NJPW Kizuna Road Review

NJPW Kizuna Road
June 26th, 2017 | Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan | Attendance: 1,305

We’re at that point between Dominion and the G1 Climax. NJPW has their “A” shows (Wrestle Kingdom, Dominion, King of Pro Wrestling, the G1 Finals, Sakura Genesis and New Beginning), their “B” shows (Power Struggle, New Japan Cup, Wrestling Dontaku, Destruction, etc.) and their “C” shows (Kizuna Road, World Tag League, Wrestling World, etc.). At least that’s how I see them. Though traditionally not a large event, Kizuna Roads tend to give other titles besides the Heavyweight and Intercontinental, a chance to shine. On this set of three shows, the NEVER Six Man Tag, NEVER Openweight and Jr. Heavyweight Titles close out shows.

Shota Umino vs. Tetsuhiro Yagi
Two of the newer Young Lions met in the opener. Though they’re juniors, they brought some hard strikes in the early goings. Both guys went after the arm, which surprised me since they typically use a Boston crab as a finish. Umino was the aggressor, meaning Yagi had to make the fiery comebacks. Despite that, Umino reaching the ropes to survive the crab got a very positive reaction. You could tell the crowd was into this. The resilient Yagi went back to the crab and time expired at 10:00 before Umino could give up. That was fun. A lot of energy and a hot crowd helped this be one of the finer openers in NJPW this year. [***]

On these shows, NJPW have been doing some backstage interviews. Suzuki-Gun got one, but I couldn’t understand it.

Katsuya Kitamura vs. Tomoyuki Oka
The big brothers of the Young Lions now got their shine. I’ve said it before, but this screams future main event feud. They wrestled this like the heavyweight fight I was hoping for. I got to see them trade chops like their names were Ishii and Honma. Kitamura used his strength to gain control, but Oka escaped the crab. From there, Oka began his comeback and ran a bit wild. The final stretch saw more chops, some suplexes and some extra aggression from both guys. Oka took Kitamura down, hit a slam and then time expired at 10:00. I was very surprised to see them do two straight draws, but it worked well. They’ve been playing these two as evenly matched and it showed here again. Good exchanges, a hot crowd again and their chemistry impressed. I didn’t see the draw coming in either match, which is good because they’re typically easy to spot. [***¼]

YOSHI-HASHI was interviewed backstage.

Hirai Kawato, Jushin Thunder Liger and Tiger Mask IV vs. Taichi, TAKA Michinoku and Yoshinobu Kanemaru
I love when Liger and Kawato team, because Liger gets sick of his shit quickly. While Oka and Kitamura are future stars, wild man Kawato has the best crowd connection of the Young Lions so far. He started the match and that was fine. When Liger came in and took the heat, things went downhill. The Suzuki-Gun guys are just so bland and unoriginal. There was brawling outside and a bell hammer spot. As always. Tiger Mask got a hot tag and then Kawato got one as well. Kawato nearly won a few times, causing the crowd to come alive. They bit on every single one. Kanemaru hit a sloppy Deep Impact to put him away at 8:56. The SG heat segment was painful and the finish was sloppy, but Kawato saved this from being a bad match. [**]

Hirooki Goto, Jado, Tomohiro Ishii and Toru Yano vs. Manabu Nakanishi, TenKoji and Yuji Nagata
The New Japan Dads vs. CHAOS. Despite involving Jado, this was a fun tag match. Almost everyone brought some sort of energy. Tenzan had his usual nice moment of attempting Kokeshi in honor of Tomoaki Honma, while the guys set for the G1 (Nagata, Ishii, Kojima, Yano and Goto) all brought it. There were some exchanges between Kojima and Goto that would make you think they had a rivalry going. Same for Nagata and Ishii. Yano had fun exchanges with Nakanishi, before the dads used a trio of submissions in a good spot. Nakanishi accidentally hit Nagata, allowing Yano to roll up the big man at 9:44. Things moved quickly and had a fair amount of action. [**¾]

During intermission, the blocks for the G1 Climax were announced.

A Block: Hiroshi Tanahashi, Togi Makabe, Tomohiro Ishii, Hirooki Goto, YOSHI-HASHI, Bad Luck Fale, Yuji Nagata, Zack Sabre Jr., Tetsuya Naito and Kota Ibushi.

B Block: Kazuchika Okada, Kenny Omega, Toru Yano, Satoshi Kojima, Juice Robinson, EVIL, SANADA, Tama Tonga, Michael Elgin and Minoru Suzuki.

I have mixed feelings. The blocks probably could’ve been split a bit better. My main issue is the amount of rematches. I’ve seen Tanahashi vs. Makabe, Fale and Goto more in the G1 than I’d like. I also didn’t need Naito/Tana a third time this year. I also wouldn’t have done Okada/Omega III already. The B block should be consistently stronger, though the A Block will probably have better main event stuff. I’m looking forward to most Ibushi matches (mainly against Naito, Ishii and Tanahashi). I was hoping Omega dethroned Okada at Dominion, Naito won the G1 and we got Naito/Omega at WK. With Omega and Ibushi in different blocks, I can see that as the finals, with Naito getting shafted again. Still, the tournament should be a blast.

Davey Boy Smith Jr. and El Desperado vs. Gedo and IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada
With Minoru having such a weak year in the ring, I’d say DBS and Desperado are my favorite Suzuki-Gun guys right now. Even so, they aren’t immure from the tired pre-match attack, which is what we got here. That led to the expected heat segment on Gedo. Okada’s hot tag was basic as you could tell it was a night off before the G1 for him, which is fine. Surprisingly, it was Desperado who got the win for his guys when he hit Gedo with Angel’s Wings at 9:39. Despite my enjoyment of Desperado and DBS, this fell flat. Gedo did a bulk of the work for his guys and the Suzuki-Gun offense never fully clicked with me. [**¼]

David Finlay, IWGP Intercontinental Champion Hiroshi Tanahashi, Juice Robinson, Ryusuke Taguchi and Togi Makabe vs. Hiromu Takahashi, Tetsuya Naito and NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Champions BUSHI, EVIL and SANADA
I got a kick out of Togi not being interested in some of the Taguchi Japan antics. LIDJ is the best stable in wrestling and I’ll take them over the rest of the ones in NJPW combined, but even they use the pre-match attack too often, which they did here. Speaking of Makabe and Taguchi Japan antics, the crowd loved when he used a Taguchi style ass attack on Naito. They also did a spot where he got left alone with a few LIDJ members. Typically, that happens to Taguchi, who begs off, but Makabe dared them to bring the fight. It was a nice small twist. Tanahashi came in hot down the stretch and hit a goddamn dragon screw on both SANADA and EVIL at the same time. I didn’t even know that was possible. The highlight might’ve been the interactions between Juice and SANADA, who I expect to have an awesome G1 match. There was a great flurry of exchanges down the stretch, which surprisingly saw LIDJ have the upper hand for the most part. Finlay got left alone and fought hard, but submitted to EVIL at 12:30. LIDJ against Taguchi Japan will never not be fun. They keep moving things around so it becomes different. Togi was an interesting addition and this was the most I’ve enjoyed him since Honma got hurt. [***½]

