[2017-03-20-NJPW-New Japan Cup] Bad Luck Fale vs Katsuyori Shibata

[ShittyLittleBoots]

As expected, this was very good. Loved the start with Shibata going right after Fale - it was awesome. Shibata gets a good shine in, which then leads to Fale working the heat on Shibata - I thought that Fale for the most part did a good job working on top, but I've seen him do better. Shibata was great selling Fale's work, and his comebacks were super great. The whole finishing stretch with him countering the Bad Luck Fall into a Sleeper & then just striking Fale down was FANTASTIC. Really good match. ***3/4

[bradhindsight]

Man I liked this a whole lot - Fale works him over, against the post and outside. Somewhat concentrated arm work that Shibata calls back to during the match selling-wise (and the tape of course).Very similar to EVIL match in the early minutes, but this is paid off better when Shibata was able to dump him over the gate and choke him with his own shirt. Excellent hope spots from Shibata and Fale was on target with each cutoff. I really liked how this progressed, huge kickout of the grenade and then the desperate reversal into the choke - just great stuff. Second choke sets up the PK and he gets the big pinfall. This was so different from Shibata's regular let's forearm each other 100 times match. I was smoothly in at ***3/4.

[William Bologna]

I liked this, but I can't help but grade Fale matches on a curve. It's like, everyone says he's crappy, and he looks like he's going to be crappy, and then he's a little better than crappy and I'm all "Good job, Fale! Good for you!"

 

I found Shibata a little colorless in this. There was neat payback spot - Fale had thrown him into chairs and throttled him with a towel. Later Shibata throws Fale into chairs and chokes him with his own shirt. Neat.

 

But it didn't really land because Shibata didn't react to getting throttled with a towel much differently than he does any other kind of damage he takes. He didn't evince any outrage when Fale resorted to that, and there was no sense that he was doing something out of character when he responded in kind.

 

Still, pretty darn good. Better than Shibata/Suzuki. Everything looked like it hurt, and I'm amped for Shibata vs Okada.