More Sportiva Twitcastings

 

Hiroaki Ura & Kazuhiro Tamura vs Michio Kageyama & Toru Sugiura (Sportiva 1/23/2019)

Sportiva could still deliver the goods in 2019. Hiroaki Ura was their young hope, and watching his progression on the weekly bar shows is very intrigueing. The first half of this is nothing special, it’s solid enough but nothing you haven’t seen before as it’s mostly the non-Ura guys doing their thing. I will say that Toru Sugiura is always an impressive wrestler, he doesn’t get talked about much but whenever I see him he looks like one of the best guys going. Things get going when they start kicking Uras ass with Sugiura working him over with nasty stomps and face scrapes. The second half had lots of really well timed stuff and unpredictable twists inculding one nearfall that was unbelievably well done. Kageyama and Tamura also gave a shit in this match so that means they were quite good. These guys really know how to deliver a good match on these tiny shows without doing too much for their own good. In an era where everything is going for the grandiose and overboarding it’s nice to see some less is more pro wrestling where they still put in effort to make it interesting.

Hiroshi Yamato vs 801 Kenichi (Sportiva 1/30/2019)

Yamato is another really underrated wrestler. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him shoot at his full potential but he always does cool stuff and shows he understands pro wrestling well. He did an impressive job crafting a neat little match around Kenichi. His technical prowress and bits of athleticism always keep things interesting and he manages to time Kenichs stuff very well. Kenichi is rather sluggish but because Yamato paced the match around him in such a way it didn’t really matter. Kenichi had one Thesz Press that actually looked awesome because of Yamato timing it as if it caught him off guard. Yamato also had this impressive sequence where he leapt to the top rope in a spider suplex position, threw Kenichi, then hit a missile dropkick and followed with a dive to the outside. It was like something Misawa in his athletic prime would do. Very nice stuff.

Hiroaki Ura vs Yusaku Ito (Sportiva 2/6/2019)

This was really fucking great. Getting to follow Uras weekly progression from tags to singles is awesome. He is still at the stage where something like a camel clutch might finish him, so just seeing him try his damndest to take a chunk out of Ito and get as far as he can go is great and a story to be invested in. Ito is awesome here, giving Ura the chance to catch him off guard. I won’t spoil too much but Itos strikes were absolutely vicious and getting into harrowing tier in the second half. He really cracked Ura with his kicks and elbows. Ura caught Ito off guard early and immediately capitalized working the leg. It didn’t last long but Ito sold the fuck out of that and it set up this awesome moment in the second half where Ura grabbed Itos leg like a terrier. It was that moment where you felt Ura started pushing beyond his limits and it was awe inspiring. The stuff they did with the basic submissions was awesome too and the way they worked them into the match was very inventive compared to your usual cliché submission reversal stuff. And because of Uras standing and Itos selling the crowd bought a tapout finish. Ending was sick too. This was a gem, one of the best rookie vs high ranked guy I remember in an awful long time.

Still Going Through Sportiva

 

Yasushi Sato vs Akito, Sportiva 11/30/2011

This is the earliest Yasushi Sato I’ve found and also his only SPORTIVA appearance so far. Sato used to work for Sportiva a lot and they livestreamed weekly events for free on USTREAM but IBM deleted all the videos when they bought USTREAM, for which IBM are forever my mortal enemies. This seems to have been filmed by a fan using his iPhone, not noticing an offical stream was going on just a few feet to the right, god bless him. The match is pretty damn great too. Yasushi Sato is a spry 45 years young here and he is the Yasushi Sato we all know and love. This was all on the mat and it was so unique and cool, both guys have a clear freestyle wrestling background and it was like watching Tamon Honda vs Tamon Honda. Most pro wrestling matwork is predictable, you have a guy in a headlock and then going through counters that you’ve already seen before, that wasn’t the case here as both guys immediately start scrambling and working calf slicers and leg rides. Sato especially has such unique ways to stretch someone, including some shoulder popping arm stretches, really an expert in entangling his opponent in weird ways. Akito was really good too, he had an absolute killer counter hold to Satos signature leg grapevine, and also dropped the old man with a reckless suplex. Finish was fucking amazing too. Really hope we get more stuff like this somehow because I can’t imagine Sato being anything less than incredible even in his early days.

