PUNQ

With the corona running wild stopping everything else, it felt like a good time to dive into wrestling in 2020. And I do it in my own way. Everything and chronicle! And I've already done the spectacular first week of 2020 (excluding December 30 & 31, 2019). And with Japan having their big New Years kick-off and also Mexico celebrating the first day of 2020 in a big way, this became a fairly extended list of 57 matches from 17 different promotions I'd recommend people check out. All I've rated ** 1/2 and above from the January 1st to 5th shows.

2020 - WEEK 1 (January 1-5, 2020)

NWA Power might be a cool little niche product in a already flooded niche market. Will be interesting to see what they'll do with this platform

As for the always increasing volume of wrestling airing. To say we have wrestling every day is a understatement. In this day and age, you have legit around 50 new shows airing/streaming EACH WEEK across all kinds of platforms world wide. It's impossible to keep-up. I've tried 😜

--PUNQ--

That's Koji Kitao, a former Yokozuna (top rank), though the worst Yokozuna in history with no top tournament wins, who felt he was too good to be in the ring with a sumo wrestler whom never reached professional level (top 2 divisions). John Tenta was undefeated in his sumo career, but he only reached 3rd division before deciding to quit and train to become a pro-wrestler with All Japan Pro Wrestling. Kitao died earlier this year, while mostly disgraced, had a unique and interesting career. From being a New Japan Pro Wrestling super rookie, to the sumo ego incident with Tenta, to wrestling at WrestleMania, to getting legit knocked out by Takada in UWFI, to setting the roots for the future Dragon Gate with his own indie promotion.

lol, now now, lets not get ahead of ourself. That was a weird time for NJPW (and Japanese wrestling in general, transition period) and they did give Sid work as a special attraction. Big muscular monster type. Rare, since every one of those were locked up with Vince at the time. But he was VERY green and even keeping him in short matches were unable to hide his lack of experience in their style. I'm loving the fact that they gave him a IWGP Title shot in his FIRST match. That's something left field!

Looking at my collection, I think these are all the matches that aired on TV (along with my bastardized ratings):

February 22, 1989 - Tastumi Fujinami -vs- Vicious Warrior (Sid Vicious) - (IWGP Title) [* 1/2]
March 3, 1989 - Tatsumi Fujinami & Riki Chochu -vs- Vicious Warrior & Avalanche (Paul Neu) [* 1/2]
March 7, 1989 - Riki Chochu -vs- Vicious Warrior [*]
March 16, 1989 - Seiji Sakaguchi & Kengo Kimura & Tatsutoshi Goto -vs- Vicious Warrior & Ron Starr & Avalanche [*]
 

--PUNQ--

4 hours ago, Devon Malcolm said:

I just watched a video of that finisher. It's an electric chair that she stays on top of! Revolutionary.

Straight Jacket.... Electric Chair.... with a Bridge. And it was. Almost 30 years ago when she invented it.

Regardless, to me this is not a big deal. Wrestlers take inspiration where they find it. Of course it would be nice and more relevant with a origin/passing the torch/rival story to go with it. But she didn't do that, and since the move is Toyota's baby she feels a little hurt. It'll pass. Then again, the two she passed it down to didn't do it's importance/legacy much good, so the JOCSH is already watered down. Hope Bea at least uses it's respectfully. No point in insulting Toyota more, since there's no money to made for a feud as she's retired.

It's definitely a disappointing first step in rebuilding. Mostly groans as I was looking at the line-up for the next non-lucha tour. Sure some of these rematches have the potential to become good, but it also shows how vulnerable New Japan can be when being so nonchalant in negotiations when there is a stronger competition over talents. I sure hope this brings across a fresh change in search for the next big thing instead of forcing on us Switchblade (who is not ready) and the leftovers from the Bullet Club (which have run it's course considering who's left). Not to mention the other bland dark side wrestlers of the Suzuki-gun. They need something to sprinkle up their product. Make the product colorful again. It's going to be a exciting few months to see how they tackle this.

As far as talent raid. They've already gotten Ishimori from NOAH and Shingo from Dragon Gate taking over their junior division. Not impossible they'll try and scout heavyweight talent away from other promotions, but as far as I can see, most of the interesting guys are locked up in contracts getting strong pushes in their respective home promotions, so it won't be easy finding local talent that'll be relevant enough to cause shockwaves.

--PUNQ--

Hey, remember last year when I tried to cover the whole wrestling world every week and only got to the early weeks of February. Actually through the year I quietly got half-way into May '18 before 2019 started. That's what happens when one's a completist. One lose out on so many goodies trying. Well, it's 2019, so I'll start at zero and try again with anything taped from January 1 and on. We'll see how long I last this time!