NEVER Openweight Championship: Minoru Suzuki (c) w/ Suzuki-Gun vs. YOSHI-HASHI w/ CHAOS
Like the lumberjack match at Dominion, both guys had their respective stables at ringside. A rare chance for YOSHI-HASHI to main event. You could tell this was going to go rather long by the slow paced start. Suzuki took things outside and beat on YOSHI with chairs. He put the focus on the leg, like he did against Okada back in February. We got the typical tropes from Suzuki-Gun matches, with countout teases, cheating and interference. The CHAOS guys were pretty bad teammates outside. It took forever before their impact would be felt. Once they reached the closing stretch, the match finally started picking up. YOSHI got some near falls that the fans bit on, including a great false finish with the butterfly lock. Suzuki faded to the point where you thought it could be over. Suzuki got pissed late, slapping the piss out of YOSHI, hitting a bunch of strikes, locking in a sleeper and hitting the Gotch Piledriver. That got the win at 26:13. Similar to his match with Goto on “Road to Wrestling Dontaku”, there were elements of a good Suzuki match here. However, it was overshadowed by the standard nonsense we’ve come to expect from his matches. It also went a bit too long as 20+ minute matches isn’t a YOSHI strong suit. [**½]

Overall: 5/10. Definitely on the weaker side of NJPW shows this year. It’s a relatively easy watch due to the length, but most of the show is an easy skip. The main event needed to deliver to put this show over the edge (that was the case with Evolve 86) but it lacked and fell way short. Though the runtime is short, only check out the LIDJ tag and the Young Lions. They were the only real highlights.

PWG Game Over, Man Review

PWG Game Over, Man
April 21st, 2017 | American Legion Post #308 in Reseda, California

Typically, PWG shows just get a TON of high praise, to the point where me giving one of their shows a 7/10 makes me look like I’m the bad guy. This show is a bit different. I’ve heard plenty of positive reviews, but some matches are getting mixed reactions. A few matches have been considered great by some and terrible by others. I’m intrigued at how I see this show.

Lio Rush vs. PWG Tag Team Champion Ray Fenix
This was just Lio’s third match in PWG, with his first two getting ***¾ (vs. Ricochet) and ***½ (vs. Trevor Lee). This was one of those matches that got a mixed reaction. I got what I expected, with tons of fast paced action and crazy athletic high spots. Since it featured two respectful performers, they had some fun. An exchange saw them do WWE moves, from a Fenix 619 to Lio hitting an RKO, complete with Orton pose. It was odd that this came towards the end of the match, as I think it would’ve fit better near the beginning. Their barrage of offense led to them both fainting at one point. Rush eventually won after an apron Spanish Fly, though it was an awkward spot. There were a few strange moments and it went too long for what they were going for. However, I thought this was a good opener, filled with action that the crowd ate up. [***¼]

Adam Cole vs. Matt Riddle
Right from the start, there was a lot of Cole being a dick. He mocked Riddle’s MMA background and stuff, so Riddle shut him up with a submission. Once Cole escaped, he surprisingly held serve for most of the match. Though that isn’t exactly how I’d book this, it worked at times because Cole was smug and Riddle bumped well for him. His comeback attempts had fire and it always felt like he was better, but just coming up short against Cole’s tactics. They built to a fine back and forth down the stretch, before Riddle won via Bromission at 13:50. Completely solid, yet unspectacular. They told a fine story and everything came off crisply. [***]

Jeff Cobb vs. Keith Lee
HOSS FIGHT! I love these. It was Cobb who wowed the crowd first, tossing Lee around like he was nothing. For those who have never seen Lee, that’s an insane feat of strength. Chuck Taylor’s commentary line of, “JEFF COBB IS THE STRONGEST MAN IN THE WORLD” was quite appropriate. The best thing about these guys is that they aren’t just hard hitting hosses. They’re also very athletic, which made this feel like the awesome Cage/Matanza match from Lucha Underground last year. They progressed into exchanging their high impact offense, leading to a standing ovation from the crowd. Near the end, they both went up top and you were legitimately worried the ring would explode. Cobb pulled him down by WALKING WITH HIM and hitting a German. Shortly after that, Cobb won with the Tour of the Islands at 19:06. Like the opener, I don’t know if this had to be as long as it was. Regardless, this was two monsters throwing everything at each other in a hoss war. I like it. [***½]

Kyle O’Reilly vs. Michael Elgin
This was during that odd time where Elgin was doing nothing in NJPW. Kyle had recently started appearing in Evolve after leaving ROH. In a match like this, you’d expect the power vs. technical battle. They delivered just that. It’s a tried and true story to tell and it’s very easy to get into. O’Reilly went after the arm, which Elgin sold well. He still hit his power based offense, but didn’t overuse the bad arm, which was appreciated. For example, he hit one-armed German suplexes. Elgin eventually fought off Kyle’s great attempts at wearing him down enough to win with the Elgin Bomb at 20:22. Another good match that told a smart, sensible story. David vs. Goliath. Elgin sold well, Kyle brought the wise offense and they meshed well. [***¼]

War Machine vs. The Young Bucks
This is one of the matches that I saw get mixed reviews. Both teams can be hit or miss at times for me. It felt like they both mostly missed here. The Bucks’ comedy stuff fell flat (as usual to me), while War Machine weren’t as crisp as they can be. One thing that usually works for PWG is that they put together a lot of matches we haven’t seen before, or often. That wasn’t the case here as we’ve seen these teams square off more than a few times. I also think it was placed in an odd spot. Because the Bucks are smaller, this match followed a David vs. Goliath form at times, which the previous match just did. Granted, it was done in different ways, but still a bit too redundant for me. The Bucks went on to win in 21:30 with a rollup, stealing it from their larger opponents. I wasn’t a big fan of this and much preferred their match at Honor Rising earlier this year. [**½]

Non-Title Match: PWG Champion Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Dick Togo
Here we have one of those random, but intriguing matches PWG puts on. Sabre showed no respect to Togo right from the start. The best Sabre Jr. is arrogant Sabre Jr., which is what we got here. Also, Sabre obviously excels on the mat and that’s where most of this match took place. Both guys worked different body parts of the other, trying to gain an advantage. It’s Sabre’s wheelhouse, but Togo held his own and used it to combat the fact that he’s no longer as quick as he once was. His comeback attempts were well done and filled with fire. Sabre’s antagonistic style helped the crowd get invested. Sabre sold well, but I think Togo left a little to be desired there. At one point, he sold the ankle like he couldn’t stand, only to use it for offense shortly after. Sabre won with one of his signature bridging pins at 23:09. Like a lot of this show, I thought this went a bit long and was good, just not great. It’s not a style that works for everyone, though I enjoy mat work, so this was mostly fun for me. [***]

Reseda Street Fight: Chuck Taylor vs. Marty Scurll
Another match with mixed reviews so far. This stemmed from Taylor’s feud with Sabre, which also gave us the excellent Best Friends vs. LDRS match last month. Marty cut a promo before the match and also brought out a trash can filled with umbrellas. This felt like a fight between bitter rivals, which is a good thing. Taylor got to have a bit of a Rock moment, when he stopped to do commentary (I’M ABOUT TO KILL THIS DUDE FOR REAL) in the middle of the match. There was a lot of crowd brawling, including Taylor taking a big bump onto a bunch of open chairs. My favorite moment of the match came near the end. Referee Rick Knox had been knocked out and Scurll tried throwing powder in Taylor’s eyes. It was knocked back into his face and he accidentally snapped the fingers of the replacement ref. Taylor slammed Scurll onto thumbtacks but the referee’s hands were too hurt to count. It was such a great near fall. Taylor went for the chicken wing, only for Marty to fall back onto the tacks. Taylor withstood that pain and slapped the submission back on, winning at 18:41. The match of the night. A fun match that did a lot to continue Taylor’s push. There were some great spots and, as I pointed out, an awesome false finish that led to a top notch finish. [***¾]

Overall: 6.5/10. I found this to be a solid, consistent show. Nothing on it is quite on the “must-see” level, but there’s nothing bad. Nothing gets under **½ and nothing gets ****. The card was versatile for the most part with a good aerial battle early on, some big man/little man stuff, a mat based battle, an enjoyable brawl and a good old fashioned hoss fight. Most of the matches go a bit too long, but everything is solid. Not having guys like Pentagon and Trent, who have stood out on recent shows, hurt things a bit.

