Minoru Tanaka, Naruki Doi & Koji Iwamoto vs. Black Menso-re, Takuya Nomura & Fuminori Abe
Twitter’s new favorite promotion ended 2023 on the highest note, returning to the blessed Yoyogi National Stadium and popping their biggest gate in ages. To highlight such a momentous occasion, the All Japan Booking Society packed a 6-man opener with some of the best juniors available and began plotting the future of the most coveted trophy in wrestling – the GAORA TV title. The wrestling was brisk and heavy on fan service, Tanaka/Menso-re somehow finding a way to hype up their title match in the middle of Astronauts/Iwamoto having a god damned beast off. ***
Takao Omori, Ryuki Honda & Ryo Inoue vs. Mitsuya Nagai, Koji Doi & Kuma Arashi
Losing a Zen Nihon OG like old man Omori hurts both on a symbolic level and in terms of undercard enjoyment. On a more positive note, he went out in thoughtful fashion – teaming with two of his protégés against familiar faces from the Undercard Cinematic Universe. Not only did we get the Omori chants and the glorious City Hunter theme for one last time, but we also got high-effort performances from all six of these farewell match warriors. On a non-Omori related note, Honda and Doi unleashed beef-based chemistry of the highest order, making me hope for a DoiKuma/New Period match in the near future. ***1/4
Yuma Aoyagi & Yoshitatsu vs. Shuji Ishikawa & Ren Ayabe
This would also turn out to be a farewell match, this time for WORLD FAMOUS Yoshitatsu – a controversial figure who I’ve fearlessly supported over the course of my career as a wrestling scientist. The undercard will not be the same without this man’s ill-advised entrance attires. Good boy Yuma Aoyagi made sure to turn the match into an appropriate Yoshitatsu Tribute, even contributing his own version of the World’s Lightest Face Wash. May the Bullet Club Hunter find inner peace in the next stage of his career. **1/2
Jun Saito vs. Rei Saito
THE SAITOS COLLIDE! Left without a title match on the biggest show of the year, the Saitos brought the pain against each other and explored the confines of the Dumb Meathead subgenre. It was an ugly match, in the best possible way – bringing to mind the brutish features of their tag work and the best matches from Rei’s underrated Carnival run. Raymond continues to outshine his brother thanks to his larger-than-life personality, but Jun keeps making process in the ass-kicking department. The match peaked with a Kaiju-sized throwdown that quickly turned into the greatest episode of Power Slap you’ve ever seen. A perfect showcase of the Saitos’ compelling Less Is More approach. ***1/2
Shotaro Ashino & T-Hawk vs. Kuroshio TOKYO Japan & Seigo Tachibana
Total party vibes for Ashino’s return. Judging by the result, the Internet’s favorite Metallica enthusiast will have to claw his way back to the top, but we’ll get some fun matches along the way. Wrasslin-wise, this was split between Kuroshio comedy and Ashino fighting through his injured arm subplot. Tachibana’s Sasuke Special attempt was pretty great and so were the double-team spots from Ashino and the Hawkman. There might be a story to tell with these two as a permanent tag team since Honda’s leveled up from the Ashino underling role. ***
Yuma Anzai & Charlie Dempsey vs. Tatsumi Fujinami & LEONA
An interesting opening chapter to the NXT Japan psy-op. Dempsey is made from the same mold as his dad – leaning into the old-school Lancashire style and throwing lots of European uppercuts. Ironically, it was Anzai’s interactions with the Fujinami Family that stole the show – the boy wonder earning himself an ass whipping by daring to tease his own Dragon suplex. Dempsey’s inability to take a dragon screw was another highlight and made for a wildly disgusting visual. To be continued? ***
Atsuki Aoyagi & Rising HAYATO vs. Yuki Ueno & Toy Kojima
Newly crowned KO-D champion Yuki Ueno is an absolute class act when it comes to these interpromotional tag matches. Parts of this one reminded me of the amazing NOAH/DDT tag from the first Cyber Festival – with more of an aerial twist. Four guys going as hard as humanly possible, trying to one-up each other to defend the honor of their home promotion. This wasn’t quite as epic, but the mind-boggling chemistry between Ueno and HAYATO was something to behold. HAYATO has officially bypassed Atsuki as a worker and the way he hung with Ueno was the final confirmation. You know you’re watching an effective wrestling match when you’re chomping at the bits for a sequel before it’s even over. ***3/4
El Lindaman © vs. Dan Tamura – AJPW Jr. Heavyweight Title
Zen Nihon Freaks have been clamoring for the big Dan Tamura Moment. Not only did this fit the bill as a crowning achievement for young Daniel, but it turned into one of the very best junior matches of the year. Much like Lindaman’s title defense against Hikaru Sato, there was some serious grit here and it made Tamura’s triumph all the more satisfying. They leaned into plain old wrasslin’ logic, Linda having to get extra crafty to close the size difference gap.
