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Post by nintendologic on Feb 25, 2023 11:50:32 GMT -5
This was significantly shorter and faster-paced than a typical Okada showcase match and was all the better for it. It was also more hierarchy-based than a typical interpromotional grudge match, which was appropriate given the vast disparity in star power between the two. I enjoy Okada the most by far when he's in dickhead mode, and this is most dickish he's been in I don't even know how long. He set the tone early on by repeately dumping Kiyomiya to the floor like a bouncer ejecting a surly drunk and wiping him out with a German suplex when he refused to stay down. Kiyomiya blocking a draping DDT and reversing into a suplex on the floor was an awesome transition. Targeting Okada's arm with dropkicks after countering a rainmaker attempt with a jumping knee was pretty great as well. Speaking of dropkicks, Okada's have always been the best part of his offensive arsenal, and the way he used them to cut off Kiyomiya's comebacks was impressive. Picking up Kiyomiya after landing the rainmaker to hit an emerald flowsion was a supreme asshole move. You all need to check this out even if you're not a fan of either guy (or you haven't even heard of the second guy).
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Post by kas on Feb 25, 2023 12:19:22 GMT -5
2nd, this was tremendous.
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Post by Cap on Feb 26, 2023 9:35:39 GMT -5
Third. I sort of loved this match. It is a welcome departure from what I've come to expect from Okada. This is gritty and toothy. The finish was sort of odd to me at first, but makes perfect sense given the dynamic.
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Post by [Darren] on Feb 26, 2023 9:55:10 GMT -5
Haven’t had a chance to watch this. I was sold after the setup last month. I’ll try to make time this week.
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Post by microstatistics on Apr 17, 2023 20:31:36 GMT -5
This was really good. They lost their way a little bit during the middle portions and the back-and-forth phantom continues to follow around Japanese heavyweights but the opening and finishing stretches were borderline great.
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Post by [Darren] on May 4, 2023 22:06:53 GMT -5
The best Okada match I’ve ever seen. I was hype from the January match and this did not disappoint. I’d have to watch again to see if I’d consider this for the project but even if I don’t. I consider this the coolest Okada has ever been. God bless Kiyomiya for bringing this out of him.
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Post by makaiclub on May 5, 2023 17:39:04 GMT -5
What a nice bit of fresh air this feud Was been. A bit of interpromotional flair and angst from the two, Okada not taking Kiyomiya seriously whatsoever, Kiyomiya determined to change his mindset. Just something that’s not really seen in wrestling much. Not since 2016 when New Japan had a partnership with NOAH. While this didn’t exactly have Riki Choshu big leaguing Yoji Anjoh vibes, as Okada did give Kiyomiya something instead of smothering him (watch that match btw, it’s awesome). Okada largely dominated the opening portion of the match but Kiyomoya was the one who took most of the match, really rising the occasion of the Dome. The much quicker pacing of the match (as this is only 16 minutes instead of 30) worked for both men as well as the match story. Both were quick to make their mark/point and it led to a quicker paced match. Japan has a reputation for these long matches but Japan has had much success doing shorter bouts. Perhaps if that was done more often, this result wouldn’t feel like a slight towards Kiyomiya and NOAH as some may think. The slight was more at the finish itself where Okada pulled Kiyomiya up from the count and hit a version of an Emerald Flowsion, not so similar to his match with Marufuji (another match I’m recommending) before ending it with another Rainmaker. A quality match for sure. Something different for modern pro wrestling, anyway. ****
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Post by elliott on Oct 23, 2023 23:43:09 GMT -5
This is the best Okada match I've seen. Good one.
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Post by [Darren] on Oct 24, 2023 0:28:39 GMT -5
I am confident this is the best Okada match.
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Post by KB8 on Nov 18, 2023 16:04:07 GMT -5
Yeah, this is the most I've ever enjoyed Okada by a distance. I do not have a clue who the other guy is and I haven't watched or really paid any attention to anything to do with NOAH in at least 10 years, so I might be projecting or just talking horse shit here, but it was kind of crazy to me how the NOAH heavyweight champion was so clearly beneath the IWGP one. Obviously Kiyomiya is much younger and far less established (well, I assume) than Okada, but when I last followed Japanese wrestling with actual interest these companies were generally treated as being Big Deals on fairly level footing. I mean I know the gulf between them is substantial now and NOAH was basically on death's door for a minute there, but still, it's sort of jarring. At least with New Japan v WAR you had Tenryu who commanded a bitta by god respect. Kiyomiya was not Tenryu and came across as Kodo Fuyuki with a slimmer waist. I'm not complaining though, because it made things interesting. I have no use for Okada whatsoever but I'll hold my hands up - I thought he was really good in this and never did anything that annoyed me even a wee bit. Obviously he was a prick and that was great, and so was the way he sold how little respect he had for Kiyomiya. His derision was palpable. Then he'd give the kid just enough to make himself look vulnerable and in general I thought his selling was really strong. The arm selling was good and I liked how he sold the accumulation of damage, but there were subtle moments as well, like when he hit that flapjack as a cutoff after the big German suplex and stayed down a little longer to put across the damage from the suplex itself. It wasn't just a case of him hitting his move to go back on offence again and instead it felt earned. I'd never seen Kiyomiya before and he looked perfectly fine and maybe I'd come to like the feller if I ever decided to watch more than 15 minutes of him, which, cards on the table, I probably won't. He walked the line pretty well between showing defiance and your rote tough guy shouting when hit in the face by a forearm. Ultimately it felt rooted in hierarchy and they put that hierarchal gulf across well. The first big transition where he reversed that DDT into a suplex over the barricade ruled. Liked the setup to the arm work with the jumping knee to block the Rainmaker, not just because it was cool and made sense but because it stopped the commentators from shouting RRRRRAINMAKEERRRR which is extremely close to Gabe Sapolsky shouting DANGEROUSSSSS on the cringe meter. The Misawa and Inoki references were also kind of goofy but I get that I'm just grumpy so whatever. Or maybe they were FORESHADOWING~ because Okada picking Kiyomiya up and effectively finishing him with the embodiment of NOAH's own finisher was pretty awesome. I'm almost tempted to watch more of this Okada, if it exists. If he's out here wrestling a tubby modern day version of Tatsuo Nakano I'm all over it! Maybe.
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Post by club on Nov 21, 2023 15:20:08 GMT -5
the back-and-forth phantom continues to follow around Japanese heavyweights YES! That aside, I dug this a lot. Not top 100 levels, but still a lot. Very refreshing to see a big Okada match not go 25+ minutes. The sense of hierarchy was so fresh, something really lacking in most modern wrestling. Okada sonning Kiyomiya and then getting off asap was great.
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Post by tetsujin on Dec 30, 2023 18:02:21 GMT -5
Any link to this?
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Post by puroraisedme on Dec 30, 2023 18:40:00 GMT -5
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