‘’Yo yo yo let me speak on this – Konnan’’
– Captain Lou
Yoshitatsu vs. Takuya Nomura – Champion Carnival (Block B)
Out of the entire 2022 Champ Carnival lineup, Takuya Nomura was probably the buzziest new entrant. Deep Puro Twitter favorite and legit-great pro-wrestler – he’s the shot in the arm that this tournament needed. WORLD FAMOUS Yoshitatsu, also known by true wrestling experts as The GOAT, seemed to take exception to this and decided to put the Big Japan darling in his place. And it was wild.
The Bullet Club Hunter turned Nomura’s usual feisty approach on its head and gave him the young lion treatment for most of the match. Tense slap-fests and angry shit-talking all over the place – the right way to kick off this tournament. ***1/2
Ryuki Honda vs. T-Hawk – Champion Carnival (Block A)
The Carnival’s going to be a big test for Honda and his new heel persona. Judging by this match, he’s still in the process of figuring out his Control Segments (*I felt a sharp pain in my chest while typing that sentence). HOWEVER, T-Hawk is so good at selling and reacting that Honda’s lack of offense didn’t really matter. Just a super energizing babyface performance from the Hawkster – the Strong hearted lad working the crowd like a pro and timing his choppy comebacks with razor-sharp precision. ***
Shuji Ishikawa vs. Shigehiro Irie – Champion Carnival (Block A)
These guys had a brain damage-heavy GAORA TV slug-fest not too long ago. They stayed away from the shoot headbutts here but actually ended up having a better wrestling match. When your forearm strikes sound so god damned loud, I’m not even sure you need the headbutts in the first place.
As expected, the match brought large quantities of meat to the table, but it was the ending stretch that really put it over the top. Irie relentlessly gunning for that choke finish brought some real danger to those last few minutes and made Big Shuj’s downfall even more satisfying. Good shit. ***1/2
Jake Lee vs. Shotaro Ashino – Champion Carnival (Block B)
He’s back. The Caped Crusader. Gotham’s Protector. The Dark Gentleman Jake Lee has returned to Edion Arena. I’ve missed this melodramatic tall man and his sky-pointing ways. The goal of the match was to build Jake back into his 2021 killer form, which means Ashino got his ass kicked for most of this. It wasn’t anywhere near the Triple Crown limb surgery clinic they had last year, but it was structured efficiently to turn Ashino’s win into a total shocker. ***1/4
Kento Miyahara vs. Kuma Arashi – Champion Carnival (Block B)
The polar opposite of Kuma’s 2020 Carnival run where he came off as a borderline comedy act getting squashed by Suwama. They had themselves a high-energy Miyahara template burner and Arashi finally looked like he belonged. By working each other so much during the Nextream tag reign, these guys clearly developed some chemistry.
This felt like the ultimate payoff and Kuma actually winning was the icing on the cake. The various senton spots came off as nuclear bombs, Kento selling his ass off to make Kuma look like a proper monster. I’m not gonna tell you that Arashi should be a permanent main event guy in AJPW, but this feels like a good opportunity to at least get him a title shot. ***3/4
Suwama vs. Yuma Aoyagi – Champion Carnival (Block B)
It took them a while to get going, but once they settled on their usual structure (grumpy vet Wama putting goofball babyface Aoyagi through the wringer), there was a solid time to be had. Big Wama still has the best offense in wrestling and I could watch him clobber people for hours. Essentially, Ryuki Honda should watch more Suwama matches.
ANYWAY, Yuma picked up the upset here and while an undeniably cool moment – the match kind of lacked the drama of their 2021 bangers. The Big Match Wama destruction was there and so was the Aoyagi babyfacing, but it didn’t quite feel like the ultimate Passing of the Torch moment that it could’ve been. Still, a slightly underwhelming Wama/Aoyagi match remains better than most matches. ***1/2