Meanwhile, Tamura put in a consummate babyface performance and handily won the crowd with his non-stop fighting spirit. For the icing on the cake, Linda’s miniature frame made all of Dan’s power moves look all the more impactful. Total package big match delivery – smartly put together and performed with heart. Up there with the Naruki Doi/HAYATO title match in terms of spreadsheet placement. ****1/4
Suwama, Hideki Suzuki & Hikaru Sato vs. Minoru Suzuki, Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Hokuto Omori
Following in the footsteps of guys like Joe Doering and Gianni Valletta who emulated gaikokujin legends of the past, Davey Boy Jr. already feels like a natural fit for All Japan. Having Ashino on commentary to put over his classic wrestling style was a nice touch and the crowd seems on board. Like true artists, they based a large portion of the match around Suwama’s NAGERUZO taunt, resulting in a comforting mix of house show comedy and full force forearms. ***
Katsuhiko Nakajima © vs. Kento Miyahara – Triple Crown
During the early 2000’s, December 31st in Japan used to be synonymous with Inoki Bom-Ba-Ye, an annual supershow where all of Antonio Inoki’s wackiest MMA/pro-wrestling crossover fantasies were unleashed on the public. The date wasn’t lost on Nakajima, who used the occasion to bring his demented Inokiist heel character to new heights. Walking out with former NJPW figurehead Hisashi Shinma and donning Inoki vs. Ali inspired gear, Katsuhiko made the story crystal clear.
If One Night Dream was a Kensuke Office reunion, this rematch was loaded with Toukon vs. Oudou symbolism. From the Ali Kicks to the nods to the Three Musketeers (Dragon screw into STF), Nakajima went full Troll Mode and unleashed his self-proclaimed Toukon Style on the Ace of All Japan. In adding the wrestling literature elements to Kento’s time-tested formula, the two former dojo mates conjured a stadium-sized epic – one of the year’s best.
Wrestling scientists are not supposed to spend too much time delving on crowd reactions. Their job is to tell you if the leg was sold or not. That being said, the atmosphere here was too special to go unmentioned. This was one of the most feverishly pro-Kento crowds I’ve ever seen and Miyahara fed right into it. Beyond the usual charisma overload, his comebacks had the snap and urgency of a 2018 Kento match. Pure explosiveness from bell to bell.
Two major subplots drove this thing forward – Kento’s repeated Kensuke lariat attempts and Katsuhiko’s arm work. Both stories became cleverly tied together and the damaged arm would soon spell Miyahara’s downfall. Before reaching the Ultimate Sad Ending, Kento and Nakajima drove the crowd up the wall by blasting them with waves upon waves of state-of-the-art Big Match Wrestling.
The rare case of a match where the spectacle and workrate are perfectly in sync. Even if the attendance was only a fraction of a Tokyo Dome show, this felt every bit as big as the biggest match on Wrestle Kingdom. And as great as it all was, it still feels like there’s more story to be told. This is a good thing! Unless AJPW is swallowed whole by Operation NXT Japan, Kento and Katsu will likely return with an even better match in the near future and I will be there for it. ****3/4
