January 2022

The Wrestler is back with a bang. Despite some trepidations about his return, I was delighted when Shibata announced that the match would be contested under standard pro wrestling rules. There’s a fairly obvious teacher vs. protégé story here. Narita reminds me a lot of Shibata in terms of his mannerisms and poise. If all goes well, he has all the makings of a special talent. From the jump, we get the kind of buttery-smooth, hard-nosed grappling Shibata’s known for. His transitions in and out of holds are seamless, logical, and give attention to the little details. Take, for example, the moment where he places his arm behind his head to block a submission from Narita…

I wasn’t expecting much from this match, but I ended up enjoying it a fair bit. I’ve found Okada’s recent work to be tiresome and dull, evoking the worst aspects of New Japan. The long-winded nature of his matches hasn’t helped matters, as NJPW continues to chase record-breaking match lengths not as an earned accomplishment, but to pad stats. This match isn’t without its issues. For one, the big moves could be spaced out better. Shingo hits a Death Valley Driver on the ramp and while the count-out tease is well-done, the first move after they get back into the ring is a Superplex. While the original wrist control spot from the Wrestle Kingdom 10 battle between Tanah…

Adam Page defends his AEW World Championship. Yeah, make that two in a row for Hangman vs. Danielson, then. A yet another TV-wrestling classic with no hyperbole. Much like in the first meeting of theirs, Danielson was just a complete tour de force here; he was an absolute marvel bringing the big time punishment to the champ, and you couldn't ask for a better man to put you over than him here between his always-great selling & the way his whole AEW run thus far has built up to THIS. Hangman got to escape from every submission he has established as a match-ender as well as kickout of every move he has used as a finisher in the company leading up to this bout. And y…

This was for Miguel's X-Division title. A fun display of speed, agility and wit against raw horsepower. Maclin is the challenger, but is also coming into this match with an undefeated record. As such, Trey is pressured into catching him off guard with an array of dives and spots to stay ahead, one of them being an incredible Tope that has him landing in the front row. Maclin uses his size advantage well once the heat starts, mixing in some truly explosive, eye-grabbing offense in-between his control segments. Seriously, I don't think you'll find anyone else in wrestling right now spear someone upside-down through the ropes and onto the floor. By the end, it's the cha…

From the outset, this match felt like a fight. Maria scrapped and clawed her way out of holds and took potshots at DASH by scraping her boot across the back of her head. Maria immediately went for the arm, which wouldn’t become a focus until later. DASH responded with forearms that sounded like gunshots, but Maria gave as good as she got. There was a certain combativeness to everything they did. Take, for example, DASH kicking at Maria while she was on the mat. Maria caught DASH’s arm and kicked it while it was in-between the ropes. DASH did well to remind us of her injury, shaking feeling into the bad limb as she peppered Maria with strikes. DASH’s cut-offs were wel…

This was disappointing in some ways, but otherwise totally fine. I wanted something more heated given how the Sendai Girls vs. Marvelous feud of last year went. Iroha missed an opportunity to compete in the main event of GAEAism with an injury, so I wish they had done more to show she had a chip on her shoulder after that. Iroha did a nice job of selling her back, and I bit on the Running Three near fall. If they wrestled with the urgency of the last few minutes, this would've been a great match.

Entertaining bomb fest between two ladies who are willing to throw themselves into their offense. That offense isn’t always the prettiest, but it adds to the match, giving things a bit more spice and a grittier feel. Masha in particular takes a wicked bump on a German suplex. Some of the powerbombs have a real nice crunch to them. They keep a brisk pace, dump each other on their heads, and bust out some grotesque headbutts. Well worth 12 minutes of your time.

This match is for Shelley's IWTV World Title. What ensues here is a modern twist on the old tale of a traveling champion coming into town to defend against the local favorite. The story centers around the left arm of Mack, which Shelley focuses on with ill intent for the vast majority of the match. Credit Mack for selling Shelley's arm attack like it rendered the limb useless. That also negates Mack from using his signature move, the Mack 10 -- a cross-armed version of the Pedigree and a well-established match-ender in ACTION and other affiliated promotions. Shelley does a masterful job as the visiting champion and Mack is in his element as the hometown hero finally getti…

This is a fairly straightforward tag match, but one that gets a lot right. The early going sees Suge attempt to take down the much larger Smooth with repeated shoulder blocks. Suge’s facial expressions in particular are a real treat, as he’s very expressive and plays his role to a tee. The dastardly heels spend the majority of their heat segment working over Smooth’s leg. Smooth does well to remind everyone of his bum wheel in subtle ways. It’s a nice contrast to the occasionally over-theatrical selling you get on the indies from time to time. Suge and Lockhart constantly try to land elbow drops on Smooth and we’re treated to some delightful stooging until the big ma…

This was for the #1 contender for the red belt and the struggle was the story of this. Both women went at a fast pace with fierce offense and bomb-throwing in trying to attain an advantage making this 30-minute match an easy watch. I can even buy the tombstone mishap as being attributed to fatigue at the rate they were going. Mayu is one of the best big match workers in the world at luring you in with her selling and great comebacks. Since coming to Stardom Giulia has grown into a top-tier performer excelling in prominent situations and this is a perfect example. Going to the draw while it might annoy others did enough that left me begging for more in the future. Excellen…