NJPW New Beginning in Sendai 2015 review

Three days after the opening half of New Beginning took place in Osaka the New Japan crew hit Sendai for the closing half. I say the New Japan crew but new IWGP champ AJ Styles was noticeable by his absence from this card. A peculiar booking decision, but not a catastrophic one as there was already a strong main event announced in Nakamura versus Nagata. In fact it's possible that relegating Styles to a tag match days after his big win would have lessened the impact of the title change.

The show kicked off with a pair of tag matches. Captain New Japan and Manabu Nakanishi defeated Satoshi Kojima and Yohei Komatsu in an average opener when Nakanishi hit an inverted TKO on Komatsu. That was followed by reDRagon taking on Jay White and a Tiger Mask. They won a ten minute match after they hit Chasing the Dragon on White. It was a surprisingly competitive bout considering Fish and O'Reilly's status as former tag champs and White's status as a young boy. I suppose it can be attributed to veteran Tiger Mask's involvement. For the record he was off whatever remains of his game here. There was a lot of sloppiness from him.

A six man tag match tying into the Osaka show's junior title matches followed that. The Time Splitters teamed with Máscara Dorada to take on the Young Bucks, whom the Splitters had faced in Osaka, and Kenny Omega, who'd been confronted by Dorada after his successful defence against Taguchi in Osaka. All the junior champions on one side of the ring with leading challengers on the other. The match was great, especially considering how low down the running order it was. The match culminated with Dorada hitting Omega with a sunset bomb off the apron before the Bullet Club members hit stero Indy-Takers on the Time Splitters, only for Omega to be pinned off a sunset flip from Dorada moments later. The result was predictable considering the confrontation on the previous show.

Match four saw Chase Owens unsuccessfully challenge Jushin Liger for the frankly meaningless NWA junior heavyweight championship. Bruce Tharpe was again at ringside and was again dressed like a game show host. The match was perfectly adequate but unmemorable. Liger got the best of a brisk sequence of rollups to retain.

Tharpe would return to ringside after Liger had cut a post-match promo. About stuff, I guess. This time he was managing NWA world heavyweight champion Rob Conway in his defence against Hiroyoshi Tenzan. Conway would lose the world's most prestigious indy belt when Tenzan hit a top rope moonsault. The match featured an abundance of manager interference, belt shots and various other heel shenanigans. It wasn't bad but it stood out in comparison to much of the rest of the card.

Following an intermission, in which Yuji Nagata chatted to a young lad in a dapper suit while drinking beer and shilling merch, the show resumed with Kota Ibushi and Tetsuya Naito v Kazushi Sakuraba and Toru Yano. The former struck me as an interesting pairing, both guys being names who've been singled out as prospective headliners. Yano and Sakuraba were the aggressors, isolating Naito and working him over before he managed to tag out to Ibushi. Naito would get the win for his team when he halted a Yano rollup mid-way through. Good match but not especially memorable.

Kazuchika Okada and Yoshi-Hashi defeated Bad Luck Fale and Yujiro Takahashi when Okada floored Takahashi with a drop kick and a Rainmaker. The crowd was invested in the match thanks to Okada's status as a top guy and the fact that Fale's been successfully established as a dominating monster. It speaks to the importance of characters in wrestling. More specifically it speaks to the fantastic job Gedo and Jado have done building Okada up as a somebody since he returned from his sojourn to the US.

This happened for some reason.

The evening's second and final six man tag team match saw former tag champs Hirooki Goto and Katsuyori Shibata team with former seven time heavyweight champ Hiroshi Tanahashi to defeat Bullet Club members Doc Gallows, Karl Anderson and Tama Tonga (who were all sporting KISS face paint). It was very different to the junior six man that had taken place earlier on the show but was just as good. Tanahashi was worked over before making finally dodging an Anderson charge and tagging out to Goto. The Meiyu Tag boys took it to Bullet Club from there before Tana came back in to throw Tama Tonga around. He would again find himself isolated and triple teamed before Goto and Shibata made the save on a cover and brawled to the outside with Gallows and Anderson. Tama Tonga soon found himself on the wrong end of a sling blade and a High Fly Flow, ending the match just after the twelve minute mark.

