NJPW PPV Review: King Of Pro Wrestling 2013

Okada-Tanahashi Part VI: MOTY?



I've been a huge fan of the wrestling scene in Japan for just under a decade now, but when I first started this blog, I centred most of my writing around the WWE's product.  The reason being that my knowledge for the promotion's history ran much deeper at the time.  Since 2009 though, I've been consistently following along with New Japan Pro Wrestling and I've slowly been leaning more in their direction as far as my overall superfan status goes.  Last year, the company made their iPPV debut with the now classic "King Of Pro Wrestling" event and it blew the wrestling landscape to bits with everyone claiming NJPW to be the best wrestling promotion on the planet Earth.  So I then figured that there would be no better moment to begin reviewing their shows with their much more accessible product.  In the year that followed, Kazuchika Okada replaced CM Punk as my current favorite active pro wrestler and Hiroshi Tanahashi has been the biggest magnet of praise in my writing with his consistently brilliant performances.  The rivalry between Okada & Tanahashi has been nothing short of spectacular and thus far in 2013 alone, one of their matches has already earned a five star rating from me.  With that kind of acclaim, you'd be a broke smark to bet against them when they clashed for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship in their biggest matchup to date.  Ladies & gents, it is my honor to review such an epic encounter, but to get there we'll have to drudge through what could be New Japan's weakest iPPV offering since their breakthrough began just 365 days prior.  Find out how this event ranks among their other efforts after the jump!

Match 1:: IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship match: Forever Hooligans(c) (Kozlov & Rocky Romero) vs. Suzuki-gun (Taka Michinoku & Taichi)

With the stellar rivalry the Hooligans have had with the Time Splitters (Alex Shelley & KUSHIDA) still ranking amongst the best tag feuds of the decade, you could imagine my disappointment when I heard that the team of Michinoku & Taichi would be challenging for the titles here.  The comedy bits thrown in by the two Suzuki-gun affiliates made me chuckle a bit, but it was damn near impossible for me to care about much here.  This one is a throwaway that I would only recommend to anyone curious as to how the Hooligans managed to lose.  Other than that, not much to see here.

Michinoku & Taichi def. Forever Hooligans to become the NEW IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions after 7:27

 

Match Rating: **

 

Match 2: Minoru Suzuki vs Toru Yano

Suzuki and Yano have been going back and forth for the past few months and while it hasn't produced any five star epics, their feud has been one of the more entertaining and satisfying in the company.  From a character standpoint, you won't find many better at what they do than these two.  This match really wasn't much more than Suzuki beating the crap out of Yano for seven minutes and giving him a little taste of revenge for the months of harassment Suzuki has had to endure.  Not something I'd suggest to fans of either, but a sufficient end to a well done rivalry.

Minoru Suzuki def Toru Yano after 7:09

 

Match Rating: *

Match 3: Killer Elite Squad (Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Lance Archer) vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Takaaki Watanabe

I didn't really find much to like in this match, but it's noteworthy as it's Tenzan's first match back from injury.  Archer has been IMO, a bit of an underrated bruiser and in this match he was the highlight for me.  Watanabe's selling was also top-notch as he made every bit of offense KES threw his way look absolutely brutal.  Still, not much worth noting here other than some superb exchanges between Archer & Watanabe.

 

KES def. Tenzan & Watanabe after 11:48

 

Match Rating: ***

Match 4: Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma & Kota Ibushi vs. Bullet Club (Karl Anderson, Prince Devitt & Bad Luck Fale)

I may have offended some folk when I said it on twitter, but Bullet Club is arguably, the best stable going in pro wrestling.  Sure The Shield are one of the primary reasons to watch WWE these days, and Aces & Eights have amassed a bit of a cult following, but no other faction has been able to have multiple members stand as believable challengers to their promotion's major championship at any given time.  The screen presence, chemistry and overall badass rogue mantra that the Club carries across the NJPW landscape makes everything they do worth noting.  Making his presence felt amongst the BC swagger though was Kota Ibushi who was unarguably the show stealer here.  Ibushi as a full-time member of the roster comes in as an exciting presence with his breathtaking resume over the past year and the crowd here gave the junior standout a hero's welcome.  Good stuff in this match.  Some post-match brawling between Fale & Makabe also signals that Fale may finally get some time to shine solo in the coming months.

