2010: A Wrestling Watching Odyssey

So I've had a inconsistent year watching professional wrestling, owing mostly to me coming to the end of my doctorate. The end result of this is not exactly the amount of wrestling watching required to form splendid end of year opinions, and a nearly completed doctorate. So, I have February to do something about that. Each day of this month I will update this blog with comments about matches I've watched and workers I'd consider for the WKO100 ballot. I've got some half finished reviews to throw up as well.

So expect content, followed by panic, despair, some jokes (basically a coping mechanism), stupid post titles, and finally, when all else looks lost, a moment of clarity. Then I'll probably get drunk and write out a list full of whimsy (dead guys, celebrities, women, inanimate objects, Dragon Gate guys, in increasing order of whimsy).

Craig's Puro matches of the year 2009

The DVDVR poll is finished, here's my final top 20 for 2009:

1. Kenou vs. Fujita "Jr" Hayato, (M-Pro, September 5th)
2. Koji Kanemoto vs. Hayato "Jr" Fujita (New Japan, December 19th)
3. Daisuke Ikeda & Takeshi Ono vs Takahiro Ohba & Manabu Suruga (FUTEN, April 9th)
4. Yuko Miyamoto & Takeshi Sasaki vs Isami Kodaka & Mashashi Takeda, (Big Japan, March 26th)
5. Fujita "Jr" Hayato vs. The Great Sasuke (June 19th, M-Pro)
6. Alexander Otsuka vs. Yujiro Yamamoto (BattlArts, February 15th)
7. Kenou vs. Fujita "Jr" Hayato, (M-Pro, December 12th)
8. Super Tiger II vs Katsumi Usuda (Battlarts, August 30th)
9. Yoshihiro Takayama vs Satoshi Kojima (AJPW, September 26th)
10. Munenori Sawa vs Yujiro Yamamoto (Battlarts, August 30th)
11. Katsumi Usuda vs Yujiro Yamamoto (Battlarts, July 27th)
12. Toshiaki Kawada & Akira Taue vs. KENTA & Jun Akiyama (NOAH, October 3rd)
13. Fujita "Jr" Hayato vs. The Great Sasuke (November 8th, M-Pro)
14. KENTA vs. Jun Akiyama (NOAH, May 17th)
15. Alexander Otsuka vs. Akira Shoji (RJPW, September 11th)
16. Yuki Ishikawa vs Yuta Yoshikawa (Battlarts, August 30th)
17. Taiyo Kea & Minoru Suzuki vs. Suwama & Shuji Kondo, (All Japan, March 14th)
18. Shinsuke Nakamura & Hirooki Goto vs. Mitsuharu Misawa & Takashi Sugiura (NJPW January 4th)
19. Kota Ibushi vs Shuji Ishikawa (DDT, November 29th)
20. Yuki Ishikawa vs Tiger Shark (Battlarts, July 27th)

Craig's Puro MOTY 2009 (so far)

Thought I'd post my current on-going MOTY list for puro matches only, based on what I've managed to watch so far. Most of this is based on my thoughts watching the matches first time around, so positions may change. Also, some of the odder choices will probably fall off once I get more caught up. I've not really started on 2009 Big Japan yet, as its one of the promotions I watch every show for, and I've just receive the latest batch. I'd expect a lot more BJW in this list by the end (I watched the March deathmatch tag online). Regular readers will know I also watch Z-1 and K-Dojo shows, but I don't expect many entries to this list from that.

I've got Ditch's recommend lists, and I pick and choose which matches from the big three to watch, based on existing prejudices. I did watch both Nakajima vs. KENTA matches and disliked them both. I've still got the two big NJ vs. NOAH tags from early in the year to watch. I've only just started the Champions Carnival, and randomly watched the one G-1 match online yesterday, out of curiousity as much as anything. I've got that one Ishii LOCK-UP match from April to rewatch, because I couldn't decide how much I liked it. Feel free to make a case for you favourites so far in the comments, and I'll try and give them a fair viewing.

