kobashi tries his old tricks to slow it down like going to the test of strength, but even there Akiyama eventually gets back to the elbows. Akiyama hits a MONSTER HIGH KNEE to the side of Kobashi's head and Kobashi sells it like death. What is interesting about the beginning is that Akiyama fights so hard to get control, but then does not seem to know how to follow it up. Twice, he goes for chinlocks and both times Kobashi powers out and regains the control. The second time, Akiyama decides this is no time to fuck around and dropkicks the knee. I love the initial struggle to hit the second dragon leg screw attempt with Kobashi desperately chopping Akiyama's neck, but it is to no avail as Akiyama wrenches the knee. Kobashi's fire up after this is fucking so invigorating. I was tired going into this match from a day of hiking and swimming in Greece. Watching Kobashi fire up, fired me up! Kobashi knows his only chance to try to finish this match quickly so they trade big suplexes and then on the outside Kobashi kills Akiyama dead with a half nelson suplex. Akiyama is doing a great dead weight sell. Crisis averted. Kobashi nails a DDT, typically great Akiyama sell. Kobashi's bum wheel prevents the first powerbomb attempt, but he is fucking Kobashi so bites the bullet THROWS AKIYAMA DOWN! He cant capitalize and Akiyama rolls to the apron. Kobashi gives pursuit. Then in what appears to be the turning point of the match, Akiyama whips Kobashi off the apron by the knee. OW! Just like that Kobashi looks like dead meat. Akiyama is able to take his time stalking his prey delivering damage to the knee and while also regaining strength. Kobashi crawling away on all fours in the ring in desperation to get away from Akiyama only to be dropkicked in the knee is why I love pro wrestling! Great figure-4 and then Scorpion Deathlock. The transition here is pretty weak. Others have lamented the half-nelson suplex transition (could be seen as pop-up, no sell) and even the dragon leg screw (overreliance on apron spots), but to me those totally fit in the match. The first one was all about crisis management and the second one was Kobashi giving pursuit and basically falling into a trap. This one is that Akiyama basically had Kobashi dead to rights, but the ref told Akiyama to get off Kobashi, BUT he did not submit. He just wanted to check on him, which is pretty bullshit. Kobashi is able to hit a wicked, desperation lariat that knocks the wind out of Akiyama. They both sell for like a minute. Love they milked that spot. Kobashi using the ropes to stand and hobble over and then hold himself up while violently chopping Akiyama down is why I love pro wrestling. Kobashi definitely gives an all-time selling performance. First it is the freak out about the attempted attack, then it is the selling of the attack and finally it is fighting through the pain. I am lapping this all up. This is a great reminder why I chose him as the greatest wrestler ever. He is teeing off on Akiyama with knife edge chops to the head. Half nelson suplex...Akiyama back kicks the bad knee!!! Fuck yeah! Akiyama lunges and chop blocks the bad knee as Kobashi is trying to get up using the ropes. He hoists Kobashi on his shoulder and drive the knee into the top turnbuckle to set up the big elbow to back of the neck for two. He signals for an Exploder, gets the first, dropkick to knee and second is unsuccessful. The Budokan is RUMBLING! It is back to the figure-4 smart strategy. Akiyama is giving an all time great offensive performance in his laser focus on the knee. This reminds me a lot of his all-time great performance in the Misawa 2000 match where he was laser focused on the neck. He give sup on figure-4, not my favorite. BRAINBUSTER!!! Only two. Yep he is cooked. He goes for the cover again. Don't like his chances. Kobashi blocks Wrist-Clutch Exploder and as he is on his way down he clubs him in the back of the head. Kobashi needs a Hail Mary. Exploder->Pop Up Lariat. Ok, that was unnecessary and worthy of lamentation. Kobashi sells the knee like a champ and "KO-BASH-I" rings throughout the Budokan. He uses the ropes to hold himself up and applies the sleeper smart move for a man with a bum wheel OH SLEEPER SUPLEX!!! LARIAOTO! 1-2-KICKOUT! BURNING LARIAT MURDERS AKIYAMA WHERE HE STANDS! I was not really much of a fan of the Kobashi/Akiyama pairing in NOAH. The matches were epics and were great just not my favorites. Hands down the best match they have ever had in my opinion. Loved the dragon leg screw and back kick on half nelson suplex as transitions. Akiyama's offense was killer. Kobashi's selling was sublime. The issue was getting Kobashi back on offense. The ref thing was bullshit and the pop-up Lariat was All Japan excess. Enough to keep from that upper echeleon of AJPW classics, but still one of the classics and superb performance from both wrestlers. ****3/4