Top 15 Matches of May 2017

Another month has gone by and we have another top 15 matches. Though April featured WrestleMania weekend, May was a higher quality month. From the excellent (current show of the year for me) NXT TakeOver: Chicago to NJPW’s Best of the Super Juniors Tournament to PROGRESS’ Super Strong Style 16, there was a lot to like. Like last month’s list, to qualify the match just had to take place in the month of May. During the month I watched wrestling from WWE, PROGRESS, NJPW, Dragon Gate, Lucha Underground, Evolve, FIP, Style Battle, Lucha Forever and Shine. Again, I’m just including my original writeups for each match unless I didn’t already do a review for it.

Honorable Mentions: Flamita vs. Travis Banks – PROGRESS Super Strong Style 16 5/28; Pete Dunne vs. Trent Seven – WWE UK Championship Special 5/19; Travis Banks vs. Zack Sabre Jr. – PROGRESS Super Strong Style 16 5/29

15. BUSHI vs. KUSHIDA – NJPW Best of the Super Juniors; 5/22/17

There were four matches between these two last year and they ranged from good to great (**** at New Beginning, ***½ at BOTSJ and Destruction, and *** at Power Struggle). Both men were desperate for their first points. Instantly, this had a sense of urgency from both men. Neither wanted to fall to 0-3. BUSHI was ready for KUSHIDA’s handspring elbow and knew not to dive off the apron at KUSHIDA, since KUSHIDA catches people in arm bars that way. KUSHIDA had the MX scouted, blocking it and trying for the Hoverboard Lock. They traded blows in the middle of the ring when nothing seemed to keep the other down. BUSHI used a Destroyer and MX, but KUSHIDA refused to stay down. KUSHIDA countered the next MX attempt into his own Codebreaker, before applying the Hoverboard Lock. BUSHI just wouldn’t tap, so KUSHIDA rolled over into God’s Last Gift! That got him the win at 15:51. This might’ve been my favorite match between them. They played off their past and brought a real sense of desperation to this. I love God’s Last Gift for KUSHIDA and how he had to try something new because his old stuff kept failing. I don’t want him to come back and win the whole thing because Dominion already has too many WK rematches, but this ruled. Also, I hate that BUSHI is 0-3 again this year. [****]

14. Donovan Dijak vs. Keith Lee – Evolve 84; 5/20/17

These two tore the house down during WrestleMania weekend. They impressed the fans early with high impact offense. Dijak tried his Fosbury Flop but Lee caught him and hit snake eyes on the apron to a standing ovation. They continued throwing bombs including Lee using Feast Your Eyes, a Destroyer and a Spirit Bomb, but not getting the three. I get scared every time Lee goes up top and I was freaked out when he did it here, only to be launched backward by Dijak. To up the ante from Orlando, Dijak did a somersault from the ring into the crowd. Not done yet, Dijak pulled out a super rana, before Lee responded with a reverse rana. After all that, it took a top rope Spirit Bomb for Lee to win at 18:42. This was great but didn’t reach the level of their previous encounter. Something was missing. Still, I could watch these two go to war anytime. [****]

13. Evolve Championship: Zack Sabre Jr. (c) vs. Ethan Page – Evolve 84; 5/20/17

These two have had quite the rivalry in recent months. Sabre only wore the Evolve Title to the ring for this one. They played this like two guys who don’t like each other, bringing strikes and brawling from the get go. Sabre incorporated his style with an octopus hold on the guardrail for extra leverage. Page nearly won in under five minutes following an apron bomb and RK-Ego. They continued with a hard hitting match that saw both guys come close a few times. Sabre countered the RK-Ego into a triangle choke, only for Page to buckle bomb out. I completely bit on a package piledriver near fall. Sabre escaped a second and delivered a series of strikes and submissions. He fired off two PKs, but Page flipped him off instead of staying down. Two more PKs kept Page down at 13:52. I found this to be a very strong grudge match. They made me believe the title could change hands, while also making sure this was the physical match it had to be. Both men played to their strengths and delivered the goods here. I also loved Page being defiant until the end. This was much better than Page’s title match with Thatcher last year. [****]

12. Lucha Forever Championship: Travis Banks (c) vs. Matt Riddle – Lucha Forever Catch Me Outside; 5/25/17

When Lucha Forever was first announced, I was excited. They instantly announced some big matches, like Pete Dunne vs. Matt Riddle. However, the WWE contracts of guys like Dunne meant their appearances couldn’t be streamed on FloSlam. I still watched their first show in full. It was mostly disappointing, but Travis Banks beating Shane Strickland to crown their first champion was easily the highlight. That was bested at this event, when Matt Riddle took on Travis Banks. Riddle’s been on quite the tear since arriving on the scene, while Banks has been one of the best performers of 2017. Together, they put on one hell of a performance, full of hard hitting exchanges and great grappling. Riddle had the advantage, but Banks was too resilient to stay down. It’s a story he pulled out during the Super Strong Style 16 tournament too. After surviving some of Riddle’s best offense, Banks got his own in. He hit the Kiwi Krusher and Slice of Heaven before making Riddle tap to the Lion Clutch at 14:36. Great work from both guys that played to their strengths. The best match I’ve seen from Lucha Forever so far. [****]

11. Hiromu Takahashi vs. Jushin Thunder Liger – NJPW Best of the Super Juniors; 5/18/17

Once I heard this was Liger’s last BOTSJ, I instantly wanted him to win. A final win and matchup with Hiromu at Dominion sounds incredible. This was my most anticipated match of the night and possibly the tournament. Liger tried for the quick win with a lariat, which set the tone for the rest of the contest. He brought out the brainbuster on the outside, trying for a countout win, but Hiromu barely beat the count. I liked how Takahashi adjusted to Liger’s game plan. Liger blocked the sunset flip bomb, so Takahashi changed up and turned it into an apron power bomb. Hiromu countered the Liger Bomb for a near fall but ran into the palm strike. The Liger Bomb connected for two and he ate a German, but no sold and fired up. He nailed another brainbuster for an awesome near fall. After some counters, Hiromu hit the Time Bomb to beat the legend at 8:05. Liger kicked his feet in attempts to kick out, desperate not to lose. This was marvelous. A fantastic sprint with Liger throwing everything at the champ but come up just short. The crowd ate it all up thanks to Liger’s popularity. Hiromu adds another notch to his Wrestler of the Year belt. What an incredible 2017 he’s having. [****]

