Kenta Kobashi

[Jingus]

I'm not so keen on the Joe match, I never connected with any real focus, it felt like a chance to see Kobashi do his spots live (ie an exhibition, which I should point out is absolutely fine given the setting). The Sasaki match is far better laid out (better than the Misawa/Kawada match too, I thought, last time I watched them), and that's what sets the AJ guys apart for me.

It was more than just that: a lot of the match's structure is about how Kobashi reacts to Joe marking out for being in the ring with him. Joe in that match was totally cast as a cosplaying fanboy of King's Road style (albeit one who was still a legitimately dangerous top wrestler himself). It really is a kinda unusual story, of a young superstar who's finally meeting his aging idol in the ring, and the odd consequences thereof. Yes, part of it felt like Kobashi was performing the live equivalent of his own highlight reel, but that was actually part of the story they were deliberately telling.

 

The match starts as a pretty clean exhibition with both guys doing their standard trademark spots; it's competent, but nothing special. It's two talented guys who are kinda going through the motions. But eventually Joe starts trying some cutesy fan-film bullshit, acting like a total mark and copying a bunch of old All Japan moves and spots. Kobashi is all like "what the fuck, you little punk, you haven't earned the right to do our moves!" and turns things up a notch. He angrily no-sells all of Joe's I-saw-this-on-tape offense, and chops Joe into next week. Joe learns the lesson, and takes back over with his usual faux-MMA knees and kicks. They repeat this sequence a couple of times; whenever Joe tries to do some marking-out bullshit like getting into a chop battle with KOBASHI it never goes well for him, but he does just fine when he stops being a wiseguy and goes back to his own patented moveset. Kobashi keeps himself in second gear until after he survives a series of big moves, culminating in kicking out of a Musclebuster; after that he's like "oh shit, this little punk might kick my ass if I don't take this much more seriously" and that's when he pulls out the half-nelson deathplexes and the Hundred-Chop Barrage in the corner. And finally we get the traditional old AJPW finish of "the lesser opponent gets dropped on his head several times, manages to bravely kick out of all that, but then The Ace hits his striking finisher for the pin".

[concrete1992]

I think I can call Joe vs. Kobashi my Bayley vs. Sasha. I can't de-emotionally invest from the match. And I will mark for it accordingly.

[MJH]

Hmm... I can accept that as a walkthrough. I don't want to sound too down on the match because it's not as if they had many options.

[jdw]

Last great Kobashi match is what

 

In January 1997.

[JazeUSA]

 

Last great Kobashi match is what

 

In January 1997.

 

Triple Crown: Kenta Kobashi vs. Mitsuharu Misawa (1/20/97) ??

[dawho5]

I believe that was the implication. I would say his 04 match with Taue was pretty damn boss, if not up to the All Japan level of things. The Ogawa match is right up there as well. I preferred the tag with Taue against Akiyama/Tenryu, but both were a level below the two singles matches I mentioned. On an emotional level, he had a six man tag in I think March of 08, his last return match, that was pretty damn great. It was on Ditch's project and I really loved it as a return to the more vulnerable Kobashi as a sympathetic babyface. If it's the one I am thinking of, Takayama is involved and serves as an equalizer to Kobashi. Kobashi vs. Takayama in 04 is pretty high up on my 2000s list as well. I'd put it just shy of the Taue and Ogawa matches.

[MJH]

Shame on John for forgetting the 6/98 Kawada match.

[Timbo Slice]

Shame on John for forgetting the 6/98 Kawada match.

That's a big-time Kawada carry job. Kobashi might as well had been lead around by the nose in the match. Plus, that finish "killed the territory" after Kawada's huge win a month earlier.

[InYourCase]

The right answer to Kobashi's last great match is Kobashi & Shiozaki vs. Sasaki & Nakajima from 11/5/05. Kobashi is awesome in that match.

[soup23]

John's jab was cute but I see no way in watching 1998 as a whole and not coming away impressed with Kobashi. I didn't see hardly any excess with his performances that years and even the ones that do (vs. Misawa 10/98) had so many sublime moments that it become my worldwide MOTY.

[jdw]

Shame on John for forgetting the 6/98 Kawada match.

