NJPW Dominion

[goc]

 

I don't watch New Japan but I'm going to check out the Makabe/Ishii match just so I can weigh in on Dylan's "My god look how bad Makabes strikes are. If you like Makabe and not the Nasty Boys just admit it's solely due to his employer." tweet.

Stick to NWA classics. Don't ruin your fun with those putrid shit.

 

I'm actually inclined to say I like Makabe more because nothing The Nasty Boys ever did made me laugh as hard as that strike exchange where Makabe has about 10 punches that clearly go over Ishii's head.

 

The "let's stand here and exchange 20 clotheslines" part also reminded me why I don't feel bad about not watching any of this stuff.

[Fantastic]

That finishing sequence in Okada/Styles was both OTT and amazing.

[stomperspc]

The show was fine and it kept me engaged more than the February, April and May major shows did. A lot of that was due to Shibata/Sakuraba being far better than the normal third match on a major New Japan show. So even though Ishii/Makabe, the tag title match, and Tanahashi/Yano ranged from bad to "eh" a very good match early on (and no intermission) kept me into things more than other early-morning major shows from this year. I through Sakauraba/Shibata was great, Omega/KUSHIDA was about as good as an Omega match is going to be, semi-main was good, and main event was very good/great. I'l take that each and every time, even with the bad 3 match stretch.

[goodhelmet]

Kushida vs. Omega

 

I am still excited by what a Kushida title reign will look like as Omega's has been almost universally panned but he was not good in this match overall. **

 

I am going to disagree vehemently here. Omega was doing the right thing and was pretty solid working the leg and staying consistent with selling the arm. Kushida was the one who blew off the leg wok and brought the match down here.

[hammerva]

The problem with Omega title run is that it was all about gimmicks and interference. I mean I can understand schtick against a guy like Taguchi but you are wasting a Shelley vs Omega with plunder then it is pretty sad. This was the first match in a long time where Omega got to show his skills in the ring

 

This was a thumbs in the middle show. Shibata vs Sakuraba was great fun and I enjoy Yano in comedy matches that aren't really supposed to be comedy matches. The final two matches were damn good and love the ending of Styles vs Okada. But the middle part of the show was awful. I would probably enjoy the jr tag title match more if I hadn't binge watched the Super Junior and saw the same stuff 3 or 4 times in the last week.

 

Anybody who thought that Bennett/Taven were brought in for their ability needs to watch New Japan more because it is clear the only thing that matters to them was Maria asshole which was shown as close to humanly possible without actual entry. They really should have Jr tag guys face Anderson/Gallows because I have no idea who their next challenger is unless Mandy Leon or some other sexy woman with a great ass in the US has a team on the rise.

 

Strange that you had all of those people outside for the Bullet Club except the one person who feuded with him for about 4 months and actually pinned Okada in Bad Luck Fale. Guess they don't want people to remember that

[tim]

Sakuraba/Shibata was one of the best matches of the year. So unique and awesome. I really wish Sakuraba would be in a G1.

[soup23]

 

Kushida vs. Omega

 

I am still excited by what a Kushida title reign will look like as Omega's has been almost universally panned but he was not good in this match overall. **

 

I am going to disagree vehemently here. Omega was doing the right thing and was pretty solid working the leg and staying consistent with selling the arm. Kushida was the one who blew off the leg wok and brought the match down here.

 

 

This is a grammar failure but the sentence means that I thought Kushida was bad in the match overall. I emphasized that because Kushida has been one of my favorites in New Japan this year and this was his worst performance. I didn't think Omega was good in the first stretch of this match but once he started attacking the leg he was much better and did a much better job selling his arm damage including the one armed power bomb. I actually just got done watching this match again given how low I was compared to twitter comments and Shoe and I still didn't like it very much due to the Kushida blow off on selling and the opening segment with the trash can and wondering around the ring to set up dives. Kushida didn't do one impact move besides the arm submission that didn't have some focus on his legs. Getting the knees up in desperation on an Omega dive is one thing but flying around, kicking, and doing handstands is another and really took me out of the match again rewatching.

[goodhelmet]

Agreed on all points!!!! I thought you were backhand complimenting Omega early in the review and then blaming him for the shortcomings.

[Bix]

What am I doing wrong that it looks like NJPW World says the VOD won't be up until 2:00 AM ET tonight?

