Bred For His Skills In Magic

Jushin Thunder Liger/Tiger Mask IV VS Kenoh/Hajime Ohara - NOAH 8/2/2014

JJZ: This was part of the 2014 NOAH Jr tag league and this is as far from a traditional Jr's match as you will see. It's wild to watch Liger getting out heeled when you think about his nuclear heated run in the past with NOAH. There is a time to wrestle and there is a time to fight. And all four of these guys came to that arena that night for a fist fight. Sometime you watch a match and it is totally opposite of what you expected. Usually you're disappointed. Not in this case at all. I was so taken aback at what I was surprisingly seeing and kept saying to myself, this is so good. How did I not see this before. And I hope you've never seen this before either. Little side note. I know I live and drink at NOAH's well and probably should avoid it for a while but damn I'm glad I took a sip this week.

CJD: This match was such a breath of fresh air. Everyone brought so much to the table but the main thing I was thinking was "fuck me, Jushin Thunder Liger is great." When people think of Liger they probably think of his colorful technical precision and groundbreaking matches. But the thing that is so impressive to me about the thousands of matches he had in his career is how much purpose he put into almost every single one. This feud is such a great example. Neither one of us were aware of it and it's yet it's another in an endless list of great storylines Liger and company built and paid off over his career. Like how many times have you seen Liger, even in a throwaway undercard 6 man like last week, just have "a match?" There's always so much intent there. That's the stuff I love in pro wrestling. And I love Jushin Thunder Liger!! Also Tiger Mask's gear was fire.

JJZ: Yes it was.

KONGOH Are Forever

Kaito Kiyomiya (c) VS Kenoh - NOAH GHC Heavyweight Championship 1/1/2023

JJZ: I feel like playing this match forward just seems like a no brainer. We've watched the growth of these two wrestlers and I think this match really showed how far they both have come. This is their most recent GCH title match from NOAH's New Year's Day show. When I saw it was only twenty one minutes I couldn't believe it. I don't think I've watched a Global Honor Crown heavyweight title match in years! Kenoh and Kiyomiya didn't hold anything back and really made every minute of this match count. They followed some GHC title staples but were economic with their time. I saw a couple new moves from both guys that popped me. Also saw a big old slice of pepperoni that I choose to ignore. Hope you enjoy baby cakes.

CJD: I am love love loving this NOAH voyage we are on currently. Something I appreciated about this match is it gave me deja vu to Kenoh's great rivalry with the man we just featured, Sugiura, and the way that generational shift helped bring NOAH back from a dark period after Misawa's death (even if it had some bright spots).  Kaito and Kenoh have a very different dynamic than that feud between former tag partners. But like all the great NOAH rivalries there's something unique about these two, this veteran/emerging Ace feud has a chemistry that gets me particularly excited for their matches. I'd love a Kenoh/Kiyomiya DVD comp if anyone is willing to take the commission!! I could immediately tell this match had an extra edge to it so I read up on the backstory. They had a big chip on their shoulders on this platform taking the semi main event spot behind Muta/Marufuji. Kenoh in particular ran his mouth as Kenoh does. And these guys wrestled a statement match that both fits the great legacy of GHC Heavyweight Title matches but also lays a new path for the next generation. After Go delivered so many epics in his historic pandemic reign (great callback nearfall here speaking of which!) I was over the moon with how straight to the point this was just like you were. I'll forgive a sloppy slice of pepperoni pizza when the rest of the pie is this well done any day of the week. And speaking of toppings. Kaito, that hair is WILD!

He's A Killing Machine, Isn't He?

Takashi Sugiura/Hideki Suzuki (c) VS Kenoh/Katsuhiko Nakajima - NOAH GHC Heavyweight Tag Team Championship 4/30/2022

CJD: I put this on seeing the upload was a few months ago eager to watch a vocal Japanese crowd. And obviously the names had me excited. I was disappointed when a few minutes in I realized it was from early last year. But the chemistry between these two teams immediately jumped off the screen, and we've talked before about how NOAH weathered the storm (see what I did there) of the pandemic better than a lot of companies. At least in terms of the quality of wrestling and the reactions they got from the muted crowds. This match would have been better in a different setting for sure, but I'm really glad I stuck with it. Hideki is obviously a bit of a square peg in the round NOAH holes, in Zero1 and other promotions he was often left to do his own thing and people would adapt. Here he's very much adapting to the classic GHC tag title format. Instead of totally changing his style or approach, his style informs how the format is structured and everyone benefits from it. The peaks and valleys are a little different because of it and there isn't quite that exclamation point cherry on top finish that would get this on MOTY lists. But this match did everything I wanted and a little more. I'm still getting adjusted to English commentary for NOAH but I thought these guys did a really nice job adding context and especially sounding hooked on the nearfalls. I need to start getting caught up on NOAH!

JJZ: My heart is so happy when we're in a NOAH run on Play It Forward. Judging pandemic wrestling has become a lot easier but for the good matches it always feels like an active crowd would put this over the top. This match was such an easy watch. It could've been 60 minutes and I don't think I would've noticed. The smoothness but still stiffness was almost soothing. I know that might sound weird but I did get kinda an ASMR feeling from it. In my wrestling heart NOAH has the softest spot. I will always root for this company to get back to the highest level of professional wrestling that it once was. I really wish it was easier to watch but what can I do. So I will just enjoy matches like these whenever I get the opportunity. I loved the Kongoh chemistry. Sugiura doesn't age and Suzuki always impresses me with his catch wrestling. Fine, fine match baby cakes.