1. Miyamoto & Sasaki vs Isami & Takeda, March 26th, Big Japan
2. Hayato "Jr" Fujita vs. The Great Sasuke, 19th June, M-Pro
3. Otsuka vs. Yamamoto, February 14th, Battlarts
4. KENTA vs. Jun Akiyama, May 17th, NOAH
5. Kea/Suzuki vs. Suwama/Kondo March 14th, AJPW
6. Hirooki Goto vs. Giant Bernard, March 22nd, NJPW
7. Usuda vs. Yoshikawa, February 14th, Battlarts
8. Nakamura vs Goto, August 7th, NJPW
9. Sawa and Hayato vs Tiger Shark and Saito, April 12th, Battlarts
10. Mutoh vs. Takayama, April 5th, AJPW
11. Togo, Yoshitsune and Rasse vs. Kei Sato, Shu Sato and Ooma, March 1st, M-Pro
12. TAKA Michinoku vs. The Great Sasuke, June 9th, K-Dojo
13. KENTA vs Marvin, June 4th, NOAH
14. Yoshie vs. Ishii March 15th, NJPW
15. Mascarita Dorada vs. Pequeno Damien 666, March 20th, Ultimo Dragon Produce

Lucha Matches of the Year 2008

Apparently I didn't post this. I've put together my lucha match of the year list. 2008 has been a great year personally, having been pointed in the direction of, and having been able to watch, a load of guys I'd never known before. Black Terry, in particular, might be my favourite guy in Mexico, but this year also marks the first time I've watched Negro Navarro, Freelance, Los Oficiales, a bunch of CMLL undercard guys (Arkangel de la Muerte is my favourite of those) and Cassandro.

Access to IWRG television has been an excellent addition to my watching, though I think it will be short-lived. I weep. I've been watching a bit of CMLL from the first half of the year, and it's been OK. I need more Panther stuff from the second half, though.

I went with Blue Panther vs. Villano V for my lucha match of the year. This irked me a little because my puro match of the year is the BattlArts six-man, and I thought it was a bit dull to agree with so many other lists (especially the Segunda Caida guys and other the Wrestling KO guys). But, both of those matches really are a bit special - the intensity, the depth, the violence of the BattlArts trios, and the unbridled emotion, drama and atmosphere of the mask match are unequaled in 2008. Happily (I have decided), it's just as interesting to see what comes after those top two matches on these lists. Plus, a choice between being a bit unoriginal or being a contrarian just to be a contrarian, isn't a hard choice for a credible fan.

Anywhere, here's my final list of lucha. I haven't reviewed much of it here, unfortunately. I will try a do the London show at some point soon - Santo is still a treat to watch, and in 2008, quite a rare treat. Should also put the Blue Panther stuff together at some point as well.

1. Blue Panther vs. Villano V, CMLL 19th September
2. Freelance/Fenix/Pendulo v. Black Terry/Negro Navarro/El Hijo Del Pierroth, IWRG 3rd October
3. Mystico De La Juarez/Silver King/Rubi Gardenia v. Cassandro/Magno/El Hijo Del Santo, Lucha Libre London 9th December
4. Averno vs. Blue Panther, CMLL 4th November (YouTube link, because it's impossible to find)
5. Rey Cometa/Pegasso/Freelance v. Los Oficiales, IWRG 16th October
6. Atlantis vs. Blue Panther, CMLL 11th July

7. Black Terry v. Multifacetico, IWRG 28th February, YouTube link

8. La Sombra vs Ephesto, CMLL 7th December
9. Negro Navarro/Shu El Guerrero vs. Solar/Super Astro, Monterrey 18th May
10. Rey Cometa/Pegasso/Freelance v. Los Oficiales, IWRG 9th October
11. Sombra/Volador Jr./Sagrado vs Hijo Del Fantasma/La Mascara/Valiente, CMLL 30th April
12. Blue Panther vs. Negro Casas, CMLL Guadalajara 3rd August
13. Perro Aguayo Jr vs Hector Garza, CMLL 21st March
14. Mistico/Marco Corleone/Shocker vs. Perro Aguayo/Averno/Mephisto, CMLL 30th April
15. Mistico/La Sombra vs El Averno/El Mephisto, CMLL Guadalajara 27th January

Craig's Puro Matches of the Year

As the DVDVR 2008 puro countdown has now begun, I thought I'd post my ballot. Lots of Battlarts, as expected, a lot of indie stuff, and a couple of things that I idiosyncratically like more than all other humans (numbers 5, 6 and 9, in particular). Will probably do a Zero1 and a K-Dojo best of list seperately at some point, when I've finished all the shows.

