Csonka’s ROH/NJPW War of the Worlds Night Two Review

Introduction
As a reminder, this will not be another traditional recap, but instead it will be a mash up of the Rs, Instant Analysis and my usual Twitter ramblings I would do during the shows; completely uncensored and as the ideas flow unfiltered to the old keyboard. Remember, this is a review; and I am here to review the show. As always, I encourage discussion and even disagreement, just do so in a respectful manner. I will be doing the review for Raw and most PPVs and iPPVs going forward.

ROH/NJPW War of the World Night Two 5.13.15

OFFICIAL RESULTS
– Adam Page defeated Watanabe @ 9:30 via pin [**½]
– Michel Elgin defeated KUSHIDA @ 14:50 via pin [***]
– Tetsuya Naito defeated Kyle O’Reilly @ 18:00 via [***½]
– Shinsuke Nakamura defeated Jushin Liger, Mark Briscoe and Jay Lethal @ 13:00 via pin [**¾]
– Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Roderick Strong @ 17:00 via pin [****¼]
– ROH Tag Team Title Match: Champions Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian defeated Kazuchika Okada and Gedo @ 12:00 via pin [***]
– ROH World Title Match: Champion Jay Briscoe defeated Bobby Fish @ 19:05 via pin [***]
– The Kingdom (Cole, Bennett and Taven) defeated Bullet Club (Styles, Jackson and Jackson) @ 19:00 via [****]

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* ROH took nearly 10-days to get this on VOD, hence the delay.

Adam Page defeated Watanabe: This was a solid, but completely forgettable opener. The match featured two guys who I think could be having better outings, and I am still waiting for that to happen. Page pulls out cool stuff, like the SSP off the apron, but find a lot of his work lacking in regards to making me care about his matches. Watanabe made his comeback with a German off the top, but Colby Corino’s interference led to Page winning with the right of passage. This was perfectly fine.

Michel Elgin defeated KUSHIDA: These days I am not a huge Michael Elgin fan, he lost a lot with me when they did that whole worked shoot bullshit and following that his matches haven’t grown and hit levels he was attaining in the years prior when he started to get his buzz. Minor mistakes aside, I liked the Tanahashi match and felt that this was another good outing for him. KUSHIDA brought something different to the table, allowed Elgin to look like a powerhouse, but was also able to exchange well in the striking department and made this not feel like the typical Elgin outing. KUSHIDA had some great escapes of the powerbomb, but unfortunately got caught doing a handspring and ate a powerbomb and then a spinning powerbomb to give Elgin the win. This was a good match and a nice step up from the opener.

Tetsuya Naito defeated Kyle O’Reilly: This was an exercise in control, because I am sure that both guys could have amped it up to 11 and had an insane match, but they dialed things back and worked a really fun, and quality bout that left a lot of room for the other matches to come. They had good exchanges early, working to stalemates, doing a bit of comedy with the eye pokes and then into some quality mat work. The pace was great, as they never let you get bored and I felt that the worked was clean and I just really enjoyed what they were able to accomplish here. I also loved that they got so much time to work with here, I think everyone expected 8-12-mnute matches for the undercard, and the fact that they got around 18 really surprised me in a pleasant way.

Shinsuke Nakamura defeated Jushin Liger, Mark Briscoe and Jay Lethal: This was an overall fun four-way match with a nice mix of styles and personalities. They worked a good match, but it was designed to rely more on the personalities and a few trademark spots instead of trying to be a classic. They started well, and kinda got stuck between 2nd and 3rd gear and just stayed there. It was fun, but nothing special at all; which isn’t a bad thing, but some will likely be disappointed because they will see Nakamura and think that they are in for something special.

* They did some stupid shit with Cheeseburger and Brutal Bob Evans. Go away please.

Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Roderick Strong: I have said it before and will say it again, if you’re not following Roderick Strong matches in 2015 you’re doing it wrong. Also, Hiroshi Tanahashi is really good at pro wrestling. Now while I am a guy that likes some blood in pro wrestling, I do not subscribe to the theory that it makes all wresting better. But with that being said, when Strong got busted open during this match the intensity went up a ton, and it really added to the presentation and drama of the match. This was a great match, not as good as Strong vs. KUSHIDA, but really good. Considering that Tanahashi has a bad back and was facing a man that likes to dismantle backs, they went all out and Strong once again impressed. I felt that Tanahashi really worked main event style here instead of taking it easy, and what happened was a really good match. The work, the intensity they had; they pulled me in and made me care about everything they did down the stretch. The action flew by and I couldn’t believe that this clocked in at 17-minuets, the action just flew by. This was easily the best match on the show, and Roderick Strong continues to serve notice in 2015.

Champions Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian defeated Kazuchika Okada and Gedo: This was another good and fun match. Okada and Gedo have worked well together and had some really good tag team matches in 2015, and they brought the act to ROH and it worked here. Daniels and Kazarian being great also helps, but they simply worked well together, putting on a quality tag team match with clean work. We all knew that Gedo was going to take the pin here, but it was all about how they got there, and I felt that they did well and had solid drama and good work. Post match Okada took out Daniels and Kazarian for their post match antics, and Daniels ate the RAIN MAKA to please the crowd.

Champion Jay Briscoe defeated Bobby Fish: This was a quality match with fun work, which I enjoyed. I felt that the work was good, and that in a vacuum that it can be appreciated; but for a title match it disappointed a bit. You can have good work and provide a fun match, but without drama, the match loses its appeal. Fish did some good work on the leg and was able to provide some nice work to make this not feel like the garden variety Jay Briscoe match, but then Jay hits a bunch of big moves (Jay Driller, DVD, Jay Driller) and wins. This was a good wrestling match, but disappointed as a title match because I never believed Fish could win. It failed on an emotional level for me.

The Kingdom (Cole, Bennett and Taven) defeated Bullet Club: For me this was the perfect example of a group of guys knowing exactly what their audience wants and giving it to them. From Adam Cole trying to talk the Young Bucks into working with him (bringing up PWG’s Mount Rushmore) to the wild six-man exchanges, Maria eating a triple superkick and more, they played to the crowd perfectly and delivered an excellent and really fun main event. It was similar in ways to the Global Wars main event, but not quite as wild; it had a bit more of a traditional feel and structure, which set it apart. This is the kind of match I wanted from them, the crowd loved it and it was a great way to finish the show. The Kingdom winning with the belt shot sets up well for the announced PPV rematch, which if they can have this kind of match again, we’re in for a treat.

* End scene.

* Thanks for reading.

“Byyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyye Felicia!”

8.8

The final score: review Very Good

The 411

Much like night one, an excellent show and one of the best of the year. The time flew by, there was nothing bad on the card and the two great matches topped off a strong overall in ring card. Just like night one, this is very much worth your time; but I think I give night one the overall edge but it is close.