Evil Otto

That was a hell of a crowd! Kudos to everyone there!

The CMLL guys made a wise choice to wear the boss suits. Absolutely badass. So excited for Hechicero vs. Danielson. I loved Toa Liona being able to show lots of new offense. I certainly don't like guys cracking skulls with head butts, but the way Bryan Keith and Liona creatively utilize their craniums gets a thumbs-up from me. Yokozuna-esque rope-assisted splashes! Still early days and all, but I reckon this kid's got something. Toni Storm is incredible at this role. It's a roller-coaster ride. Bonus points for Luther's "I'm crushing your head!" in a nod to Kids In The Hall, his fellow Canadians. RVD was kinda awesome in that match. Smart move to not have Nana there tonight. Swerve's victory felt well-earned by the end. In general, I'm really enjoying this Samoa Joe, Hangman, and Swerve scenario. It's a nice new direction.

New Japan's first three cards this year have all been tremendous, and yes, Okada was obviously an important part of that, but he wasn't the only reason. They also had a pretty solid (and underrated) 2023 with a reloaded roster of fresh new faces. I felt the same way about CMLL a couple of years back; unsure but lots of promise on the horizon, and now they (CMLL) are delivering consistently with a couple big stars on top but mainly with a younger roster all hitting their stride seemingly at the same time. I see a similar situation developing with New Japan. Honestly, I've felt New Japan's main event scene has been incredibly stale for a long time. Sure, Sanada was an experiment of sorts (just not for me, but no need to argue that now), but Naito winning at the dome was an inevitability, and then what? As some have suggested, Okada vs. Naito at next year's WK? Groan. Okada is unquestionably an all-timer, but he's done literally everything he could do in New Japan. I think for all parties concerned, a change of pace and scenery is long overdue. Good for him, actually. I wish him well. Jay White never fully clicked for me in New Japan, he's far more engaging in AEW. Ospreay had 8 years for New Japan, and him leaving is actually a bigger blow to them than Okada, in my honest opinion. Change is good. Finally give the belt to ZSJ. Shingo is right fucking there. Tsuji is already 30, Uemura 29. Shota and Ren already have a significant rivalry. ELP, War Dogs, relationship with CMLL stronger than ever. Let's fucking go.

That Battle In The Valley card looks outstanding.

Even better, you have a reason to have another tournament, which is something AEW appears to be really good at booking. If they put the extra effort into weaving storylines throughout the tournament like they did with the Continental Classic, they'll have lots of future match-ups and more tangible, heated rivalries that fans will actually be excited for. Besides all that, and probably the most important point, is that being in a tag team makes it so much easier for greener, less polished wrestlers to get more reps and screen time while hiding their weaknesses. I know some people will moan about another tournament and more titles, and I totally get it, but these particular titles would have significant upside if they are utilized to reconfigure and revamp their women's division.

For anyone who's awake right now and not a subscriber to their service, NOAH's new year card is streaming live on Abema (Japanese commentary only): https://abema.tv/now-on-air/fighting-sports

Indeed, I feel myself becoming significantly more motivated after watching and absorbing this.

Yes, the most exciting stuff on this card for me involves the young talent. I'll add that the junior tag match could easily be one of the best of the show as the two teams have insane chemistry. It really feels like a transitional period for New Japan, and the somewhat stale card reflects that. Even so, I expect some incredible matches at the top of the card despite my lack of enthusiasm.

I feel like Skye Blue has finally reached phase two of her career, as she has always been fighting from underneath as a face until now, but tonight showed her being more sadistic and going on extended offense. It's what she really needs at this time. I like the Code Blue at key moments and used sparingly, but someone has obviously clued her in that she needs to be more creative with her moveset. I applaud this decision and/or realization. I love Rampage these days. I didn't even ask for Vikingo vs. Black Taurus, yet I got it anyway! Also, holy fuck, more Black Taurus, please!

I'm strongly considering it as well. I'd really like to see the Athena-Starkz storyline in its entirety so far. So yeah, in other words, Athena is a legit draw, at least for me.

Caught Zero Hour, but still on the fence about subscribing to Honor Club just to watch this show. I get the strategy, and Athena vs. Billie and Vikingo vs. Black Taurus might make me do it, but I really liked the Fite TV (now Triller, I guess) PPV option. All that being said, Bryan Keith vs. Jack Cartwheel was some good shit!

