nivvad

Much to my surprise, both guys had pretty good chemistry. Cole is in a place that I'm not a fan of where indie guys go to WWE and just become a catchphrase, and it worries me about his future direction. That said though, he had Ricochet in this match to completely cover that fear of mine. I can't say this was a total carry job by Ricochet, but at the same time Cole didn't do anything special aside from a few cool spots and that generic "strong style" sequence. Not the most impressive match I have seen both guys in, but it all somehow came together to be a very enjoyable match, ****1/4.

Easily my favorite match between both teams. Undisputed Era vs Moustache Mountain is low key one of the best feuds of the year, and another great match between the two teams proves it. A nitpick I have to acknowledge though is the use of melodrama with the towel. It makes sense and is a nice call back, but feels completely out of place in a spot fest of a match. Loved all the action though as both teams are great at what they do as teams and singles competitors, ****1/2.

A bittersweet finale to a very emotional tournament. Ibushi is finally at the mountain top, and the only thing left standing in his way is the god of New Japan himself, Hiroshi Tanahashi. Besides the many storyline layers that led up to this match, the match itself was quite spectacular. It felt like an old school Hiroshi Tanahashi big match main event, and the added flair of Ibushi's insanity took it to the next level. On one hand, the victory for Tanahashi makes too much sense, but on the other it breaks my heart watching Ibushi go to the back in tears. Sometimes fate is cruel, but other times it can be the most blissful thing depending on your own perspective. What this match reminded me of at the end of the day is pro wrestling is a magical thing no matter who the victor is, *****.

Don't get me wrong I really loved this match, but in the end I don't think this was the "perfect" match that one would expect from these two. Not to downplay the spectacle of this match though as both guys went out there and destroyed each other to win the match by any means necessary. I also loved the subtle nods to their previous Budokan match like Kenny stopping Ibushi from going for a Moonsault, or Kenny going for an avalanche OWA because he knows a regular one won't do the job. An amazing match for sure, but you can definitely tell they're saving their best tricks for an even bigger match, ****3/4.

Easily better than their New Japan Cup match a few months back. The chemistry was much better here as it wasn't just Zack showing off at Naito's expense; they both got times to shine, and even if Naito doesn't really keep up technical-wise, he still knows how to build drama till the end. I absolutely adored Zack crushing Naito's G1 hopes with his new Sabre Driver, ****1/2.

An incredible match for both guys to finish their G1's on. Ishii has no doubt been the MVP of this year's G1 as many others would agree, but I have to say SANADA absolutely stole the show in this match. I swear he was on another level with the way he was wrestling circles around Ishii, and that's not something just anyone can do. Ishii stealing the Shining Wizard was a crazy moment though. We all know Ishii is headed for big things soon, and I just hope SANADA doesn't fall too far behind, ****1/2.

The never ending feud between Okada and Tanahashi still rages on. It's not hard to see why both these guys always have bangers together as they put on another classic and easily the best A-block match at the very end. The stakes were very high here as it looked like Tanahashi was just hanging on by a thread to obtain that last point, and Okada just needed to finally beat Tanahashi in a G1 match to furthur prove why he was still the top guy. Amazingly, things don't play out as expected as it is Tanahashi who reaches down inside him to pull out a performance that not even Okada in his current state can overcome. The storytelling with callbacks to their previous match was great too. Admittedly, I never once thought Tanahashi had a chance of winning his block, especially this late in the game, but shame on me for not believing the "Ace" couldn't pull it off, ****3/4.

A great match that will go under the radar, but still a very good showing for both guys. Janela is someone I kind of have a hard time connecting with. His ability to transition from likable jokester to suicidal freak can be kind of jarring depending what promotion he's wrestling for, but he has really showed a refreshing side of himself as a more "serious" wrestler in EVOLVE. Darby Allin is someone who also has his pros and cons, but definitely showed a really good chemistry here with Janela. If it's any indication of the unique talent of both guys, they got a lukewarm crowd going nuts by the end, ****1/4.