10. NXT Championship: Bobby Roode (c) vs. Hideo Itami – NXT TakeOver: Chicago; 5/20/17

I guess the Tag Titles go on last. Hideo’s attack in the parking lot was two years ago to the day. Roode gives an early break and goes for the GLORIOUS taunt. Hideo hoists him for the GTS to a huge pop, but Roode escapes to the outside. Shoulder block by Roode but he runs into an elbow. Hideo hits some hard chops, sending Roode reeling. Hideo hits some knee drops and jumps over Roode before whiffing on a back kick. He hits it the second go around and does the GLORIOUS taunt. Roode charges but runs into a knee. Roode fights back and nails a blockbuster. He drives the middle rope into Hideo’s throat. He follows with a chinlock and talks some trash. Hideo answers with a brutal slap. Some kicks and the shotgun dropkick connect. Clothesline by Hideo before he fires off kicks and a suplex. Itami hits his tornado DDT onto the top rope and picks up a near fall. Roode delivers elbows to avoid the GTS but gets sent shoulder first into the ring post. Itami kicks the shit out of Roode but misses one. Roode tries a rollup but Itami catches the arm and tries a Fujiwara armbar. He can’t lock it in, so Roode escapes. Itami blocks the implant DDT and sends him to the corner. More kicks. Roode fights off and misses the blockbuster a second time. Hideo DOES THE DEAL for two. More kicks in the corner. Itami runs into a spinebuster for a near fall. Roode can’t hit his finsh and escapes the GTS again. He hits a jawbreaker on the apron to buy time. He throws Itami into the guardrail but gets thrown into the steel steps. On the shoulder that’s been worked on. Itami misses a dropkick into the steps. Both men are hurt and struggle to beat the count. They do and Roode hits a right hand. Itami fights back with strikes and hits the hesitation dropkick. He holds his ankle to sell the steps spot. He’s too hurt to hit the GTS, so Roode hits the Glorious DDT but Itami kicks out! Roode goes in and eats the GTS, but falls outside to avoid the pin. Hideo slides Roode back in and covers for two. Itami wants the GTS again, but Roode slips free. He tries a pin but HIdeo counters into his own for two. Itami counters the DDT and slaps the shit out of Roode about seven times. Bobby escapes the GTS again and hits the DDT. he holds onto it, picks him up and hits a second, much more impactful DDT to retain at 17:43. [****]

9. Finn Balor vs. The Miz vs. Seth Rollins – WWE Raw; 5/1/17

Wisely, Miz heads outside to allow Finn and Seth to go at it. He wants no part of this. Once Miz gets pulled in, he wants to work together with one guy but gets declined. Seth tries to dive onto him but he pulls Maryse in the way. That cunning bastard! After a break, Miz has control but Finn takes over with two massive running dropkicks around the ring. He hits 1916 but Miz breaks up the count at the last second. Everyone picks up several near falls, with Seth coming extremely close after a double blockbuster and frog splash. Seth also delivers the superplex/falcon arrow combo but Samoa Joe arrives and takes him out. Finn goes to finish off Miz with the Coup de Grace but Bray Wyatt appears, knocks him off the top and hits Sister Abigail. Miz crawls over and steals this at 22:23. That was a blast and was the best match on Raw in 2017. I’d say this was the best Seth looked since turning babyface, Finn came across great throughout and Miz sold well for both, while getting plenty of heat. I liked how they furthered three feuds in one match, though only Bray/Finn is fresh and isn’t very interesting. Still, the match ruled and would’ve been better without the overbooked ending. [****]

8. Dragon Lee vs. Hiromu Takahashi – NJPW Best of the Super Juniors; 5/17/17

These men have one of the best in-ring rivalries in all of wrestling. I have their last two matches (Fantastica Mania ’16 and New Beginning in Osaka ’17) at ****½ each. Hiromu is my current pick for Wrestler of the Year. This had a big fight feel to it and they opened by just chopping the shit out of one another. Lee snapped off a rana off the apron before proceeding to hit Hiromu with a bunch of high impact offense. Hiromu turned it around and went after Lee’s mask. If you remember, he completely removed it in their last match, which helped him win. In an awesome moment, Lee nailed Hiromu with his own sunset flip bomb off the apron. Just showing how much they know each other. Hiromu knew just when to avoid Lee’s corner double stomp too. They went into trading German suplexes and the bigger offensive blows. Hiromu went for the mask again and it nearly cost him when he was rolled up. He got two on the Destroyer before Lee got in some surprisingly sloppy counters. He avoided another Destroyer and hit his own corner DVD. The Phoenix Plex handed Hiromu his first singles loss in NJPW after 18:56. Like Scurll/Ospreay, we got a lot of their signature stuff but it never felt like a compilation. It felt like the next step or chapter in their rivalry. It was on par with their previous matches until a few sloppy moments down the stretch. I did love how they played off their past matches and how Lee stole some of Hiromu’s signature moves. [****¼]

7. Travis Banks vs. Trent Seven – PROGRESS Bang the Drum; 5/14/17

“Keep it 100” just isn’t the same without Dahlia Black and TK Cooper. Banks is awesome though. Considering Seven and his buddies jumped SPPT during Dahlia and TK’s farewell, it made sense when Banks dove out onto him during his entrance. He proceeded to beat Seven up around the arena before the bell even rang. That allowed the match to go at a crazy pace once it got started. They threw everything at one another, from stiff strikes to big offensive blows. Banks avoided a super piledriver with a Liger Bomb, and had the crowd in the palm of his hand. He survived a ripcord lariat and got to his feet instantly after a dragon suplex. Just when it looked like Travis had it, Seven rolled him up with a handful of tights for the win in 8:09. An insanely awesome sprint. They beat the hell out of each other in a match fitting what went down on Chapter 47. Seven is an excellent dick heel, while Banks has wowed as the fiery babyface, and it all came together masterfully here. [****¼]

6. WWN Championship: Matt Riddle (c) vs. Kyle O’Reilly – Evolve 84; 5/20/17

I thought their match in PWG last year was strong but a bit of a disappointment considering they seem made for each other. They both applied early submissions and reached the ropes to break them. They progressed into forearm strikes. Kyle got in trouble there, so he kicked Riddle’s leg to knock him down. O’Reilly continued to have a game plan for whatever Riddle threw at him. He’d stop his momentum whenever he could and try to get in his own attempts at winning. Kyle won a strike battle while holding a knee bar, so Riddle responded with heel strikes. Riddle no sold some kicks and hit the Bro to Sleep. A German followed but it wasn’t enough. They did a great guillotine choke struggle spot that was a highlight. The final stretch started off oddly, with a few moments that looked staged. It picked up and became great though. Riddle nailed a Liger Bomb and Kyle trapped him in a triangle choke. He delivered a bunch of elbows but Riddle powered out and nailed the jumping tombstone. The Bromission finished, allowing Riddle to retain at 16:11. This was far better than their PWG match. For the most part, it felt like a real fight, which I loved. It stayed in Riddle’s wheelhouse of 15 minutes, too. It was hard hitting, played to their strengths and was the best Evolve match I’ve seen this year. [****¼]

