1. 3-Way Match – NEVER Openweight Title: Hirooki Goto [c] vs. Michael Elgin vs. Taichi
I did not catch this during the original airing and wasn’t all that bummed, but here we are. I like Goto. I like Taichi. I don’t think Elgin is very good. I don’t like New Japan 3-Way Matches. And I don’t think I missed a whole lot – it’s fine enough Wrestling Action, but they just kind of hit stuff to keep it pleasant and then they moved on. The buckle bomb into another human man was presumably a nice spot. There’s a lot of wrestling out there, you know? **3/4
2. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title: Will Ospreay [c] vs. Hiromu Takahashi
There is still so much that is off-putting to me about Will Ospreay, but his recent run as Broken Down Guy With Something to Prove is something I am really digging. And god damn did these boys go full tilt right from the start, with a ROCKET LAUNCH somersault plancha off the ramp within 20 seconds by Ospreay. As Ospreay worked over Hiromu, hate seeped into my body as I realized he kind of reminded me of Dynamite Kid, and not just because Meltzer compared his future to Dynamite’s. He’s not completely dialed in but he has this brutish Euro dickhead vibe to him and I was briefly digging it.
But this was a match about the WOW and there was so much WOW. The full-speed dropkick to the chest off the apron by Hiromu. The handspring backflip plancha by Ospreay that ya sometimes just take for granted how insane and beautiful it is. The Ospreay Cutter to the German suplex. The Shooting Star Press to Hiromu draped over the top rope. These two guys, along with KUSHIDA, kind of transcend Just Flippy Shit. Only a select few can get away with some of this insane stuff, and they perform it all so rapid-fire and perfectly that you’re too busy flipping the fuck out to be taken out of the action. Did they do two reverse rana’s in a row followed by a sunset flip bomb on Bill’s head? Is that WEIRD? I don’t know – I was too busy going OH MY FUCKING GOD.
Of course, I didn’t COMPLETELY love this. It had a bunch of cool stuff but it also had some lulls. It didn’t feel as complete as the KUSHIDA match at Dontaku, though that’s not saying a ton as that might be my favorite Ospreay match ever. The first half felt a little routine in between the WOW. Hiromu Takahashi absolutely confounds me – I love his charisma, look, performances, and insane shit he’s capable of – but I’ve only seen him in a couple legit GREAT matches. Meanwhile Ospreay matches, while impressive, rarely click for me as legitimately compelling professional wrestling.
The last five minutes or so were pretty awesome though. That Canadian Destroyer by Hiromu off the top was a little ridiculous but fuck was it impressive. I totally bought THE D near fall, and Bill just dropping Hiromu on his head to escape it was wild. The sunset flip powerbomb to the floor followed by the Dynamite Plunger near fall was wild and felt like the place where the crowd really bought in, as the match became all about Hiromu overcoming this weirdly dominant little British fella. AND THEN HE DID. ***3/4