Bullet Club Def. Ibushi, Makabe & Honma after 10:37

 

Match Rating: ***1/2

Match 5: Tomohiro Ishii vs. Katsuyori Shibata

Ishii is a big hit in my household and coming off of his tremendous performance in the G1 back in August, he couldn't have been more over from where we sit.  His G1 match with Shibata was an instant classic and one of the top ten best matches of the year without a doubt so it's no secret that the expectations for this one damn near rivaled that of the Tanahashi-Okada main event.  Their previous encounter was fast paced and intense and with the white-hot crowd, it made for a Wrestlemania-esque spectacle.  This match had almost too much hype to live up to and while it suffered a bit as a result, this was still one hell of a war.  However, with the slower pace, there was a bit more storytelling in this one and I greatly enjoyed that aspect of it.  An awesome match that fell just a little bit short of it's predecessor.

Katsuyori Shibata def. Tomohiro Ishii after 15:47

 

Match Rating: ****1/4

 

Match 6: Yuji Nagata vs. Kazushi Sakuraba

I thought this was one of the most boring matches NJPW has put out the entire year.  I've enjoyed their chemistry in the past, but something about this one just wasn't clicking for me.  Can't really say much for this since I was in & out of consciousness for most of it.

Yuji Nagata def. Kazushi Sakuraba after 10:25

 

Match Rating: *

Match 7:: NEVER Openweight Championship & IWGP Heavyweight Championship #1 Contender's match: Tetsuya Naito(c) vs. Yujiro Takahashi

I have to say that I enjoyed the buildup to this one a lot more than the execution, but there is still a good bit of action here.  I think that Yujiro is amazing with his character and Naito is a capable wrestler with the occasional four star classic under his belt, but this match did nothing to further either man's current campaign for permanent main event status.  Many have knocked Naito for his lack of emotion in his work and it's hard to argue with his detractors on that front.  The guy has one primary facial expression and it's a combination of confusion and boredom that leaves most fans here in the US feeling a bit of both when watching his matches given the style that we're used to.  And if Shawn Michaels is a wrestler's target goal for emotive excellence, then Naito is the other end of the spectrum.  It's a harsh truth that even I, a supporter of Naito's have come to terms with.  If he plans on main eventing with Okada anytime soon, he'll have to be able to match him in the drama department.  And being that the guy's pretty much a shoe-in for an IWGP Heavyweight title match at Wrestle Kingdom in January, he'd better get to work.

Tetsuya Naito def. Yujiro Takahashi after 16:35

 

Match Rating: ***1/2

Match 8:: IWGP Intercontinental Championship match: Shinsuke Nakamura(c) vs. Naomichi Marufuji

Very few matches in New Japan these days epitomize the words "dream match" and "superfight" quite like this one.  I knew as soon as it was announced that it was going to be something special.  When I first began my trek into puro in 2005, it was KENTA and Marufuji that first drew me into the scene.  Both those men could have laid claim to "best in the world" status for the many of the years that followed and being that Shinsuke Nakamura has become something of a treasure in the world of wrestling, the potential MOTY buzz had hit this matchup before it even got started.  Thankfully, this one was able to live up to the immense hype it had going in.  Some of the most unique and exciting exchanges I have ever seen took place in this match and on any other event, this would have been the match of the night BY FAR.  Both men were just absolutely incredible here and I left hoping that Marufuji would somehow find his way to the New Japan main event scene for the remainder of his career just because he brings with him a whole other level of creativity that could create a world of tremendous matchups in the near future.  About 5-10 more minutes of this and we would have been talking five stars.  It was that good.  Seek this one out.

