ohtani's jacket

Chaotic and energetic brawl to start with on par with anything LLPW did during the '93-94 inter-promotional era. Then it gets a tad predictable down the stretch as Noumi is thrown to the wolves. The nearfalls didn't have the punch that you want from a stretch run and you could see the finish coming a mile away, but this was still pretty good for a match that involved some fairly average workers. Momoe was a spark plug as usual.

This was an excellent title match and one of the best Joshi matches of the year. In fact, it may be the best Joshi match of the year given the history behind it with Ito's rise through the ranks after the talent exodus and her growth from her Peter Pan days to this her third title shot. Aja and Meiko had amazing chemistry but this felt like a changing of the guard considering Toyota was Ito's senior. At least it should have been a changing of the guard if the company hadn't been in such a perilous state. Ito's main weapon is her double foot stomp and it's a move she uses a lot. If it were any other move it might get irritating but thanks to her build it looks brutal every time she makes contact. It's such a simple and direct move but so painful looking and debilitating for her opponent that it may be one of the most perfect moves in all of wrestling. Without that diving foot stomp, it's questionable how interesting she would be as she doesn't have the star quality of other Joshi aces. Toyota puts in a really solid performance. She really has to fight through the pain and she goes down swinging trying to give herself one last puncher's chance. This match isn't as poetic as Misawa beating Jumbo or matches of that caliber, but it is very similar. It's a great match if you know the history and you love foot stomps, that's for sure.

This was a blast. I'm not sure they could have done a better midcard mentor vs. student bout without it taking up a whole lot more time on the card. If you know the girls and you know their roles then this is about as satisfactory as you can imagine. As an Oz fan, I'm glad I watched it because it was another little feather in her cap as a worker. And as a Nagashima fan, it was a fun coming-of-age bout to see her get one up on her mentor. From a work standpoint, I really liked how they covered for Nagashima's blown Liger bomb spot at the end and still managed to steer the bout towards the upset finish. That was clever ad-libbing and capped off a frantic, emotion-packed bout. I'm glad I watched this chapter in the OZ Academy story.

I saw the 00s incarnation of the Crush Girls live which was a fun live wrestling experience. I imagine this match was also fun. Watching a match live you can enjoy the crowd response and get suckered into the near falls whereas on tape the action tends to come across as a movie and it's easy to slip into a more analytical way of thinkng about the match. From a critic's point of view, I thought this was a high energy sprint with some cool shit in it. The thing that stood out most was Kansai's work. In years gone by I would have watched this match and lamented the fact that Kansai wasn't as good as her JWP heyday. But watching this 2000 footage I've accepted the fact that she's past her prime and now I'm looking at her work from a different perspective. Her work wasn't as good as the other women in the match but it was next stage Dynamite Kansai and that's something I haven't really appreciated before. I thought Chigusa looked good and I liked Aja's personal battle with Lioness Asuka. The uraken spots were cool and Aja eating the pinfall at the end was wild. Main events should be spectacles and there was a pretty good one.

Devil was well past her prime here but still had amazing facials and the aura of a veteran worker who ate girls like Satomura live. She was doing her Super Heel schtick which was never that popular with Western Joshi fans but years later I think you can look back on this stuff and appreciate that she's pretty good as far as her character work goes. This isn't a great match but it is a pretty great match-up. Things get electric toward the end when Devil is kicking out of Death Valley Drivers and the commentators are calling her a monster. When Meiko wins at the end, they really play up the fact that she conquered a demon. Meiko was good but not outstanding. She brought a lot of passion but that's a given. Matches like this are always going to seem like a poor woman's version of Aja vs. Meiko but at least it's interesting to see her vanquish other vets. Devil got her heat back, for sure, but Meiko still felt like she was on the way up. This achieved what it set out to accomplish.

Matches like this never work that well in Japan but the heat wasn't bad and was comparable to other Japanese indy shows. The priceless thing about this was that we got to see Virus in his physical prime. It's a shame we don't have more footage of him from this period as he is clearly a premier talent. Marvin had a pretty poor bout truth be told, but Virus was mesmerizing. It's a wonder and a miracle that he got that showcase title match run a decade later.

This felt like they were commentating over the top of a handheld. Dandy vs. Parka sure is a hell of a lot more interesting than Dandy vs. Antifaz. In fact, their work was so good it was one of my favorite match-ups all month. I was kind of pissed when Antifaz did a run in at the end but by Gawd did he beat the shit out of Dandy. It's rare to see a tecnico take it to a rudo like that. Dandy was a mess and had to be stretchered out. Kind of bemusing considering how little heat their earlier work had but at least it was memorable. I really wanted Parka vs. Dandy, though.

With the talent in the ring this could have been better but at least Dandy finally showed some spark as a rudo. The tecnico comeback in the second fall was excellent after the long heat section. Unfortunately, they went for comedy in the third fall instead of intense brawling. I was glad to see Dandy come to life, though.

