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2013 Yes/No: All Japan Pro Wrestling and WRESTLE-1


Kevin Wilson

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Here is where you can nominate and vote for matches from promotions listed in the thread title.  Before you nominate a match, please make sure it wasn't already nominated.  In this first post I will keep track of all the nominated matches and I will update it every few days or so which should make things easier.  Happy voting!

 

Nominated (through 1/12 at 1:00 PM EST):

 

1/3 Koji Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka vs. Kaz Hayashi and Shuji Kondo - 1 yes, 0 no
1/26 Koji Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka vs. Hiroshi Yamato and Hikaru Sato - 1 yes, 0 no
2/10 Koji Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka vs. Hiroshi Yamato and Hikaru Sato - 1 yes, 0 no
2/23 Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Shuji Kondo - 1 yes, 0 no
3/17 Koji Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka vs. Kotaro Suzuki and Atushi Aoki - 1 yes, 0 no
3/17 Omori and Soya vs. Akiyama and Shiozaki - 6 yes, 0 no
4/29 Go Shiozaki vs. KAI - 2 yes, 1 no
4/29 Jun Akiyama vs. KAI - 2 yes, 1 no
5/18 Koji Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka vs. Kotaro Suzuki and Atushi Aoki - 1 yes, 0 no
6/2 Akiyama and Shiozaki vs. Suwama and Doering - 2 yes, 1 no
6/30 Kotaro Suzuki and Atushi Aoki vs. Kaz Hayashi and Shuji Kondo - 1 yes, 0 no
6/30 Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Minoru Tanaka - 1 yes, 0 no
6/30 Suwama vs. Jun Akiyama - 1 yes, 0 no
7/14 Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki - 2 yes, 0 no
8/25 Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki - 1 yes, 0 no
10/27 Suzuki and Aoki vs. Irie and Ishii - 3 yes, 0 no
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Nominating the following AJPW matches: 

TAKAO OMORI & MANABU SOYA VS. JUN AKIYAMA & GO SHIOZAKI (AJPW WORLD TAG TEAM TITLE) March 17th
JUN AKIYAMA & GO SHIOZAKI VS. SUWAMA & JOE DOERING (AJPW WORLD TAG TEAM TITLE) June 2nd

Still have to catch up on some of the later tag title matches from this year but these two early ones were both fantastic.The first was a great showcase for Manabu Soya, and re-watching it now during his lengthy absence makes me all the more hyped for his return, whenever that ends up being.
The Suwama/Doering match might be even better. Suwama vs Go is obviously the main story being played out, but Akiyama and Doering threaten to steal the show by having their own awesome little rivalry play out in the background. 

also this: 
KOTARO SUZUKI & ATSUSHI AOKI vs. SHIGEHIRO IRIE & KEISUKE ISHII (ALL ASIA TAG TITLE) October 27th
Four young guys absolutely working their asses off to put on a major league-caliber title match in a struggling company. Some of the more complicated sequences get a little sloppy, but it's easy to forgive when the action and story is this good. This was my first time seeing Irie and Ishii and they both impressed me a lot, though Ishii left the more lasting impression. He has this great deadpan sort of charisma where he remains stoic and arrogant throughout the whole match, no matter how overwhelmed he may be by the two more experienced AJPW guys. Sort of like the opposite of how Ohtani was the perfect underdog because he was so dramatic and expressive? Ishii is all non-chalance and quiet determination.  

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YES:

TAKAO OMORI & MANABU SOYA VS. JUN AKIYAMA & GO SHIOZAKI (AJPW WORLD TAG TEAM TITLE) March 17th

Super awesome tag here. Jun Akiyama is simply the man. Down the stretch this got nuclear and I was literally jumping out of my seat for it. This is my favorite tag match of the year. Just marvelous. 

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KOTARO SUZUKI & ATSUSHI AOKI vs. SHIGEHIRO IRIE & KEISUKE ISHII (ALL ASIA TAG TITLE) October 27th
YES – This is the first AJPW match I have seen in years. I read that there was another walkout a while ago. That’s so heartbreaking given all its history. When did they change the mat? It looks horrible and cheap. Poor All Japan. As for the match itself, perhaps it’s my sleepy mind, but I wasn’t that impressed with Ishii. I was impressed with Irie, though. Great young powerhouse with an ostentatiously different look. He did a lot of things just beautifully: that Black Hole Slam counter, top rope Splash and a Vertical Suplex later on were beauties and looked so crisp. And his elbow strikes and headbutt were hard and vicious. I’ll need to watch this match again and focus on Ishii.

JUN AKIYAMA & GO SHIOZAKI VS. SUWAMA & JOE DOERING (AJPW WORLD TAG TEAM TITLE) June 2nd
NO – Despite the heat and some stiff exchanges, this match didn’t do anything for me. I don’t know why, because it wasn’t a bad match, but it failed to sink its fangs into me. At some point, I was wondering how much longer it was going to be so I could do something else instead. The only moment I truly enjoyed was when Doering Clotheslined Akiyama from the top turnbuckle to the outside. Apart from that, I just thought the match was... bland. It felt like it was on the verge of exploding into something special the entire time, and it never happened.

TAKAO OMORI & MANABU SOYA VS. JUN AKIYAMA & GO SHIOZAKI (AJPW WORLD TAG TEAM TITLE) March 17th
YES – I liked this match a lot more than the one above, and I can’t really say why. I just felt a lot more involved and my attention didn’t stray once. And whereas the finishing stretch in the previous match was hot but at the same time I was really just waiting for it to be over, I was hooked on every move and near-fall. Strange. It may partly be because I was fascinated with Soya, whom I hadn’t seen before. But I like his look (Brody fur braces, caveman skull structure) and he did some little things I loved: he makes a running shoulder block look like it really hurts, and his comeback move being a deadweight Vertical Suplex was the perfect move to do, I thought. Not a great match, but I still liked it quite a bit.
 