5. Super Strong Style 16 Quarterfinals: Jeff Cobb vs. Matt Riddle – PROGRESS Super Strong Style 16; 5/28/17

This is the kind of match you’d expect to be for the Atlas Title. Their WWN Title match in Evolve was a blast, but short (***½ and 6:21). They also compete as a team, known as the Chosen Bros. I loved that Riddle went for the knockout knee again, only for Cobb to have it scouted. The partners were playful, with Riddle slapping Cobb on the ass after getting the advantage. Riddle also impressed with rolling gutwrench suplexes, so Cobb showed him how it’s really done. From there, they traded big blows in an awesome display. Cobb survived a Bro to Sleep and German, while Riddle barely kicked out of a Tombstone. Riddle hit a flurry of strikes and a Tombstone of his own for a goddamn one count. There was Riddle hitting a series of fisherman busters and it not being enough. Cobb busted out a fucking Destroyer and then an absurd popup German and that still didn’t get it done. Riddle escaped the Tour of the Islands and advanced with the brutal knee strike at 13:39. That fucking ruled. Two dudes who knew a lot about the other just throwing bombs to overcome each other. Riddle was resilient and used his established deadly knee to combat his larger opponent. Match of the tournament so far. [****¼]

4. Kenny Omega vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW Wrestling Dontaku; 5/3/17

I admittedly overrated their first match (had it at ****¾ but it was closer to ****¼), but it was still awesome. Ishii own that one. Omega had his big match black tights on. Ishii charged instantly, overwhelming Omega with a huge burst of offense. As they fought outside, Ishii attempted a One Winged Angel as he was in the mindsight of ending this early. There was a tremendous countout tease where Omega apron bombed Ishii at the count of 16. Ishii barely made it back in and wisely rolled back outside for a breather. I loved that because he used a burst of energy to beat the count but didn’t have enough to get right back into the mix. Back inside, Omega got in the driver’s seat until Ishii fired up and no sold his chops. He hit a stalling superplex for two and then the match kicked into next gear. Madman Omega nearly overshot Ishii with a springboard cross body over the guardrail. They ran a fast exchange, capped by Omega hitting one of his best V-Triggers ever. Just when it seemed like Omega had it won, Ishii turned the tide and hit his own version of the One Winged Angel, followed by the sliding lariat for two. They traded shots and near falls until Omega hit a 2K1 Bomb. As he went for the One Winged Angel again, Ishii countered with A GODDAMN REVERSE RANA! They went back to trading blows. Omega hit another knee and a brainbuster for a close near fall. Omega finally connected on the One Winged Angel to win at 23:55. That ruled. It was better than their New Japan Cup outing. I loved how they played off their previous interactions and showed how they’ve come to know one another. I dug both guys stealing each other’s moves too. Omega fought Ishii’s style and survived it before hitting the finisher that has been protected so well to win. Omega’s best match since the Naito one. [****½]

3. NXT Tag Team Championship Ladder Match: The Authors of Pain (c) w/ Paul Ellering vs. #DIY – NXT TakeOver: Chicago; 5/20/17

DIY attacks instantly but get overwhelmed. AOP runs into shots and Gargano hits an enziguri. He sends Akam to the apron and Ciampa knocks him out with a knee. They send Rezar packing and go for ladders. AOP attack and both DIY guys get thrown into the guardrail. Gargano comes back with a somersault off the apron. DIY choose to go for the big ladder by the entrance. Ciampa holds the ladder open and pulls down the middle rope so Gargano can hit a suicide dive through the openings. THAT’S BAD LUCK! Akam stops them from climbing but has the ladder thrown into his face. They beat up Rezar in the corner, with Ciampa hitting a high knee. Gargano tries an attack but gets slammed onto Ciampa’s back. DIY cuts off AOP climbing and drop a ladder onto their backs. Akam holds a ladder up and Ciampa runs up it, nearly reaching the belts. Akam shoves him off. AOP both climb but DIY pull them down. AOP go for stereo powerbombs, but DIY end up on the ladder. They climb but get knocked over. Ciampa clutches his knee after the spot. AOP trap him in the corner behind a ladder that they drive into his midsection. Akam holds the ladder so Rezar can climb. They seem to be stalling. They stop because DIY is stirring, and beat them down. They wipe them out with a ladder and go out for a bigger ladder. They set two up across the ring apron and guardrail. They want powerbombs onto them. Ciampa gets free and saves Gargano. DIY each hit AOP with a knee/superkick and they end up laid on the ladders. DIY climb the standing ladder in the middle and hit stereo splashes! Ciampa puts his guy through the ladder, but Gargano nad his dude kind of bounce off. Replays show both DIY members almost landed on their heads. Akam and Ciampa climb, while Gargano sets up another ladder near them. Rezar joins Gargano on his ladder and all four men go at it. Ciampa’s knocked off but bumps into the other ladder. Rezar falls but Gargano lands on the ladder in the middle. Akam falls off. Gargano’s alone but Ellering pulls him down and knocks over the ladder. Gargano kicks Ellering but eats a boot from Akam. Ciampa’s left alone and bashed into a ladder set up in the corner. They use the ladder to prop up his head and go to hit him with the ladder. Gargano shoves Ciampa aside and takes the shot for his buddy. AOP climb again but Ciampa’s up. He gets behind Rezar and wants to German him off the ladder through the one in the corner. HE DOES IT! OH MY FUCKING GOD! Gargano somehow fights enough to grab Akam and stop him from climbing. Akam kicks at him but both DIY members kick him while he has a ladder over his head. It falls onto his shoulders and they hit MEETING IN THE MIDDLE INTO THE LADDER ON AKAM’S FACE! Ciamps tries helping Gargano up but he’s out of it. They set a ladder up in the middle and both climb up. They grab the titles but AOP kick the ladder out. DIY hang onto the titles and AOP powerbomb them from those spots. They do the Super Collider and another powerbomb! AOP grab the titles at 20:08. [****½]

2. Super Strong Style 16 Finals: Travis Banks vs. Tyler Bate – PROGRESS Super Strong Style 16; 5/29/17

There was such a big fight feel to this. Two of the top performers of 2017 thus far. Normally, I write up my match reviews while watching the match, but for this, I watched the entire thing and then went back to do this review. I love that the PROGRESS fans loathe British Strong Style. Too often are great heel wrestlers (like BSS) cheered for their talent. It added so much here, because the crowd was so pro-Banks and so anti-Bate. It made for an incredible atmosphere. They went at it and when a ref bump came, I worried. Instead of something cheap, we got something awesome. Dunne and Seven arrived and you just felt like Banks would get screwed. Banks’ buddies and recent PROGRESS additions, #CCK, made the save to a MONSTER pop. They hit some great offense and took BSS to the back, leaving it one on one. The back half of this match was nuts. Bate did things like a Gotch style Tombstone on the floor, only for Banks to fire up and forearm some chair shots away. Both guys brought their best, from Banks’ coast to coast dropkick to Bate bringing out the spiral tap. When Banks kicked out of the Tyler Driver ’97, the fans reacted perfectly. Bate looked for a super Tyler Driver, but Banks countered to an avalanche Kiwi Krusher! Bate somehow kicked out, only to get locked in the Lion Clutch and submit at 22:51. Incredible. They took fans on emotional roller coaster where everything worked, including the interference segment. I’m so glad it didn’t play into the finish either. The fans ate it all up. Travis Banks has arrived and he feels like the guy who should dethrone Pete Dunne. It’s insane how good Bate is, especially for his age, while Banks could be the top guy in the back half of 2017. I might be rating this higher than some, but I loved everything about it, except for an over reliance on kickout spots at times. [****¾]