 

Didn't hold up as well the last time I watched it.

 

Kind of an indication of the level that I was thinking of in terms of "great".

[Loss]

A match can be great without being an all-time classic, although I'd consider Kobashi-Akiyama from 7/98 both.

[jdw]

John's jab was cute but I see no way in watching 1998 as a whole and not coming away impressed with Kobashi. I didn't see hardly any excess with his performances that years and even the ones that do (vs. Misawa 10/98) had so many sublime moments that it become my worldwide MOTY.

 

I wasn't impressed by Kobashi when watching the stuff in 1998 as a whole. Excess probably is a word I used. I'm about 100% certain that I used the word "bored" first with the 10/98 match.

 

To be honest, I wasn't totally in love with him in 1996. I thought Misawa ran circles around him, Kawada when have a chance did as well, Taue was about ten times more interesting to watch in 1996, and Jun's growth was as well. I didn't say he sucked. But he was hitting me in the same exact way that Toyota did. :/

[jdw]

A match can be great without being an all-time classic, although I'd consider Kobashi-Akiyama from 7/98 both.

 

I don't disagree with the first half of that sentence.

 

I just don't think I've seen Kobashi in a "great" match since January 1997. I did once upon a time, but again that match didn't hold up well for me the last time I watched. Considering I'm rather invested for 17 years pimping the shit out of that match more than anyone, you probably should take it as me telling folks the truth on what I think of it rather than blowing smoke up folks asses. I'd love to keep pimping it, just as I love to keep pimping Sammy-Ohtani. But I can't.

 

The closest that I've found Kobashi coming to a great match since 1/97 was against Suzuki. It was 100% due to the wacky bullshit that Suzuki brought to the table to force Kobashi out of his NOAHism, and I was digging the shit out of it. Then it came time for Kobashi to get all NOAHtastic, and the match sunk quickly out of the great range.

[Jmare007]

Last great Kobashi match is what, Ogawa in '03 or Akiyama in '04, depending on how you felt about the latter's barrage of headdrops? Or '05 tag with Akiyama/Tenryu with Go?

 

I always thought the 08' Survival Tag against Kensuke Office was legitimately great and a forgotten gem.

 

[fxnj]

 

Shame on John for forgetting the 6/98 Kawada match.

 

That's a big-time Kawada carry job. Kobashi might as well had been lead around by the nose in the match. Plus, that finish "killed the territory" after Kawada's huge win a month earlier.

No way was that a carry job. Kawada was awesome on offense, sure, but Kobashi gave him the perfect underdog foil to work with. In particular, what really puts the much over the top for me is how Kobashi gives the best glassy eyed concussion selling I've ever seen for Kawada's kicks throughout the match.

[soup23]

Watched the 9/18/05 Kobashi/Taue vs. Tenryu/Akiyama tag last night and it was awesome big man style wrestling. All four was great and this is probably the last tremendous curtain call for Taue, but Kobashi was pretty awesome as his partner riling up the crowd on the apron and doing little nuanced stuff building to the tag to Taue.

[MJH]

I don't know, I like the 'NOAHisms'. Did he have to kill himself when he was already on his 7th cat's life? No. Excessive? Probably. But where Kobashi differs from KENTA, from just about very big ROH match I've seen, from any of Cena's current "bombfests" from Punk forward, is the majority of the time those matches were laid-out in a strong, clear way that never lost me as to its purpose. I'd toss every current WWE agent on the dung heap to have Kobashi lay out the big matches for them.

 

A secondary point worth mentioning: barely-mobile Andre Chopbashi was not only a hell of an apron worker, but he had more variations of chop than 95% of guys have moves. Some he'd try and were more than a little silly (I recall an Orange Crush -> Chop in one multi-person match early in '08) but God bless the guy for trying to still be a great offensive wrestler when he had less movement than a 1992 action figure.

[jdw]

 

 

Shame on John for forgetting the 6/98 Kawada match.

That's a big-time Kawada carry job. Kobashi might as well had been lead around by the nose in the match. Plus, that finish "killed the territory" after Kawada's huge win a month earlier.