 

Nori da Funky vs Shinya Ishida, Sportiva 8/1/2018

This was a match where they went all out giving everything they’ve got and it ruled. I enjoy the hell out of NORI~, and Ishida ain’t a bad wrestler at this point. Ishida handled himself well during the 70s grappling exchanges with Nori, and he did a cool job working a sleeper hold, a segment that featured a neat spot where Ishida stood on his head and bounced back as Nori tried to shake him off. He also did a good job taunting Nori and making the match personal by mocking his style, and he bumped like an absolute maniac for Noris power offense, absolutely spiking himself for Noris big boots and slams. Noris was great as ever with his Bret Hart-like straight forward approach. I enjoyed the opening grappling a lot and it lead to cool transition where Nori hit a suplex while exchanging holds, then worked over Ishidas back. Ishida may have done a wee bit too many fancy pants junior moves, but what the hell, this match was about the contrast of Ishidas style to Noris, and Ishida did work some more elaborate exchange than Noris typical opponents would allow. Second half was about Ishida unloading his fancy junior offense with Nori making awesome come backs catching him. Finish was several shades more epic than a match in Sportiva Arena should logically be but what the hell. Ishidas never did anything nonsensical and everything he did looked hurty, and Nori was great as an overwhelmed monster striking back. Great match that reminded me of something like Taue/Marufuji.

Nori da Funky & Hiroaki Ura vs Hiroshi Yamato & Michio Kageyama, Sportiva 8/15/2018

I thought this would be about a big squareoff between Nori and Yamato, but no, instead the focus of the match is wee little rookie Hiroaki Ura! And they did a mighty fine job with this match! Nori mostly plays big brother saving his partner, and Yamato and Kageyama are a really good pair of pricks beating the bricks off of Ura. There ARE some good exchanges between Nori and Yamato, though Uras role takes center stage. Ura looked really good – just the way he had to work to set up something as basic as a body slam added a lot to the match, and you end up respecting him for lasting has long as he did. Kageyama is a pretty good wrestler when he gives a shit, he leathered Ura with some really hard kicks and slaps here, and Yamato understand when he has to lay it in, really blistering Ura with chops. They also decided not to do too much beatdown and stretching and gave us an exciting second half that actually had me rooting for Ura. Very simple but well done match for what they were aiming for.

Hiroaki Ura vs Kouki Iwasaki, Sportiva 9/12/2018

This was by far the best rookie vs. higher ranked guy I’ve seen in a long time. Ura only does very basic stuff, but he gets the absolute most out of it. Most importantly, he understand how to hit his stuff in unpredictable ways. Usually these matches are super formulaic and predictable, but that wasn’t the case here. I give a lot of credit to Iwasaki, who was super giving and also really cranking up the viciousness. Ura drops Iwasaki with a gnarly body slam on the floor right away, and it’s on from the get go. Ura tries working the back but gets shut down hard by a reckless backbreaker from Iwasaki. Iwasakis kicks and knees were on point, and Ura just kept coming back in interesting ways. They got the right combination of crafty and vicious. Really really good match that achieved so much in just 10 minutes.

REAL BLOOD The Maximum 12/26/2022

 Keisuke Goto vs. Tomoki Hatano

Boxing Gloves: Raito Shimizu vs. Rocky Kawamura

Hiroshi Yamato vs. Ryo Inoue

Daisuke Kanehira vs. Shingo

Naoya Nomura & Yuma Aoyagi vs. Super Crafter U & Rikiya Fudo

Slightly disappointing card mostly because it was rather pro style and they wrestled in a ring. Opener was just a route rookie squash with Hatano getting some bits of not very impressive or spectacular token offense, and Goto hitting some fun offense but not really brutalizing Hatano enough to make it special. Shimizu vs. Kawamura didn't get much going in the first two rounds mostly because they tried to do some ill-fated grappling. It's a boxing gloves match stupid, just hit each other in the face instead of trying to tumble on the mat! The 3rd round was pretty fun though.