1. WWE United Kingdom Championship: Tyler Bate (c) vs. Pete Dunne – NXT TakeOver: Chicago; 5/20/17

I have their match from January at ****1/2 and would consider it the second or third best match under the WWE banner this year. Big “Bruiserweight” chants. They grapple to start and get dueling chants, but Pete has more. Pete works a head scissors, while grabbing the arm. Bate nearly escapes with a headstand before succeeding with a modified one. Dunne takes him back down and wrenches the arm. Bate gets free, nips up and twirls his mustache while Dunne takes a breather outside. Bate follows and eats a big forearm. Dunne manipulates the finger joints and tries kicking the steel steps into them, but Bate avoids it and slaps him. He hops off the steps with a back elbow. Dunne goads him into another huge forearm and then the explex on the apron. Dunne goes back to the arm and kicks away at Bate’s head. Bate fires up, no selling the effects. He pulls Dunne into a delayed exploder. He follows with some running European uppercuts in the corner but Dunne explodes out with a running kick. Bate escapes the explex and hits a standing SSP. He delivers an excellent deadlift gutwrench suplex for a close near fall. Bate tries another running SSP, but gets caught in a triangle choke! Bate powers up and powerbombs his way free. Bate does the airplane spin at a crazy fast pace. It gets him two. Both men struggle to their feet. Dunne lands on his feet on a German and then catches a springboarding Bate with a huge forearm. He delivers a sick explex into a powerbomb for a close near fall. The crowd is losing their minds. Both men fight from their seated positions. They hammer away like a hockey fight as they get to their feet. Bate hits the big left (bop and bang) and wants the Tyler Driver. Dunne avoids it and hits an enziguri. They’re forehead to forehead and start throwing huge chops. Dunne with a slap, Bate with the rolling kick. Bate does his sick rebound off the top rope spot into a lariat for two. Again, both men are down and we get “fight forever” chants. Dunne slips free of the Tyler Driver and wants the Bitter End. Bate counters into an incredible DDT! Dunne goes outside and Bate follows with a middle rope moonsault. He quickly rolls Dunne inside and comes off the top with a spiral tap/stardust press for two! Bate tries an Undertaker dive, but eats a forearm. Dunne rolls him inside. BITTER END! New Champion at 15:27. [****¾]

Lucha Underground "Family First" Review

The Cueto Cup continues! The show started in the back, where Fenix pulled into the Temple. It reminded me of when he drove off at the end of Ultima Lucha in season one. Anyway, they have the hots for each other and she said she's putting her money on him to win the tournament, so he said he'll win for her. Smooth. Marty Martinez watched because he enjoys creeping on Melissa and he wasn't happy. I'm all for a short Marty/Fenix feud.

Cueto Cup First Round: Cage vs. Vinnie Massaro
Cage literally killed a dude with a punch last week, so Massaro has no chance. Unfortunately, Cage had to remove the gauntlet before the match. Massaro talked smack and slapped Cage, so he got his ass handed to him. Massaro did get in some offense to give a tease of an upset, but failed at using the gauntlet as a weapon. Cage then won with the screwdriver at 3:28. Mostly a squash, but Vinnie did get in a few hope spots and the crowd was into this. [*3/4]

Post-match, Cage destroyed Vinnie with the gauntlet.

They ran another excellent video package to hype the upcoming Johnny Mundo/Rey Mysterio Jr. Lucha Underground Title match.

Cueto Cup First Round: Marty "The Moth" Martinez vs. Saltador
Saltador is part of the Rabbit Tribe for those who don't remember. They're barely on TV, so it's understandable if you forgot. This was weird in the best possible way. Both guys are strange and used it to their advantage. There were strange exchanges and mannerisms throughout, including Marty banging his own head on the mat. He had several interactions with Melissa Santos, who was less than thrilled. Saltador stopped to dance, so Marty hit him with a modified gut buster to win at 7:23. I liked how different this was and both guys played their characters well. It did go a bit long for what they were going for though. [**1/4]

In the back, the other two Rabbit Tribe members came up to Mascarita Sagrada. They bowed to him and believe he's the "Rabbit King." A weirded out Mascarita left.

More backstage stuff, as Marty stared at photos of Melissa. He also has a music box containing her hair. Mariposa arrived to remind him that family comes first. She believes that his obsession with Melissa made him weak and when she beats Fenix tonight, she'll beat Marty in the next round. They finished by slapping each other.

Cueto Cup First Round: Lucha Underground Trios Champion Pindar w/ Kobra Moon vs. Mascarita Sagrada
The sadist in me wished this was the bigger member of Kobra's group against little Mascarita. Pindar tossed him around with easy anyway, until Mascarita started using his speed. STICK AND MOVE! Still, his size disadvantage was too much and he got thrown around some more. Kobra even got in a cheap shot. Mascarita came back with some hope spots. Pindar ultimately won with a wild facebuster type move at 5:55. This was fun at times and the crowd loves Mascarita. However, Pindar gave up a bit too much for me to take him seriously. [**]

Cueto Cup First Round: Fenix vs. Mariposa
If the Cheerleader Melissa I know and love shows up, this could be excellent. Fenix played the gentleman early, but he should've known better. Mariposa wanted no part of a handshake and brought the fight to Fenix. Once they got into the back and forth, the action picked up. We got some nice offense, like a German suplex and code red, leading to near falls for both. In the end, Mariposa blocked Spanish Fly, only to fall to the Fenix Driver in 5:50. A good sprint, but I wanted more from it. It was one of the matches I was most excited for when the bracket was revealed. [**3/4]

After the match, Marty Martinez showed up to attack Fenix, but the babyface sent back the siblings to close the show.

Overall: 6.5/10. The Cueto Cup has been largely underwhelming thus far. However, like the CWC, I think it'll pick up in the next round. What I do like is that it gives a chance people we don't often see. Names like Pindar and Saltador got some shine and whether they impress a ton or not, it does allow for something different.

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NJPW Kizuna Road Review

NJPW Kizuna Road
June 20th, 2017 | Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan | Attendance: 1,258

We’re at that point in between Dominion and the G1 Climax. NJPW has their “A” shows (Wrestle Kingdom, Dominion, King of Pro Wrestling, G1 Finals, Sakura Genesis and New Beginning), their “B” shows (Power Struggle, New Japan Cup, Destruction, Wrestling Dontaku, BOTSJ Finals) and their “C” shows (Kizuna Road, World Tag League, Wrestling World, etc.). At least that’s how I see them. Though traditionally not a large event, the Kizuna Road cards allow for titles other than the Heavyweight and Intercontinental Title to headline. Indeed, on this set of Kizuna Road shows, the NEVER Six Man, NEVER Openweight and Jr. Heavyweight Titles are all closing shows out.