Volk Han vs Tsuyoshi Kohsaka - RINGS 8/24/96 So this is RINGS, human pretzel making. A sick part of me wishes Uncle Eric brought in these dudes to WCW so I could hear Tony, Dusty & Bobby call the action. Dusty would say "uncle" and "uncler" so much. Han gets the coolest, most organic figure-4 you will ever see from a standing half guard. Yep, believe the hype brutha, Volk Han is legit. Thought the escapes from Kojsaka on the figure-4 and cross arm breaker were too easy. Then they started using rope breaks which I liked better. Han lets Kohsaka take him down and grabs a double wrist lock. The double wrist lock seems to be the base for everything. In kayfabe, it seems like Han is being presented as the better wrestler. I hate the bundle of legs dueling submission as a spot no matter what. Han drops down with a rear naked choke and Kohsaka comes up with a sick counter of basically an inverted deadlock on the legs. I marked out and Kohsaka has a renewed sense of confidence. That felt like a big moment where the momentum could have shifted to Kohsaka. He grabbed a rolling leg takedown but in the pretzel he created he left his arm exposed and Han grabbed hyperextended it and since Kohsaka was in pretzel of his own creation he had no escape and was forced to tap. Even though I haven't watched much shoot style I gobble it up with a spoon when I do. It was exciting to see my first Volk Han match thought he lived up to the hype. Definitely some mark out moments like the figure-4 and just some of those wrist lock grabs and chains. The counter to the choke by Kohsaka was my favorite spot felt electric and like everything was going to go his way, but then he taps in his own trap! Thought some escapes were little too easy in the beginning and in shoot style I like narratives of contrasting styles didn't feel that here. It was an incredible display of grappling wizardry. ****1/2

Rewatched this today and have not much to add to my original review, but I liked that Kobashi basically controlled the first ten minutes with his macho tactics (test of strength, strike exchanges), but that the champion ultimately got the best of him with a lariat. For the rest of the match Kawada wrestled like he was Ali, no body shots, everything was directed at Kobashi's head. This felt more American with the very extended heat segment by Kawada on Kobashi. After the powerbombs and back drop driver, you can feel Kawada running out of steam and the Kobashi train ready to pick up. Some really great selling by Kobashi just to plant a seed of doubt. I liked the desperation Kawada at the end trying to kick Kobashi's arm off, running around to escape, throwing wild kicks to head. This is the ultimate "NOT AGAIN" match. Gets the monkey off his back beating Misawa a month prior in the Dome, only to open a big lead against Kobashi here and choke. I was kinda not feeling wrestling when I first watched this (I was forcing myself to watch) that is the only explanation for the low ball rating. Don't think it is 5 star transcendent, but it is an incredibly gripping, interesting and dramatic story. ****3/4

AJPW Triple Crown Champion Mitsuharu Misawa vs Toshiaki Kawada - AJPW Tokyo Dome 5/1/98 It has been about a decade since I saw this. With the advent of Youtube in 2006, the Misawa/Kawada rivalry was one of the first things that grabbed me. For all those that argue that story of All Japan should be told through the eyes of Kawada this is validation and for their hero vindication for being the ultimate choke artist. On the main event of the first AJPW dome show with the Four Corners at the forefront, Baba booked Misawa vs Kawada not Misawa vs Kobashi and it was Kawada FINALLY scoring the pinfall victory over his archrival in a Triple Crown match that was the story of the Dome show. I was unaware going into this match that Misawa was very badly injured. It explains the sluggishness of the match and why a lot of the match did not really stick with me on first viewing. Kawada