[Sean Liska]

I'm so weird with NJPW. I'll watch the Korakuen Hall shows, which a lot of the NJPW fans don't even watch, and I'll highly enjoy them. The last one was full of tight smartly worked matches that clocked in around 10-12 minutes and was plenty of fun. Then I'll watch the major shows, with these big epic matches, and they leave me cold often. I did love Sakuraba-Shibata, though.

[shoe]

I rewatched Sakuraba vs Shibata and it was such a good match with awesome looking strikes by Shibata, and slick submissions by Sakuraba. Shibata fighting going to sleep was some really good selling.

[Parties]

Ten-man tag: Dorada was the standout, but Liger and Sho Tanaka looked good as well. Not sure what Kenny Omega's doing at the top of your juniors division when Dorada is in the pre-show, but Dorada seemed so big and powerful in his offense that he almost doesn't come off as a junior.

 

3-way juniors tag: Bullet Club has gotten too derivative of DX and the NWO for my tastes. Young Bucks were nothing beyond lame shtick. Whenever they had to wrestle it sucked, and their finishing run in the home stretch was really dumb. Don't buy them as champs at all: the “playing pro wrestler” critique is overused, but it's what I think watching them do terrible versions of Austin's mudhole stomping, etc. Cody Hall is creepy as hell, for better or worse. Meltzer called Romero the best guy in the match, when he was to my eyes the worst. This did come together at the end once the Bucks were out of the spotlight and the focus was more on Vice and ReDragon. I thought Fish looked good in his offense and mannerisms to the crowd, and there's something about Baretta that I like, even amidst his transformation into Seth Rollins.

 

Naito/Honma vs. Yujiro/Fale: I like Yujiro's entrance of hot awkward lady, fake tattoos, and manic grinning. And that Naito's heel turn is predicated on being one of those guys who wears baseball hats indoors at inappropriate times. He was more interesting here than he's been in years. Too many guys are in the Bullet Club, and thus the shows can feel heel-heavy, but Naito really should turn and it's smart booking to get him there. Kind of a nothing match to build an angle, but Honma was entertaining as always.

 

Sakuraba-Shibata: Easily the best match so far, and one of the best anywhere this year. The staredown was so much weirder with Sakuraba's odd mannerisms. His kicks were great, as were the struggles in the front facelocks. Such basic stuff, yet they made it all mean so much more than the 900 moves done earlier on the show. Biting the rope to get a break was awesome. Sakuraba's armbar choke with his feet was great. Shibata's selling in the sleeper was tremendous. Great stuff.

 

Omega-Kushida: I can't believe what a good job they've done with Kushida in the last 6 months. I thought as recently as this year's Dome show he came off as a mediocre guy lost at the bottom of the pack. That video of him as a kid was so awesome. That's how you book a babyface going for a title. Huge improvement over Omega, who sometimes looks solid, and on some nights seems like the most overpushed guy in wrestling. All of the “Cleaner” stuff with the broom and garbage can was so bush league. If that was done on WWE he'd be laughed out of a job. Kushida's selling here was so good: he did great at playing to the crowd and getting them behind him, and Omega improved a lot once he got in the middle of the ring and built spots around destroying Kushida's knee. “Fighting spirit” has become a bastardized term, but it really did apply to what Kushida portrayed here. Not a great match, but a great performance/story.

[pol]

After listening to the reaction show, it seems like I was higher on AJ/Okada that most. I thought it was a MOTYC, ****1/4-1/2 level match. I thought the story they told was great; AJ controlling the match, but Okada constantly finding a counter when AJ tried to hit a really big move. Several of Okada's hope spots were really memorable; kicking the ropes to crotch AJ when he attempted the springboard, later countering the springboard with a dropkick, the Death Valley Bomb onto the apron... One thing that came to mind is that I usually really dislike matches where they go back and forth the whole way, and while I imagine the match was probably only 60-40 AJ, because of how big Okada's transitions were it came off as him having to constantly struggle to stay in it, rather than something like the first Owens/Cena match where the transitions were lazy and came off as excuses for the other guy to get his shit in.

 

AJ definitely outworked Okada but I think Okada deserves credit as well and has shown improvement this year. He was really laying his strikes in, sold well, hit his big spots great and had great intensity. As usual I did dislike the typical Okada finishing run, since he seemed more focused on getting to the next spot than ensuring each individual moment had impact. I appreciated that we didn't get the typical Okada final third with endless Rainmaker counters that has completely jumped the shark at this point.