Tetsuhiro Yagi vs. Tomoyuki Oka
The Young Lions have produced some damn good wrestlers in recent years (White, Finlay, Komatsu, etc.) but Oka (and Kitamura) might have the highest ceiling of any of them. This played off the speed against power dynamic, and Yagi attempted to chop Oka down to size. Oka did well to sell the leg after being in the crab, which was nice to see. Oka brought big strikes and a powerslam, before winning with the crab at 5:43. I found this to be the expected solid sprint from the Young Lions. They always bring fire and effort and they did well to get the crowd invested. [**½]

El Desperado, TAKA Michinoku and Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Jushin Thunder Liger, Shota Umino and Tiger Mask IV
Dammit. It’s Suzuki-Gun. That meant we got them attacking the faces before the bell. The faces swung the tide until Umino got isolated. Considering his Young Lion status, that was to be expected. Credit to Umino, who showed fire like his name was Hirai Kawato. Once he tagged out and the dads got some shine, the faces took control. They nearly won when Kanemaru was hit with a Tiger Driver, only for the pin to be broken up. Eventually, Desperado made Umino tap to a stretch muffler at 7:24. Better than what I’ve come to expect from Suzuki-Gun. They weren’t as irritating or stale, while the dads brought energy and Umino threw himself around for my enjoyment. Kudos. [**½]

David Finlay and Yuji Nagata vs. Katsuya Kitamura and Manabu Nakanishi
It’s bring your kid to work day all over this card. I already miss Finlay being paired with War Machine. The dads beat the piss out of each other to start. If you missed it, they had a great match near the end of last year. Kitamura came in and showed he could hit just as hard as the old guard. Nagata had to put him in his place a few times. It was funny that Finlay’s technically higher in the packing order than Kitamura, but is younger and much smaller. There was a great moment where Kitamura got to do signature Nakanishi stuff side by side with him. He is a Young Lion though, so he had to eat the pin after taking a Backdrop Driver from Nagata at 8:39. This was a fun match, involving four guys I enjoy. Nakanishi had one of his sluggish days, but the other guys made up for it. Also, can we bring Ricochet back to team with Finlay again? [**¾]

Jado, Tomohiro Ishii and Toru Yano vs. TenKoji and Togi Makabe
Kizuna Road ranks just above the “Road to” shows, so maybe Makabe will take a bump or two. After a rather basic start, Tenzan attempted Kokeshi. He missed and it led to a floor brawl. Makabe and Ishii fought into the stands, meaning I got more from Makabe than expected. Following that segment, Tenzan took the heat for his guys. Ishii was in the mood to kick some serious ass. Kojima got the hot tag and fires off a bunch of chops. Makabe also got a tag and did his thing. Kojima planted Jado with the Koji Cutter and Makabe hit the King Kong Knee Drop to get the win at 8:44. Solid little tag, though it was sluggish at times. I can’t get into anything Jado does, but at least Ishii and TenKoji brought it. [**¾]

During intermission, the names for the G1 Climax were announced. The names are IWGP Intercontinental Champion Hiroshi Tanahashi, Togi Makabe, Michael Elgin, IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada, Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano, YOSHI-HASHI, Kenny Omega, Bad Luck Fale, Tama Tonga, Tetsuya Naito, SANADA, EVIL, Satoshi Kojima, Yuji Nagata, Juice Robinson, NEVER Openweight Champion Minoru Suzuki, Zack Sabre Jr. and KOTA FUCKING IBUSHI! Ibushi got the biggest pop. No word on who is in which block just yet. Without Shibata, Nakajima, Marufuji and Honma, I was worried about this field. Ibushi makes up for most of that, though he’s faced pretty much everyone in the field before. I like Juice and Sabre being in. Kojima and Nagata should give great runs, while Omega and LIDJ will be awesome. YOSHI could be as good as he was last year, while Tanahashi, Okada, Ishii and Goto will do as expected most likely. Hopefully, Suzuki turns things around during the tournament.

Hirai Kawato and IWGP Intercontinental Champion Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Hiromu Takahashi and Tetsuya Naito
This is easily the biggest spot for Kawato in his young career. He charged the ring and instantly got into a fight with LIDJ, meaning Tanahashi couldn’t milk his entrance. Kawato’s wild style got the crowd way into him. When he connected on a sweet dropkick on Naito, they erupted. The same happened when he nailed Hiromu with a rana. Even Tanahashi’s hot tag didn’t get as big of a pop. Tanahashi, Naito and Hiromu have shared the ring enough this year that everything they do is smooth and effortless. Tanahashi set Hiromu up for the Texas Cloverleaf, but Kawato desperately wanted the tag, so good guy Tanahashi gave it to him. Kawato did well, and survived a fair amount. Naito attacked Tanahashi’s arm, as Hiromu went back to his Young Lion days and beat Kawato with the crab at 9:21. That was a night touch. Kawato got a big moment and delivered. It helped that he was in there with three phenomenal wrestlers. He brought his frantic energy to this, while the other guys were their usual great selves. Also, Naito and Hiromu have tremendous chemistry. [***½]

Davey Boy Smith Jr., NEVER Openweight Champion Minoru Suzuki and Taichi vs. Hirooki Goto, IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada and YOSHI-HASHI
It’s nice to have Davey Boy Smith Jr. back. This is kind of an off night for Okada, as his teammates are the ones feuding with Suzuki-Gun. I was so excited for Suzuki’s return but he has been underwhelming in 2017, while the rest of his stable has mostly sucked. At least this had a small twist on the standard formula, with YOSHI jumping Minoru before the bell. Taichi did nothing of note, but DBS looked good out there. Suzuki and YOSHI had some strong interactions, but after Suzuki and Goto impressed in tags, I learned not to believe that means the singles match will be any good. In the end, Okada stopped Taichi from using a chair, allowing YOSHI to run wild. He made Taichi submit to the Butterfly Lock at 15:58. Look at Suzuki-Gun, putting in two solid matches today. What the hell is going on? This did a good job to build Suzuki/YOSHI at the next show and made sure YOSHI looked strong, while keeping things entertaining. Side note, I wish DBS was in the G1 instead of Tama Tonga. [***]

Post-match, Suzuki-Gun tried another attack but the tables were turned and YOSHI trapped Suzuki in the Butterfly Lock.

NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Championship: BUSHI, EVIL and SANADA (c) vs. Juice Robinson, IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion KUSHIDA and Ryusuke Taguchi
Good on BUSHI and KUSHIDA, who are headlining two of the three Kizuna Road cards. They kicked the match off and, considering they’re coming up on their sixth singles match in a year and a half (and all their tag matches in that span), their chemistry is top notch. Surprisingly, Juice took the early heat for his guys. I expected Taguchi, but Juice was great at building sympathy. This match followed a lot of the tropes we’ve come to know from LIDJ/Taguchi Japan matches, which is fine because they’re all fun. Taguchi took the next heat and made the hot tag to KUSHIDA, who had some great interactions with SANADA. However, the real treat of the match came down the stretch. SANADA and Juice, who had a shot at meeting in the G1 Climax, had a great exchange with several counters and near falls. The one positive about these titles changing hands so often is that the fans totally buy into near falls, regardless of the challengers. Just when Juice might’ve had it won, EVIL got in a chair shot. SANADA applied Skull End, letting it go just long enough for BUSHI to hit MX, before slapping it back on. Juice tapped at 15:46. Great way to close out the show. LIDJ have easily been the best guys to hold these titles and consistently put on good to great matches. They build KUSHIDA/BUSHI and teased SANADA/Juice, which could be awesome. I’m glad the titles didn’t’ change hands wither. Lots of fun, it had a hot crowd and tons of action. [***¾]

Overall: 6.5/10. This was pretty much exactly what it had to be. It wasn’t here to be a blow away show. It set the tone for the rest of the Kizuna Road cards (by building Suzuki/YOSHI and KUSHIDA/BUSHI), continued existing feuds (Tanahashi/LIDJ, Suzuki-Gun/CHAOS) and gave the Young Lions a lot of shine. The main event delivered and, along with the LIDJ tag, is the only things worth checking out if pressed for time. If not, there are worse ways to spend two hours and fifteen minutes.