The evening's penultimate match was held to crown a new NEVER openweight champion. Togi Makabe had won the title at Wrestle Kingdom 9 and contracted influenza a month later. The decision was made to strip him of the title and crown a new champion. Sentimental favourite Tomoaki Honma and former champion Tomohiro Ishii were chosen as the men who'd battle for the vacant gold.

Within minutes the two were throwing out stiff elbows. Ishii would gradually gain the advantage, wearing down Honma with alternating elbows and chops in the corner. Honma willed himself back into the fight and the pair engaged a lengthy exchange of chops. Honma got the better of it after a slow start, the audience applauding loudly when he finally sent Ishii down to the mat and hit his falling head butt.

Honma hit a Blockbuster before Ishii took control again. Honma survived a power bomb and a second rope stalling suplex, bringing the crowd to life. His reversal of a clothesline into a DDT was sold expertly by Ishii, the audience sensing that it was Honma's opportunity to take control and win. They ran into one another with clotheslines and took turns to fall and get straight back up but it was Honma who got the best of the exchange, flooring Ishii with a lariat.

Ishii returned to his feet on the apron. He was lariated to the floor and hit with a ridiculously dangerous head butt from the top rope to the outside. Back in the ring Honma turned a staggered Ishii upside down with a lariat. Despite all the damage he'd taken 'The Stone Pitbull' was able to return to his feet and drop Honma with a belly-to-back suplex. Honma fired off elbows but that only fired Ishii up, leading him to lamp Honma hard and hit him a stalling superplex.

Honma kicked out of that and was pulled to his feet. He was struck with three clotheslines and slumped down to the mat where he again kicked out of a cover at two. Ishii tried suplexing him but Honma sprang away into the ropes, coming back with a head butt. When he dropped Ishii with a deadlift brainbuster moments later the audience seemed convinced the match was over.

It wasn't. Ishii kicked out. He was pulled to his feet and given another head butt and a fire thunder driver for another two count. Honma went for more head butts, aiming for Ishii's injured shoulder. He got the first but Ishii avoided the second. Honma got straight back up after taking a German suplex and kicked out at one after an enziguri. Not to be outdone Ishii did his own kick out at one following a lariat.

Going back to the start of the match the two exchanged strikes and slaps. Ishii got a two count following a big lariat. Honma escaped a suplex but was staggered by a head butt, dodging a second before dishing out head butts of his own. Honma again kicked out but he couldn't survive a stalling brainbuster. That finally put him down for a three count and earned Ishii his third NEVER championship reign. It was the match of the night.

That left only the main event: Yuji Nagata challenging Shinsuke Nakamura for the Intercontinental championship. A video package came first. It was heavy on piano music and seemed to present Nagata as a humble family man who's been around forever and wants to show that he can still go. It was light on Nakamura but whenever he appeared it seemed like it was being made clear that he respected Nagata. It was a good video package. Even with the language barrier it got me invested in Nagata.

Nakamura still IC champ there.

They told a good story. The veteran Nagata had more tricks up his sleeve and wasn't intimidated or thrown off balance by his opponent's silliness but Nakamura had speed on his side and a more vicious streak. Nagata was resilient, surviving multiple Boma Yes and kicks but it wasn't enough to get him the victory. He came close to a victory with some stiff blows, a perfect top rope belly-to-belly suplex, a vicious German suplex, a belly-to-back suplex and an armbar but ultimately Nak polished him off with a desperation knee to the temple. It was a great main event.

On balance I think the Sendai show was the stronger offering. It only had the two standout matches (the two championship matches that closed the show) but both were of a higher quality than the key matches of the Osaka card. The undercard again failed to disappoint and featured fun outings for Tenzan, the junior heavyweight champions and their challengers, Tanahashi and Meiyu Tag. I wouldn't say either show is a must-see event but they both boasted must-see matches.