 

It's interesting that Okada had really good matches with both Fale and AJ this year, I think in some ways for similar reasons even though one guy is a mostly useless lump and the other is the greatest ring general around. Working with both, for completely different reasons, forced Okada to keep his more annoying tendencies in check and focus on selling and hitting his big spots with aplomb.

[shoe]

I re watched AJ /Okada and liked it a little better . In the 4 1/4* range.

[WingedEagle]

After listening to the reaction show, it seems like I was higher on AJ/Okada that most. I thought it was a MOTYC, ****1/4-1/2 level match. I thought the story they told was great; AJ controlling the match, but Okada constantly finding a counter when AJ tried to hit a really big move. Several of Okada's hope spots were really memorable; kicking the ropes to crotch AJ when he attempted the springboard, later countering the springboard with a dropkick, the Death Valley Bomb onto the apron... One thing that came to mind is that I usually really dislike matches where they go back and forth the whole way, and while I imagine the match was probably only 60-40 AJ, because of how big Okada's transitions were it came off as him having to constantly struggle to stay in it, rather than something like the first Owens/Cena match where the transitions were lazy and came off as excuses for the other guy to get his shit in.

 

Not alone in thinking that it was a MOTYC. I went 4.75 immediately after watching but am curious how I'll take to it on a rewatch later in the year. I loved the beginning, thought it was a little slow until the BC were ejected and then picked back up from there for the meat with Styles's offense and Okada fighting through it. Definitely saw the finishing stretch different than you which is what put it over the top for me as I thought it was so well laid out and executed, one of the best I've seen in ages.

[WingedEagle]

Alex Shelley on Twitter just now with a really nice tribute to his friend Kushida for winning the IWGP Jr. Title. Nice to see how much it means to them and how close they are.

[goodhelmet]

I enjoyed the main event as well but I enjoyed it after the Bullet Club was kicked out. As I mentioned on the reaction show, the match was pretty great after the Bullet Club stuff but the Bullet Club crap left a bad taste in my mouth. If you consider all that crap as part of the match, it is going to take it away from MOTYC for me. Now, Shibata vs. Sak was a real time MOTYC for me. Just awesome work by both guys!!!

[WingedEagle]

Can't argue with someone who says the Bullet Club stuff brought it down a notch. I can't hold it against the match because of the payoff with them finally being ejected and Red Shoes even throwing a crotch chop, followed by basically an entire match of greatness. How'd you like the finish?

 

I need to give Sak/Shibata another look. Thought it was good when I watched it. But enough people I respect have gone great on it so will have to check it out again this week.

[pol]

I thought the Bullet Club stuff worked. The match was about Okada having to overcome everything to win. They did a few spots and then got rid of them. If it had gone on any longer I wouldn't have liked it, but as it was it was fine to me.

[GOTNW]

I really liked Okada-AJ. They busted out new stuff that looked amazing and opted for the best possible finish. They could've gotten all their shit in (pretty sure there were no Okada Tombstones or Bloody Sundays) but they didn't which made it a lot more satisfying for me. Shibata-Sakuraba was better though.

[Dylan Waco]

I actually liked Okada v. Styles a hair less on second watch. Still a good match, that in some ways saved the show for me (Sak v. Shibata was my easy MOTN, but I needed the main to do well), but wasn't blown away at all. Not even sure I'd have it in the ten best Styles matches of the year, but to be fair Styles has been great. As an individual performance I thought Okada's work v. Fale was clearly better.

 

Also there was an Okada tombstone, right before the finishing run IIRC

[goodhelmet]

Can't argue with someone who says the Bullet Club stuff brought it down a notch. I can't hold it against the match because of the payoff with them finally being ejected and Red Shoes even throwing a crotch chop, followed by basically an entire match of greatness. How'd you like the finish?

 

 

I loved the finish. I even defended it on the Reaction Show. However, as someone who is not a fan of the Bullet Club, none of it mattered to me. I didn't find the crotch chop cute because I am not invested in any of their mannerisms or their stories. I want them to dissolve and reform with new members. I want them to be creative and not an NWO tribute act. I want them to be a group of guys who are actually good at wrestling. Only AJ fits that bill in the current group. So, when the first 5-10 minutes (I don't remember how long) of a match have an NWO tribute act as the focal point, I am going to knock points off the rating.