Easily the best match both guys have had with each other. In retrospect, the first two matches between these two were really good, but I didn't think they were putting out their best at least. This match though they really showed they have the chemistry to do a dramatic match with lots of cool sequences, great storytelling, and big drama. Hard to say if EVIL is main event caliber yet, but he certainly has the skills to hang with the best, ****1/2.

On the twilight of his indie career, Riddle gave one of his best EVOLVE performances to date against one of his greatest rivals. The first two matches between these guys in EVOLVE were pretty diappointing as they had non-finishes, but that was able to be thrown out the door as this match was encouraged to be as violent as possible. Even though Riddle was the main player here, I really thought Strickland came off looking like a star in the way he picked apart Riddle. Did I think the match needed to go almost half an hour? Not really, but I can't say it hampered my enjoyment of this match. Riddle did kind of go a bit overkill with the "fighting spirit" spots, but he still got his ass kicked by Strickland anyways. Very dramatic match with lots of bumps, strikes and everything else, and in the end Strickland finally puts Riddle away to win the EVOLVE title, ****1/2.

Every match between Ibushi and Naito is a battle to an almost death or something. Not to exaggerate, both guys have a death wish in their matches against each other, because neither guy can resist landing on their neck even for the smallest move. Not that this match was just all neck bumps though. At this point I don't know why anyone tries to work Ibushi's legs because it never works since he never sells the damage. The second half of this match was just bonkers though as Ibushi just killed Naito ten times over with some dangerous head drops. The crowd wasn't as hot as they could've been because of the prior match, but the crowd eventually did come around for Ibushi's insane comeback. Fortunately, Ibushi got the win to keep his hopes of reaching the finals alive, ****3/4.

The wars between Ishii and Omega last year were some of the best of the year, but were kind of overshadowed by the bigger main event rivalries. This time around, Omega and Ishii forcibly steal the show with the best match of the G1 tournament in my opinion. The first few minutes were a little awkward with a few noticable botches, but that became an afterthought as Omega and Ishii quickly kick it into third gear and start unleashing hell on each other. So many amazing sequences, strikes, moves, and the like. The drama was also very high as many were anticipating an Ishii win, but doubts grew as the match kept going and Omega becoming more dominant. The finish is absolutely mesmerizing as Omega desperately tries to survive Ishii even when looking like a bloody mess, but Ishii managed to finally bring Omega down to earth with an apocalyptic Brainbuster for the win, *****.

A match promoted as a "dream match" that completely lived up to the hype. Dunne and WALTER are two pretty similar wrestlers that rarely get to face off against each other, so doing a match for the wXw tapings was a bit of a surprise. Even though it was a TV taping, they certainly didn't hold back on each other one bit. Throughout the match, Dunne tried tearing down WALTER by taking out his most powerful weapons, his arms. WALTER sold his arms very well, but he still managed to lay in some great strikes and moves on Dunne when he had the chance. Hard to say if this match was great because of the awesome chemistry, or because they're both just world class talents; probably both, ****1/2.

A pretty great dream match that delivered with the amount of time they were given. I don't think this was the best possible match these two greats could pull off, but you could easily tell the grand story both were trying to tell. Kenny tried the whole match to outpower Zack, but unfortunately the latter had a counter for Kenny at almost every turn. I liked Kenny's selling in the first half of the match, but he kind of forgot about it towards the end. The roll up is a surprise yet refreshing for an Omega match, and it keeps the door open for a future rematch between these two, ****1/4.

Liked this a lot more than their G1 match last year which was also really good. I know we can't and shouldn't get Ibushi going crazy in every match or else he would crash and burn by the end, but I was hoping for just a little bit more danger in this match. What we got was completely fine though as Ibushi and Goto showed they have some pretty great chemistry. I wouldn't mind a rematch in a few months with Ibushi challenging Goto for his NEVER title, ****1/4.

Easily the best A-block match so far, but that was to be expected considering both guys in this match are super talented. They had a match in last year's G1 that was pretty incredible, and while I wouldn't say this year's match lived up to the previous, it was still a banger of a match. Elgin's offense was so impressive that he even got the crowd to rile up in his favor and were hoping for an upset. Okada was also great here as he led the story of trying to fight power with power, but was proving he couldn't do that. Kind of quick finish and no upset, but Elgin looks good in a big match once again, ****1/2.