The best and most solid match by far was Yamato vs. Inoue. Yamato is a real workhorse and pretty much carried this match against a bland kicker with his cool submission work and suplexes. The last two matches were alright but could have been better. Shingo did some cool submissions and counters which made his match interesting while Kanehira was mailing it in. The main event was a pro style match and felt like wasted potential considering how awesome the last REAL BLOOD main event was. Fudo was cool but everyone else was pretty much going to the motions. I am gonna blame this one on a Christmas hangover. We need a real CAPTURE show again, isn't Nomura their champion or something? Please dial Kitahara.

The Library

REAL BLOOD Produce 10/3/2022

Hiroshi Yamato vs. Touki Hatano

 Hiroshi Yamato continues to get all the bookings. Hatano was on the last CAPTURE show and I've learned he's a green-ish guy from HEAT-UP. He's really not very interesting and instead of doing shootstyle they just have a rather standard indy match that has the benefit of being a bit faster paced than usual. Not much stood out but there was a nice German suplex spot at one point. Inoffensive and forgettable.

Takahiro Tababa vs. Daisuke Kanehira

This was more like it. Tababa comes in and just brutalizes Kanehira with his violent kicks. Kanehira isn't super interesting but he can take and dish it out. Nice and short at 5 minutes and they build in some cool struggle and moments. loved Tababas big hip throw. Good match!

Super Tiger II vs. Ryo Inoue

Y'know, I would think STII was pretty busted in 2022, but he did a pretty solid job carrying generic AJPW rookie Ryo Inoue to a decent match. He kept things moving, had some nice big kicks and a cool submission finish. That's a lot more than I expected going into this. Worth checking out.

Mitsuki Watase vs. Keisuke Goto

I have goodwill for both of these guys, but going about 15 minutes is too much for them at this stage. There was a will, both guys were stiff and Goto kind of did a job working over Watases mid section, but the match felt like it was done in slow motion and there was so little interesting going on. Even at 2x speed it still felt slow. I can see Goto becoming a decent Hiro Saito for the modern generation but he needs to stick to shorter matches for now.

Naoya Nomura & Super Crafter U vs. Yuma Aoyagi & Atsuki Aoyagi

The Nomura/Yuma sections were just awesome here. Both guys came in with MMA gloves and just threw down and had some fantastic heated sections were they tried to jump and beat the shit out of each other. Fantastic stuff, reminded me of the best of CAPTURE or early 2000s NJPW. The match settled down a bit after their initial exchange, Atsuki Aoyagi is a pretty boy flier and really sticks out like a sore thumb with his predictable shit in a match that started as a violent fight between two badasses. Crafter working the mat felt like Negro Navarro or Fujiwara carrying a scrub which is a very good thing. Still, the more pro-style sections had enough going for the kill and sudden shoot punches that the match stayed worthwhile. I wanted more of Nomura running wild and being crazy but they went the cheap route and had Crafter eat the fall. I really really want to see more Nomura/Aoyagi after this, which was the point of the match I guess. Yuma looked pretty good too as a big bully who will punch you in the back of the head. I assume his regular glove-less work is much less interesting. Still, he was on here, and you really need to see this match for him and Nomura killing each other.

The Library

CAPTURE International 7/20/2022

 Sanshu Tsubakichi & Hiroshi Yamato vs. Daisuke Kanehira & Touki Hatano (?)

Fun as hell CAPTURE opening match which reminded me of those FUTEN opening matches where everyone dials up the stiffness, cuts out the bullshit and gives their best. Really really dug Yamato once again, who went barefoot into this therefore accentuating his Tarzan Boy-ish feistiness and Carl Greco-like grappling more. He may have been the best guy in the match, busting out cool flash submissions, a really great belly to belly suplex where he crunched the other guys spine against the guardrail before throwing him, and he worked hard in the second half bumping his ass off on that stiff mat and throwing out another big headbutt. He also shows good timing. The other guys are obviously limited but the CAPTURE format really allows them to shine. First half had some solid shootstyle grappling and the second had everyone busting out a few cool things. Hatano is a young kickpadded HEAT-UP guy and solid grappling and trading hard blows. I liked a handful of things he did on the mat and he had good fire. Tsubakichi is a lot of fun as old veteran guy throwing cool body shots and hitting an STO, he also almost caved in a guys face with a big enzuigiri at one point. Kanehira is obviously limited but I was surprised by him busting out some pretty cool shit in the second half. This was really good, honestly and I should check out more Yamato I think.

