Finally, I have finished the years 2000, 2001, and 2002 for the Best in Japan in the '00s project. At first, I was pleasantly surprised with the overall quality of the matches. The 00s were not a critically acclaimed period in Japan. However, when I was reviewing everything I had watched two things dawned on me that dampened my feelings.
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| FOUR! |
Number two was this past year in WWE, we had probably seven or eight matches I rank ****1/2 stars or higher. Across three promotions in three years, only 5 matches made that mark for me. Yes, WWE had a stellar year last year in terms of in-ring quality, but in-ring quality is supposed to be Japan's bread and butter. While, I would the year 2000 and say it stacks up pretty well to 2013 WWE (it hit higher highs) after that it is a sad state of affairs.
This should not be a total doom and gloom column. We are the celebrating the best of the best. We are celebrating Masa Fuchi standing on people's heads; Toshiaki Kawada having one last great year and cranking out 5 **** star matches in 2000; Keiji Mutoh reborn with an obession of dismantling people's knees; Genichiro Tenryu punking out youngsters with punches; Minoru's cross-armbreaker; Akiyama's ascent as the fifth pillar of heaven. It may not be 1995 anymore, but there is still plenty of good to be found.
Without any further adieu here is the best of 2000-2002 in Japan:
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| I'll never get tired of Fuchi standing people's head |
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1. Mitsuharu Misawa vs Jun Akiyama - Budokan 02/27/00
2. All Japan Triple Crown Champion Kenta Kobashi vs Yoshihiro Takayama - All Japan 05/26/00
3. All Japan Triple Crown Champion Genichiro Tenryu vs Keiji Mutoh - Budokan 6/8/01
4. Toshiaki Kawada & Masa Fuchi vs Yuji Nagata & Takashi Iizuka - NJ PPV 12/14/00
5. GHC Heavyweight Champion Yoshinari Ogawa vs Yoshihiro Takayama - NOAH 9/7/02
6. Kenta Kobashi vs Jun Akiyama - Budokan 12/23/00
7. IWGP Jr Hvywt Tag Champs Ohtani & Takaiwa vs Kanemoto & Minoru - NJPW 6/25/00
8. IWGP Champion Kensuke Sasaki vs Toshiaki Kawada - 10/00 Tokyo Dome Non-Title
9. Keiji Mutoh vs Toshiaki Kawada - Champions Carnival 04/01
10. IWGP Jr Heavyweight Champion Minoru Tanaka vs Takehiro Murahama - NJPW 4/20/01
11. Shinya Hashimoto & Takashi Iizuka vs Naoya Ogawa & Kazunari Murkami - Tokyo Dome 01/04/00
12. Shinya Hashimoto & Yuji Nagata vs Mitsuharu Misawa & Jun Akiyama - Zero-One 3/2/01
13. Genichiro Tenryu & Masa Fuchi vs Toshiaki Kawada & Nobutaka Araya - AJPW 6/30/01
14. Kenta Kobashi vs Takao Omori - Champions Carnival Final '00
15. GHC Heavyweight Champion Mitsuharu Misawa vs Akira Taue - Budokan 5/01
15. GHC Champion Mitsuharu Misawa vs Jun Akiyama - Budokan 07/27/01
16. New Japan (Liger & Minoru ) vs. NOAH (Kikuchi & Kanemaru) - NOAH 4/7/02
17. GHC Tag Champions Akiyama & Saito vs Kobashi & Shiga - NOAH 10/19/02
18. Toshiaki Kawada & Genichiro Tenryu vs Stan Hansen & Taiyo Kea - Budokan 07/23/00
19. IWGP Heavyweight Champion Genichiro Tenryu vs Kensuke Sasaki - 01/04/00
20. Genichiro Tenryu vs Toshiaki Kawada - Vacant All Japan Triple Crown 10/28/00
21. Kensuke Sasaki vs Toshiaki Kawada - IWGP Championship FINALS Tokyo Dome 01/04/01
22. Kenta Kobashi & Akira Taue vs Jun Akiyama & Vader - NOAH 1/13/01
23. Mitsuharu Misawa vs Toshiaki Kawada - Champions Carnival '00
24. Kenta Kobashi vs Jun Akiyama - NOAH #2 08/06/00
Match of the Year, 2000:
Mitsuharu Misawa vs Jun Akiyama - Budokan 02/27/00