WWE Money in the Bank Review

WWE Money in the Bank 2017
June 18th, 2017 | Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri

Kickoff Match: The Colons vs. The Hype Bros
Mojo Rawley has basically become Smackdown’s go-to guy on Kickoff Shows. It’s a great spot for him because he tends to get the crowd going. The big news here was the return of Zack Ryder, as the Hype Bros teamed for the first time in about six months. They looked about as good as ever, having a solid match here. The Colons are good workers, who bumped for Mojo and Zack. Mojo had a few fun spots, highlighted by no selling a bunch of chops. The Hype Bros won at 8:24 with the Hype Ryder. Fine, basic tag stuff. [**¼]

Money in the Bank: Becky Lynch vs. Carmella w/ James Ellsworth vs. Charlotte vs. Natalya vs. Tamina
There were rumors of a surprise sixth entrant, but it never happened. I also must commend the awesome work the WWE production team did with the video package for this one. Coming into this, I felt it could go two ways. It would be great or a complete disaster, with no middle ground. I was wrong. They did a lot of good in this match. There were fun spots, with nothing being too dangerous. The crowd was more invested than I expected. Nattie and Becky had a spot where they fought over a ladder, that went too long. I thought the crowd would hate it but they chanted for Becky. Charlotte got to hit her big dive spot, Tamina looked better than usual (though that’s not saying much) and everyone contributed something. In the end, James Ellsworth knocked Becky off the ladder, before pulling down the briefcase and throwing it to Carmella to win at 13:16. Most people hated that finish, but I liked it. I would’ve rather Ellsworth just tip the ladder over on Becky and then Carmella retrieve it herself, but this was fine. Carmella’s not great in the ring and I get that. However, she, like Alexa Bliss, makes up for it in spades by delivering on promos and bringing a lot of personality to the table. The match was on the verge of being great until the finish hurt it somewhat. Still, a strong performance for the ladies. [***½]

WWE Smackdown Tag Team Championship: The Usos (c) vs. The New Day w/ Xavier Woods
I enjoyed their match at the Royal Rumble last year, but the roles have reversed. Now the Usos are heel champions. As heels, they’ve been rejuvenated and we saw more of that here. They kind of follow the Revival’s idea to work an old school style at times. Tag team wrestling is simple, folks. The heels cut off the faces until the depravation reaches the max. They did just that with Kofi Kingston, picking him apart. Kofi took bumps like a madman. Some of the them were nuttier than what we saw in the ladder matches. He hit a great trust fall dive outside, while Big E brought out his spear through the ropes. The teams gave us one of the best near falls of the year after the New Day hit their finish. Kofi busted out a dragon sleeper that I thought would end it. However, once the Usos realized they may have met their match, they took the countout loss at 12:17. Like the opener, this was on the verge of greatness until the finish. In this case though, I understood it more. Great work up until that point with some strong tag wrestling and false finishes. [***½]

WWE Smackdown Women’s Championship: Naomi (c) vs. Lana
My goodness, Lana was about a 10/10 in terms of looks here. In the ring? Not so much. I can’t be too harsh, because it was her first televised singles match. She wrestled about as well as expected. A few nice moves and some rest holds to kill time. I liked her going after Naomi’s leg, since Naomi has some kicks in her offense. Things got interesting when Carmella’s theme hit and she came out to tease a cash in. This was right after Lana got a near fall with her finisher. The distraction kind of allowed Naomi to win via submission at 7:26. The pressure was on, and while Lana didn’t light the world on fire, she performed fine. Certainly not worse than a lot of the current women in their first TV matches. [**]

Carmella again teased a cash in, but didn’t do it.

Mike and Maria Kanellis came out to some cheesy, but awesome 80’s style music. He’s honestly going by Mike Kanellis, which made me laugh harder than it should’ve. They said they’re bringing the power of love to Smackdown and Maria called herself the First Lady of Wrestling. What is this, Impact?

WWE Championship: Jinder Mahal (c) w/ The Singh Brothers vs. Randy Orton
Before the match, legends were introduced at ringside including Sgt. Slaughter, Bob Orton and Ric Flair. I’m not sold on the Jinder experiment and I’ve been vocal about it. Unmotivated Orton hasn’t helped. However, Orton brought effort tonight. Maybe it was being in his hometown or maybe it was his dad in the front row. Either way, he sold Jinder’s leg work and tried his best to get the champion over. Mahal using the figure four in front of Flair was a nice touch. The Singh Brothers antagonized the legends, sending Orton into a rage. He nearly killed them with announce table spots again, like at Backlash. Once back inside, Jinder connected on his finisher to retain at 20:55. I’ve heard some people loved this and some didn’t like it at all. I thought it was good, much better than their Backlash match. The addition of the legends at ringside and how they were used was good. I didn’t like how the finish was a repeat of Backlash. Not a great match, but still easily the best of Jinder’s career. [***¼]

The Ascension vs. The Fashion Police
The Ascension were revealed as the team who destroyed the Fashion Police’s office. By the way, the Fashion Police had a Miami Vice themed Fashion Files earlier in the night that was awesome. This match was nothing but a way to fill time on the PPV. Fandango won with a small package at 3:48. [*¼]

Money in the Bank: AJ Styles vs. Baron Corbin vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
During Nakamura’s entrance, Corbin jumped him and attacked him with a camera, sending him to the back. The rest of the guys were game to bring out the big bumps. There were too many spots to mention, but some of the highlights saw a Zayn sunset flip bomb and AJ hanging from the briefcase and taking a scary fall to the mat. Kevin Owens would get the MVP vote from me for this one. He took some sick bumps. From a DVD onto a ladder to Zayn tossing him from the top onto a ladder to an insane spot where Styles hit USHIGOROSHI onto a ladder bridge, he was part of everything. Nakamura returned around the twenty minute mark and proceeded to look the best he has since the Zayn match at TakeOver: Dallas. Like a bad motherfucker, he wrecked everyone in sight and finally looked to live up to the hype. It all led to a fantastic encounter between he and Styles. The fans badly wanted one of them to win. Corbin found a way to sneak in and tip over the ladder, before pulling down the briefcase himself at 29:50. It didn’t completely click with me at first, but got really good down the stretch. Crazy spots, cool moments and a show stealing exchange from Styles and Nakamura. I wasn’t a fan of the finish because it’s kind of overdone in these kinds of matches. Corbin winning was the best choice though, as the briefcase works with a heel like him. Awesome main event, though not quite on the level of the best MITB matches (2005, SD 2013, 2014 and 2016). [****]

Overall: 7/10. I feel like I give this score out often, but that’s where a lot of shows fall in my eyes these days. They’re good. We get a lot of good shows from promotions, with few bad or great ones. Like a lot of Smackdown shows, this featured consistently good stuff, capped by a great main event. There was some stuff to skip (Fashion Police and Women’s Title), but everything else was either good or great. The action mostly delivered, though the booking had issues at several points.