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  • 2 weeks later...

3/17 Omori and Soya vs. Akiyama and Shiozaki - YES

6/2 Akiyama and Shiozaki vs. Suwama and Doering - NO

10/27 Suzuki and Aoki vs. Irie and Ishii - YES

 

NOMINATE:

1/3 Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka vs. Kaz Hayashi & Shuji Kondo

1/26 Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka vs. Hiroshi Yamato & Hikaru Sato

2/10 Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka vs. Hiroshi Yamato & Hikaru Sato

2/23 Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Shuji Kondo

3/17 Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka vs. Kotaro Suzuki & Atushi Aoki

4/29 Go Shiozaki vs. KAI

4/29 Jun Akiyama vs. KAI

5/18 Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka vs. Kotaro Suzuki & Atushi Aoki

6/30 Kotaro Suzuki & Atushi Aoki vs. Kaz Hayashi & Shuji Kondo

6/30 Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Minoru Tanaka

6/30 Suwama vs. Jun Akiyama

7/14 Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki

8/25 Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki

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YES to KAI vs GO but NO to KAI vs Akiyama (both from 4/29). I do not like KAI at all but I appreciated he and Go trying something different in their Carny semi-final, working toward the submission victory rather than the typical "lets toss out all our finishers until one of us can't get up" style that I imagined these two working in. it's why I'm voting NO on the KAI/Akiyama match: too paint by numbers, too predictable, finish seemed too inevitable. a great performance by Akiyama, but then I can't remember the last time Akiyama didn't impress me in a singles match, and this one felt too typical of the veteran vs future ace formula we've seen time and time again. .   

YES to the 7/14 Suwama vs Go match. I'm a huge fan of Suwama but I didn't love either of his singles matches with Go this year. granted, they had some mighty big expectations to live up to, but I preferred their work together in the 6/2 tag match. that said, I still enjoyed their 7/14 match enough to vote for it. I liked the 8/26 match too, and certainly wouldn't "no" it, but it felt a little too drawn out and methodical, rather than the big heatfest I was hoping for. Shiozaki seriously needs to stop letting Suwama give him release-German suplexes; they look absolutely BRUTAL and he takes about 5 of them every time these two are in the ring together. anyway, not nutty about either match, but will toss a vote to the 2/3 falls from 7/14.

 

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  • 4 weeks later...

It's that time of the year again. That time of the year when I realize I'm gonna need to put a ballot together by April and my MOTYC list is like five matches long. Yep, it's modern puro alright.

 

Go Shiozaki vs. KAI (4/29) - NO, but borderline. I'm not really a fan of either guy, but I fucking hate KAI with a passion so that obviously doesn't help things. He is mostly a punching bag in this one, which is the main reason why it almost works, since god knows his fucking comebacks aren't worth a shit. Shiozaki has control for the most part and looks pretty good here. His offense is built around his chops as usual, which is good because that's about all he's got. Didn't like the finish mainly because I don't buy KAI as any sort of technician. Anyways, I watched this mostly for completist purposes so I could get to this:

 

Jun Akiyama vs. KAI (4/29) - YES. KAI's chest looks like hell from the Go match. This starts good with Akiyama schooling him on the mat in the opening portion and giving him almost nothing until KAI uses his speed advantage to take over and hits a fucking insane tope and makes me smile for the first time in years. Akiyama hits this tricked out Orton-style hanging pedigree thing and nearly kills the child, and then uses knees to the back of the head and stomps and the rudest cutoffs every time KAI tries to go on offense and I start to love this match.

 
KAI is just dead at this point really. He tries to make a comeback with cute little modern puro elbow smashes and Akiyama just headbutts him down to his fucking knees. I really have trouble taking it seriously when Akiyama actually sells for him. But then Akiyama will like, knee him in the mouth and drop him with a fucking piledriver or something, and I'll be right back in it. Funny how these things work. It goes on like this for awhile- KAI with his crap offense and I get bored, then Akiyama cuts him off and it's awesome. There's a nearfall submission and another nearfall off a powerbomb that had me screaming for him to kick out. The finishing run has too many nearfalls, with KAI kicking out of a ridiculous amount of knees to the face and pissing me off. Then Akiyama kills him a bit more and finishes with the wrist clutch exploder. Good enough.
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  • 2 weeks later...
1/3 Koji Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka vs. Kaz Hayashi and Shuji Kondo - yes

1/26 Koji Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka vs. Hiroshi Yamato and Hikaru Sato - no

2/10 Koji Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka vs. Hiroshi Yamato and Hikaru Sato - yes

2/23 Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Shuji Kondo - no

3/17 Koji Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka vs. Kotaro Suzuki and Atushi Aoki - no

3/17 Omori and Soya vs. Akiyama and Shiozaki - no

4/29 Go Shiozaki vs. KAI - yes

4/29 Jun Akiyama vs. KAI - yes

5/18 Koji Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka vs. Kotaro Suzuki and Atushi Aoki - no

6/2 Akiyama and Shiozaki vs. Suwama and Doering - yes

6/30 Kotaro Suzuki and Atushi Aoki vs. Kaz Hayashi and Shuji Kondo -  no

6/30 Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Minoru Tanaka - no

6/30 Suwama vs. Jun Akiyama - yes

7/14 Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki - yes

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