Match of the Year, 2001:
All Japan Triple Crown Champion Genichiro Tenryu vs Keiji Mutoh - Budokan 6/8/01
Match of the Year, 2002:
GHC Heavyweight Champion Yoshinari Ogawa vs Yoshihiro Takayama - NOAH 9/7/02
Match of the Year (2000-2002), New Japan Pro Wrestling:
Toshiaki Kawada & Masa Fuchi vs Yuji Nagata & Takashi Iizuka - NJ PPV 12/14/00
Match of the Year (2000), Pre-Split All Japan Pro Wrestling:
Mitsuharu Misawa vs Jun Akiyama - Budokan 02/27/00
Match of the Year (2000-2002), Post-Split All Japan Pro Wrestling:
All Japan Triple Crown Champion Genichiro Tenryu vs Keiji Mutoh - Budokan 6/8/01
Match of the Year (2000-2002), Pro Wrestling NOAH:
Kenta Kobashi vs Jun Akiyama - Budokan 12/23/00
Match of the Year (2000-2002), Junior Heavyweight Division:
IWGP Jr Heavyweight Tag Champs Shinjiro Ohtani & Tatsuhito Takaiwa vs Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka - NJPW 6/25/00
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| Japan #1 |
Jun Akiyama vs Mitsuharu Misawa - Budokan 2/27/00
After this match, Akiyama was paid, laid and made. This was not a passing of a torch. Akiyama was out to seize that torch on that night and Misawa was going to fight every single step of the way to keep it. The proof is in the pudding: watch Akiyama's head snap back on one of Misawa's transition elbows in the corner or the knee drop Misawa drops on Akiyama's nose that draws blood. When I saw that knee, I was like "Holy fuck, I think he just broke his nose" and when Akiyama came up then was blood. Akiyama gave as he good as he got. As soon as, he was given a weakness (Akiyama drove Misawa to the mat on an attempted reverse cross body and Misawa came up holding his neck) and he went after Misawa's neck (yes given the circumstances now that can be uncomfortable) with a tenacity rarely seen. I am a drop toehold mark. In this match, I think I saw the greatest drop toehold of all time, when Akiyama applied a drop toehold onto Misawa into the railing. Thus match developed into one of the all-time classic Misawa matches with Misawa working underneath while Akiyama strung together one of the greatest offensive runs of all time. The whole time because of the credibility of Misawa's comeback and Misawa's elbow going all the way back to 1990 you never once think he is outta of it until he is shockingly out of it.
They are a bit tentative to start and they actually dive out of the way each of the other's moves before Misawa hits a dropkick sending him out of the ring. Akiyama, knowing Misawa too well, moves out of the way so Misawa stops himself on the apron and hits his diving elbow onto Akiyama. Misawa hits some absolutely wicked elbows on Akiyama in the corner to establish him dominance as THE ACE. However, Akiyama side-stepped a Misawa reverse cross body and drove him to the mat. Misawa comes up holding his neck and the complexion of the match totally changes. Akiyama hits a jumping knee to send Misawa out to the ring. Misawa whips Akiyama into the railing, but Akiyama side-steps him and hits the most wicked drop toehold into railing. He drops Misawa onto the railing throat first and while he is hanging there he hits him with a knee from the apron. Then he hits a knee while Misawa is hanging on the apron, then a piledriver onto the floor and then a friggin' wrist-clutch exploder on the apron. This was a holy shit string of moves all focused on the neck. Akiyama wrangled him into a cool neck submission with grapevining his legs in such a way to apply pressure on Misawa's neck.