kicks the leg of Misawa at the beginning and Misawa fired off some kicks of his own, but he still sold his leg. This told me something was up I thought it was due to the Akiyama match, but perhaps he was nursing an injured leg. I would say Misawa was generally in control of the beginning and had an answer for everyone of Kawada's shots and ultimately hitting his massive suicide dive elbow to the outside. Kawada turned the tide with his trademark close range spinning heel kick. I loved Kawada quick follow ups anytime Misawa looked poised to make a comeback, he would fire off a big kick to the face. He seemed more tempered in this match and only became urgent when he felt like it may slip away. This is not a bad narrative to cover up the sluggishness due to Misawa's injuries. Misawa mounts his first comeback with his elbows. He looks for the Tiger Suplex that won him the match at 6/3/94, but Kawada gets to the ropes and finally kicks the bad knee of Misawa. I like that Kawada felt he was in danger and finally pulled out trump which was attacking the bad wheel. Great knee work single leg crab, figure-4 good struggle over the holds and great Misawa selling, facially and verbally. Given his health, this was the best and smartest work until the finish sequence as it required little movement, but created big drama. Misawa ELBOWS THROUGH A BLOCK! I love that shit. Misawa is obsessed with the Tiger Suplex, big elbow to the back of the nexk and finally hoists him over for two. Misawa goes to block an enziguiri and hurts his arm. Damn, he can win. Elbows, but wrings his arm out. I wonder if Kawada notices. He kicks Misawa's arm off and then tries a cross armbreaker. He noticed. I didn't feel like the cross armbreaker was being respected here. Misawa elbows, but his arm is shot and now he cant follow up. Now he is moving onto the Tiger Driver nice backdrop, pinfall, reverse Tiger Driver sequence. Kawada blocks elbow and Misawa's elbow is very damaged. This is something Kawada has tried to do for five years, finally destroy Misawa's base, his elbow. Misawa fires off a couple suplexes for two. Without his elbow, can Misawa finish off Kawada? Kappo Kick by Kawada and Enziguiri right on the forehead swings the momentum in Kawada's favor. Misawa backdrops out of first powerbomb, big lariat and throws him on German, enziguiri. Misawa not stirring. Kappo Kick to the head, headrop German and enziguiri. Kawada is just repeating headshots to lead to Brainbuster! Powerbomb struggle this is the story of Misawa/Kawada right here. He drops him down for two and then powerbomb again and THROWS HIM DOWN FOR THREE!!!! KAWADA WINS! KAWADA WINS! KAWADA WINS! The finish is the best part. Even if Misawa and Kobashi have surpassed Kawada as my favorites, you cant help but rooting for Wile E. Coyote and his neverending quest to get the Roadrunner. He finally did it here. Good for him! The last 15 minutes are great, but the first 15 are pretty passé. Once Kawada kicks Misawa in the leg because he is scared of the Tiger Suplex, I thought this picked up. It never felt like that super epic AJPW match nor did tell this great narrative within the match, but it was a strong episode in the greater Misawa/Kawada story. Kawada finally achieves damaging Misawa's elbow almost by accident. Misawa just wanted to block a kick and from there his arm is shot. Misawa never really recovers, which shows Kawada's strategy was right all along he just needed executed it this well. Between his elbow gone and other injuries, Kawada goes in for kill with a barrage of shots to the head, every kick, throw is targeted at knocking Misawa out. Great finish. The Loveable Loser is the Champion! ****

Mitsuharu Misawa vs Jun Akiyama - AJPW 4/18/98 Much better than their January match. Far more energetic. Akiyama looks to start off hot like in January, but Misawa comes roaring back with elbows, no selling every vicious shot to say he is here to win as much as Akiyama. He even gets the Tiger Driver early. Akiyama powders which seems smart as Misawa is raring to go, which is unusual given his penchant for slow starts, extended comebacks. However, as pointed out, he is not the champion in this match as it is a Carny final so he needs to win. Akiyama hits a Northern Lights Suplex on outside and big diving elbow from top to outside. On an Exploder attempt, Misawa kicks off apron to crush Akiyama's ribs into the railing. Really nice