[Parties]

Makabe-Ishii: Makabe has been terrible for his entire run as a star within the company. Maybe his whole career. He's had only a couple of decent matches in all of the last ten years, with vastly superior opponents. That they have to put him with Ishii to make Makabe look even passable speaks volumes. That botched catch on the dive was as bad as everyone has said. Just so stupid. And Ishii still hit the dive perfectly! Meltzer's idea that they were botching to tell a story is particularly ridiculous once you watch the match, as Ishii - the guy selling the injury - isn't even the one botching anything. It's all Makabe. This felt like it went on forever: way too long at 18 minutes. The problem isn't that Makabe was this bad here. It's that he's been this bad for a decade and gets a pass because he's now a New Japan vet. Worst guy on this show, which is something considering both his status in the company and the tag match that followed.

 

Kingdom-GunGallows: Karl Anderson is another guy in the running for most overrated in the business. Always a snooze, always out of position for spots, coasting on some fanboy imitation of Austin/Arn nonsense. There's a springboard dive in the ring with him and Taven that they whiff so badly it's comical. Gallows has regressed a ton as part of this team. In WWE and the indies shortly thereafter, he was one of the best in the business and a Hoss division revelation. We're now seven years removed from that epic Undertaker match on Smackdown. Today he's bumbling around, throwing lame punches and moving like molasses. Bennett and Taven are the most generic guys in ROH, which takes practice. Their double kicks to Gallows missed from a mile away. Anderson and Gallows are heels who now work like fun-loving drunk babyfaces. These guys have the rep of being goofs backstage. And honestly, more power to you. If your career in wrestling can be to get paid good money in Japan to have mediocre ten minute tags where you don't take many bumps and get to bring your wives overseas as your managers, then I say go get smashed at Ribera and enjoy your life. Bell to bell, it was two teams waiting until they get to hit their finishers. When Maria as valet is hands down the best worker in the match, you can hit fast forward.

 

Tanahashi-Yano: I actually liked Yano's creepy entrance here. He's become sort of a macabre John Candy character, laughing at his own weird jokes and shilling merch like a Japanese version of William B. Williams. It works for this type of guy in this type of match, which I guess I'd compare to Bret working Doink at Summerslam '93. I thought the comedy spots really worked here, and that Tanahashi deserves credit for taking a crazy Funk/Foley bump over the rail into the chairs. I'd have cut a couple minutes off this, and if it had gone five more it would have died, but I thought they played off each other well and that this had some great timing in knowing when to hit certain spots, which was never previously Tanahashi's strong suit. And they both sold better than damn near anyone else on this show! Yano is a guy I used to loathe watching, but he really held his own as dirtbag southern heel here. Billy Joe Travis could have had the same match with Tanahashi in 1990 and we'd all love it.

[stomperspc]

I am not fundamentally opposed to the kind of interference the Bullet Club did in the main event. It got heat. They didn’t get in the ring or anything in some way that would have really disrupted the flow of the match. Both beat downs were relatively quick and I didn’t feel like the match was thrown out of rhythm by the Bullet Club getting involved (though it did take the ref a little long to eject them after catching them in the act).

 

My issue with it in that match is that they have done almost the same exact spot a half dozen times (give or take) over the past 15 months. After the Bullet Club successfully interfered in the first two Okada/Styles matches, they have done the “interfere early, interfere again, get caught, get thrown out” sequence so much that it does nothing for me now. It has become a “let’s get all of our stuff” in sort of spot. It is no longer fresh in any sense. It is just a spot you know you are going to have to get through in big Styles title defenses when the entire group seconds him. Spots that you know are going to happen and as a viewer you are just waiting to get through obviously aren’t good.

 

As said, the interference got good heat and the ejection got some level of reaction so maybe it isn’t a completely dead spot to their target audience but I am over it. No problem with interference, but at least switch up how you go about it every once in a while.

[W2BTD]

As a stuffy elitist who can't stand the BC interference sullying my King of Sports, nobody hates the BC nonsense more than me. They walked up to the line in the main event, but didn't cross it. Any longer and it would have hurt the match for me, like it has in some other AJ title bouts. I'm still annoyed about the first AJ title win.