Misawa backs him into the corner and hits an absolute monster back elbow and then a springboard dropkick to face. This is a wake up call to Akiyama that there is a reason Misawa is known as one of the most resilient wrestler ever. Misawa hits his front facelock the announcer sells it like it is 1992, but it is 2000 and the crowd does not really buy it. I will say it still looks tenacious as all hell. The crowd just was not buying it as a possible finish. Akiyama dropkicks Misawa off the top rope, hits a running knee off the apron, knee to the back into railing, tombstone piledriver in the ring and finishes this run off with a huge diving elbow to Misawa's neck while he is in the ring and an Exploder. He still can only get a 2.
Misawa gets out of a neck submission to hit his spinkick and drop a nasty knee to Akiyama's nose that draws blood. Misawa's frogsplash gets 2. Misawa runs of his impressive offense: two Germans and a Tiger Driver. Misawa hits a roaring elbow, but just phases Akiyama who hits two Exploders. On the second exploder, Misawa fumbles around before falling looking oddly like arch-rival, Toshiaki Kawada. Could the Kid actually pull it off? Akiyama hits a running knee to Misawa's face and then an exploder for 2. He hits a brainbuster for two. Finally hits the mother of all wrist-clutch exploders dropping Misawa on his head to win at that point the biggest of match of his career in grandiose fashion.
This match reminds me so much of The Dark Knight in how it is perfect confluence of the superficial with meaning. What makes the Dark Knight so great is there is enough fireworks and eye candy to appeal to our audiovisual senses, but all rooted in a beautifully woven story. It appeals to pretty much facet of humanity, much like this match. You have the story of the young upstart looking to dethrone warrior-king by attacking his neck ruthlessly and violently. The old warrior-king has plenty of fight left in him, but eventually he overcome by the surmounting pain and the indefatigable resolve of the young upstart. On top of that, this is one of best offensive spectacles to ever be produced. Akiyama does a tremendous job of never letting up just zeroing in when Misawa is coming back he does not stop coming forward. Misawa is one of the ultimate underneath workers in this match he gives Akiyama even more offense than he would usual, which shows how much he trusted him at this point. After that second Exploder, when Misawa tried to get up and just fell back down you flashed back to all the times it had happened to Kawada and it was Misawa standing tall. The grand finale was a vicious head-drop wrist clutch exploder. Akiyama respected Misawa enough to know that he had to have no remorse if he wanted to take his place in the run. *****
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IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Champions Shinjiro Ohtani & Tatsuhito Takiwa vs.
Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka - New Japan Summer Struggle 6/25/00
The next time a hot chick asks me in a club the two guys I would least want to wrestle I have my answer "Shinjiro Ohtanu and Tatsuhito Takaiwa". Holy shit were their strikes gnarly. That is how you fuckin heel yourself with stiff offense. I was feeling bad for Kanemoto & Minoru just because these ornery hombres were trying to fuckin kill them. I very rarely root for wrestlers in puroresu, but I was pulling for Kanemoto & Minoru big time.
Early on the game plan for Ohtani and Takaiwa was trap their opponent in a corner and just slap, claw and punch the shit out of them. It was a violent mugging in those corner.s When Ohtani first came in and he just started punching Kanemoto in the head, it just set the tone: Kanemoto and Minoru were going to have survive. Minoru & Kanemoto has faces these bad muthafuckas before they knew they had to use movement and submissions. When they got a chance, Kanemoto yanked their noses, but they just incited them further Takaiwa yanked on his. Takaiwa gives the biggest slap I have ever seen to Kanemoto. It has to be seen. Ohtani says you thought that was a slap and slaps him even harder. Kanemoto somehow fires up and hits a true axe kick on Ohtani to tag in Minoru. Minoru goes for his bread and butter: the cross armbreaker, but Ohtani makes the ropes. I love the part where Kanemoto has a slight advantage and tells Minoru to get his ass in because it shows how much in survival mode they are. Usually, tag rules are loose enough that people make saves at will, but rarely does a team double team when on offense just really puts over the story of this match. Minoru goes for a cross armbreaker again, but Takaiwa is NOT HUMAN and powerbombs him onto the ropes. It really felt like a scene out of a slasher flick. They can't keep these psychopaths down. Ohtani dropkicks Minoru in the head twice while hanging in the tree of woe and makes sure to taunt Kanemoto each time. Minoru & Kanemoto return the favor on Ohtani only they dropkick him in the balls while in the tree of woe. I friggin love this match. The finish stretch is one of the hottest I have ever seen.