No way was that a carry job. Kawada was awesome on offense, sure, but Kobashi gave him the perfect underdog foil to work with. In particular, what really puts the much over the top for me is how Kobashi gives the best glassy eyed concussion selling I've ever seen for Kawada's kicks throughout the match.

 

 

Not really sure we could call Kobashi an underdog at this point. They were 1-1-2 since Kobashi won the Triple Crown for the first time, and Kobashi's win came in their last singles match in an oddly quick manner.

 

People reading the booking tea leaves *raises hands* didn't think Kawada was dropping the belt. But from the booking of the promotion, they had already moved Kobashi up to being Kawada's peer, with Taue in roughly the same ballpark though more forgotten than the other two.

 

That's one of the problems with Kobashi's work in 1997 and 1998: he was still working like it was 1993 and he was an underdog, even "crying" when Jun kicked out of the moonsault.

[Jingus]

Watched the 9/18/05 Kobashi/Taue vs. Tenryu/Akiyama tag last night and it was awesome big man style wrestling. All four was great and this is probably the last tremendous curtain call for Taue, but Kobashi was pretty awesome as his partner riling up the crowd on the apron and doing little nuanced stuff building to the tag to Taue.

Weird, I just watched that too. Damn fine match. It was weird to see Taue looking so motivated that he was just as fiery as Kobashi; was this a regular thing for him around this time in NOAH, or was it just a really good night for him? I'm so used to seeing him as "the stoic guy standing behind Kawada" that it felt bizarre to see him going after Tenryu with serious intensity and aggression. Speaking of which, Tenryu stooging his ass off and playing the heavyweight strong-style equivalent of a chickenshit heel was certainly a sight to see. "Okay, Kobashi can beat me in a chop battle... but only after we each chop each other literally twenty-eight times in a row and then I'mma be a heel and dropkick his bad knee."

[dawho5]

Taue was great in big matches during his NOAH run. I think I am in the same boat as jdw on Kobashi. At a certain point he needed to not be the overly emotional underdog who had to kill his opponent with everything he had in order to get the win. In 1993 it was an incredible thing to watch but it got old.

[JazeUSA]

what about Kobashi/Joe in NY from 05? I have that at ***** stars

[Ray]

Kobashi was in a bunch of great tags and six-mans in 2008. His last year with multiple great singles matches was 2005.

[El-P]

what about Kobashi/Joe in NY from 05? I have that at ***** stars

 

The cosplay match ? I give it five cosplay stars too.

[Timbo Slice]

 

 

 

Shame on John for forgetting the 6/98 Kawada match.

That's a big-time Kawada carry job. Kobashi might as well had been lead around by the nose in the match. Plus, that finish "killed the territory" after Kawada's huge win a month earlier.

No way was that a carry job. Kawada was awesome on offense, sure, but Kobashi gave him the perfect underdog foil to work with. In particular, what really puts the much over the top for me is how Kobashi gives the best glassy eyed concussion selling I've ever seen for Kawada's kicks throughout the match.

 

 

Not really sure we could call Kobashi an underdog at this point. They were 1-1-2 since Kobashi won the Triple Crown for the first time, and Kobashi's win came in their last singles match in an oddly quick manner.

 

People reading the booking tea leaves *raises hands* didn't think Kawada was dropping the belt. But from the booking of the promotion, they had already moved Kobashi up to being Kawada's peer, with Taue in roughly the same ballpark though more forgotten than the other two.

 

That's one of the problems with Kobashi's work in 1997 and 1998: he was still working like it was 1993 and he was an underdog, even "crying" when Jun kicked out of the moonsault.

 

 

Once again, it was Kawada being the conduit to booking so that Kobashi didn't outright beat Misawa for the title. Like John said, Kobashi was truly equal with Kawada at that point, and Baba saw it as an opportunity to make Kobashi a true #2 behind Misawa. Only when he finally beat him for the GHC title in March 03 did he finally realize how to fight like the guy on top. Hell, even in the "make Jun a star" matches in NOAH he still couldn't help but play the underdog while Jun played the fiery guy who wanted to be ace. If Kobashi had done that during his runs in 1997 and 1998, it would be a bit different.