***

Results summary:

Captain New Japan and Manabu Nakanishi defeated Satoshi Kojima and Yohei Komatsu
reDRagon defeated Tiger Mask and Jay White
Time Splitters and Máscara Dorada defeated the Young Bucks and Kenny Omega
Jushin Thunder Liger defeated Chase Owens to retain the NWA world junior heavyweight championship
Hiroyoshi Tenzan defeated Rob Conway to win the NWA world heavyweight championship
Kota Ibushi and Tetsuya Naito defeated Toru Yano and Kazushi Sakuraba             
Kazuchika Okada and Yoshi-Hashi defeated Yujiro Takahashi and Bad Luck Fale
Hirooki Goto, Katsuyori Shibata and Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Doc Gallows, Karl Anderson and Tama Tonga
Tomohiro Ishii defeated Tomoaki Honma to win the NEVER openweight championship
Shinsuke Nakamura defeated Yuji Nagata to retain the Intercontinental championship

NJPW New Beginning in Osaka 2015 review

According to the ever reliable Wikipedia New Japan's New Beginning show is one that traditionally gets split across two nights. There are sound business reasons for doing this. If you're a popular wrestling company with a large and talented roster then it makes sense to split your larger shows across two nights in order to increase your profit. Why settle for batch of ticket sales, merch sales, and pay-per-view buys (or, as it is now, New Japan World subscriptions) when you can have two?

The downside of this is that the undercard across the shows suffers. Hiroshi Tanahashi and Shinsuke Nakamura both wrestled a main event and a six man tag match each. AJ Styles was absent from the second show in Sendai. Kazuchika Okada was relegated to tag team matches on both shows. One show could easily have supported the key singles matches we got across both shows.

But while this is a downside it's not a big one. The split show approach means more undercard material but that gives more guys a chance to perform in front of larger crowds and notch up an appearance on a major show. All told it's not a bad way to operate. But it can be a slog to watch if you're taking notes for a review.

The Osaka card opened with a pair of solid and entirely unspectacular matches. The first saw Sho Tanaka defeat Yohei Komatsu with a Boston crab. The second saw the team of Tiger Mask and Máscara Dorada defeat Manabu Nakanishi and Captain New Japan in what seemed to be NJPW's version of a comedy match. The most notable thing was Dorada's music, which was excellent.

Bruce Tharpe rocked up after that. He's a generic western manager who wears deliberately naff game show host jackets (the one he sported here was golden). He reminds me a lot o Greg 'The Truth' Lambert, a man who screams British indy scene. Fittingly Tharpe represents that powerhouse of 70s wrestling, the NWA. He introduced Chase Owens and NWA champ Rob Conway. They had a basic match with Jushin Liger and Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Owens getting the win for his team after a package piledriver on Liger.

Match four saw Kota Ibushi defeat Tomoaki Honma, getting a phoenix splash after weathering an onslaught of big moves. Ibushi had had the match of the night with Nakamura at Wrestle Kingdom 9. He didn't manage the same feat here but they did have the first above average outing of the night, Honma's strong man stylings being pitted against Ibushi's speed and acrobatics. Based on his performance here and at WK9 Ibushi  seems like the most sensible choice for the final spot in the company's Big Four. He's a great wrestler and the audience love him.

As good as that was the match that followed it was better yet: a three-way match for the IWGP junior tag team titles. reDRagon defended against Time Splitters and the Young Bucks. The Bucks had Bullet Club young boy Cody Hall with them at ringside, just because. As you'd expect it was a match heavy on high spots. Highlights included a lengthy sequence of flashy double team work by Kushida and Shelley at the start; a kip up combined with a German suplex by reDRagon on Kushida; a sequence where Alex Shelley took out all four of his opponents with a superb series of flips and kicks on, around and from the apron; a Kushida moonsault on O'Reilly turned into an armbar; a Swanton bomb by Nick onto a kneeling Shelley; the always cool-looking (and psychology-killing) Indy-Taker; and a match-winning More Bang For Your Buck on Kushida. Cody Hall was a non-factor at ringside, doing nothing but cheer his stablemates on.

After an intermission showing highlights of the card so far, analysing what was left to come and hyping future events the Bucks and Hall returned to the ring (Hall now sporting a sexy little hat) with IWGP junior heavyweight champ Kenny Omega. He'd won the title from Ryusuke Taguchi at Wrestle Kingdom 9. This was the former champion's rematch. It didn't work out well for him. The Jacksons interfered and he was mildly sodomised by a flagpole. He was able to get hold of the pole and turn the tables on the heels just as any babyface worth his salt would but there was little he could do about the three men at ringside. Omega would win a match that was enjoyable but a surprisingly slow at points with Aoi Shoudou, a fisherman buster.

The Bucks and Omega gave Taguchi a triple team Tombstone piledriver onto a chair after the match, just to be heels. Máscara Dorada and Alex Shelley rocked up after that with Dorada getting in Omega's face. Then he made the belt-around-the-waist gesture making it crystal clear that he would be Omega's next challenger.