Rikiya Fudo vs. Keisuke Goto

This is a good match up! Fudo is consistently a highlight on these CAPTURE shows brutalizing everything in his path, and Goto is pudgy and feisty. This was as enjoyable as the match up promises, Goto running into a brick wall and Fudo just trying to take his head off. Fudo may also be the best guy in the world at using his weight, his basic side choke looks like it would really crush your ribs in. Goto does one or two nifty things and the „CAPTURE matches can end at any move“ rule makes this a really fun 5 minutes.

Kazumasa Yoshida vs. Mizuki Watase

Yoshida is a BJW guy who I think replaced Kosuke Sato on this show. This was largely solid but unspectacular with a few crazy moments, these guys are hardly brilliant on the mat and don‘t quite have the true CAPTURE reckless lunacy down when standing up, their elbow exchanges felt very stale BJW-ish as they took turns hitting each other. That said there were a few great moments, especially loved Watases senton against the guardrail, as well as the crazy head drop throw. And the finish was rotten stiff. I was iffy on parts of this but the big moments here got them on my good side.

Hokuto Ohmori vs. Takahiro Tababa

Ohmori is an AJPW guy who really doesn‘t feel on the level of the other guys on this show, imagine Jun Akiyama working CAPTURE in 1998 and getting outclassed by Nihao or Basara. He‘s really nothing on the mat and kept going for misstimed rolling elbows. I enjoyed Tababa brutalizing him with a kidney-stone-crushing spin kicks and some more vicious hits to the face. Not much to see here aside from Tababas kicks and his big bump for Ohmoris falcon arrow, but even we saw that bump in the opener.

Super Crafter U & Naoya Nomura vs. Koji Doi & Kuma Arashi

This was some good big boy basement shootstyle. I imagine I probably won‘t enjoy Doi and Arashis act in a regular wrestling promotion but the CAPTURE basement shootstyle dungeon setting adds a bunch of rawness and unpredictability to make their beef boy act compelling. I was surprised Doi looked pretty good, almost Nakanishi esque, he engaged in some good heavyweight shootstyle exchanges, took punishment and dished out some insane jaw cracking elbows and lariats. Crafter U and Nomura have formed NEO BLOOD and they are such a fun unit, I continue to enjoy Crafter Us tricky grappler who can dish out punishment act, and Nomura just constantly going for the kill with his spears is insanely entertaining. Arashi looked good as a powerhouse out of his element against the shootstylist Crafter, he also had a big senton that may have been the most violent on the show. Doi catching Nomuras spear was also a really good „guy tries to bulldoze but gets caught“ spot. I‘m not sure I really want more AJPW guys to show up in CAPTURE but this was insanely effective with the simple powerhouse vs. Shooter story and the match had plenty of brutality, actually made me want to see a Doi singles match vs. Nomura or another CAPTURE guy, which I really didn‘t expect going in.

The Library

CAPTURE International 5/8/2022 Night Show

  Buy it here

1. Takahiro Tababa & Rocky Kawamura vs. Raito Shimizu & Hiroshi Yamato

Another solid 6 minute CAPTURE opener where everyone gets to look good in short bursts. I really liked how Shimizu tried to play tough guy against Kawamura and Kawamura just punched him in the face hard, that should happen more often. Tababa then came in and bruised Shimizus mid section with some crowbar kicks. Yamato looked good again, busting out another crazy headbutt and his jumping kick is a pretty cool spot.

CAPTURE Tournament Semifinal Matches:
2. Super Crafter U vs. Takuya Nomura

Short match where they basically went for the kill from the start. Crafter U has some nifty kicks for an old looking guy, and he does a nice job turning Nomuras aggression against him.

