wrestling / TV Reports
Csonka’s NJPW on AXS TV Review 9.30.16
Loading...
NJPW on AXS TV Review 9.30.16
– The matches this week come from the 2016 New Japan Pro Wrestling WrestleKingdom 10 event.
IWGP Intercontinental Title Match: Champion Shinsuke Nakamura defeated AJ Styles @ 24:10 via pin [*****]: Nakamura is wearing a lovely crushed velvet top. No Bullet Club seconds for Styles, which I am thankful for. This is a first time singles meeting between the two and a highly anticipated match. The big question here is how Styles’ back is doing, he says he is good to go, and we’ll see. They worked a measured open before doing an early tease for their finishers. They both mocked each other at times, and then picked up the pace. They did a spot in the corner where Nakamura pulled Styles off the ropes, and Styles took a back bump and sold that he hurt his back again. It was a trap as he then attacked the sympathetic Nakamura from behind and took control for a short time. Nakamura countered a Styles clothesline and hit a cool back breaker, and then speared Styles into the barricade for a heat segment. Styles would make a comeback, and sold the back well as he started to take things back over. The back kept being an issue, allowing Nakamura to do more damage, but Styles avoided a boma ye and scored with the calf slicer in the center of the ring. Nakamura scored with a sweet counter into the arm bar, but Styles stacked him to escape. Styles came up short on his asai DDT, and then used a back breaker into a powerbomb for a near fall. I hated that entire sequence, as sing the back breaker made no sense after all of the work on the back and the issues Styles showed on other, simpler moves. They teased finishers at the 15-minuet mark, and then Nakamura hit the boma ye off the second rope, but was too exhausted to follow up. They worked some great striking exchanges, leading to Styles hitting the PELE, and just when you thought he had control, he ate another boma ye for a near fall. Styles countered the boma ye with a knee of his own and hit a 450 splash for a near fall. Holy fuck they are building the drama so well with almost no wasted movements, it’s all so thought out and calculated. Nakamura got the jumping arm bar, Styles struggled and Nakamura turned it into a triangle. Styles then fucking Herc’d him up with one arm for the clash and got a seriously sweet near fall from that. Styles hit bloody Sunday, looked for the clash but then pulled Nakamura to the corner. Styles wanted the clash from the top, but Nakamura fought out and hit a Michinoku driver off the second rope, but it wasn’t enough. My! Fucking! Word! This! Rules! Nakamura finally finished it with a boma ye to the back and then one to the face of Styles to retain. This was an absolutely amazing match, with both guys being in top form, and that’s always great to see from Nakamura, who tends to rely on the friends and family plan and hones performances in based off of his charisma. That’s great for house shows and such, but it makes you forget how great he can be when he is going full tile. The best thing is that it was a completely different match than anything else on the card, it felt effortless, it constantly built and went home at the right time, which made me appreciate it more. I originally went ****¾ on this, but on the rewatch, have gone the full boat, it was everything I love about wrestling. Also, AJ Styles, really good pro wrestler. I hope that kid makes I tone day.
– KUSHIDA joins us for interview time. He’s watched almost every NJPW match and show, and always knew the dome matches meant more and fought to get a singles match there. It was a journey to get there, and to face Omega, who he feels is an almost perfect wrestler, was an honor. He knew there would be shenanigans and that Bullet Club would try to cheat, and he wanted to change things and make a new philosophy.
IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title Match: KUSHIDA defeated Champion Kenny Omega @ 12:45 via pin to become the NEW Champion [***¾]: Taguchi came out with KUSHIDA, dressed as Doc Brown. Omega did a Terminator inspired entrance. UGH, so Bullet Club hit a triple superkick on Taguchi and attacked KUSHIDA before the bell. That’s the third time we’ve done something like that tonight. Omega controlled as we had all sorts of bullshit (including weapons) on the floor as the ref was distracted. Omega controlled here, hitting a great dive and then using strikes to keep KUSHIDA down. He did the old wrist tape choke spot, which would have been fine if they didn’t spend the first three minutes with so much heel teamwork stuff. KUSHIDA then made his comeback and ran through some flying and his signature stuff, as he started to target the arm of Omega including a single arm DDT/kimura off the second rope. They worked some great striking exchanges, and Omega worked into a toss German, but KUSHIDA countered into the hoverboard lock, and it was sweet. The Bucks again got involved; Taguchi then stopped them with trashcan shots. KUSHIDA escaped the one winged angel, but Omega fought back with a knee strikes. And hit a one armed powerbomb for a near fall, selling the arm work from KUSHIDA. Omega hit another great knee strike, but KUSHIDA rolled through the one winged angle and got the cradle (sloppily) for the win and the title. This started rough, with the repetitive open and the fact that it looked as if this was going to be filled with shenanigans throughout. They recovered well from that, and worked a really strong final eight-minutes or so; including some smart work on the arm, good selling and some sick strikes from both men. It’s not the great match I had hoped that they would have, but it was very good and a nice moment for KUSHIDA.
– In the final interview, KUSHIDA says that the dome is almost too big, and it makes it difficult to feel the mood. He loves fighting in smaller venues because he likes being close to the audience. He thanks Taguchi for helping him; Taguchi told him he only comes out for big events, because he is a star and this was a rare occasion. He as happy to win, and he wants to make the title prestigious like Okada and Tanahashi have done for the IWGP HW title. That’s his mission and why he works so hard
– End scene.
– Thanks for reading.
“Byyyyyyyyyyyyyye Felicia.”