Technically, they still air old NOAH cards and All Japan Classics on G+, which is the cable sports channel subsidiary owned by NTV. That's likely the loophole they are utilizing to validate their claim.

Yes, that episode of Rampage is exactly why I watch pro wrestling. Orange Cassidy vs. Angelico with Daddy Magic on commentary (in Montreal!) and Serpentico with a leather vest that says "Snake Man" on the back was almost too much awesomeness for me to handle. Not to mention a fucking great match to boot. Orange and Bryan were by far the biggest stars on the show, but Angelico and Daniel Garcia were bigger stars coming out of it. That's how you do it, folks. The smile of glee on Danielson's face after that match tells me clearly that Garcia is something special.

Yes, I heard about it before I saw it, mainly because I wasn't planning on watching the match to begin with. Like you said though, it was actually executed well. Narita needed something, that's for sure. The heel turn immediately seemed like the right choice. Unlike the other H.O.T. goofballs, Ren actually comes across as legit sinister. If they can manage to not make him cartoonish, it could work. Also notable is having Despy on commentary when it happened, so I'm assuming that's a match-up they go to in the near future. At least there's booking options. On that note, I'm assuming for now this may mean Umino vs. Narita added to WK. I really enjoyed the TMDK-War Dogs match. It was essentially a wild brawl from beginning to end. Also, maybe nothing, but Gates of Agony brought along young lion Yuto Nakashima to the back with them after their match, which is often a sign of future alignment. I wonder how far that goes.

Two nights in a row for New Japan with a really solid main event, this time in Shizuoka with Bishamon facing off with Atlantis Jr. and Soberano Jr. In theory, both teams are faces, but Soberano Jr. read the room and went almost full rudo for the entire match, which was a wise choice. The crowd in Shizuoka was practically asleep up until this point, but perked up for this one. If you haven't had the pleasure of seeing Soberano Jr. do his heel work, I implore you to watch and be amazed. It's a real treat. I can't say I'm a huge fan of Bishamon, but I will concede that they are indeed a great team who consistently go hard in every match, which is precisely why they have the belts. They are willing to take equally as much as they give, if not more. I can't say enough good things about Atlantis Jr. and Soberano Jr. though. They are fantastic ambassadors for this seemingly new era for CMLL. This match was a joy to watch. Speaking of CMLL, the World Tag League also has Zandokan Jr. getting a huge opportunity by teaming up with Yota Tsuji. Zandokan has a top-tier overall appearance and swagger, but his in-ring still needs some polishing, as he's a bit clunky and just hanging around a bit in matches. No doubt this experience will help him, though, and you can tell he knows and wants to work in a more Japanese style. His path forward in CMLL and possibly New Japan seems to be just beginning, so it has been fun to watch him try to figure it out. Tonight's card in Osaka looks promising, and the crowd should obviously be much hotter, with Bishamon vs. Tsuji/Zandokan Jr. as the main event. I expect some craziness.

The World Tag League has been okay so far, suffering from the pitfalls of all the tag leagues from recent years: mostly medium-sized prefectural and municipal gymnasiums in smaller markets with polite but fairly unenthusiastic crowds. Nothing too bad in terms of in-ring quality, and the overall attendance in most venues looks solid, but honestly there has yet to be a truly inspiring match. That is, until tonight's main event in Nagoya of Kaito Kiyomiya/Ryohei Oiwa vs. Shota Umino/Ren Narita. Both Umino and Kiyomiya have done really good work in making fans want to see them face off in future singles matches against a variety of competitors throughout this tournament so far, so it should be no surprise that Umino and Kiyomiya continued to further add fuel to their own rivalry which started in this year's G1. A nice mix of obvious and subtle storytelling going on in this match. Oiwa has improved dramatically, so I hope they keep him simmering over in NOAH for a while longer, as whatever they're doing over there with him appears to be working. One of the fastest elevations to main event status (granted, a WTL main event) that I can recall. Great match, well worth your time.