3. Rikiya Fudo vs. Naoya Nomura

This was an awesome violent sprint that felt like it could end at any moment, Nomura being the young hotness in CAPTURE facing the monster that is FUDO. Fudo may have the most violent offense on the planet , tight face-wrenching headlocks, lung-bursting chops, big Vader Hammers and lariats, an elbow drop and senton that looks like it would leave a man with internal bleeding, Fudo just doesn‘t hold back on anything and it‘s awesome. Nomura was great absorbing the punishment and trying to take him down, and seeing him reach deep and hit those left-right elbows was awesome. His selling was really good too, as even after he hit a move he could barely get up, probably both from the punishment he took and from how much power he had excerted. The match ends in a flash, but what the hell, for a 5 minute match this was insanely good.

4. Keisuke Goto & Kosuke Sato vs. Daisuke Kanehira & Mizuki Watase

For a bunch of indy guys, this was really good, really stiff action. They do a mix of fun grappling and trying to crack each others jaws with nasty elbows. The elbow exchanges were a bit veering into your turn-my turn territory but at least they hit each other insanely hard. I really enjoyed Goto once again as a tubby guy who just shoulder blocks people really hard and squishes guys with sentons, and Sato was really energetic. The HEAT UP team held up their end giving and dishing some nasty punishment. Because it‘s CAPTURE you expect any move to be a finish, and even a basic vertical suplex looks absolutely brutal because they are wrestling on that tin mat. CAPTURE magic was at play, but they did a nice job working with the points system making this really good indy shootstyle overall.

5. CAPTURE Title Tournament Finals MMA Gloves Match: Super Crafter U vs. Naoya Nomura

This tournament has been one hell of a ride, and this was a worthy finale. Super Crafter U had some nice Fujiwara-ish counters to Nomuras size and aggression. Once they stood up and threw strikes things got intense, even a main event can end anytime in CAPTURE and that was felt with each move. Spear spots felt really violent, also due to Nomuras selling as he made it look as if he was wrecking himself too. The finish was cool and felt like a moment where someone kicking away at a prone opponent backfired. I was not sure how Nomura would continue to do going into this tournament but I am on board with him at this point.

The Library

CAPTURE International 5/8/2022 Daytime Show

 Buy it here

1. Keisuke Goto & Raito Shimizu vs. Sanshu Tsubakichi & Takahiro Tababa

Nice to see my boy Shimizu work a CAPTURE show again. This was two kickpadded crowbars facing a pair of thick powerhouses and pretty fun, clearly meant to set the mood for the day. Everyone hits hard and does their thing. I continue to be invested in Keisuke Goto who has the potential to become a cool mini-Yoshie, his clubbering and big senton are really nice. Shimizu hit some big throws and Tababa and Tsubakichi hit some snug kicks, and Tsubakichi had a nice STO. The whole thing was really short at just 6 minutes too to remind everyone CAPTURE matches can end at any point, I really liked the finish as Tababa had a sleeper on Goto, who signaled for his partner to come help him only to be choked out anyways moments later. I dig a short match that puts over the sleeper hold.

2. Takuya Nomura vs. Mizuki Watase

This was pretty much your typical indy undercard match with no ring and the stiffness dialed up to 11 because it‘s CAPTURE. Solid effort but it‘s feels a bit controlled compared to your better CAPTURE affairs, they did some perfunctory matwork and then moved on to back and forth strike exchanges, which is something you see in basically every Japanese match now, but this was kept short at least and the stiffness was high. Watase brained Nomura with an absolutely murderous headbutt, but he also pissed me off a bit by no selling a German suplex on that thin mat. Violent finish. Perfectly fine short undercard as we move on to the really good stuff.

3. Super Crafter U vs. Kosuke Sato

This was much better, exactly that dungeon shootstyle goodness you are looking for and eschewing a typical by the numbers indy match structure. Sato is a BJW rookie and he has serious fight in him. Crafter U is kind of lumpy and old, nobody knows who he is and I wonder if he‘s some U-Style leftover who put on some pounds, whoever he is he is a really fun worker as he can do both the sick hard hitting as well as bust out some nifty surprise submissions and kicks. This was the right mix of guys dropping bombs on each other when standing and neat matwork, with a nifty finish.