1. Ishikawa/Sawa/Otsuka vs. Ikeda/Usuda/Super Tiger II, July 26th, BattlArts

2. Sawa/Hidaka vs. Ishikawa/Yoshikawa, August 31st, BattlArts

3. Akiyama/Rikio vs Sasaki/Nakajima, April 27th, NOAH

4. Mashimo/Madoka vs. Shinobu/MEN's Teioh, May 23rd, BJPW

5. Hidaka vs Mochizuki, June 26th, Zero1

6. Super Tiger II vs. Alexander Otsuka, August 31st, BattlArts
7. Super Tiger II vs. Yuki Ishikawa, October 25th, BattlArts
8. Yoshitsune vs. Fujita Jr. Hayato, December 12th, M-Pro.
9. Madoka vs. Mashimo, July 12th, K-Dojo

10. Tanaka/Hidaka vs Kanemoto/Taguchi, March 2nd, Zero1
11. Misawa vs Morishima, March 2nd, NOAH

12. Nishimura vs. Suwama, June 28th, AJPW
13. Ishikawa vs. Greco, June 1st, BattlArts

14. Usuda vs. Yano, November 16th, BattlArts

15. Kobashi/Honda/Taniguchi vs Morishima/Marufuji/Sugiura, Februay 21st, NOAH

16. Minoru/Mochizuki vs Sawa/Hidaka, May 29th, Zero1

17. Tenzan vs. Iizuka, October 13th, NJPW

18. Tanaka vs Kanemoto, April 13th, NJPW

19. Sekimoto vs. M. Sasaki, February 17th, BJPW

20. T.Sasaki/Miyamoto vs. Kasai/Numazawa, June 23rd, BJPW

Patrick's Top 20 Puro of 2008

This is a really odd list, but then again, I have eclectic taste in wrestling and the list has been influenced by my rewatching, which in turn is affected greatly by my waning interest in wrestling. So, in short, this list is put together in a very odd way by what clicked with me at that time, so forgive me if you can't make heads or tails of my odd opinions.

1) MEN's Teioh & Shinobu versus Kengo Mashimo & Madoka, BJW, 5/23/08
2) Katsumi Usuda versus Keita Yano, BattlArts, 11/16/08
3) Yuki Ishikawa, Alexander Otsuka & Munenori Sawa versus Daisuke Ikeda, Katsumi Usuda & Super Tiger II, BattlArts, 7/26/08
4) Yoshitsune versus Fujita "Jr." Hayato, Michinoku Pro, 12/12/08
5) MEN's World 8 man, BJW, 10/27/08
6) Munenori Sawa & Itsuko Hidaka versus Yuki Ishikawa & Yuta Yoshikawa, BattlArts, 8/31/08
7) Masato Tanaka versus Yuji Nagata, NJPW, 10/13/08
8) Hiroshi Tanahashi versus Suwama, AJPW, 4/9/08
9) Josh Barnett versus Naoya Ogawa, IGF, 2/16/08
10) Kenta Kobashi, Tamon Honda, & KENTA versus Yoshihiro Takayama, Takuma Sano, & Go Shiozaki, NOAH, 4/27/08
11) Mitsuharu Misawa versus Takeshi Morishima, NOAH, 3/2/08
12) Kota Iibushi & KAGETORA versus Shuji Kondo & Kinya Oyanagei, El Dorado, 2/27/08
13) Kota Iibushi versus Dick Togo, DDT, 8/31/08
14) Kensuke Office versus BURNING, SEM/KO, 8/17/08
15) Tozawa-juku versus Zetsurins, DG, 11/16/08
16) Naomichi Marufuji versus Shuji Kondo, AJPW, 11/3/08
17) Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Kotaro Suzuki versus KENTA & Taiji Ishimori, NOAH, 12/7/08
18) Minoru versus Munenori Sawa, Zero-One, 6/26/08
19) Taiyo Kea & Minoru Suzuki versus Ryoto Hama & Keiji Mutoh, AJPW, 11/24/08
20) Shingo Takagi & BxB Hulk versus KENTA & Taiji Ishimori, DG, 3/20/08

ALAN'S BEST OF 2008

My top 20 puro matches for the year 2008:

1. Kensuke Office vs. Burning (8/17) (KO)
2. Speed Muscle vs. Shingo/BxB (1/15) (DG)
3. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kohei Suwama (4/9) (AJPW)
4. Mashimo/Madoka vs. Men’s Teioh/Shinobu (5/23) (BJW)
5. Nakanishi/Nagata vs. Ohtani/Tanaka (7/7) (NJPW)
6. Naomichi Marufuji vs. Shuji Kondo (11/3) (AJPW)
7. Briscoes vs. Ibushi/Nakajima (9/6) (NOAH)
8. Speed Muscle vs. Shingo/Dragon Kid (8/28)(DG)
9. Masato Yoshino vs. Dragon Kid (11/16) (DG)
10. Kobashi/Honda/Taniguchi vs. Marufuji/Sugiura/Morishima (2/21) (NOAH)
11. Nakajima/Sasaki vs. Akiyama/Rikio (4/27) (NOAH)
12. KENTA vs. Naomichi Marufuji (10/25) (NOAH)
13. Yugi Nagata vs. Masato Tanaka (10/13) (NJPW)
14. Masato Tanaka vs. Koji Kanemoto (4/13) (NJPW)
15. Shingo/BxB Hulk vs. KENTA/Ishimori (3/20) (DG)
16. Suzuki/Kanemaru vs. KENTA/Ishimori (12/7) (NOAH)
17. Naruki Doi vs. KENTA (5/5) (DG)
18. Doi/Tanisaki vs. Cyber Kong/YAMATO (11/16) (DG)
19. Kobashi/KENTA vs. Nakajima/Sasaki (6/14) (NOAH)
20. Suwama/Kondo vs. TenKoji (11/24) (AJPW)

