Takao Omori vs. Hokuto Omori – Champion Carnival (Block B)
THE OMORIS COLLIDE! This was headed into pretty solid territory until old man Takao flubbed the Flatliner bump. Fired-up by his freshly excavated World Japan theme, the No Fear legend worked in cranky veteran mode: choppin’ and stretchin’ the kids off his god damned lawn. Hokuto kept the Carnival’s youth-focused theme alive and well by winning via his new submission thingy, which looked more convincing here than it did against Big Shuj. **1/2
Yoshitatsu vs. Ryuki Honda – Champion Carnival (Block A)
I’ve been under extreme pressure from the wrestling media to issue an official statement on Honda’s new look. Here it comes. Honda’s greatest asset is being a complete weirdo. The more he leans into the weirdness, the more he’ll stand out on this roster. Conclusion: the new hair is good. Thank you. **
Cyrus & Black Menso-re vs. Shotaro Ashino & Masao Hanabatake vs. Atsuki Aoyagi & Rising HAYATO – 3-Way Tag Match
An entire truckload of undercard wrestling fun. Cyrus stole the show by obliterating everything in sight, including his own partner. Him no-selling HAYATO’s plancha was tremendous and the crowd ate it all up. Shoutout to GOA for digging deep into Crazy MAX Lore and resurrecting the CIMA/Don Fujii giant swing/dropkick combo. ***
Naruki Doi & Naoki Tanizaki vs. Ryo Inoue & Oji Shiiba – Junior Tag Battle of Glory
Five banging minutes where Footloose 2.0 once again confirmed their status as your new favorite tag team. They’ve got matching bandanas, matching kicks and they’re hungry for tournament gold, brother. Tanizaki fully embraced the indie sleaze esthetic of Dove Pro in recent years and I was skeptical of his offense here, but he can still keep up with the Dragon Gate pace. Doi tied up everything together, adding heel flourishes and expert cut-offs. Good stuff. ***1/4
Kaito Ishida & Kotaro Suzuki vs. Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura – Junior Tag Battle of Glory
So much to like! Black Generation milked the pro-Tamura crowd support into a tasty babyface in peril section where Ishida put his heel assholery on full display. In the POST HOT-TAG dimension, the G-REX champ continued to impress by showing off tantalizing chemistry with Sato – both guys eager to slap the shit out of each other. It all coalesced into a perfect babyface finish, the Evolution boyz launching some well-coordinated team work on Kotaro to wrap up the best junior tag league match so far. ***1/2
Manabu Soya vs. Yuma Anzai – Champion Carnival (Block B)
An absolute masterclass in Three And A Quarter Star pro-wrestling. Soya’s large frame and strong grasp of the fundamentals make him the ideal opponent for an up and comer like Anzai. He worked the match in chunky disciplinarian mode, wrecking the super rookie’s lower back with simple but brutal-looking offense – including the loudest forearm shot to the back you’ve ever heard. With the Hodogaya fans firmly behind him, Anzai once again pulled off the underdog babyface role with panache. I’m not sure if the Internet Wrestling Community fully graps how good this kid is already. It took Hokuto and Tamura years to reach this level of confidence in the ring. ***1/4
Shuji Ishikawa vs. Rei Saito – Champion Carnival (Block B)
To the chagrin of all Saito Bros haters across the World Wide Web, Rei Saito keeps marching towards the coveted Good Wrestler status. Big Shuj guided this large bearded man through one of his signature slug-fests and everything felt right. Unlike his brother Jun, Rei makes the most of his wild man persona by exhibiting Kaiju-like behavior and howling during strike exchanges. Truly a perfect fit for the Shoojster, who made the middle-aged youngster earn the upset by blasting him with a wide variety of shoot headbutts. Bear on Bear violence of the utmost quality. ***1/2
Kento Miyahara vs. Jun Saito – Champion Carnival (Block A)
Avid Captain Lou reader Jun Saito took exception to my constant praise of his brother and decided it was time to EARN SOME STARS! The controversial Saito Brother analyzed hours of pro-wrestling footage and concluded that the easiest way to earn a decent star rating is to wrestle Kento Miyahara. In Klassic Kento fashion, Miyahara made Saito look like the best he’s ever looked. His offense landed with conviction and Kento sold the shit out of it. The match literally flew by – every sequence flowing logically into the next thanks to Kento Layout Brain. Saito Truthers UNITE. ***1/2
Yuma Aoyagi vs. T-Hawk – Champion Carnival (Block A)
The Hawkster’s had some bangers during his on and off All Japan run. This would rank not too far behind the Triple Crown match with Kento and last year’s Carnival draw with Irie. The match was anchored by a clear-cut heel/face dynamic, the GLEAT man cutting down Mama Aoyagi’s Baby Boy with chop-based villainy. This man is always so god damned vicious in the aggressor role that every babyface comeback becomes automatically triumphant. More over and than ever, Yuma was a good dance partner for T-Hawk’s high-octane, counter-heavy ending stretch. Him spin kicking his way through the Tenryu-ISM barrage of chops and guh punches was extremely cool. As delightful as the match was, I’m pretty sure they have an even better one in them. ***3/4