A pair of six man tag matches followed. Both featured Chaos members. The first saw Kazushi Sakuraba, Toru Yano and Kazucika Okada defeat Bullet Club members Yujiro Takahashi, Tama Tonga and big lad extraordinaire Bad Luck Fale when Okada hit Tama Tonga with a top rope elbow drop and a Rainmaker. The second saw Yuji Nagata, Tetsuya Naito and Satoshi Kojima defeat Intercontinental champion Shinsuke Nakamura, Tomohiro Ishii and Yoshi-Hashi. The high points there were the interactions between Nakamura and Nagata, designed to lead into their singles match three nights later in Sendai. Naito got the win for his team after hitting a corkscrew senton on Yoshi-Hashi.

The semi-main event spot was taken by a tag team championship match. Bullet Club members Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson got their rematch against Meiyu Tag, who'd defeated them for the straps at Wrestle Kingdom. It was an intense, action-packed match. The crowd were massively into it. Goto and Shibata have entered spirited performances both times I've seen them tag and Gallows and Anderson work really well as a pairing, even if Gallows' selling does occasionally veer into cartoon territory. The Bullet boys regained the gold with an elevated neck breaker.

That left only the main event. It was preceded by a great video showing the history of Styles and Tanahashi as opponents and a short sequence of shots showing former IWGP heavyweight champions. That was a really nice touch. It's always nice to see Bob Sapp getting some attention.

In a way the match resembled a Raven match from 1996. It started off with Cody Hall, Gallows, Anderson, the Buks, Omega, Takahashi and Tama Tonga all at ringside. Fale would wander out after the finish to round things out. To be fair the large ringside entourage gimmick is one of the key aspects of Bullet Club so I'm not complaining.

Tanahashi got the better of Styles in their opening exchanges, controlling the pace with various wear down holds and avoiding many of Styles' moves. Things picked up several minutes in when AJ left the ring and Tanahashi followed him out with a dive from the apron. Styles avoided it and Bullet Club set upon him as he lay sprawled at ringside. When Captain New Japan tried to help his buddy he got set upon too.

Styles took control back in the ring and worked over Tana's back.  Thirteen minutes into the match Tana made his comeback, blasting the challenger with right hands and a back drop before coming off the second rope with a senton. Sensing a shift in momentum Styles again tried taking the action outside. Tana fought off the Bucks, threw Styles into his gang and hit what the commentary called a super High Fly Flow onto all of Bullet Club. When he returned to his feet Tana was bleeding. Those top rope moves really take their toll on the forehead.

Back in the ring (again) they did a double clothesline spot. Tanahashi was the first to his feet. He charged Styles but got caught with a kick, suplexed into a corner, then smashed with a springboard elbow. Styles attempted Bloody Sunday but Tana deadweighted and span him around into a straight jacket German suplex for a two count. Styles absorbed a German suplex but fought out of a second by distracting the referee and low blowing Tanahashi. He got his just desserts seconds later when Tana repaid him in kind as the ref was distracted by Takahashi, who'd leapt onto the apron to celebrate 'The Phenomenal One's' cheating ways.

Back on their feet the two man traded elbow strikes before Styles went for the Styles Clash (which was referred to as the Styles Crush in the pre-match video). Tana escaped and grabbed Styles' leg, dragon screwing him as he tried for an enziguri. He put the challenger down with a sling blade and went for the High Fly Flow but was met with knees, winding him and leaving him motionless in the ring. Styles took the opportunity to attempt a springboard 450 splash but Tana again repaid him in kind by getting his knees up.

Too sweet, bro.

Another HFF was thwarted when Styles hit the ropes. 'The Ace of the Universe' caught Styles as he went for a hurricanrana but couldn't avoid a Pele kick seconds later. That was enough to daze the champion, allowing AJ to pull him off the top rope and into position for a Styles Clash (or Crush, whatever). Tana fought out twice so Styles dropped him with a hangman driver, following up with a high Bloody Sunday and a Styles Clash to earn his second IWGP heavyweight championship. Despite having practically all of Bullet Club at ringside the finish was clean. The only interference came from Takahashi. Styles was not made to look dependent on his entourage for his victory.