I also did a top 20 for all of wrestling, but this was done under the Observer criteria (Dec2007-Nov2008)

1. Kensuke Office vs. Burning (8/17) (KO)
2. Typhoon vs. Muscle Outlaw’z (3/29) (ROH)
3. Nigel McGuinness vs. Bryan Danielson (2/23) (ROH)
4. DoiYoshi vs. Shingo/BxB Hulk (1/15) (DG)
5. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kohei Suwama (4/9) (AJPW)
6. Mashimo/Madoka vs. Men’s Teioh/Shinobu (5/23) (BJW)
7. Nigel McGuinness vs. Tyler Black (5/30 airdate) (ROH)
8. El Generico vs. Kota Ibushi (4/19) (ROH)
9. Nakanishi/Nagata vs. Ohtani/Tanaka (7/7) (NJPW)
10. Steen/Generico vs. Age Of The Fall (11/14 airdate) (ROH)
11. Naomichi Marufuji vs. Shuji Kondo (11/3) (AJPW)
12. McGuinness vs. Black vs. Danielson vs. Castagnoli (8/2) (ROH)
13. Nigel McGuinness vs. Austin Aries (3/7 airdate) (ROH)
14. New Hazard vs. Steen/Generico (3/29) (ROH)
15. DoiYoshi vs. Steen/Generico (3/28 ) (ROH)
16. Chris Bosh vs. Scorpio Sky (7/6) (PWG)
17. Kobashi/Takayama vs. Misawa/Akiyama (12/2) (NOAH)
18. Briscoes vs. Ibushi/Nakajima (9/6) (NOAH)
19. Chris Hero vs. Human Tornado (7/6) (PWG Guerrilla Warfare Cage Match)
20. Volador Jr./Sombra/Sagrada vs. Valiente/Hijo Del Fantasma/La Mascara (4/30) (CMLL)

9 ROH matches
2 NOAH
2 All Japan
2 PWG
1 CMLL
1 Kensuke Office
1 BJW
1 Dragon Gate
1 New Japan

Battlarts: Matches of the Year

So, I'm starting to finalise my match of the year ballot for the DVDVR poll, and I've been watching and rewatching all the Battlarts candidates today. A lot of my top 20 ballot will be Battlarts matches, at least five, maybe seven. Nothing is moving the six man tag from the top of the list. I may have enjoyed at least one match more (the Z1 tag title match, such is my love of Hidaka), but I don't think anything is better (you see how that distinction works, one being subjective and visceral, the other being objective and analytical?). The 45 minutes of cumulative violence and the individual performances which all introduce new elements into the mix - Sawa as the youthful energetic junior, first to be eliminated, Otsuka working in crazy submissions and huge headrop suplexes, Ikeda dicking it up on the apron for ages, and he and Ishikawa's final brutal exchanges. Completely unique, and deserving of all the accolades. I didn't rewatch Usuda vs. Yano - it will probably make the bottom of my ballot. A very simple match, but very well executed, and notable for some excellent stuff on the mat (which I assume Usuda led) and an absolutely brutal finish. I mean, just sickening.

So, what else is there? Well, first I watched two Super Tiger singles matches back to back. The first is against Otsuka, and the second is against Ishikawa. First thing to note is that Super Tiger is a great striker, and is able on the mat, but he needs someone like Ishikawa or Otsuka to hold the thing together. Both matches feature really great selling performances, particularly from Ishikawa and Otsuka, though Super Tiger does nothing to hurt the match in that respect. Both guy's take some hideous strikes from Tiger, and give them the respect they deserve - Otsuka in particular hits the mat for a 7-count after the first spinning head kick about four minutes in, and never really regains the upperhand he had on the mat.

I really love Otsuka's amateur style matwork at the beginning - he finds all sorts of unlikely positions whilst looking for control. Compared to the Ishikawa match, the strikes aren't so nasty, though there are a couple of wild spinning kicks to Otsuka's head. I liked the boston crab spot as well. There's a really smart story of momentum on display here - Otsuka, the veteran, is utterly in control until Tiger hits some big strikes, then Otsuka spends the rest of the match surviving and trying to find bigger moves to get the win. Also, this plays off the July tag by mirroring Tiger's elimination in that.