4. Naoya Nomura vs. Hiroshi Yamato

I‘d never have expected it, but Yamato is starting to grow on me. Even though he doesn‘t have shoot style strikes, he is a really good scrambly matworker, and largely made this match. I really liked how when Nomura started to kick at Yamatos arm/shoulder, Yamato immediately seeked to equalized by attacking Nomuras leg. Yamato also uncorked another absolutely brutal headbutt. Nomura worked this match like a big powerful guy who will ram you and throw the fuck out of you, and that really works considering he has size and is a rugby guy. It also helps that a simple body slam will look absolutely devastating on that thin mat. Really good little match with a few nifty moments.

5. Rikiya Fudo vs. Rocky Kawamura

Fudo looked like a monster in this, tanking Kawamuras body shots and almost taking his head off with a huge Vader Hammer. Fudo took Kawamura down and then really grinded him into the mat, locking in a kesagatame that looked so heavy like it would make Kawamuras chest explode. Kawamura gets in an awesome desperation punch combo, but Fudo just crushes him. Once again Fudos big splash looked like it weighted 10000 kilos. This was one hell of a squash match.

 

The Library

CAPTURE International 3/23/2022

First CAPTURE show to make tape in 19 years baby! Purchase it here

Daisuke Kanehira vs. Mizuki Watase

Pretty fun opening match between two juniors with dyed hair where they dialed up the stiffness to 11 like it‘s CAPTURE or something. They did some alright grappling and then waffled each other fierce. Couple fun spots such as a nasty guardrail drop, missile dropkick off the guardrail that looked tricky and a nasty rolling senton into the guardrail. Reminds me of those short FUTEN opening matches, I'm not sure I would want to check out these guys doing HEAT-UP undercard matches but the CAPTURE factor upgrades everything.

Fuminori Abe & Sanshu Tsubakichi vs. JOHTA & Keisuke Goto

Now this is the real CAPTURE material. 4 lunatics beating each other to death in a basement and not holding back in the slightest. JOHTA is a 20 year CAPTURE veteran, he is clearly a bit flabby and old but still looks like a menacing force in his ADIDAS pants. Abe is great when he cuts out the bullshit, and he did cut out the bullshit here. Keisuke Goto is a guy who was apparently trained in a joshi dojo, and he is a fun thick guy who can eat nasty kicks and retaliate with full bodyweight dropping sentons. Tsubakichi is fun and works stiff, hitting some nice body punches. Abe/JOHTA interactions were great and I loved how Johta got in peoples faces, grabbing the referee by the scruff, he came across as tough and out of control. Some really violent kicks and headbutts and Abe trying to break his fist on JOHTAs thick skull. I really liked how Abe was cocky initially and seemed to have the upper hand only to end being left a bloody mess by JOHTA.

Boxing Gloves Match: Takahiro Tababa vs. Super Tiger II

It‘s a boxing gloves match, baby. Short but very entertaining because Tababa was in „Beat a man to death“ mode here. He just pounced on poor Tiger and proceeded to drive his fists into him without relenting. Tiger looks overwhelmed but he has some fun comebacks shutting down Tababas rage and he looked like he really wanted to end this as soon as possible. The kick he caught him with was awesome. I think this went 4 minutes which is just right.

Takuya Nomura vs. Hiroshi Yamato

Yamato is this ex-AJPW guy who seems to be trying to be the most booked man on the Japanese indies. He‘s EVERYWHERE. And to my surprise he is pretty good at working basement shootstyle. Lots of fun grappling (Yamato trained with Virus), and while Yamato isn‘t a crowbar shooter there are some moments where they stand up and try to slap the skin off of each other. Really liked Yamatos jumping kicks, he came across as a pro wrestler tightening up his act to hang with a badass. Nomura looked quite good as usual. The suplex bumps were insane considering how thin that mat looks and the KO finish looked like it sent the guy to another dimension. Good shit.