Anderson then spent several minutes talking up every member of Bullet Club and the fact that the stable had regained all the company's gold bar the NEVER championship. It was meant to be a bragging heel promo but the fans were so respectful that they applauded the group's success. It probably didn't help that Anderson was speaking in English and couldn't be understood by most of the crowd.

All told the first New Beginning show of 2015 was a strong offering. Ibushi v Honma, the tag title matches, and the main event were all strong offerings and everything outside of the opening three bouts was better than the average match you'll find in certain prominent US promotions. Another win for New Japan.

***

Results summary:

Sho Tanaka defeated Yohei Komatsu
Tiger Mask and Máscara Dorada defeated Manabu Nakanishi and Captain New Japan
Chase Owens and Robért Conway defeated Hiroyoshi Tanahashi and Jushin Liger
Kota Ibushi defeated Tomoaki Honma
The Young Bucks defeated Time Splitters and reDRagon to win the IWGP junior tag team championship
Kenny Omega defeated Ryusuke Taguchi to retain the IWGP junior heavyweight championship
Kazushi Sakuraba, Toru Yano and Kazuchika Okada defeated Yujiro Takahashi, Tama Tonga and Bad Luck Fale
Satoshi Kojima, Tetsuya Naito and Yuji Nagata defeated Tomohiro Ishii Yoshi-Hashi and Shinsuke Nakamura
Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson defeated Meiyu Tag to win the IWGP tag team championship
AJ Styles defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi to win the IWGP heavyweight championship

NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 9 review

“This is the WrestleMania of Japan,” said Jim Ross at the start of the English language broadcast of Wrestle Kingdom 9. Comparing one company’s biggest annual show to another’s may not be the best idea, opening up a number of undesirable comparisons to sports entertainment in this case, but it does create a useful shorthand and make an immediate impact on people watching New Japan for the first time.

Yes, Wrestle Kingdom 9. This is the first time I’ve reviewed a New Japan show (their co-productions with Ring of Honor last year were enjoyable but weren’t full NJPW cards). I thought it would be a good one to start with for a number of reasons. Firstly it had English language commentary provided by Jim Ross and Matt Striker, which set it up as a natural jump-on point for anyone who doesn’t speak Japanese. Secondly it was the company’s biggest show of the year, which meant a nice recap of recent plots and what will likely be amongst the most important matches I the company all year. Plus it simply looked like a good show.

After a pre-show Royal Rumble rules battle royal, won by Yuji Nagata, the show proper got underway with a four-way tag team match. The IWGP junior tag team champions reDRagon defended against The Young Bucks, Forever Hooligans, and Time Splitters. As Kushida and Alex Shelley made their way to the ring JR discussed Kushida’s 6-0-2 MMA record. His would be a theme throughout the show (it made a nice substitute for the college football natter he’s more known for).

It took a while to turn into the spot-fest it was destined to be but when it got there it was very enjoyable. Highlights included Shelley super kicking O'Reilly as he leapt off the apron; the Bucks performing a series of dives onto everyone else; Kushida hitting a Swanton onto the three other teams; the Bucks throwing out kicks and JR using the words “super kick party”; a Meltzer driver on Koslov, broken up by Fish and O'Reilly; a double handspring elbow to reDRagon from Kushida; a Bucks buckle bomb; an assisted DDT into a German suplex from reDRagon; and the match-ending exploder and Chasing the Dragon on Koslov. It was the ideal opener, fast paced and action-packed.

Match number two saw Jeff Jarrett, Yujiro Takahashi and Bad Luck Fale take on Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima and Tomoaki Honma. The Bullet Club lads had Karen Jarrett (I approve) and Scott D'Amore (I do not approve) at ringside with them.

It was not the best match, but it wasn't meant to be. It was a nice concoction of heel shenanigans and hot tags. Being a Jarrett match this naturally included the use of a flimsy stunt guitar. The introduction of that prop ended up backfiring on him when he accidentally smashed it over Takahashi's head, leading to Honma getting a top rope headbutt on Takahashi for the win.

Sticking with tag action, the third match on the show was an eight man tag bout pitting Toru Yano and NOAH's Shane Haste,  Mikey Nicholls (collectively known as The Mighty Don't Kneel) and GHC heavyweight champion Naomichi Marufuji against Takahashi Iizuka, Shelton Benjamin (who has reinvented himself as the totally different Shelton X Benjamin in NJPW) and Lance Archer and Davey Boy Smith Jr (collectively known as Killer Elite Squad).