counter. Misawa's control is pretty straightforward, he lays everything in and front facelock. Match picks back up again when Akiyama catches Misawa with a dragon leg screw off the top. The first move Akiyama tried in this match was a dragon leg screw so he definitely came in with a game plan coming off the big Kobashi draw. You don't see Misawa's legs targeted too often. Thought this was a great mix of selling from Misawa and work by Akiyama. Suplex struggle turns into a dropkick to the knee by Akiyama cements his control, good work on outside before transitioning into the inside working holds. Akiyama tries the dragon leg screw from the top but Misawa counters with a missile dropkick to the face! Right on the button! Misawa works the front facelock and Akiyama is able to get back to the leg to turn the tide. In return for the missile dropkick, Akiyama rides Misawa's face down with the knee. Here comes the big finish run for Akiyama: Spike Pedigree, top rope diving elbow to back of head, reverse powerbomb quick snap German, takes out knee, Exploder only gets two. The knee work has served Akiyama well and he is getting in position to hit multiple Exploders, but it just does not feel like he something that would fell Misawa. He comes rushing in for that trademark high knee in the corner, but is met by an elbow. Couple absolutely wicked Germans (Akiyama takes them and sells them well) and Misawa does a great job registering the previous damage but moving on. The Tiger Suplex which defeated Kawada at 6/3/94 is now just a nearfall move before the Tiger Driver, weird. Misawa is really flicking the sweat from his eyes. Akiyama's brainbuster is his last stand. Akiyama goes for Exploder, his one bomb, but Misawa hits a massive elbow combination (Roaring, Spinning Back, Roaring) and a sweet Kappo Kick before the blowaway elbow wins it for the Man. The decline of Misawa is already evident at this point to me. He still has plenty of classics left in him and his matches are great, but he is missing that spark in his control segments. He has it in the finish runs. His selling is still top notch. This felt routine but with good energy. Strong beginning, lull (Misawa control) until the hook of the knee attack by Akiyama, lull (Misawa control), finish stretch. One of those this would be great for everyone else, but for All Japan this gets lost in the pack. ****1/4

Kenta Kobashi vs Jun Akiyama - AJPW 4/11/98 Kobashi, my man, welcome back to my life! He totally dominates the first ten minutes as he should because he is the greatest offensive wrestler in history and he proves in these ten minutes. I liked the early blocks from each man. Kobashi blocking the knee and Akiyama blocking the chop. Kobashi getting Akiyama to fall for the test of strength only for Akiyama to outmaneuver him was great. The rest was all Kobashi as he landed the first heavy blow in the form of big chops. He threw some heavy hands with great sound. Those running kneelifts were awesome and so was the Russian Legsweep. He crossfaces Akiyama ferociously and then hits a picture perfect delayed vertical. Boston Crab that looks great with plenty of struggle and back to crossface in ab stretch. Kobashi looks to run away with this, will Akiyama make a comeback or is he just all hype? Well you knew things were going to break Akiyama's way. Kobashi is perched on top and Akiyama dragon leg screws him from the top. Kobashi sells like his knee has been blown out. I realized how much I missed having Kobashi in my life. Absolutely great knee control segment. Awesome selling by Kobahsi, Akiyama always going to knee for cutoff anytime Kobashi tries to chop his way out of trouble. Good use of Texas Cloverleaf. Kobashi able to block a high knee in corner by throwing him down and then hotshotting him. Kobashi looks to headdrop his way to victory with two awesome DDTs made awesome by Akiyama selling and a Dragon Suplex. Goes for killshot with moonsault, but Akiyama dragon leg screws him off. Awesome! Great work on the knee again kneecrusher, dropkick that sets up some big time Germans and elbow to the back of the head. Akiyama has successfully come from behind and made the most of his opportunity will he get the biggest singles win of his career or will the fighting spirit of Kenta Kobashi prevail! Love the work into the Exploders. Kobashi grabs ropes, then armdrag out then tries spinning back chop and then Akiyama finally hits Exploder