2/3 Falls: Naoya Nomura & Super Crafter U vs. Rikiya Fudo & Kosuke Sato

The best match on this great show. Crafter is a masked guy who can do some fun grappling and hit people hard. Sato is a kickpadded BJW guy with good energy. And Fudo is just an awesome crowbar. I wasn‘t sure how AJPW boy Nomura would do but he has great energy and is willing to kill and get killed. Comprise all that into a 10 minute match and you have yourself one hell of a fight. Also add 2/3 falls rule means that any move can be a finish. Fudo is so great here, standing tall and beating the life out of people with Vader Hammers, shoot headbutts and the most violent splashes on earth. His sumo charge that bounced the other guy into the guardrail was also fantastic. All the Fudo/Nomura exchanges were damn great. I loved that Nomura is this guy who was primed to become an AJPW main eventer and Fudo just doesn't give a fuck at all and beats him like a dog. Nomura kept hitting these great spears. I really liked how when Fudo faced the other guy, Crafter just gave him some leg kicks and tagged out, I can understand not wanting to deal with that dude. Last fall was super intense and energetic with guys catching hands, eating sick headbutts and trying to tap each other out. Pro wrestling is good again.

The Library

BATOS CAFE 2/23/2020

 Manabu Hara vs. Onryo

It's BattlARTS vs. WYF baby! Just 20 years late! Onryo in his broken down old age has become a good little worker and this was a ton of fun. Opening grappling where Onryos radiation dust kept annoying Hara was really fun, and Onryo produced a nice highlight when he caught Hara in a neat pin combo. They made it clear the ghost wasn't on Haras level as a grappler but he could do hang on and maybe do something ghostly to catch the shooter. Onryo controlling by working Haras leg was a bit trite and didn't mean much. The finishin stretch on the other hand was made fun by Onryo busting out some surprisingly slick moves while Hara just tried to armbar the zombie. Satisfying match up.

SUSHI vs. Kagura

Kagura is some sleaze junior in a cheap skull mask. He seems to be decently athletic. This was a slow junior match and kind of trite. They really needed to work some decent basic opening exchanges or something. SUSHI I think has worked AJPW but he really doesn't show much at all here, and he was supposed to be the face, Kagura did all the somewhat cool things. Crap finish too.

Yasu Urano vs. Hiroshi Yamato

Wow! Surprisingly fun match. Is matwork becoming trendy on the Japanese indies now or something? I'm here for it. They honest to god did some pretty good matwork here. Urano had these neat leg stretches and takeovers and looked like he should be with the Mumejuku crew. There was also a sequence of duelling strait jacket holds that was straight out of WoS. Yamamoto looked pretty decent. They also went into a sequence of armdrags at one point that felt honest to god spontaneous and cool. The finish wasn't as exciting as they went for comedy for some reason. Still, I probably should watch more of these guys.

Yuki Ishikawa vs. GENTARO

This was all grappling, if you can get into match that is all matwork you will like this. Honestly thought the grappling here was up there with Yuki Ishikawa vs. Carl Greco. Ishikawa is a bonafide master at this stage, and GENTARO is really tenacious and matches him. They make no secret that Ishikawa is dictating things with all the awesome and unusual stuff he was doing, which makes the match. GENTARO doesn’t get to grapple often but he’s really good at it. He kept locking in hammerlocks and short arm scissors from odd angles and it made it feel like Ishikawa was facing a 50s grappler. Several amazing moments (the painful leglock battle, all the choke attempts including GENTAROs sleeper, the leglock/head and arm choke battle, the ending) and Ishikawa honestly looked like the GOAT.

Yuiga vs. Rion Mizuki vs. Tatsuhito Takaiwa vs. Minoru Tanaka

On a show full of serious undercard matches, they do a weird 4 way dance where they break every other minute to drink shots. Some solid individual exchanges here, especially dig Yuiga who's such a crowbar, but everyone just did their bread and butter and you can imagine there wasn't much depth with the stipulation. I would've rather seen this run as a tag as I imagine Yuiga and pretty boy Mizuki vs. the junior vets would've been pretty cool.

THE LIBRARY