Yano and Iizuka started with some comedy but it didn't last long. TMDK and KES soon got into the ring to provide some swift, enjoyable tag action and make sure the match passed muster. That was followed by a spirited but sloppy in places exchange between Iizuka and Marufuji. Benjamin provided the spot of the match with his vault-to-the-top-rope belly-to-belly suplex on Marufuji. The GHC champ won the match for his team after all the Suzukigun members bar Iizuka disappeared, leaving their partner to take a double gorilla press and a tiger uppercut knee lift. The match was short enough to stop the eight outstaying their welcome but long enough for them to make it an enjoyable watch.

Match four saw Kazushi Sakuraba pitted against Minoru Suzuki in a match JR informed us had been a lifetime in the making. Both men had been taught to wrestle by British shooter Billy Robinson, with Suzuki having also received training from the equally formidable Karl Gotch (that guy JBL references every other pay-per-view). It was talked up as a shoot match. It wasn’t a shoot, but it was super stiff.

The pair brawled out onto the entrance ramp within minutes of the opening bell. There Sakuraba applied a kimura to his foe. He ended up breaking when he was told he had to get into the ring to earn a victory. Not that Suzuki had tapped out.

When they returned to the ring Suzuki was clutching his arm. He took a barrel-load of kicks and survived an armbar before they exchanged slaps and he managed to apply a rear naked choke. Sakuraba passed out in that. Suzuki won via referee stoppage. After the match Sakuraba offered a handshake. Suzuki accepted after a Dramatic Pause™.

That slobberknocker (which, amazingly, Ross had to be prompted to say) was followed by another. NEVER openweight champion Tomohiro Ishii defended against Togi Makabe. The early going was characterised by elbows, clotheslines, power slams, chops, forearms, and no-selling. Lots of no-selling. It wasn’t in danger of being overly flashy but both men put such force and ferocity into their performances that even the basic moves they were running through seemed devastating.

The second wrestling move of the match was a northern lights suplex from Makabe. Ishii followed up with a lariat to a cornered Makabe, a stalling suplex from the second rope, and a power bomb. Makabe kicked out and floored the champ with a lariat, then dropped him with a power bomb before hauling him back to his feet for a German suplex.

They returned to the corner, where Makabe hit a ropey fire carry off the top rope. Ishii kicked out, no sold some lariats, fell to a Makabe lariat, and kicked out at one. Back on his feet he gave 'The Unchained Gorilla' a German suplex, but Makabe rolled to his feet... where he was dropped by an lariat from ‘The Stone Pitbull’.

More clotheslines followed. Makabe got a near fall off a dragon suplex. They traded more forearms, then headbutts, and then double arm sledge shots. Makabe ended it with a knee drop from the top rope. By what Striker said it was something of an upset as Ishii is the more popular of the two and has been on a hot streak. Perhaps it was done to get the title off him to free him up for bigger and better things later in the year?

After a lengthy bit of shilling for future shows (which could have been boring but was presented in such an energetic fashion that it wasn't) we were treated to the IWGP junior heavyweight title match. Ryusuke Taguchi, former Apollo 55 tag team partner of Prince Devitt, defended against 'The Cleaner' Kenny Omega. Yes, 'The Cleaner'. JR said Omega reminded him of Brian Pillman. His new entrance gear gave him a look that reminded me of Rhett Titus and Cliff Compton, with Razor Ramon's toothpick thrown in for good measure.

The match had a great opening stretch, being heavy on lightning counter sequences. Omega took control when he sprayed Taguchi in the face with what could have been anything from spray paint to hair spray (judging by Omega’s hair it could have been black tinted hair spray). The challenger controlled the match for several minutes before Taguchi came back with some topes that wiped out both Omega and The Young Bucks, who were acting as heel cornermen.

Taguchi tried for Eddie Guerrero’s Three Amigos but Omega halted it after one. He hit the champion with a Fameasser and then a drop kick as Taguchi went for a cross body block from the top. A power bomb earned him a two count. Power bomb by omega.

Taguchi hit a Chickenwing facebuster, which used to form the basis of Apollo 55’s Black Hole Vacation. That got him two. Sensing their man was in trouble the Bucks tried to distract the champion but ended up getting knocked off the apron. Left alone without any Bullet Club assistance Omega seized the initiative, delivering a German suplex and a knee to the temple on Taguchi. He then pulled him to his feet and gave him an electric chair driver, the One Winged Angel, taking the victory and the championship and ending a great match. 