that's great wrestling. Big high knee sets up Second Exploder only gets two. Third Exploder and Kobashi elbow and nice STO takedown to stymie Akiyama. Kobashi gets the half nelson suplex and gets a second one for a big two count. Anybody's ball game right now! Loved the struggle over the powerbomb Kobashi really struggled hard. He threw Akiyama down. Akiyama has been taking Kobashi's offense like a champ. Kobashi wants the lariat badly, but Akiyama looks for the Exploder. Kobashi hits a DDT and then this absolutely sick Vertical Suplex into Powerbomb! ALL HAIL KOBASHI THE GOD KING OF OFFENSE! As time is winding down, Kobashi wants the moonsault, but Akiyama rolls away and the crowd audibly groans. Akiyama begins kicking the knee just to survive, they work one more half nelson suplex as a nearfall before time limit expires. Big time draw for Akiyama to show his growth. Much like Kobashi drawing Kawada in the mid-90s. Akiyama is gradually working his way the top. Kobashi worked really strong here with great offense and selling. Thought Akiyama ate Kobashi's offense like a champ and when it came time to work the knee he did a great job. Thought the finish sequence was exciting, lots of struggle and drama down the stretch. Not an all-time All Japan classic, but definitely one of the mid-tier, under the radar ones worth checking out. ****1/4

AJPW Triple Crown Champion Mitsuharu Misawa vs Jun Akiyama - AJPW 1/26/98 Pretty standard Misawa fare here, but I did think Akiyama gave an urgent performance. This was the biggest match of his career up until that point and he wrestled like it was . Given that he was a young challenger you expected a hot opening flurry and that's what you see. He blitzes Misawa with a wicked high knee. He wants the Exploder immediately. Misawa uses the elbow to create space, but Akiyama dropkicks him off the top rope and hits a tombstone on the outside. Hey is this where Okada got it from. I will say as much as I don't like Okada, he does a better job using these spots as transitions and letting them have weight. Akiyama settles into a neck control segment, which is usually his bread and butter, but it is kinda boring. Misawa hits a wicked spinning back elbow that is just an inch or two higher would have hit Akiyama in the Adam's Apple. I thought Misawa's kicks looked a lot better than they usually do. Akiyama's transition is a pretty weak modified slam. It is gets very 1998 round this part with Akiyama throwing out all sorts of suplexes, Pedigrees, Rolling Germans, Misawa dumps him over the top. Hits a beautiful diving elbow. Then in a moment when I realized how much I missed Misawa, he does his characteristic wipe the sweat from his brow with one finger like a windshield wiper. I remember how much I like him and missed him being in my life. He then hits a senton and a wicked plancha on Akiyama still laying prone on outside. I love when people use their body weight as a weapon. Best sequence of the match. Misawa is totally in cruise control. Akiyama grabs a dragon leg screw. Here come the headrops and the finish stretch. I will say the reverse powerbomb where Misawa catches the turnbuckle was a very nasty spot and that with awesome high knee and Exploders felt very exciting. Akiyama sold it well as his big moment. He does the Angle climb the ropes and suplex him off the top. This is avant-garde for the time since most of the wrestlers that rip him off hadn't done it at the time, but feels played out in 2016. Brainbuster is his big hope spot. I really like Misawa going a cartwheel on his elbows to avoid an Exploder and ROARING ELBOW~! Probably should have been the finish, but it is All Japan. Some really fierce elbows that really, really should have been the finish. Emerald Flowsion finishes it. Definitely not a match that was befitting of an Emerald Flowsion finish. Standard Misawa is at least very good and Akiyama did make the beginning and end feel very important. Not even close to their 2000 classic. Disappointing for these two, great for anyone else. ***3/4

People can have tragic pasts and still enjoy life ya know. They don't have to be sad and mopey. I don't think Vince is forcing him. He geniunely likes to dance. Just like I do. He does not have to be Eeyore out there! Swann was way more hard hitting than I expected. Cedric is such a fucking badass. Sells like a champ and such a sweet punch. My pick to be the breakout star. Loved both!

