Yuma Aoyagi, Black Menso-re & Dan Tamura vs. Tsugutaka Sato, UTAMARO & Masayuki Mitomi
The All Japan undercard is quickly becoming a safe haven for obscure Wrestle-1 refugees and I was liking the selection on hand on this match. Yoshitatsu frenemy UTAMARO has the coolest entrance gear, Mitomi spent years mastering the art of the Mongolian chop and young Sato throws one hellacious lariat. Aoyagi made the costly but understandable mistake of trolling Menso-re for the entire match (‘’NAKAJIMA!’’) and ended up losing sight of his true goal (winning this professional wrestling match). The folly of youth. **1/4
Jun Akiyama, Zeus, Ultimo Dragon & Carbell Ito vs. Takao Omori, Osamu Nishimura, Hikaru Sato & Atsuki Aoki
The Carbell-sponsored Christmas present bag throwing extravaganza was a truly beautiful moment of corporate synergy. Sharing is caring, people. And nothing says caring like Jun Akiyama reluctantly throwing FREE SWAG to wrestling fans in Korakuen Hall. Uncle Jun also happened to be the highlight of this entire match, showing he’s still the smartest man in wrestling by aggressively going after Sato’s open shoes and destroying his toes. As one does. **
Kagetora vs. Yusuke Okada – AJPW Jr Heavyweight Title Tournament (Round 1)
Hell of a wrestling match that delivered on the promise of the last meeting between these guys in the finals of the junior tag battle. It’s not exactly surprising considering of how much time he spends around Suwama, but Okada’s biggest strength right now is his premature grumpiness. Watching this stubborn kid try to bully his seniors is endlessly entertaining as you know it’s only a matter of time before a veteran takes his head clean off.
And it fueled this match in all the right ways as the uber-crafty Kagetora responded to Okada’s hot temper by promptly taking his leg apart with all kinds of funky lucha submissions and high precision dropkicks. Okada sold the bad leg like a champ and got all sorts of underdog sympathy from Korakuen, building up a bunch of great heat for the late-match near-falls. Lovely mix of high-end workrate and effective character work – Okada should break out as AJPW’s next singles star any minute now. ***3/4
Suwama, Shuji Ishikawa & Masanobu Fuchi vs. Great Kojika, Brahman Kei & Brahman Shu
This checked all the boxes of a pure King’s Road classic: bowling balls to the nuts, geriatric brawling and enough water spill to flood a small village. The Brahmans are clearly artists, but is AJPW the right canvas for them to unleash their art? I’m here to ask the tough questions. Judging by the upcoming January lineups, Fuchi might be transitioning into a permanent feud with Kojika. This is how you get some buzz with the kids, baby. Someone get Fuchi on Instagram. *3/4
Susumu Yokosuka vs. Atsushi Maruyama – AJPW Jr Heavyweight Title Tournament (Round 1)
A really well laid-out match that saw Maruyama go in full Serious Mode and bring the fight to Susumu and his mesmerizing haircut. Every little segment flew into the next one logically and validated my wrestling nerdery in pleasing ways. From Maruyama getting the jump early with his kick onslaught, to Susumu going on the defense by targeting the neck only for THE FORMER TIGERS MASK to respond with his own arm-focused offense THUS softening up the inevitable Jumbo No Kachi. Dug the whole story of Susumu selling loopy for the first third of the match and having to slowly work his way back in control. Good times! ***1/2
UTAMARO + Maruyama alliance!? Seems random as hell and yet I am INTO IT.
Jake Lee, Naoya Nomura, Koji Iwamoto & Hokuto Omori vs. YAMATO, KAI, Yosuke Santa Maria & Kota Minoura
Depending on where you land with the Santa Maria gay panic spots, there was a lot of fun to be had with this match. I realize this is not the wokest thing to say, but Jake being the primary target of Maria’s affection led to some funny moments and the crowd was just eating it up. The broadcast team also went out of their way to present YAMATO as a big deal (‘’Ace of Dragon Gate’’), which was a smart thing to do as the Gentleman Warrior Jake Lee looked like an even bigger deal by completely towering over him. I am extremely into the All Japan x Dragon Gate collaboration and I hope they lean even more into it for 2020 if it leads to more cool stuff like young Hokuto Omori working balls to the wall ending stretches with YAMATO. ***1/4
Kento Miyahara & Jiro Ikemen Kuroshio vs. Yoshitatsu & TAJIRI
More Performance Art than Wrestling Match, this felt like the culmination of Kento’s quest to become the one true Comedy Ace. Honestly, the whole thing would not have looked out of place on top of an Osaka Pro card, with Kento/Ikemen as Ebessan/Kuishinbo and Wada as exasperated referee Matsui. Yoshitatsu and TAJIRI were only there to be play the straight men and supply a few chinlocks, because the full focus of the match was on Kento and Wada’s blood feud reaching terrifying new levels amidst the champ’s attempts at coexisting with Ikemen and his jacket spots. While none of this will break the GRAPPL STAR RATING APP or anything, it’s pretty fascinating to see Miyahara bounce so easily between high workrate champion and full-on goofball maniac. ***