The gold kept coming as IWGP tag champs Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows, representing Bullet Club, defended against Hirooki Goto and Katsuyori Shibata, collectively known as Meiyu Tag. What followed was a lively bout with plenty of strikes, traditional tag psychology, and power moves. Shibata and Goto worked well together, overcoming the power, dirty tactics and experience of the Bullet Club to capture the titles off a double team alarm clock and a PK on Gallows.

Tetsuya Naito and AJ Styles were up after that. Worth noting is that Ross and Striker discussed the controversial nature of the Styles Clash as AJ walked to the ring. In case you’ve missed the hubbub around, Styles has legitimately broken the necks of Lionheart and Yoshi Tatsu after they instinctively tucked their chins when taking the move, instead of tilting their head back. It was a clever move to get the discussion in as it reminded everyone how dangerous the move and made Styles appear heelish for continuing to use it.

It's a good job they mentioned it during the entrance because Styles went for the move as soon as Naito was in the ring, kicking the match off with a bang. Naito fought him off and they brawled to the outside, AJ taking a drop kick from the apron and sprawling into the guardrail. Back in the ring he turned the tables and worked over Naito’s leg, softening him up for the Calf Killer. After a couple of minutes Naito got a little bit of hope when he hit Styles with a tornado DDT, a drop kick to the back of the head, and a senton splash. He couldn’t keep control of the match though, Styles soon regained the advantage, fighting out of a top rope hurricanrana and smashing Naito with a springboard forearm.

Naito tried a suplex. Styles countered into a neck breaker. Naito took a German suplex and then got a flash rollup for a two count. He smacked Styles with a series of chops then set him up for the Stardust Press but Styles made a quick recovery and trapped him in the Calf Killer. After a lengthy bit of time trapped in the hold Naito gallantly made it to the ropes, but it was clear the damage had been done. He managed to hit 'The Phenomenal Ome' with a Uranage and a dragon suplex but quickly found himself blasted with a Pele kick and Prince Devitt's Bloody Sunday.

Then Styles tried a Styles Clash again. Naito escaped, back dropping Styles over the top rope to the floor. When he returned to the ring he was met with a drop kick and propped up on the top rope for a hurricanrana. That would be Naito’s undoing: Styles halted the move halfway through, turning it into a Styles Clash from the second rope for the victory. It was a good match, constructed and wrestled so well that Naito wasn't weakened by the loss, but that Styles was strengthened by the win.

After that we got, astonishingly, the first video package of the night. It showed us Kota Ibushi and Shinsuke Nakamura talking to the camera, interspersed with shots of them competing. The most noteworthy part (for someone who didn't understand the promos) was that Ibushi snuck up on Nakamura during an in-ring promo and gave him a German suplex. That was presumably the way of setting the match up, Ibushi sending a message to Nakamura that he wasn’t intimidated by his status and wanted a chance to compete for the IWGP Intercontinental title.

Ibushi entered in a T-shirt. Nak entered wearing a humorously long cape and a crown. The match began with a feeling out process that Ibushi got the better of. He couldn't maintain control though. Nak turned things around with a variety of knee strikes and stomps. Ibushi would get a few shots in at points but Nakamura always fired back with a strike that would floor him.

That changed when Ibushi got Nak outside the ring and hit him with a top rope moonsault. Back in the ring he followed up with a springboard drop kick, a wild knee to the face and a standing shooting star press. Nakamura wheeled out his one legged drop kick and a flapjack suplex. Ibushi came back with a top rope hurricanrana. That didn't get him a win. Nor did a standing corkscrew moonsault.

A roundhouse kick floored Nakamura, putting him out long enough for Ibushi to hit a sit out power bomb. Nak kicked out and avoided a phoenix splash, connecting with a Boma Ye to the back of the head and firing himself up with a prolonged series of kicks on Ibushi before punching him in the face. Ibushi tried to come back with a lariat but Nak turned it into an armbar. When Ibushi escaped he gave the champ an inverted exploder suplex before kneeing him with his own Boma Ye, complete with Nakamura-esque pose beforehand. 