TOP-30 - Week 1, 2019:

1. January 4, 2019 - Kenny Omega (c) -vs- Hiroshi Tanahashi - (IWGP Title) [**** 1/2] (NJPW)
2. January 4, 2019 - Kota Ibushi (c) -vs- Will Ospreay - (NEVER Openweight Title) [**** 1/4] (NJPW)
3. January 3, 2019 - Kento Miyahara (c) -vs- KAI - (Triple Crown Title) [*** 3/4] (AJPW)
4. January 3, 2019 - CIMA & T-Hawk & Duan Yingnan (c) -vs- Konosuke Takeshita & Akito & Yuki Iino - (KO-D 6-Man Tag Title) [*** 1/2] (DDT)
5. January 4, 2019 - Chris Jericho (c) -vs- Tetsuya Naito - (IWGP Intercontinental Title; No-DQ) [*** 1/2] (NJPW)

6. January 6, 2019 - Kaito Kiyomiya (c) -vs- Kenoh - (GHC Title) [*** 1/2] (NOAH)
7. January 4, 2019 - Dragón Lee -vs- Cavernario [*** 1/2] (CMLL)
8. January 4, 2019 - Sansón & Cuatrero & Forastero (c) -vs- Niebla Roja & Ángel de Oro & Soberano Jr. - (Mexican National Trios Title) [*** 1/4] (CMLL)
9. January 4, 2019 - Tomohiro Ishii (c) -vs- Zack Sabre Jr. - (RevPro British Heavyweight Title) [*** 1/4] (NJPW)
10. January 1, 2019 - Parka Negra & Villano III Jr. -vs- Mexica & Sádico -vs- Cometa & Concord -vs- Alex Extreme & Ángel Cósmico - (4-Way) [*** 1/4] (AAA, LEGEND)

11. January 6, 2019 - Eddie Edwards -vs- Moose - (Falls Count Anywhere) [*** 1/4] (IMPACT)
12. January 4, 2019 - Jay White -vs- Kazuchika Okada [***] (NJPW)
13. January 3, 2019 - Naoya Nomura & Yuma Aoyagi (c) -vs- Takao Omori & Black Menso~re - (All Asia Tag Title) [***] (AJPW)
14. January 4, 2019 - Meiko Satomura -vs- Reika Saiki [***] (TJP)
15. January 1, 2019 - Dragón Lee & Penta 0M & King Phoenix -vs- Cuatrero & Forastero & Templario [***] (CMLL)

16. January 6, 2019 - Sami Callihan -vs- Willie Mack [***] (IMPACT)
17. January 4, 2019 - Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa (c) -vs- EVIL & SANADA -vs- Nick Jackson & Matt Jackson - (IWGP Tag Title; 3-Way) [***] (NJPW)
18. January 4, 2019 - Titán -vs- Tritón - (Lightning Match) [***] (CMLL)
19. January 3, 2019 - Nobuhiro Shimatani -vs- El Lindaman [***] (DDT)
20 January 4, 2019 - Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado (c) -vs- SHO & YOH -vs- Shingo Takagi & BUSHI - (IWGP Junior Tag Title; 3-Way) [** 3/4] (NJPW)

21. January 6, 2019 - Johnny Impact (c) -vs- Brian Cage - (Impact Title) [** 3/4] (IMPACT)
22. January 4, 2019 - Gran Guerrero & Ephesto & Templario -vs- Stuka Jr. & Guerrero Maya Jr. & Rey Cometa [** 3/4] (CMLL)
23. January 5, 2019 - Will Ospreay & Hirooki Goto & Tomihiro Ishii -vs- Yuji Nagata & Jeff Cobb & KUSHIDA [** 3/4] (NJPW)
24. January 3, 2019 - HARASHIMA & Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata & Yuki Ueno & Keisuke Ishii -vs- Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao & Tetsuya Endo & Mad Paulie & Puma King [** 3/4] (DDT)
25. January 6, 2019 - Rich Swann -vs- Ethan Page -vs- Jake Crist -vs- Trey Miguel - (Ultimate X Match; Impact X-Division Title Decison) [** 3/4] (IMPACT)

26. January 1, 2019 - Hijo del Signo & Yago -vs- Akuma & Camorra - (Mask vs Hair) [** 3/4] (CMLL)
27. January 6, 2019 - Maybach Taniguchi & Yuji Hino (c) -vs- Katsuhiko Nakajima & Go Shiozaki - (GHC Tag Title) [** 1/2] (NOAH)
28. January 5, 2019 - Minoru Suzuki & Zack Sabre Jr. & Taichi & Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado -vs- Tetsuya Naito & EVIL & SANADA & BUSHI & Shingo Takagi [** 1/2] (NJPW)
29. January 1, 2019 - Bandido (c) -vs- Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. - (The Crash Cruiserweight Title) [** 1/2] (ARENA AZTECA)
30. January 6, 2019 - Ortiz & Santana (c) -vs- Pentagón Jr. & Rey Fénix - (Impact Tag Title) [** 1/2] (IMPACT)

NJPW

NJPW on njpwworld.com - "BIG PRO-WRESTLING FESTIVAL 2019" - January 3, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - (1 hrs)
January 3, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - Studio Coast (2,200 Fans)
1. Jushin Thunder Liger & Tiger Mask -vs- Ren Narita & Yuya Uemura [* 3/4]
2. Yuji Nagata & Manabu Nakanishi -vs- Tomoaki Honma & Toa Henare [*]
3. Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima -vs- Ayato Yoshida & Shota Umino [* 1/2]

Throw-away exhibition like every year. Just a little showcase during all the build-up to the Tokyo Dome show with leftover talent not getting a spot on the big show the next day.