Ohtani regains controls with a wicked eyerake and then low and high facewashes in the corner on Kanemoto. Kanemoto no-sells hits his weird flippy move and goes for his moonsault, but no one home. Takaiwa hits a lariat and Ohtani with a springboard dropkick on Minoru. However, it is overhead belly to bellys for everyone courtesy of Kanemoto. Kanemoto goes for a top rope frankensteiner and Ohtani holds on and he takes a nasty spill. They tease the Doomsday Device, but Minoru breaks up with dropkick. Takaiwa hits his death valley driver, but Kanemoto hits a dragon leg screw and Ohtani saves his partner. Minoru is a little quicker than the older Ohtani and applies a heel hook. Kanemoto and Takaiwa eye each other while Ohtani is squirming for the ropes. After all the punishment Ohtani has dished out to see him doing his temper tantrum selling makes you want to see Minoru kick his bratty ass even more. Ohtani is on jelly legs, but hits his Dragon Suplex for two. Ohtani blocks Minoru's superkick and hits two massive powerbombs one of each of his opponents. He threw them down! Ohtani hits a massive palm strike and goes for it again, but Kanemoto pushed Minoru out of the way and hits an overhead belly to belly on Ohtani. Minoru hits a springboard dropkick to back of Ohtani's head then follows up with the Dragon suplex and the cross armbreaker for the immediate submission.
This match is for stiffness marks everywhere. The beginning of the match is almost uncomfortable to watch with how badly they are kicking the shit out of each other. Then not to be outdone the last 5 minutes or so is absolutely crazy action with bodies flying everywhere. Ohtani & Takaiwa are trying to get the Doomsday Device going and stiffing the shit out of their opponents. Kanemoto and Minoru are trying to survive with movement and flash submissions. Best juniors match of 2000-2002 ****1/4
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Toshiaki Kawada & Masa Fuchi vs Yuji Nagata & Takashi Iizuka - New Japan PPV 12/14/00
New Japan vs All Japan delivers another classic in this tag match pitting the 2000 G-1 Tag League Winners against the All Japan stalwarts. Nagata & Iizuka come out with Sasaki and Liger immediately this match has a big fight feel. At first, Fuchi cowers away from the younger, Iizuka using the ropes to his advantage. I have never seen Iizuka match and just know him as the dude that the Steiners took liberties with at Wrestlewar '92. He has a predilection for the sleeper. Nagata tags in and brings the fight to Fuchi, who tags out to Kawada. Kawada and Nagata duke it out on the mat in a very gritty exchange. Kawada, cocky as ever, goes for hamstring stretches so Nagata kicks him in the face. The ref admonishes Nagata allowing Kawada to retaliate with a kick to the face of his own. We leave this exchange feeling both are equals. Fuchi mans up and hits a kneecrusher on Iizuka and transformed into the cockiest bastard ever. He lays Iizuka on the middle turnbuckles where he stands on Iizuka's neck and legs. Kawada puts him in a half-crab, which in typical Kawada fashion involves him stepping in his head and nearly breaking him in half. Fuchi gets in on the action by standing on Iizuka's head with the look that says "What the fuck are you going to do about it, Nagata?" Fuchi puts Iizuka in the half-crab so Nagata lights him up. This gives Kawada the chance to floor him with a jumping kick.
