[2018-04-15-AJPW-Champion Carnival] Jun Akiyama vs Suwama

[ShittyLittleBoots]

OH HELL YEAH. This had me marking out all over the place - a goddamn WAR between two grumpy veterans in Akiyama & Suwama. Had a super wild feel to it w/ the chaotic brawling & the super nasty strikes - BRUTAL stuff. And while it was wild & chaotic, it wasn't completely just that, as both guys had gameplans too; destroy the neck of your opponent. My goodness. What a damned match; a wild ass war w/ some real strategy in it. ****1/2

[Boss Rock]

Loved this. You could just feel the hatred and disdain these two had for each other. There was much more of a chaotic brawl feel in this match than any of the others in the tournament. Loved how we got a submission finish here with Suwama just absolutely choking Jun out and wanting to get a few more shots in. Such a unique match that hasn't been seen in AJPW this year.

 

****

[SmartMark15]

It's crazy how good this got so quickly. After a somewhat slow first half, after the crowd brawl things really kick into overdrive. Big suplexes, hard shots, and brutal strike offs all building to a hot finish. This was awesome, compact, and entirely wonderful to watch.

 

****

[Richeyedwards]

It was violent and hateful. This brawl felt visceral and chaotic without being confusing or boring as they so often can. It was not a top tier Brawl but was something different from the usual thing you expect in a puro round Robbin tourny. Here there were plenty of strike exchanges but they were interesting and felt like they meant something unlike every single mind numbing Ishii strike exchange in NJPW. The finish was well done with suwama angrily choking out Akiyama, loved this ****

[superkix]

Yeah, this was the most "heated" match of the tournament. Loved them throwing chairs at each other. Back half is definitely the best part of the match.

[Matt D]

I watched this on a suggestion, completely out of context. I've seen only a few Akiyama matches from this decade. I'm not sure I've ever seen Suwama. I haven't seen much recent AJPW. These things matter, because here I see these two guys, both in their 40s, one far closer to 50 than 40, the latter being someone who had known real, true glory, battling each other in front of such a small crowd in order to gain points towards an accomplishment that doesn't even matter anymore, not really, but that once was hugely important. It reminded me, oddly enough, of Wahoo and Manny Fernandez killing each other in the late 80s in a dying AWA. Maybe AJPW is better off and more relevant than that, but you wouldn't know it from this crowd or this atmosphere. Despite all that, there was still such mutual, agreed-upon animosity and fury between the two of them.

 

This was a match that had a calf branding from the apron to the guardrail, that had thrown chairs and a thrown rail, with two exploder suplexes (and a transition from a third, blocked one) and a dozen knee variations. It still felt primal and minimalist. I have no idea about the history between these two except for that they have the better part of a decade of it, at least, here in the flagging ruins of AJPW. There was a level of pride to the strike exchanges, but that's not always enough to make them compelling. Here there was also a bitter stubbornness. There was an air of futility of even pointlessness to it, but the only way either of them would be able to recognize that futility would be if they stopped, if they looked down. You got the sense that they were killing each other because if they stopped and thought about it, if they did anything even a little more reasonable, the ground would disappear underneath them and the whole meaning to their lives would crumble. There are moments where you can sense that they can almost see it, that the glimmer of it is there just out of the corner of their eyes, but then one headbutts or forearms the other and the cycle begins anew.

 

I wouldn't want to live in this world, but it's a fascinating place to visit.

[Boss Rock]

I watched this on a suggestion, completely out of context. I've seen only a few Akiyama matches from this decade. I'm not sure I've ever seen Suwama. I haven't seen much recent AJPW. These things matter, because here I see these two guys, both in their 40s, one far closer to 50 than 40, the latter being someone who had known real, true glory, battling each other in front of such a small crowd in order to gain points towards an accomplishment that doesn't even matter anymore, not really, but that once was hugely important. It reminded me, oddly enough, of Wahoo and Manny Fernandez killing each other in the late 80s in a dying AWA. Maybe AJPW is better off and more relevant than that, but you wouldn't know it from this crowd or this atmosphere. Despite all that, there was still such mutual, agreed-upon animosity and fury between the two of them.

 

This was a match that had a calf branding from the apron to the guardrail, that had thrown chairs and a thrown rail, with two exploder suplexes (and a transition from a third, blocked one) and a dozen knee variations. It still felt primal and minimalist. I have no idea about the history between these two except for that they have the better part of a decade of it, at least, here in the flagging ruins of AJPW. There was a level of pride to the strike exchanges, but that's not always enough to make them compelling. Here there was also a bitter stubbornness. There was an air of futility of even pointlessness to it, but the only way either of them would be able to recognize that futility would be if they stopped, if they looked down. You got the sense that they were killing each other because if they stopped and thought about it, if they did anything even a little more reasonable, the ground would disappear underneath them and the whole meaning to their lives would crumble. There are moments where you can sense that they can almost see it, that the glimmer of it is there just out of the corner of their eyes, but then one headbutts or forearms the other and the cycle begins anew.

 

I wouldn't want to live in this world, but it's a fascinating place to visit.

 

Really cool to get a perspective from someone who doesn't closely follow the product. I've only been following myself for the past year or so, bu you pretty much hit the nail on the head with this.

[fxnj]

I watched this on a suggestion, completely out of context. I've seen only a few Akiyama matches from this decade. I'm not sure I've ever seen Suwama. I haven't seen much recent AJPW. These things matter, because here I see these two guys, both in their 40s, one far closer to 50 than 40, the latter being someone who had known real, true glory, battling each other in front of such a small crowd in order to gain points towards an accomplishment that doesn't even matter anymore, not really, but that once was hugely important. It reminded me, oddly enough, of Wahoo and Manny Fernandez killing each other in the late 80s in a dying AWA. Maybe AJPW is better off and more relevant than that, but you wouldn't know it from this crowd or this atmosphere. Despite all that, there was still such mutual, agreed-upon animosity and fury between the two of them.

 

This was a match that had a calf branding from the apron to the guardrail, that had thrown chairs and a thrown rail, with two exploder suplexes (and a transition from a third, blocked one) and a dozen knee variations. It still felt primal and minimalist. I have no idea about the history between these two except for that they have the better part of a decade of it, at least, here in the flagging ruins of AJPW. There was a level of pride to the strike exchanges, but that's not always enough to make them compelling. Here there was also a bitter stubbornness. There was an air of futility of even pointlessness to it, but the only way either of them would be able to recognize that futility would be if they stopped, if they looked down. You got the sense that they were killing each other because if they stopped and thought about it, if they did anything even a little more reasonable, the ground would disappear underneath them and the whole meaning to their lives would crumble. There are moments where you can sense that they can almost see it, that the glimmer of it is there just out of the corner of their eyes, but then one headbutts or forearms the other and the cycle begins anew.

 

I wouldn't want to live in this world, but it's a fascinating place to visit.

I love this review. Very entertaining reading, but AJPW isn't doing THAT bad. I believe they've been on a steady uptrend since 2015 and this year's Champion's Carnival drew pretty well for them.

[G. Badger]

I've felt the same way when watching AJPW from the 2016 CC. The surprising bit is that they still deliver great matches.

 

I'll say this was my least favorite venue of the Carnival matches. The crowd was like they were at a funeral and the place felt like a crypt. Nevertheless, both guys really brought the intensity. I had to mute this since their work and the quietness was so incongruous. I then imagined they were as excited as I was instead of somber. The fans were a bummer.