A 3 year journey finally culminated with this match. This match was just incredible by the end. The brawling at the beginning was pretty fun which led to some good leg work on Miyahara who sold it pretty well throughout the match. Back in the ring though is where both men really laid it into each other with lots of strikes and big moves. The drama kept building with the crowd going nuts for Zeus to finally win the big one. Miyahara literally gave all he could yet still couldn't lock in his finishing Jacket German. That final sequence of Zeus just breaking out and delivering one more whooping to Miyahara before finally finishing him with a second Jackhammer is perfect. Zeus wins his first ever Triple Crown in front of his hometown, and the post match promo/interactions are super endearing. It kind of went overkill at the end, but still made for a very satisfying match, ****3/4.

I decided to rewatch this match as the rating I gave this match was probably a bit lower than I really thought it was because it was on the same show as Ibushi vs Ishii, so of course I was going to compare the quality in the two matches. With time passed though, I can safely say that this match is actually quite better on the rewatch. It isn't as athletically amazing as the SANADA vs Ibushi match, but I can still feel that SANADA and Kenny had a different yet still very good chemistry in their own match. They had a match last year that I thought was very good, but didn't exactly live up to standards. This year though they definitely killed it in an awesome G1 main event. Even if SANADA lost, there's still no doubt in everyone's mind that he can hang with the New Japan main eventers, ****1/2.

Another absurdly insane classic from Ibushi and Ishii. These guys have had some crazy matches before, but this particular G1 match was just out of this world insane. Ibushi was just on another plane of madness as he brought the intensity and violence to Ishii making the latter's offense look like childs play at points. Lots of tropey stuff too like no selling moves and spamming suplexes, but it was all fun. Easily one of the best matches of the tournament, ****3/4.

Another Ishii vs Zack match, another match of wild chemistry. It's so interesting seeing two guys who just have the opposite styles of wrestling from each other but can still have a great match with each other. Maybe it's more of an attribute to the talent both guys possess, but they definitely have exciting matches everytime. The final stretch in particular was dramatic as Ishii almost pulled out the win, ****1/4.

An awesome encounter between two very athletic and handsome men. This was as fast and spotty as one would've hoped this match would be. While neither man did anything too crazy, they both still showed off their amazing athleticism, and showed a great chemistry between each other. SANADA working Ibushi's leg early on was kind of funny because everyone knew Ibushi was going to stop selling it a few moments later, and he did. Besides that though this was a great main event with SANADA picking up the hometown win, ****1/2.

Another highly praised NXT match that was pretty great, but I wouldn't say it was TakeOver main event quality if I had to make a comparison. Black was pretty fantastic in this match as he was all over the place hitting some great strikes here and there. Ciampa was alright with his offense, his control segment wasn't super exciting, but his heel work was definitely on point. The overbooking with Gargano at the end was unnecessary, but I get the purpose so it makes sense I guess. Very fun match with a shocking(?) title change in the end, ****1/4.

When you talk about pairs of wrestlers in 2018 who have the best wrestling chemistry in 2018, Pentagon and Sami have to be up there. This was quite the brutal spectacle as both men just beat and battered each other from start to finish. The stuff with the spikes was absolutely insane to watch. I wouldn't say this was the most extreme match I have seen all year, but this was definitely one of the better ones, and easily the best Impact match in years, ****1/2.

The hype was high for this match, so in that regard it disappointed a bit, but I still thought it was a pretty great match. Now the first 10-15 minutes or so are pretty slow as is in typical DDT main events, but those last 10 minutes are a pretty wild ride. This was not the glorious triumph that we expected Irie to have after finally beating HARASHIMA, but it was still a struggle from start to finish which fit the narrative fine. The last minute surprise challenge from Sammy after the match was cool too, ****1/4.

Bailey and MAO finally did it! Kind of sucks to see Endo just be a transitional champ, but he still managed to put on a pretty great match here as well. Paulie didn't do much, but his small moments in the match were cool and fit to his style. Bailey and MAO of course were also pretty great with their smooth athleticism. In the end, Bailey and MAO finally get the upset to win the tag belts, ****1/4.