So now Kawada and Fuchi take turns beating the shit out of Nagata on the floor while the other keeps Iizuka at bay. That's fuckin bitchin' tag wrestling. The crowd is behind Iizuka and I love how you see Sasaki urging Nagata on while he is fallen in the corner. Nagata tries to interfere, but just collapses. You really get the feeling what is one the line here. It is New Japan versus All Japan and New Japan lost the first battle when Kawada beat their champion. Iizuka is able to hit a suplex on Fuchi and he grabs a sleeper on him. Kawada breaks it up, but Fuchi falls outside the ring. While Kawada is checking on Fuchi, Iizuka tags Nagata. I loved that sequence so much. Kawada knows he is in enemy territory and cant afford to lose Fuchi.
Nagata tells Kawada to bring it, don't sing it. Kawada hits a big boot and lariat for two. Kawada goes for the back drop driver, but Nagata gets some jumping high kicks to rock him. Kawada is just masterful at selling these. Nagata gets a German, but Kawada hits his spinning heel kick. Kawada hits the back drop driver, but only gets two. Liger cheers the kick out. This is such a cool atmosphere. Kawada applies the stretch plum and the crowd seems very nervous that All Japan will go over again. Kawada with a boot to Iizuka and goes for the powerbomb, but Nagata blocks and kicks Kawada's knee, an eye for an eye. Nagata applies the Nagatalock. Fuchi, remember that badass mutha, staggers in and breaks it up. However, both the All Japan boys end up in leg submissions. Kawada punches Iizuka in the head to make the ropes. When Fuchi is released, he collapses in the corner looking for a tag even though his not legal and Kawada is not there. I need to watch more Fuchi because after being the cockiest bastard ever he is selling like a million bucks. Not to be outdone, Kawada keeps collapsing on German suplex attempts before doing a jumping kick out of it.
Kawada tags the limping Fuchi. Fuchi dropkicks Iizuka's knee hoping to regain that advantage. He hits two back drop drivers on Iizuka. Fuchi grabs his own sleeper on Iizuka to give him a taste of his own medicine. Kawada stretch plum on Nagata and Fuchi switches to stretch plum. I love mirror spots! I don't know Japanese, but it sounds like the time calls are getting closer together. Iizuka and Fuchi knock heads on a criss cross exchange. One last Kawada/Nagata exchange and they rip into each other with vicious face slaps. Nagata ends up gets the better of it and applies a cross-armbreaker. Fuchi stands on Nagata's head to break it up as the time limit expires. WHAT A WAR!
First, my new dream team is Masa Fuchi and Tony Atlas. Whenever, Atlas played FIP they could have had Fuchi walk on him to revitalize him. :) Seriously, this was a fantastic that used everybody to their best potential. They highlighted the Kawada/Nagata showdowns in such a way they came off as a big deal, but without feeling like we did not see any action. Fuchi's work in this was excellent and I really need to watch more of his stuff. I loved the Iizuka FIP, which actually became a double FIP where both Iizuka and Nagata were in peril. That was some really ingenious booking. It is the type of stuff you only get to see in puro tags. The finish was great with Kawada and Nagata trading stuff in a logical, violent fashion. I loved Fuchi's and Kawada's selling at the end. It really took the match to whole new level. The ending with Nagata and Kawada slapping the fuck each other in a race against the clock was so dramatic. It just had to end as a draw. ****1/2
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| Burning vs Sterness |
Jun Akiyama vs Kenta Kobashi - NOAH #4 PPV 12/23/00
The story of Akiyama's two monumental victories is focus, focus, focus. Take what it is given to you and don't let up. Weather the inevitable comeback and unleash a barrage of Exploders to win. In this match, he has three things working against him: he falls into an early hole, Kobashi's half-nelson suplex levels the playing field in the middle and then pride at the end. In the previous matches, Misawa's elbow and Kobashi's lariats and suplexes were rendered powerless by Akiyama's tenacious work. In this match, Kobashi shows tremendous fighting spirit in working through his arm injury to hit a half-nelson suplex to knock Akiyama out. Akiyama is able to recover from this, but when he had Kobashi knocked out on the outside after an Exploder instead of taking the victory he wanted the decisive victory. Thus was the great, long fall of Akiyama from the top rope onto the back of his head.
