Boss Rock

Haven't watched any of the matches save the Okada-EVIL stuff from this week, but it seems like these were fairly lackluster cards. Not to mention the disqualification finishes looking a little too much like WWE.

My guess is that O-Khan does indeed win the NEVER title (bleh) and drops it to Shingo later in the year.

Yeah during the match they said he was 8-0 at Mania.

KENTA-Mox finally taking place on February 26th on NJPW Strong.

Shingo-Tanahashi was indeed great. Tana's longevity is insane and Shingo could be the best wrestler in the world today. O-Khan-Tenzan was a lot better than I expected. Nice to see the Dads pull out a solid performance every once in a while. Still, I don't get the hype surrounding O-Khan or why I should be excited about him getting a title shot.

Same.

Main event of All In.

MOTY: Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito: Wrestle Kingdom 14 night 2 Adam Page & Kenny Omega vs. Young Bucks: AEW Revolution Kazuchika Okada vs. Kota Ibushi: Wrestle Kingdom 14 night 1 Promotion of the Year: AEW Best Angles/Promos/Skits: Jon Moxley-Eddie Kingston face-to-face Taz attacking Cody AEW/Impact cross-overs Best Weekly TV Show: Dynamite Wrestler of the Year (Thesz/Flair): Sasha Banks Jon Moxley Tetsuya Naito Wrestler of the Year (Most Outstanding): Tomohiro Ishii Shingo Takagi Hiromu Takahashi I feel somewhat confident in that order, but's still razor thin. Show of the Year: G1 Climax night 13 10/10 Wrestle Kingdom night 2 Wrestle Kingdom night 1

I think Okada makes around or at least close to top WWE star money.

Oh yeah I forgot about Jericho-Naito.

No major angles from NYD it would seem. Shame but it really hasn't done that since SZKG came back in 2017 anyway. But Shingo-Tanahashi and SHO-Hiromu should be hoots.

Finished night 2. The first two matches were skippable, but everything else (mostly) ruled. SANADA-EVIL was solid and gave SANADA the big win he needed. Shingo-Cobb was, well..."bombfest" gets thrown around a lot but this was an absolute bombfest. Hiromu-Taiji was a bit longer than it needed to be but was still great and a bit more physical than their previous matches. As for the main event, the first 10 minutes of padding weren't needed and the amount of kick-outs certainly got excessive, but it was phenomenal. Pro wrestling storytelling at its finest. Wrestle Kingdom certainly wasn't perfect and doesn't really need to be a 2 night event anymore (I suspect they did it this year to make up for a limited capacity Dome and to ensure everyone got to be on the card). But considering how rocky 2020 NJPW was to the point where it actually made me a bit jaded, they stepped up and delivered in a big way. I'm once again optimistic regarding their creative direction and ability to put on satisfying shows.

I haven't seen the Jay promo yet (waiting to finish the Ibushi match first) but I'm guessing he's going to take time off and come back as a babyface.

It is.

Finished the rest of the show. The Ranbo was fun a battle royal but I wish guys like Ishii, Suzuki, and SHO had something better to do on the card. Hiromu-ELP was really good although it's clear there is a much better match between them down the line. I agree that the tag title match overachieved and that's mostly due to how good the Tekkers are. Taichi's stock has risen higher in my book than anyone else this past year. The finish yet again put a damper on things and we're stuck with another dull G.O.D. reign. They're so frustrating because you have two handsome, athletic guys with an undeniable charisma and swagger about them who proceed to wrestle these boring, overbooked trudges. Kojima-KENTA didn't quite reach my expectations but the match was still solid. And Tanahashi-O'Khan was as good as it was going to be. Tanahashi really did his best and it's a testament to how great he truly is. O'Khan still just doesn't have it. It's funny how divisive a figure he's become among fans. Some see a great deal of potential and others (myself included) see another Fale. Overall, a good show with nothing truly bad and two absolute must-see matches.

Okada-Ospreay was incredible. Just a terrific match. Really enjoyed the main event as well. Naito and Ibushi have had better matches together, but I like how this match felt more...deliberate I guess?

Not that I think it will happen in time to prevent WK, but Tokyo is asking Japan to declare another state of emergency. So there could be another extended shutdown down the line.

Have been watching this now. Great stuff and it's touching to hear how much of an impact he had on the rest of the DO in the course of only a few months.

The first time I saw Brodie was in the Wyatt Family. He quickly became my favorite because of how agile and athletic he was while also remaining an impressive powerhouse. I especially enjoyed the tag feud with Rowan against the Usos in 2014. It's a shame WWE could never figure out how to best utilize him but his AEW run, as tragically short as it was, was a lot of fun. And in a business filled with less than desirable characters, by all accounts he was a wonderful human being and devoted family man. He will be missed.

Absolutely terrible. By the accounts being given he was a wonderful person and a devoted family man. RIP

Togo not being in BOSJ was one of their biggest booking crimes this year.

This was certainly a bit of a downer year for NJPW (especially with COVID). From Wrestle Kingdom to the shut-down they were pretty much on fire. Naito got his moment, the Golden Aces breathed life in a tag division that has been dominated by the awful GoD, Hiromu made his comeback, and Shingo won the NEVER title. But the EVIL push, while interesting on paper, was an utter failure and became a caricature of the worst BC tendencies. Jingu was a step in the right direction and the G1 was great (although some matches fell a bit short of expectations and the B Block fizzled out near the end). Then Ibushi lost the briefcase which was a giant gut punch. Naito couldn't rid himself of that pesky EVIL. Tanahashi has been defined-down into the midcard despite still bringing a ton to the table. Okada won't get rid of the Money Clip. The KOPW trophy had potential but became a background prop. O-Khan became Fale 2.0. And for the love of God why are GoD still getting pushed? That all being said, there were things I DID like post-COVID shut-down. The NEVER 6-Man Tag Title tournament grossly overachieved and made for an excellent feel-good story for YOSHI-HASHI. Nagata and Suzuki had a really fun mini feud where they basically tried to kill each other. Shingo made himself the new workhorse of the midcard (a step up from the middling Goto). Taichi finally put it all together and not only has a good team with Sabre, but was arguably the breakout star of the G1. Hiromu's brief foray into the Heavyweight division was a lot of fun and proof that he's going to be an even bigger star down the line. I didn't watch all of BOSJ but there were some really good matches and the finals, while never in doubt, was a huge star-making performance for Desperado. Hopefully WK acts as a reset. I have faith it can be a great show.

Very good match. Kenny's AAA matches have always been worth watching and this was no exception. A lot of the aerial spots were impressive and Kenny's leg selling, which has historically been spotty, was really good. A very good showing by Laredo but was kind of annoyed by him basically getting the shoulder up at 3.1. The One Winged Angel has been treated as a kill shot for years and while someone will most likely kick out of it when Kenny loses the AEW title, I felt this took some of the steam out of the move.

Terrific match and late MOTYC. This had bombs like we saw in the previous two finals, but the history between Hiromu and Desperado made things feel more like a hate-filled grudge match. Hiromu's selling of the leg was good for the most part and the desperation he showed in the middle with being unable to hit the sunset flip powerbomb and apron suplex were great. Desperado also had a career performance and the mask removal is easily one of the most memorable moments of the year. Just terrific stuff all around. ****3/4.

Only saw a few gifs, but Despy taking his mask off was fire. And this definitely feels more like a steady build for Despy. He'll win the title in the next year or so.