Moxley vs. Great O-Khan was gloriously stupid and I loved every second of it. Moxley is amazing right now, and the New Japan fans love him. It was essentially Stadium Stampede with two guys. Chairs everywhere, fans running away from their seats. Congratulations to Moxley for perhaps unlocking O-Khan's secret level of epic brawler. Ospreay-Umino and the 6-man title match were also really great. The one thing Umino has going for him is that I think he's capable of having good storylines. He's borderline heelish in this match, perhaps some foreshadowing, but reels it back in to gain sympathy near the end. Not as great as Ospreay-Tsuji, but Umino is simply not Tsuji, and that's that. He needs to work harder to get the fans to believe in him, and that's what I think the entire purpose of this match was, to show that he can hang at the main event level.

I'm imagining an evidence board chock full of grainy photos and red string in front of me as I read some of you deconstructing (demystifying?) the Mistico conundrum, and I can't help but laugh! I applaud anyone for taking a crack at breaking that all down. I knew we would eventually get to Myzteziz and Myzteziz. Jr., and that's where my brain starts to hurt. Although I like other CMLL luchadors more, the current Mistico belongs in the costume, as it's literally who he is, in some bizarre, symbiotic kind of way. Still one of the smoothest wrestlers around. Still has a bit of an ego, but far less than before. Rocky is of course the perfect person to make him look him stupendous.

This is the dream for me. I actually think ZSJ vs. Virus could happen, as it was teased at the New Japan Strong show in Long Beach in May. I would love to see ZSJ-Hechicero as well, probably the most out of them all. It would be an truly amazing storyline to have Bryan and Zack each wrestle Virus and Hechicero en route to their rematch. If anything, just imagine the highlight reel.

Yeah, Ospreay/Tsuji was an outstanding match, one of the best of the year from New Japan. It also felt like a true passing of the baton, especially with Ospreay's genuine praise towards Tsuji after the match. Tsuji doesn't necessarily look like a guy who would have such crisp execution on moves, but he's always on point, and some of the stuff he pulled out in this match was absolutely brutal (in a good way). The final three matches were all pretty much stellar. Great O-Khan really stepped up and redeemed himself last night, and I wonder if that was the intent (behind the scenes) going in. It seemed like a bit of a test for me ("if you can't have a good match with Shingo...."), and if so, he certainly passed. The IWGP tag title match was also quite good, but had a lackluster finish.

I haven't looked at the results yet, but will do so after I type this and making some coffee. In general, it looks like a solid show, and very likely some matches will overdeliver. I'm crossing my fingers that due to the NJPW connection, this shows up on New Japan World (for users in Japan, which would very luckily be me), as did the Gran Prix card. On that note, I'll post some thoughts on that card in a bit, but I don't want to go off-topic right now. Templario will need to work extra hard (which he can certainly do), but this is clearly the match of Dragon Rojo Jr.'s career, so I'm hoping he can hold up his end. They've been teasing this forever, so let's just get it over with at this point. This would be a great star-making opportunity for Angel de Oro, as he deserves to be at the top of the card. I think the team with his brother Niebla Roja is criminally underrated and should continue, but there's a lot that can be done with Angel de Oro in a more elevated position going forward. That all being said, this screams playing it safe with Averno losing to UG. At least either final match should be really good, though. The Mistico crew vs. Rocky's crew trios match could easily steal the show. There's no reason Soberano Jr. and Titan vs. the artists formerly known as Lucha House Party won't be good to great; Lince Dorado has been solid before in CMLL, so I reckon the pressure is on Samuray del Sol as to whether he can hang with two of the best in the world (in my opinion). The women's title match has the best four they've got, so again, it will at least be good. It's a show that lacks discernible feuds, but given the depth of the current roster (the best in years), it should be an exciting card all the way through. I haven't decided if subscribing to CMLL's Youtube channel is worth it or not yet, and I feel they are losing potential viewers by not highlighting their impressive roster by at least showing key matches for free for non-regular viewers (i.e. no more delayed Friday nights on YT, which is sad), but again, those are lengthy discussions for another day. Okay, time for that coffee and to peruse the results...

Since you're in Japan, you can actually watch the recent CMLL Gran Prix card they recently posted as well. I highly recommend the final two matches. I'm hoping the recent Rev Pro anniversary show eventually shows up there, though it often takes a while.

Not going to spoil anything, but the TMDK match from this afternoon's card, which I'm in the midst of as I type this, was super entertaining as well. Their stock has seemingly gone significantly up as a faction. I feel like Kiyomiya is somehow not done with New Japan. It's just a hunch. Not too much more I could say about Ospreay vs. Naito other than amazing. A wild, uncomfortable ride, as expected.