Kobashi is ripshit to start the match and is lighting Akiyama up. Akiyama vacillates between retreat and standing tall with neither working. On the outside, he is able to use Kobashi's overzealousness against him ducking out of the way of a chop. He drops him across the railing and Kobashi is really selling the cheat. As a viewer, I thought this was clearly the opening Akiyama would exploit. However, Akiyama deviates and instead goes high-risk on the ramp hitting a DDT on the ramp and a running elbow (ala Mutoh). He looks to end it early with an Exploder, but Kobashi plants him with a DDT on the edge of the ramp. Akiyama deviating from the gameplan did not work out too well. Instead, Kobashi takes a page out of Akiyama's playbook and is absolutely relentless on Akiyama's neck. It really climaxes when Akiyama goes for his knee in the corner and Kobashi throws him down. Akiyama really sells that neck making you believe Kobashi had turned the tables on Akiyama. I actually believed I could buy Kobashi's headlock as the finish after the neck work and Akiyama selling and how tenacious this headlock was.
In a callback to the August match, Akiyama saves himself with two desperation dropkick to Kobashi's knee. Different day, same story? Not so fast, Akiyama drops a boot on Kobashi's arm from the apron and drives his knee into Kobashi arm riding into the railing. Akiyama is looking to take away the Burning Lariat and the lethal chops of Kobashi. The following arm work is so textbook, but so well-done with Akiyama using everything available (ropes, post, railing, his own shoulder) to hit to inflict damage on the arm. Kobashi makes you believe that arm is totally useless, but just when end seems near he snaps off a sleeper suplex. Kobashi continues to sell the arm, but hits a half-nelson suplex on Akiyama that knocks him the fuck out. That is not something Akiyama had to weather in his previous victories. Kobashi is still injured, but in a lot of ways the entire playing field had been levelled. Kobashi, ever the sportsman, stops the ref's count and drags Akiyama back into the ring. Kobashi still sells the arm doing moves like the powerbomb and the lariat. You believe it is arm that is allowing Akiyama to kick out because those moves don't have their usual power behind them.
Kobashi goes for a move that does not use the arm: the moonsault. However, Akiyama gets up to powerbomb him off the top rope. It is even stevens. It really feels like it is a tied ball game going into sudden death overtime at this point. Akiyama goes for the kill with the exploder on the apron, but they both jump off the apron. Akiyama is able to hit an Exploder on the exposed concrete and he is fuckin out. Now, Akiyama stops the ref's count to drag Kobashi back into the ring. In Akiyama's mind, a pinfall the ring must mean effacing all doubts and securing his place in the Sun. He hits a double-arm DDT, a diving elbow to the back of Kobashi's head and then a exploder, but only gets two. Akiyama goes for his choke, but they get wrapped up in the ropes. There is a great struggle over the wrist-clutch exploder where you actually feel bad that Kobashi is about to be hit with this move. Then Kobashi kicks out! So Akiyama figures the only thing more he can do is hit the Exploder off of a higher place. Kobashi still has enough struggle in him to send Akiyama crashing onto the back of his head. Kobashi just collapses onto the mat in a great visual. Kobashi hits three lariats, but he knows what he must do. Akiyama puts up a perfunctory struggle before the inevitable BURNING HAMMER~! Both men shake hands and all is right in the Kingdom of NOAH.