The match is obviously a lot more pro-style than many Battlarts matches, in both moves and structure. The Ishikawa match, like many Battlarts matches, emphasises realism, the struggle, the back-and-forward combat until finally someone is too beat to continue. The Otsuka match has much more noticeable stages where one individual is in charge, especially after the opening mat section. The Ishikawa match is much more strike-based - there is a bunch of knees and a front kick to Ishikawa's (unprotected) face that are pretty disgusting, but although Ishikawa takes a larger quantity of nasty stuff than Otsuka, I find it hard to say I prefer one selling performance over the other. This match will make my final list, but it won't beat the Otsuka one.
Next, I watch Ishikawa versus Carl Greco. This match fought entirely on the mat through holds, counters and submission. What's really incredible to me is that its still felt like a pro-wrestling match - the holds and counters and transitions are perhaps smoother than in a real submission fight, and there is constant motion and small details in each one. Greco is maybe slightly more technically skilled, but Ishikawa isn't far behind. My favourite part was after the final voluntary ropebreaks, where each man basically said, let's find out who's best. There was an extra intensity (in an already intense and focused match) to the grappling, and some really amazing (and possibly even beautiful) sequences - Ishikawa's escape into the double leg grapevine was my favourite. Greco just found a way to get his killer hold (a nasty neck vice) in first. I placed this just after the above two singles, mainly because I really liked the overall performance in them - the selling and the psychology. The work in this though is a bit special.

Then I watched a few of tags. I thought the September Ishikawa tag wasn't the best I'd seen from any of the participants. Most of the match was Super Tiger and Otsuka working over Yoshikawa, and even by the end Ishikawa was kept out of it, so that the whole thing felt quite one-sided. Also, there wasn't as much from Otsuka that was noteworthy - they team looked dominant, but not in the most interesting way. Yoshikawa doesn't sell the whole thing as epically as his partner could, either.

The second tag was much better. Super Tiger and Hara have to work hard to force Sawa into selling during the heat section. It's only his tendency to pop up and hit a couple of his spots that drop this further down my list. The final section with Ishikawa and Tiger is spectacularly violent. I like how, one month after Ishikawa survived Super Tiger's strikes and found a way to victory, the finish to this is Super Tiger not letting up until Ishikawa isn't able to get back up again.

Then I rewatched the Zero-1 Light Heavyweight Tag title match, and I'm still convinced it comes in a number 2 on my list. Here again, the match takes on a more pro-style feel, with a structure that is similar to a lot of junior tags (especially the breakups of the nearfalls at the end), although an execution that is not. Hidaka, the only non-Battlarts guys in the match (anymore) looked excellent here, seeming perfectly comfortable with the style. I loved how he included a couple of his usual spots, but within the context of the match - the leg capture powerbomb to counter a series of stiff kicks, having Sawa restrain Yoshikawa in the corner before doing the cartwheel jumping kick. Some of Ishikawa and Hidaka's mat exchange were glorious, and I wished there were more stuff between them, as they match up really well - they are two guys that are excellent all-rounders.

There was a sizeable heat section on Yoshikawa, more based around focused leg attacks than striking or more opportunistic submission stuff, another noticeably pro-style feature. Ishikawa eventually tagged in, and apart from the great parts with Hidaka, I thought he had a nice bit with Sawa - especially the leglock where he kept rubbing his boot in Sawa's face, and some of the matwork that followed. The finish came down to Sawa and Yoshikawa striking it out until they had nothing left, while the partners prevented each other from breaking anything up. Sawa punches Yoshikawa straight in the face three times, which is the most violent thing I've ever seen him do, and locks in a octopus for the win (again, another pro-style spot incorporated into a Battlarts context).

I've got a few more Battlarts matches to watch, but I think those are the realistic match of the year contenders. The others are just for fun and Otsuka. Here's my Battlarts Match of the Year list:

1. Ishikawa/Sawa/Otsuka vs. Ikeda/Usuda/Super Tiger II, July 26th

2. Sawa/Hidaka vs. Ishikawa/Yoshikawa, August 31st

3. Super Tiger II vs. Alexander Otsuka, August 31st
4. Super Tiger II vs. Yuki Ishikawa, October 25th
5. Ishikawa vs. Greco, June 1st
6. Usuda vs. Yano, November 16th
7. Ishikawa/Sawa vs. Hara/Super Tiger II, November 16th
8. Ishikawa/Yoshikawa vs. Otsuka/Super Tiger II, September 21st