Shinsuke Nakamura def. Naomichi Marufuji after 16:18

 

Match Rating: ****1/2

MAIN EVENT::: IWGP Heavyweight Championship match:: Kazuchika Okada(c) vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi

With all the praise I've thrown at both Tanahashi & Okada and their matches together, it's hard for me to express just how transcendent both this match and rivalry has been especially when considering the current state that pro wrestling as a whole has been in.  If you've read along in my reviews of their past clashes, you would know that I think the world of these men as artists in the ring and masters of psychology.  And if you're somehow STILL not convinced amidst all the buzz surrounding them, then take what I'm about to say with even more exclamation.  This is the apex of the greatest series of matches I have ever witnessed!  I've watched Flair-Steamboat, Hart-Michaels, Angle-Benoit, Misawa-Kobashi, KENTA-Marufuji, Austin-Rock, Cena-Punk, you name it, I've seen it and IMO, nothing else compares. 

Their first match at New Beginning 2012 ended with perhaps the shocker of the year with Okada capturing his first IWGP title and ending Tanhashi's epic 404 day reign.  In their rematch at Dominion '12, they had what is perhaps their best match from a purists POV with Tanahashi evening the score and taking back what was rightfully his at the time.  At Wrestle Kingdom VII this past January, both men now on equal playing field went toe-to-toe in the main event of the biggest show of the year and delivered the sort of spectacle you should want from the main event of a show of this magnitude.  And with Tanahashi again defeating Okada, many began to wonder if the young upstart had peaked too early.  Okada would silence the critics by again defeating Tanahashi for the IWGP title at Invasion Attack in a match that I was almost certain would garner MOTY honors come year's end.  Then came the 23rd G1 Climax (which even without the fifth and tie-breaking matchup in the now legendary feud, would have still gone down as the best G1 ever) that saw both men battle it out for thirty minutes until the time limit ran out and both had nothing left in the tank.  Now dead-even at 2-2-1 and in need to settle the score once and for all, Tanahashi and Okada would meet quite possibly for the last time in the main event of this very show.

Everything is on the line here.  The IWGP Heavyweight Championship (now the most prestigious title in wrestling) is up for grabs.  The pride of having defeated your greatest rival is in the back of their minds.  This is very likely going to be the last time these two men will meet for a great while and above all else, this is the final chapter in one of the greatest books ever written.   Talk about pressure.

Recently the greatest television show of all time Breaking Bad reached it's epic climax and for once TV fans were left with a series finale that was worthy of the time invested.  As a loyal follower of the series, it was an emotionally exhausting and equally satisfying viewing experience.  This match is pro wrestling's equivalent of "Felina".  It's a beautiful match that is so masterful in the deliverance of it's message that it's likely going to go down as the defining match of New Japan's greatest era.  A benchmark for storytelling and quality of movement that leaves fans with a perfect finish.  Nothing but pure emotion in this one that reaches in and makes you feel the desperation.  Unbelievable.  I have chills while I'm typing this just remembering some of the near falls in this one and how perfectly executed they were.  My wife has only been a wrestling fan since 2010 and she damn near cried as she told me that this is now her favorite match.  Every new wrestling fan anxiously awaits such a moment.   Funny thing is, I couldn't even begin to argue.  It's a pro wrestling masterclass that is every bit worthy of all the praise it is sure to receive.  Match Of The Year!  And quite possibly the Match Of The Decade.  Because fuck, if anything in the next seven years touches this in terms of storytelling then we can all consider ourselves very lucky.  What an honor to have been a part of the ride.

 

Kazuchika Okada def. Hiroshi Tanahashi after 35:17

 

Match Rating: *****

Final Thoughts

Recently, I got an email from a reader which questioned my perceived lack of interest in doing full reviews of WWE events lately.  The reader also thanked me for introducing him to NJPW and said that he appreciates the coverage provided here.  My cousin has also met me with similar remarks.  My answer to both of them was the same.  New Japan Pro Wrestling has put out classic iPPV after classic iPPV.  And in an era when most wrestling companies struggle with creating new stars and putting forth consistent quality events, NJPW stands alone as wrestling's saving grace.  All other promotion's should follow suit.  That being said, aside from a couple weak G1 events, this was the weakest NJPW show of the year.  But the Ishii-Shibata match, Nakamura-Marufuji spectacle and the all-time classic main event make it worthwhile still.  Lackluster undercard aside, this is still better than 80% of WWE PPVs this year.  And I think that statement alone tells you the maximum level that New Japan is currently on.  All hail the king.

Overall PPV Score: 8/10