At 35+ minutes, this match continues the lineage of dramatic, epic Kings Road matches. I loved the symmetry of both men having the other knocked out at different points, but wanting to finish it in the ring. I liked the callbacks to their previous encounters. I do think this match is a little overly self-indulgent and could have benefited from trimming. There is plenty of gratuitous suplexes and such that left off because I did not want to write a novel about this match and because I thought they were insignificant. I am strong believer moves like that should not be. In the February 2000 classic with Misawa, there were no wasted moves. Still, it showcased Akiyama and Kobashi at their finest with Akiyama working the arm over and Kobashi fighting through it. There is no slight in not being as good as that Misawa/Akiyama 2000 match. It was a great, great blowoff match and excellent example of both men's resumes. ****1/2
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All Japan Triple Crown Champion Genichiro Tenryu vs Keiji Mutoh - Budokan 6/8/01
Slow and steady wins the race. One wrestling cliche that I feel is misappropriated for many wrestlers is "no wasted motion". In this match, there was no wasted motion. Every single move mattered, was milked and was given time to breathe. At one point, I popped for a dropkick to the knee like it was a frigging Burning Hammer. That is pro wrestling. On the surface, this match is about Mutoh's hyper-focused strategy: the knee, the knee, the knee and Tenryu's consequent retaliation. However, perhaps buried in this match is Tenryu's masterful performance working underneath and selling Shining Wizard from the first minute of the match to the transition to finish. That is pro wrestling. Mutoh comes out all guns blazing and is looking to end it early. Tenryu, off-guard, catches Mutoh's foot who uses it as a step stool to hit a Shining Wizard. He hits his backbreaker, but Tenryu powders before the impending moonsault. The headshot Tenryu suffers prevents him from mounting pretty much any offense in the first ten minutes of the match. When Tenryu is able to string together three moves punctuated with a powerbomb, Mutoh hits a kappo kick to the head sending him reeling to the outside. Mutoh follows up with a plancha and his knees strike Tenryu's head. When Tenryu is climbing back into the ring, Mutoh pounces at the opportunity with two dropkicks to the knee. A desperate Tenryu hits a brainbuster on the apron and a diving elbow through the middle ropes. That is the price you pay for the All Japan Triple Crown. Unfortunately, It is too little too late as Mutoh grabs his leg and dragon leg screws him off the apron and immediately hits a dropkcik from the apron to the knee. Tenryu does his best to try avoid Mutoh's relentless onslaught on the knees, but ends up in the figure-4. After a rope break, Tenryu lands a punch, then a dragon leg screw and then the Ultimate FUCK YOU Dropkick to the knee. I have never popped so hard for a dropkick to the knee. After all the NOAH matches with their constant strike exchanges, we get a shot basement dropkick exchange, which is bitchin'. Tenryu wins with a dragon leg screw and he get his own figure-4. He applies a Texas Cloverleaf, but his knee gives out. Tenryu, feeling in control now, is comfortable to start hitting his big bombs to put away Mutoh. SPIDER GERMAN~! and falling reverse elbow (a combo someone has to crib) get two. Mutoh gets his hope spot with an out of nowhere Frankensteiner. Tenryu blocks the follow-up Shining Wizard. He hits a brainbuster for two. Frustrated, he hits a top rope Frankensteiner for two. He goes back to the well one more time with the brainbuster and eats a knee to the head. He just collapses calling back to the initial Shining Wizard at the outset of the match. They square off once more, but Mutoh hits a bicycle kick and you can feel the end is nigh for Mr. Puroresu. Mutoh hits two Shining Wizards, but neither puts him down for three. Mutoh hits his trademark backbreaker/Moonsault combo to win the Triple Crown and become only the third wrestler to have won both the IWGP Heavyweigh Title and Triple Crown title (Vader and Genichiro Tenryu are the other two who preceded him). ****3/4 (I am not a huge fan of star ratings, but I need something to keep track of all these matches. With that said, I could see me giving this five stars)
Mutoh and Tenryu delivered near perfect individual performances that intertwined to deliver one of the best matches I have seen from 00s Puroresu. Tenryu gave one of the best resilient, sympathetic underneath performances ever. Mutoh was on point with every transition making sense, his strategy was worked to a tee, and he sold well. The whole match Tenryu was hitting home run shots because Mutoh got him off-balance early and even though he recovered by giving Mutoh a taste of his own medicine. Mutoh was able to hit him in the head twice to finally set up for the finish stretch and still Tenryu did not go down without taking 2 Shining Wizards and a moonsault. The only criticism (you have to nitpick when you are trying to determine the best match of the decade) is that it is worked on the slow-side with lots of downtime. I can see other NOAH matches when put together as well as this plus the pace they work edging this out. I think this is a definite MOTDC.