I wish they had shown this in full since the crowd was so hot in the final fall. Tony Rivera seemed popular with the tecnico fans who were in full voice for this one. Usually, they're drowned out by the rudo fans and their bells but this time there were large "Tony!" chants ringing through Coliseo. I was just happy to see Lizmark working with Blue Panther and Fuerza Guerrera. It's a shame his health prevented him from working the maestro circuit. I can only imagine how great some of his work could have been in the indies There was nothing remarkable about the match to start with but it really started rocking in the tercera and ended up being thoroughly entertaining. They should have brought all these guys back the following week. Btw, I loved how that guy got out of his seat for the Black Warrior tope and then got a full on side view of it. That tope really is one of the best in the business.

Well, the feud between the Infernales and Niebla is starting to heat up, especially the personal battle between Niebla and Ultimo Guerrero. This featured the usual slick three-man work of the Infernales who did a number on Niebla in the early going. A decent response from the tecnicos led to some more inspiring work from Niebla than usual. Maybe it's me, but I always get the feeling that CMLL are always looking for the next big thing from one of their masked tecnicos. Shocker and Niebla were poised as breakthrough stars at the end of the 90s and we've seen Shocker bloom into one of the finest rudos in the country but despite his unique style Niebla is still there or thereabouts. He just can't seem to break through to the next level. Even here he looks like a foil for the Infernales to move further up the ladder. But at least he's interesting for a change.

Fairly simple opener that was probably better than what they showed on TV. Pimpi had to really tone down her act for Arena Mexico. The one comedy spot that she did they cut away to a small boy in the audience. Looks like she's lost her hair as well. Nothing outstanding in any of the match-ups they showed. The TV director seemed more interested in the crowd.

This was a solid long-form trios match but they never really took it up a gear. Instead of having a dramatic and exciting tercera caida they ran through some classic trios spots (the types you'd see in your average Brazos bout.) It's difficult to go out there and have a classic in Arena Naucalpan because of the size of the venue and the small crowds. They tried to work this in a classic way but it was a bit creaky down the stretch. It was still a solid bout, however. The best thing about it was the personal battle between Satanico and Villano V, which featured some great strength battles. If you're a Satanico fan it was one of the better matches he's had all year on the strength of that match-up alone. Wagner and Villano III keep teasing something potentially good as well.

The Ciclon Ramirez rudo tease is the most random thing I've seen in 2000. It's not something that I saw coming and not something I can remember happening. I guess it explains why the big Ramirez vs. Cerebro match never happened. Even though there wasn't a full turn I thought this was a good storyline match. And Ciclon refusing to tag in meant we got plenty of Cerebro vs. Suicida which was a good thing. Cerebro looked legit hurt at the end and I have no idea whether the Ramirez tease will lead anywhere but it looks as though Ramirez vs. Black Dragon is the obvious outcome.

I guess this was the match that was supposed to happen at the PPV. This was snappier than the PPV match. It was another hatchet job in the editing suite but even the cuts couldn't dampen the energy that Emilio brought to the bout. The third fall was the type of all-out action that would become the norm in years to come but was still in its infancy in 2000 CMLL. At one stage it seemed like Emilio and Niebla were in control of the fall but the Infernales with their backs to the wall managed to pull off a clean win. I was surprised by that. It almost seemed like the Infernales were being positioned as workrate kings. It's not the first time their workrate has been pushed to the fore but it was noticeable here.

Oh c'mon, this has to be good, doesn't it? In typical lucha fashion, I'm confused about what's going on. Weren't Silver King and El Dandy tecnicos the last time we saw them in IWRG and weren't the Villanos rudos? Ah well, it doesn't matter. One good thing about the year 2000 is the amount of Villanos trios matches there are after years of them being in the wilderness after the UWA folded. The first fall is an extended beatdown. It's longer than your average beatdown -- more of a measured beatdown than a vicious one. Nothing remarkable happens but it's controlled and they keep a steady pace. Dandy is much better here than in Monterrey. The VIllanos don't work hard enough for their comeback but offensively they're a polished unit. The third fall was all right but it wasn't until Wagner and Villano III squared off that the stakes felt right and then the foul bullshit happened. Provided this is leading somewhere this gets a pass as a first chapter but it wasn't great on its own.

So promising on paper, so disappointing in execution. This was butchered in the edit and worked in a weak style for the Arena Mexico crowd. I can only imagine a long-form version of this in a smaller arena that produces a MOTYC. Panther vs. Villano III was tantalizingly good as was Villano vs. Wagner. But let me tell you, I love me some Doc Wagner Jr. but you're more likely to see a clean finish in a Hogan match. Really disappointing.

The Perro retirement tour rolls through Naucalpan and the fans end up being treated to his best performance all year. This was an excellent match. I adore the Villanos' style of matwork so I thoroughly enjoyed the opening caida even if none of the matchups were outstanding. It was fun watching Perro on the mat. He was slow but you could see that the muscle memory was still there and the brain was ticking over. I bet there were nights when he was younger where he was a fierce competitor on the mat despite not being as technically gifted as other luchadores. I also enjoyed watching Villano III jostle with Mascara Sagrada and his giant duck arse. It's been a huge year for Villano III but we haven't seen much of him on the mat so this was a pleasant change. The tecnico comeback was short and on point with Perro's stomp firing things up. I liked the mark of respect between Perro and V3 but my favorite part of the match was when Villano's brothers threw respect out the window and punked Perro. Hey, in the words of one former All Blacks captain: "We're not playing tiddlywinks." The Villanos brought out the fire in Perro and the tercera was a fun romp before the result was reversed on a crowd call. Perro spoke for too long at the end and was cut off by the music at one point. He was speaking from the heart but you could tell he was already a bit doddery. It was a nice moment, though.