Did Ke$ha make the list? Otherwise the entire thing is a sham.

AJ Styles vs Kurt Angle - TNA Sacrifice 2012 Cant sleep so lets watch another AJ match. I am skipping March PPV because Mr. Anderson is AJ's tag partner against Daniels & Kaz. I am skipping April PPV because it is a Lethal Lockdown featuring the Bischoffs. I am not too excited for this match either as I generally dislike this pairing, but I did enjoy their match at Slammiversary 2013, which I was live for. I would say this is probably the best match I have seen between these two until I rewatch the Slammiversary match. Angle is just absolutely horrid at transitions. Transitions are really important to me and he is just the dirt worst. AJ actually created his own transitions just to make this match watchable. Probably the reason I thought this was their best match is because it was just a routine, standard match so there was no chance for Angle to royally screw up a storyline. Basically, AJ does the dumb thing of trying to best Angle, an Olympic Gold Medalist or is it dumb? Angle gives AJ as to say go ahead try to take me down so when Angle goes to squash it, AJ kicks him in the head. The beginning of the match actually does a pretty cool story. It is AJ's pro wrestling against Angle's amateur style. Angle is able to take AJ down at will and use his superior grip strength to control. However, whenever AJ is in trouble he does the old pro wrestling standby of punch someone in the face. They don't teach you that at the Olympics, Kurt! I loved how Aj was always shortening the distance between him and Kurt with dropkicks and punches. He totally decks Angle right in the face. It feels like AJ is wrestling very heelish but it is compelling. Angle is totally useless at selling any of this. Angle throws AJ with a high overhead belly to belly and is quite impressed with the tilt a whirl backbreaker AJ feeds him. Then it is snoozefest ville with Angle working lame holds. AJ hits a beautiful punch for a hope spot, but Angle barely even registers. You are horrible! They both his crossbodies at the same time. AJ is up first and mounts a comeback. Two Phenomenal Forearms, one to the floor, but he really hurts his back. This is what I mean by creating your own transition as he sells the hell out of it. Angle ignores and instead sets up for his run up the ropes belly to belly suplex, which does not even look that good this time. The finish stretch is fine it is Styles Clashes (by both men), Angle Slams and there it is entertaining. AJ fucks up a Springboard 450, which becomes a Springboard 270. Which was actually quite impactful. Daniels and Kaz interfere. Angle Slam->2 and Anglelock with grapevine taps AJ out. But hey Angle the Good Samaritan that he is saves AJ from Daniels & Kaz. AJ looked good. Liked the beginning a lot. Once Angle took over, it got pretty boring. Finish stretch was pretty standard stuff. Hard to have a bad match with AJ, more boring than bad. Still enough good to be considered a good match. ***

Don't worry, I am not going to make everyone watch this match. AJ Styles vs Kazarian - TNA Against All Odds 2012 It is my least favorite storyline, wrestler A forces wrestler B to wrestle wrestler C against his will. Why should Kaz be reluctant to wrestle AJ? The objective of wrestling is not to hurt your opponent just pin or submit him. If you respect someone, just wrestle a clean match. It is the stupidest storyline in wrestling. Lets try to get past that. Oh by the way, Daniels is back from his pathetic exit at Bound for Glory and he is forcing Kaz to wrestle AJ because he has something on him. Eventually Kaz just joins him outright and this becomes the Claire Lynch saga. Cant say Im too excited for that, but hey I just watch PPV matches for a reason! The beginning of the match is by far the best part. AJ wrestles like a man possessed. He sets the tone that he is pissed at Kaz & Daniels. He rips Kaz's shirt (it is a Fallen Angel shirt) right off his body. Credit where it is due, Daniels gets a ton of heat throughout this match (lots of Daniels Sucks chants throughout). AJ wrestles this like a blood feud match, snug headlock, chucks Kaz, always has a mean glare towards Daniels and then