A series of strikes followed, Ibushi getting the final word with a double stomp to a running Nakamura. A German suplex from the apron into the ring earned Ibushi a two count. ‘The King of Strong Style’ came back with half a dozen elbows to the back of ibushi's head, connected with his second Boma Ye, a fireman's carry driver, and a third Boma Ye for the victory. After the match Nakamura and Ibushi did a little fist bump. It was another cracker of a match that elevated both men and told a compelling story: Ibushi got closer and closer to beating Nak as the match progressed, only losing at the last minute after Nak fired himself up and hit a series of moves. It was clear that Ibushi could have won if things had just been a little different. For me this was the match of the night.

Finally we came to the main event: Hiroshi Tanahashi defending the IWGP heavyweight championship against Kazuchika Okada. It was only the second match on the card to get a video package. It focused on Tanahashi's history in New Japan, specifically how popular and successful he is, and Okada's G1 Climax win, which earned him the title match, and his previous matches opposite Tanahashi, before giving way to comments from both men. During the entrances JR and Striker put over the importance of the match. Tanahashi was the biggest name in the company, the man who'd helped rebuild it over a course of years, with more world title reigns and Tokyo Dome main events than anyone else. Okada was one of the fastest rising stars ever, the man being built as the future of the company. They had had five previous matches, with Okada winning three and Tanahashi winning two. It was presented as a match that could turn Okada into 'The Man' if he won.

They wrestled at a steady pace, so as not to burn themselves out across the half hour they were allotted.

They expertly built up to a frenzied and incredibly enjoyable final five minutes. Tanahashi kicked out of a Rainmaker before the two traded forearms on their way back to their feet. Okada grabbed Tanahashi for a Tombstone but the champ rolled through and straddled him for an attempted pin. Tana laid into Okada with slaps before Okada ducked one and school boyed him for a two count.

Tanahashi ducked a Rainmaker and got a straightjacket suplex for another two count. Okada escaped a dragon suplex and hit a German suplex. He held on as Tanahashi kicked out and tried to give him another Rainmaker but Tanahashi ducked and hit a German suplex of his own. Okada kicked out and nailed the champion with his much-ballyhooed drop kick. Another Rainmaker attempt failed and ‘The Ace of the Universe’ was able to twist Okada with a pair of nasty dragon screw leg whips in the ropes.

This left Okada propped up against the ropes, allowing the champion to leap to the top rope and hit him with a High Fly Flow. A seated Okada was hit with a second, and then a third as he lay on the mat staring up at the ceiling. It was too much for him to kick out of. Tanahashi got the win and retained his championship.

It was a top notch main event that ended a top notch show. Following the match Tanahashi took a microphone to tell Okada he’s a long way from being the ace of New Japan and that he was proud to still be champion. Because Tanahashi’s character is basically that of late 90s Rob Van Dam: a guy who knows he’s the best and isn’t shy about saying so. Then he gave a short promo and played air guitar to send people home happy. Lovely stuff.

I’d watched New Japan matches in isolation before but this was the first card I watched start to finish. I’m pleased I did. There were no bad performances across the entire show, each match being given exactly enough time as it needed to fulfil its role. Every wrestler seemed motivated and keen to put on the best show possible. There were two early match of the year contenders (Nakamura v Ibushi and Tanahashi v Okada) and some gems on the undercard (Makabe v Ishii and Omega v Taguchi). In an ideal world New Japan would sort out some English language commentary for their top four or five shows this year, but with or without it I’ll definitely be watching more from the promotion.

***

Results summary:

reDRagon def The Young Bucks, Time Splitters and Forever Hooligans

Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima and Tomoaki Honma def Jeff Jarrett, Bad Luck Fale and Yujiro Takahashi

Toru Yano, Naomichi Marufuji, Shane Haste and Mikey Nicholls def Shelton Benjamin, Takashi Iizuka, Lance Archer and Davey Boy Smith Jr

Minoru Suzuki def Kazushi Sakuraba

Togi Makabe def Tomohiro Ishii for the NEVER openweight championship

Kenny Omega def Rysuke Taguchi for the IWGP junior heavyweight championship

Meiyu Tag def Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows for the IWGP heavyweight tag team championship

AJ Styles def Tetsuya Naito

Shinsuke Nakamura def Kota Ibushi

Hiroshi Tanahashi def Kazuchika Okada