wrestling / Video Reviews
Views from the Hawke’s Nest: Shinsuke Nakamura in NOAH
Loading...I originally intended to just simply review all five of Nakamura’s NOAH matches in this piece and let it be that. It turned into something more interesting though, as I realized charting (metaphorically) Nakamura’s growth as a performer throughout his brief NOAH appearances was quite fun and far more satisfying to write about.
The Second Navigation
March 1, 2009
Shinsuke Nakamura & Milano Collection AT vs. Go Shiozaki & Takeshi Sugiura
Nakamura came to the ring in a plush karate gi and with a plain haircut. I hope I never have to witness something so horrible ever again.
Nakamura’s entrance swagger level: 0.0
The match was surprisingly basic in structure. Go got worked over for a long time, and the match was all about building to a Sugiura hot tag. This hot tag got very over. Nakamura and Sugiura did an extended sequence down the stretch. That gave (the very over) Go a chance to recover. The teams went back and forth for a surprisingly long time. Go and Milano did a surprisingly electric sequence towards the end of the match. The highlight was Milano avoiding a lariat with the MATRIX stretch. Go eventually finished him with the Go Flasher and then a monster lariat.
Nakamura ended up being the least interest aspect of the match. Milano managed to executed a couple of sequences/movez that really got my attention. Go and Sugiura were both incredibly over and compelling to watch largely as a result of that. Nakamura did fine in the match, but he did not stand out.
Nakamura Performance Rating: **1/2
Match Rating: ***1/2
New Navigation
July 24, 2010
CHAOS (Shinsuke Nakamura & Gedo) vs. Naomichi Marufuji & Atsushi Aoki
Nakamura’s look and entrance changed a lot in the year since his first NOAH match. He walks to the ring in a cutoff t-shirt and looks to give precisely zero fucks about anyone else but himself. It’s a major improvement.
Nakamura’s entrance swagger level: 6.0
The majority of the match was spent with the NJPW team working over Aoki. The match didn’t build to the Fuji hot tag very well, but he provided some much-needed energy to the match. The teams did a back-and-forth sequence that primarily featured Fuji and Nakamura going at it. The match transitioned to Aoki getting the better of Nakamura for a while. They traded cross armbreaker attempts. Nakamura finished him with a Boma Ye to the gut and then another to the face.
You can really tell how much more comfortable Nakamura was as a performer as he began to insert a bit more personality (and/or take cocaine beforehand) into his work. While the first match of this collection was entertaining largely without Nakamura’s help, this match was enjoyable solely because of Nakamura’s presence. It’s crazy how finding the right character can change your ability to generate emotion in an audience.
Nakamura Performance Rating: ***3/4
Match Rating: ***
New Navigation
August 22, 2010
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Go Shiozaki
Nakamura’s hair looked too nice here. His hair has always looked better when there’s a bit of grime to it. It needs to look a tad unkempt. Hashtag Not My Nakamura’s Haircut.
Nakamura’s entrance swagger level: 5.0
They worked the match without any sense of urgency. Nakamura got control fairly early on and worked Go over for a while. Go fought back at one point, but Nakamura cut him off again. This match was threatening to lose me at a few points. Both of them just were doing that “no fucks given” facials, and it brought the match down for me. They turned it on finally towards the end. Nakamura dropped Go on his dome from the top rope. Go finally showed some passion after that. He threw everything he had (mostly lariats) at Naka, but Naka would not stay down. He had to bust out Limit Break to finish Nakamura.
Nakamura was enjoyable overall, but Go was totally the wrong opponent for him. Naka was steadily becoming more and more the performer we all know and love, but there was a casualness to his movement that took a lot of the energy out of his matches. Go matched his (low) levels of intensity for far too long. It was just the wrong combination.
Nakamura Performance Rating: ***1/4
Match Rating: **3/4
Ark New Chapter
August 24, 2013
Shinsuke Nakamura & Naomichi Marufuji vs. KENTA & Takeshi Sugiura
Nakamura came to the ring in a freakin’ mask and was doing all of his trademarked entrance motions. It was grand.
Nakamura’s entrance swagger level: 9.0
The main portion of the match was Fuji getting worked over. Nakamura and KENTA then squared off. It was fun but nothing too special. It seemed clear that they understood that Nakamura vs. KENTA was the real draw of the match because the other two guys were reduced to manager status for a long time in this one. For some reason, the match transitioned to Naka and KENTA brawling on the floor while Fuji and Sugiura went at it in the ring. The match’s momentum came to an immediate halt. Sugiura eventually tackled Fuji with a modified spinebuster pin thing to pick up the win. Nakamura and Fuji did not leave the ring on the best of terms.
This was a really weird match. Nakamura and KENTA was clearly the showdown everyone wanted, but the match moved completely away from that when it mattered most. I would not expect either of them to pin each other, but one of them should have been involved. The Naka/KENTA interactions were the saving grace of the match. Both guys looked good without putting in their best effort which is a credit to their natural charisma more than anything else.
Nakamura Performance Rating: ***1/2
Match Rating: **1/2
October 5, 2013
CHAOS (Shinsuke Nakamura & YOSHI-HASHI) vs. Naomichi Marufuji & Mohammed Yone
I was getting all ready to write about Nakamura phoning his entrance in and getting upstaged by YOSHI-HASHI (of all people), but then Nakamura showed off his nunchuck skills. Long live the king.
Nakamura’s entrance swagger level: 8.0
This was a tag match designed to build off the tension between Nakamura and Marufuji after they lost their tag match to KENTA and Sugiura. They were building to an IWGP IC Championship match at King of Pro Wrestling Match. In a bit of a surprise, the match built to a Nakamura hot tag. I expected the NJPW team to work heel for sure. Nakamura and Fuji did an extended sequence that was not all that impressive. After the geeks got back involved, Fuji eventually finished YOSHI with Tiger Flowsion.
This was not all that fun to watch. Nakamura put in a solid performance, but he clearly was not try to carry the match to be something special. It was just a match designed to build the IC match between Nakamura and Marufuji.
Nakamura Performance Rating: ***
Match Rating: **1/4
**BONUS REVIEW**
NJPW King of Pro Wrestling
October, 2013
Shinsuke Nakamura(c) vs. Naomichi Marufuji [IWGP Intercontinental Championship]
Nakamura didn’t do anything too special here for his entrance, as this was not a stadium/dome show. However, by 2013, his swagger had swagger.
Nakamura’s entrance swagger level: 9.0
I remember loving this one at the time. They did a big spot early on, as Fuji gave Naka a piledriver on the apron. The biggest story of the match became Fuji targeting Nakamura’s neck. I liked Fuji working on a top a lot more than when he works underneath. Fuji kept cutting off Naka’s comebacks until Naka hit a diving Boma Ye. That kicked off a sequence full of finishers, strike exchanges, and reversals. It was awesome. Nakamura finished him after a couple of Boma Ye to successful retain the title.
Nakamura was so on point here and only step or two below his best self. He and Marufuji came up with a number of creative sequences to make this match seem more important than a typical Nakamura title defense. The only thing that this match needed was some kind of payoff to Nakamura’s neck getting worked over. Other than that, this was great.
Nakamura Performance Rating: ****1/4
Match Rating: ****
Watch some Shinsuke Nakamura for free!
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