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| Mr. Puroresu vs Shining Wizard |
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GHC Heavyweight Champion Yoshinari Ogawa vs Yoshihiro Takayama - NOAH 9/7/02
Yoshinari Ogawa's tights say GHC Champ. Automatic 5 Stars!!! Hands down the best match of 2002 with Takayama and Ogawa just tearing it up in one of the best heel vs heel match that I have ever seen. Ogawa and Takayama have been the two best heels in Japan in the 2000s, but heel vs heel is even harder than face vs. face. I would say heel vs heel was the root cause of the relatively quiet crowd until the hot finish. They make it work because a monster bully can make even the most snot nosed punk an undersized underdog and the most snot nosed punk can make even the biggest bully an asskicking giant. Much like Hart/Diesel Survivor Series '95 (albeit that's a face v face match), I thought Takayama/Ogawa did a good job trading roles within the match.
The hooks of the match are Takayama underestimating Ogawa and Ogawa looking for any opening to exploit. Ogawa starts hot with a roll-up (where Ogawa actually sold his arm because Takayama is so heavy) and an eye poke/shoulder knockdown, but then goes totally flying on the kick out. Takayama begins to kick the shit out of Ogawa because Ogawa is not a tough badass we get some really fun selling. Takayama steps Ogawa's face and does the one foot cover. You actually feel a bit of sympathy for the little punk. Then you remember he is such a little snot when Takayama big boot goes over the top rope and puts Takayama in the tree of woe. When the ref tries to hold Ogawa back and Ogawa pushes him off, it is not the usual heel trying to be more violent, it is that Ogawa knows this is now or never. Ogawa makes the most of it and wrenches the arm across the post. Ring-assisted figure-4 armlock, Ogawa is God! Ogawa is hyper focused on arm and Takayama is still using his size to struggle, but Ogawa is leveraging this is as his one advantage. Every time Takayama seems like he is about to destroy Ogawa, but Ogawa always gets out. Takayama lifts him out of short arm scissors, Ogawa rolls through into another one. Takayama looks to send him into the railing, but Ogawa sends him arm first into the post. Takayama looks to take off Ogawa's head, but Ogawa gets drop toehold into the post. Ogawa back drop driver onto floor. YES! YES! YES! Crowd gives the biggest pop when Takayama gets back in the ring at 19 and Ogawa lets out a nice, big "SHIT!". Ogawa has turned Takayama babyface, BABY!
Ogawa rattles off a bunch of back drop drivers and one after another Takayama kicks out. You know it is coming. You know it is coming. BAM! KNEE LIFT AND OGAWA GOES FLYING! Ogawa actually kicks out of the first Everest Suplex. Ogawa counters with a barrage of roll-ups, which are actually over because it is Ogawa. Ogawa goes for a small package and Takayama stands tall and slams him in a wicked cool spot. Everest Suplex and Takayama wins the GHC Title!
I had been so down in 2002, just turns out I was not watching the correct matches because this was all types of awesome. Ogawa just embodies Rat Boy so well. The way he can just slip out of each situation and his heat segments are some of the best since 2000 because there is no guy you want to see get his ass kicked. He just kept getting out of each situation. Then he gets the countout finish. It keeps building and building, you get that knee lift just like the Kobashi bloodied up Ogawa. Then you get a nice compact finish run Takayama needs a bomb or two and Ogawa tries to hold on by the skin of his teeth with roll ups. The only reason this does not go on higher is because Takayama as such a natural heel just is not as good as the ultimate babyface Kobashi steamrolling Ogawa so that is why it is a level less, but an easy 2002 Match of the Year and gives 2002 a Match of the Year on the level of the years. Watch this match! ****1/2
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