Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura vs. Rising HAYATO & Ryo Inoue
I’m here for the Hikaru/Inoue blood feud. That 30-second shoot scrap they had during the JBOG is still gnawing at me and I’m glad The Purple Menace Ryo Inoue seems to be taking a vengeful approach. Soccer kicks to the back were thrown and Inoue put on his bravest face. Elsewhere, HAYATO and Dan both delivered solid performances, continuing the recent string of quality junior heavyweight action from AJPW. ***
Mitsuya Nagai & Black Menso-re vs. Yusuke Kodama & Masao Hanabatake
Crouching enthusiast Hanabatake (FKA. Seigo Tachibana) has finally met his match in midcard legend Mitsuya Nagai. The bald bruiser’s done it all in THIS BUSINESS. From RINGS and BattlARTS to sharing a NOAH heel unit with freakin’ Cody Hall!? The (royal) road of pro-wrestling has led him to this moment – crouching around and making faces with Hanabatake. That’s what it’s all about. **1/2
Naoya Nomura vs. Ryuki Honda
Thankfully, they steered clear of the recent trend of Goldberg Naoya matches and gave us six entire minutes of WRESTLING. An appropriate amount of content for a first-time singles match between two guys with plenty of natural chemistry. Not only do they have similar move-sets (spear, one-two elbows), but both employ the same kind beefy heavyweight intensity. The match felt more like a preview than a definitive statement and I’d love to see them run it back in a full-on GOA/Nomuyagi tag program. ***1/4
Yuji Nagata, Yoshitatsu & Yuma Anzai vs. Suwama, Jun Saito & Rei Saito
There was a match here, but the Onita/Yoshitatsu angle that preceded it deserves more attention. WORLD FAMOUS Yoshitatsu has been lingering on the undercard for a while without clear purpose. A far cry from 2021, when the man brought us a wide-array of Inoki-inspired storylines that helped redefine the landscape of pro-wrestling as we know it.
To be fair, not much could top his Wrestler vs. Boxer match from Champions Night ‘21. Except maybe one thing… Death Match Yoshitatsu. The crowd-killing, botched DDT from Onita offered a tantalizing glimpse at the next phase of THE YOSHITATSU STORY and I am literally begging All Japan to pull the trigger on this blockbuster event. Also, Voodoo Murders might break up. **1/2
Takao Omori & Masao Inoue © vs. NOSAWA Rongai & Kendo Kashin – All-Asia Tag Team Titles
At this point in the show, I have reason to believe that the Undercard Cinematic Universe was infiltrated by CIA operatives as part of a psy-op against AJPW Twitter. There are strong indications that every wrestler in this match may be a double agent working for the American government in an attempt to spread chaos and disinformation amidst the All Japan fanbase.
Recently-leaked documents referring to a covert operation known as ‘’NXT Japan’’ point towards a sprawling international conspiracy – likely financed by billionaire/philanthropist ATM. What is their end goal? Did they get rid of TAJIRI because he knew too much? TRUST NO ONE.
Shuji Ishikawa, Yuma Aoyagi & Atsuki Aoyagi vs. Minoru Suzuki, Hokuto Omori & Naruki Doi
On yesterday’s show, Hokuto Omori turned his back on the babyface army to form an unholy alliance with The Murder Grandpa and Dragon Gate part-timer Naruki Doi. Beyond the faction realignment, this latest twist seems to officialize Hokuto’s transition into the world of heavyweights.
They sure treated him as such here – what with him suplexing Big Shuj and cleanly dispatching junior champ Atsuki. Suzuki-Gun 2.0 already working as a well-oiled machine put this show right back on track and made me salivate at the possibility of an Atsuki/Doi title match. Very cool shit. ***1/4
Kento Miyahara © vs. Takuya Nomura – Triple Crown
Like Wrestle Kingdom and the NOAH Budokan show, the Kento Miyahara Korakuen Banger is now a well-established January tradition. This was a match that kept the mythology alive and kicking, offering a literal collision between the no-non sense Strong BJ esthetic and the Big Match Kento tropes.
With Kyohei Wada nowhere to be found, Miyahara had less avenues for comedic exploration and leaned into Takuya’s more straight-forward ass kicking vision. They abandoned the limb subplots of their 2022 Champ Carnival match, focusing the match entirely on pride, ego and beating the shit out of each other.
An interesting choice, because Kento is not exactly a Slug-Fest Guy. There’s an entire legion of dudes in Japan who hit harder and are more willing to implode their own brain for your viewing pleasure. However, the one thing that Miyahara has over most of these guys is an unmatched sense of detail and the ability to milk drama out of every moment.
The best parts of the match came when the champ suddenly found himself out of his depth and made sure to let you know. The slap fight where he’s always one step behind Takuya, the increasing rage when he gets stuck in an endless bout of corner forearms, the arm selling after the desperate lariat comeback.
Tons of nifty little quirks that told an effective overarching story and made the challenger look like a million bucks. The two secrets to any successful Kento title match. ****1/4