will rifle Kaz with a stiff shot. Kaz needs to wake the fuck up because he is in a fight. Kaz is actually really good at bumping and selling for AJ. His offense later on is way too 2000s for me (everything is "modified"), but taking moves he is quite good. Actually his best spot went nowhere, which was a same. AJ charged into the corner and Kaz floated over, but on his way down he grabbed AJ's chin and yanked him down. It was very violent and sudden! Should have been the transition, but alas AJ made a quick comeback. The real transition to heat was a MONSTER MONKEY FLIP! AJ GOT SOME SERIOUS AIR! I thought Kaz's gutwrench looked good really threw him down, but he kinds ran out of stuff to do. Once AJ started his comeback via forearms, I thought they had a hard time moving to the next level. Just lots of move trading. Stuff like Kaz hitting a big time DDT on the apron, only to then to slingshot AJ in to hit a Diamond Cutter and neither move finishes him. It did not feel like the moves had weight. I will say the actual finish was fucking awesome. AJ is ready to hit the springboard forearm. He gets on the ropes, hesitates, and hits a fucking moonsault on Daniels. HOLY SHIT! One of the coolest, most athletic things I have ever seen. Totally had me faked out. The balance that takes and mental concentration is phenomenal (literally the first word that came into my head). Daniels selling of this top notch. Styles gets a modicum of revenge, but because he took his eye off the prize it leaves him prone to Fade To Black. I liked the finish a lot. AJ gets to look good by getting one up on Daniels physically, but it costs him the match so everyone looks good. The beginning of the match was really strong, but they just kinda trade moves in the middle. That moonsault was pretty nutty. I say it was probably 3.5, but damn that moonsault was so awesome so lets go ***3/4.

If people love Glorious so much, there is a whole genre called Power Metal and it is GLORIOUS! I had not heard this until both Matt & Stacey brought it up. Yeah that sounds like the best Iced Earth, Stratovarius song ever. Whats funny is between Ascension (best Morbid Angel/Death Metal song ever), Seth Rollins (best Slipknot/Metalcore song ever), Jim Johnston has to be the greatest heavy metal song producer of the 2010s. If you throw in Shawn Michaels' theme (Johnston did that right?), that is a legit great Glam Metal song. He should have done a Black Metal song for the Stinger. I want to thank everyone for watching. Stacey, I see your point and I think this is not a match that is supposed to stir a great deal of emotion in you. I think AJ was keeping everything alive but completely dying and the Roode shoulder injury was enough to keep the match close. If the TNA fans were not stupid idiots and were rabid for AJ to win, I think it would be a better match. They are invested in the highspots. not characters. Matt, I think you are a little harsh on the outset. AJ comes into the match with a bum knee, he is doing what he can to protect it, but at the end of the day he does have to try to win the match. He is saving himself by not giving chase to Roode and by using the side headlock. Still he has to do shouldertackles, which he sells the knee and he needs to bring it to Roode, fighting through the pain. I think we agree for the most part on the latter stages. I think I was a little more into the selling performance than you but we agree it was a consistent narrative. I think it is a difficult, challenging and jarring match to watch because it is very different than typical pro wrestling. It does not build to righteous babyface fury. In fact it is incredibly anti-climatic. But given the context of the match, I don't think it could. AJ was too hurt to ever really gives us that performance. There were highspots like Springboard 450 and the righteous fury after the cheap win, but they were all he could give due to his knee. I don't think there are too many pro wrestling matches structured this way. I think it is another reason to watch it because at the very least it is unique.

Hey Yo Mr. Matt D, watch the match! We need to know your hot take on this nearly 5 year old match that is causing quite the stir!