Boss Rock

Really fun match and proof that Fenix is one of many shots to the arm CMLL has needed (the others being L.A. Park and Penta). While so many other high-fliers in CMLL just seem to go through the motions, Fenix brings a much-needed sense of urgency and willingness to go all-out. Cavernario is another wrestler who feels less "samey" than so many other luchadores and what we got was an entertaining, back-and-forth match. Tons of big spots like Cavernario's splash to the outside and Fenix's cutter on the stage made this a must-watch bout. Great singles debut for Fenix and a reminder that Cavernario is one of the best wrestlers in the world despite his lack of a sustained push. ****1/4.

I really liked the Fenix-Cavernario match. I feel like CMLL has sort of just been going through the motions the last year or so but these recent events have been a much-needed breath of fresh air.

Agreed. Grave Consequences 4: A Good Day to Grave Hard was everything you'd expect from a Grave Consequences match.

Is there a better underdog in wrestling than Darby Allin? I struggle to think of one. This match told a simple, yet effective story: how much punishment could Darby endure from the juggernaut that is WALTER? Darby tried to get the jump on WALTER early but almost immediately gets pummeled from pillar to post. Darby's bumping and selling was fantastic as always and the hand work on WALTER was brilliant (who ever saw someone headbutt a hand?). Considering the past between Darby and Thatcher and how WALTER beat down Darby before, you were really rooting for Darby and he pulled off an incredibly satisfying victory. Low-end MOTYC. ****3/4.

You can always count on LU to deliver on one of their trademark matches. A great spotfest with lots of brawling and hardcore spots. As mentioned above, Mil and Fenix have always had tremendous chemistry and there were some cool callbacks to the first Grave Consequences. Fenix in particular is a great babyface and arguably one of the best in the world today. Callihan can often get too caught up in his shtick but really thrives in chaotic environments like these (they don't call it "the Sami Sprint" for nothing). Ivelisse coming back was really cool even if the hammer spots were a bit over-the-top. I also liked the stories they were telling with Catrina and Melissa when it came to Fenix. Really fun match and maintains the reputation that Grave Consequences matches have. ****1/4.

Violent Giants regained the AJPW tag titles. Good stuff.

I hope so.

He put out a better, more thought-out apology (if only he did that first). I buy that he didn't know about either guy but he absolutely should have done his research, taken accountability from the get-go, and not get as defensive as he did. But from what I've seen of him on Twitter before, he definitely seems hypersensitive and thin-skinned. I still like the guy as a wrestler, but it's still extremely disappointing behavior.

Really fun brawl, was surprised CMLL let them get away with as much as they did. The times really must be changing. This was obviously just a taste of something much bigger down the line. So while I wish they did more, I'm glad that they didn't give away too much.

Great match and definitely one of Elgin's best performances. These two have always had really good chemistry together and Elgin, knowing defeat was inevitable, telling Kenny to finish him off was great stuff.

I'm still holding on to hope for Jay White because as bad as his run has been, he's still shown those flashes of promise when he was a Young Lion and in ROH. I think if he fails to deliver here you can throw him in the bin, but if he wrestles like he does against David Finlay, he may surprise us.

I've always sort of made the comparison to Misawa as well when it comes to Okada. The guy you know who probably has a 1% chance of losing, yet still finds ways to make you think his opponent is gonna pull it off.

Nice!

It seems like almost every year there's one guy in the tournament who really steps up and breaks out. Last year it was Juice Robinson, hopefully someone like Page or White can do that this year.

Episode two was a bit of a step up from episode one, but still had a few kinks. First was a trios title match. Next was a match for an Aztec Medallion Grave Consequences next week! Consider me hyped. Pentagon vs. Matanza was the main event. Final vignette

I definitely think this is the best and most fair way to proceed. Really appreciate you guys making this decision and will absolutely help out every way I can.

The B Block is definitely the one to pay attention to, but I agree that unless you're a major NJPW fan or completionist (which I happen to be, ha), you don't need to watch everything. A Block is absolutely the block you'll want to cherry pick.

This was quite the fun read.

Very sad news but I know he had been dealing with heart issues for a while. Haven't seen nearly as much stuff of his as other folks here have, but what I did see him in he was almost always great. Loved the way he would just club people with his massive arms simply because he could.

It's crazy how much better the B Block is than the A Block. They should have at least traded Ishii for Page or Makabe, ha. And it definitely looks like the finals will be Okada vs. Ibushi or Naito unless they really hammer home how devastated Okada is at losing the title and go with Tanahashi.

Him or Finlay would have been loads better than Page. And I was really hoping Tonga would get the Yujiro treatment after lousy showings in the last two tournaments, but alas.

That's good to hear. And whatever is decided upon is fine because I'm having way too much fun with this project

Luchablog's review was also interesting as he pointed out that a ton of stuff seemed (intentionally or not) retconned or not even mentioned. Like obviously Vamp's master is going to come after Pentagon and Mil's going to go after Cuerno and the gauntlet, but they never once mentioned what happened at Ultima Lucha outside of the opening vignette.

Thought this premiere was solid if a tad disappointing for a few reasons. I'm convinced Dario faked his own death. Antonio ordered the hit but Agent Winter said Dario was killed by "gangbangers". Something definitely doesn't add up there. I dig the new temple set up. I just hope there will be enough scaffolds/high places to jump off of. The first half of Aztec Warfare dragged and the action just seemed off, like everyone was a bit rusty. It also didn't help that the editing and camera work felt super choppy. Eventually, Pentagon came in and started cleaning house. I feel like this episode was basically an apology for Pentagon's on-off booking for the past three seasons, just letting him kill people left and right like a badass. The second half of this match was a huge step up as some of the more familiar faces came in and got their time to shine. I had a few issues with certain eliminations like old-ass Chavo taking out Fenix AND Cuerno. Also wasn't crazy about Mil getting eliminated as quick as he did but they're obviously building to something with Catrina so I'll let it slide. Overall not a bad match and the finishing stretch was a lot of fun. Was never all that impressed by Marty before but he killed it in the Fenix match and he was great here, too. With all that said, this was still easily the worst Aztec Warfare which is a shame as it's always one of the most exciting parts of each season. I'm hoping this episode was just a bit of growing pains as I had similar apprehensions about season 3 and things turned out very well for the most part. Either way, glad to have more wrestling to watch during the week after having checked out on Raw and SDL.

Didn't like this one as much as the BOSJ match, but it was still very good. The opening was very hot with Hiromu using the guitar case as a weapon and dropkicking Desperado into the guardrail, but the crowd brawling segments meandered quite a bit more than their last match. Desperado working over Hiromu's leg was also inconsequential and forgotten rather quickly. Really felt like they were just killing time until Kanemaru tried to interfere and BUSHI misted him, then things really took off. HIromu ripping off Desperado's mask only for Desperado to say "fuck it" and hit him with the belt anyway was great stuff. The last five minutes had some really good intensity and culminated in a satisfying victory for Hiromu with a bit of poetic justice thrown in for good measure. A bit disjointed but still a very good match. ***3/4-****