I haven't been following the AAA minis so I didn't have a lot riding on this but I thought it was below average. Tsuky looked awesome when he was on the attack but the tecnicos didn't get enough offense.

I'm all for more Cerebro vs. Ramirez, I just wish it was leading to a big singles match. Their work here was good although the early blood didn't factor into the bout enough.

Despite its length, this was a cracking little trios match. I liked the fact that we got some continuity in Satanico exacting his revenge for the Puebla hair loss and I also liked seeing that Tarzan Boy's improvement wasn't some flash in the pan. Once again he looked like a legitimately good tecnico. It's always fun watching Ringo Mendoza dial back the clock and equally fun watching the Infernales roll. This was spirited stuff.

A lot of big names in this but nothing terribly exciting happens. The Dandy vs. Antifaz beef continues to be underwhelming. That's mostly because Dandy is a boring rudo. There is one exchange with Antifaz where Shocker and Wagner take over the beatdown and the contrast between that pair and Dandy when it comes to rudoism is startling. I have no idea why Dandy is so listless but he blows in this feud.

Emotions are running high tonight on CMLL RAW. Which of these four men will walk out of a sold-out Arena Mexico with their head unshaven? This was pretty much what you'd expect from these four guys brawling inside a cage. The escape rules slowed things down at times but they tried to add some pep to things with Los Capos attacking Perro after he'd escaped and Pierroth turning on Mascara Ano 2000 (there's no honor among thieves in the first place), but the match was inescapably long (BOOM! How's your boy's puns?!) and ultimately it wasn't much of a payoff to the Villano/Pierroth beef. The finish saw a one-armed Villano with a cut arm beat a distracted M2K who was stewing over Pierroth's turn. Villano got a big apuesta win at Arena Mexico five months after dropping his mask and I liked the subtle acting from M2K at the end. I especially liked the part where he pointed at Pierroth before the Capos beatdown. Can't wait for that feud going forward. Cien Caras' mustache was awesome as well.

This was a nice showcase for the hard working Infernales pair but I thought it lacked rhythm. Tag matches used to be the predominant form of lucha before trios matches became the norm. These days they're something of a lost art. The first fall was a standard rudo fall but the second fall had a weak comeback and the third fall didn't swing back and forth like a third fall ought to. I didn't help that there was zero chemistry between the tecnicos and that Niebla was having one of his off nights but they really should have shortened the second fall and had more near falls in the third. The beginning of the tercera was a muddled collection of spots and even the dive train was awkward. I also thought it made little sense for the match to continue, so to speak, only for the rudo to go over cleanly. The booking at the end only made sense to me if Niebla was going to pull off the win. The Infernales continue to put in the work and climb the ladder but this wasn't a match I'll remember as being particularly great.

What a great rudo team. That's the type of team I'd put together if I had the book. You could tell this was a big show as the work was stiffer than usual and guys were selling so hard they almost blew a gasket. The highlight was seeing Wagner and Casas go at it. They may have faced each other in Japan but I can't remember them ever having a clash like this at Arena Mexico. Casas was in fine form and Wagner once again showed his immense talent. He looked as though he could rule the lucha world if promoters weren't afraid to give him the keys. Satanico and Porky did Satanico and Porky things and Lizmark Jr. coped all right. Satanico was fresh off another hair loss to Tarzan Boy (this time at Arena Puebla) which must have been a blow to his ego. He was brimming with confidence, though, as you'd expect from the great one. The finish promised to be throw down between Casas and Wagner but soon it became obvious that neither was going to job cleanly. Despite the cop out at the end this ticked all the boxes for a bit of entertainment to fill out the card.

If your image of lucha libre is based on Santo, Blue Demon, and classical masked luchadores from movie posters and lucha mags then you'll appreciate the grandeur of this match. If 2000 has proven anything it's that there's something to be said for the power of the mask match. This was probably the second best CMLL match of the year. The battle royal was perfunctory but the Cibernetico was outstanding. Panther vs. Solar was amazing. Superlatives don't do it justice. They put on two of the most breathtaking exchanges in the history of Ciberneticos let alone in the year to date. I may forget the details of this match in the years to come but I won't forget that Solar and Panther were amazing. But they weren't the only ones that pulled out the stops. Almost everyone was on point here and the final pairing put on a fight worthy of an apuesta match. Hijo del Gladiator has never been a guy who's left much of an impression on me but when his time came to drop the match he followed the time-honored tradition of busting his ass. In many ways, this was the complete opposite of Atlantis vs. Villano, which was a long apuesta feud. This was a sudden stipulation match. But the power of the wager was the same and produced another piece of magic in 2000.