NJPW on njpwworld.com - "WRESTLE KINGDOM 13 IN TOKYO DOME" - January 4, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - (5 hrs)
January 4, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - Tokyo Dome (38,162 Fans)
1. Togi Makabe & Toru Yano & Ryusuke Taguchi -vs- Yuji Nagata & Jeff Cobb & David Finlay -vs- Hirooki Goto & Beretta & Chuckie T -vs- Minoru Suzuki & Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. -vs- Hangman Page & Yujiro Takahashi & Marty Scurll - (Gauntlet) [**]
2. Kota Ibushi (c) -vs- Will Ospreay - (NEVER Openweight Title) [**** 1/4]
3. Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado (c) -vs- SHO & YOH -vs- Shingo Takagi & BUSHI - (IWGP Junior Tag Title; 3-Way) [** 3/4]
4. Tomohiro Ishii (c) -vs- Zack Sabre Jr. - (RevPro British Heavyweight Title) [*** 1/4]
5. Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa (c) -vs- EVIL & SANADA -vs- Nick Jackson & Matt Jackson - (IWGP Tag Title; 3-Way) [***]
6. Cody (c) -vs- Juice Robinson - (IWGP US Title) [**]
7. KUSHIDA (c) -vs- Taiji Ishimori - (IWGP Junior Title) [** 1/2]
8. Jay White -vs- Kazuchika Okada [***]
9. Chris Jericho (c) -vs- Tetsuya Naito - (IWGP Intercontinental Title; No-DQ) [*** 1/2]
10. Kenny Omega (c) -vs- Hiroshi Tanahashi - (IWGP Title) [**** 1/2]

On last year's Tokyo Dome show they tried to make every match a epic. This year they tried to make the show easier to digest going through the midcard matches faster than felt necessary, while making the important matches count. This was a real closing of an era style show, with the AEW guys putting over the New Japan stars in a big way on their way out. Worst match was Cody/Juice, but Brandi's cute boxing and a very decisive finish gave it some positivity. Shingo showed he's a great addition to their junior division. Same with Ishimori, who they are keeping surprisingly strong. It became clear EVIL & SANADA will be an important part in the company going forward. Ishii/Sabre was quality, but Sabre looked a little awkward during the middle stages. Okada/White was good, but bland. Not sold on White at this level. Naito bumped like a madman to make old Jericho look like a million bucks. Ospreay/Ibushi was amazing for what it was. Superbly executed, making Ospreay look like the most dangerous foreigner in the company. Maybe they see the same as me. Ospreay being the perfect rival to Okada in the future. Omega/Tanahashi = the heart of the show. Typical epic Omega, but with Tanahashi's fighting spirit as the main focus. Classic on so many levels! 

NJPW on njpwworld.com - "NEW YEAR DASH !!" - January 5, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 5, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,730 Fans)
1. SHO & YOH & Rocky Romero -vs- Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Lance Archer & Takashi Iizuka [**]
2. Yujiro Takahashi & Chase Owens -vs- Tomoaki Honma & Toa Henare [* 1/2]
3. Juice Robinson & David Finlay -vs- Beretta & Chuckie T [* 3/4]
4. Will Ospreay & Hirooki Goto & Tomihiro Ishii -vs- Yuji Nagata & Jeff Cobb & KUSHIDA [** 3/4]
5. Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa & Taiji Ishimori (c) -vs- Togi Makabe & Toru Yano & Ryusuke Taguchi - (NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Title) [**]
6. Minoru Suzuki & Zack Sabre Jr. & Taichi & Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado -vs- Tetsuya Naito & EVIL & SANADA & BUSHI & Shingo Takagi [** 1/2]
7. Jay White & Bad Luck Fale & Gedo -vs- Hiroshi Tanahashi & Kazuchika Okada & YOSHI-HASHI - (YOSHI-HASHI's Return Match) [**]

Following a great Tokyo Dome show comes a indication on the road forward, and honestly the first step is a major letdown. The wrestling was okay, but the angles and guys in focus are hardly my first choice category. I'm still not feeling Jay White as a top-tier guy, so having him challenge for the IWGP Title feels very forced trying to fill the void of Omega. Wasting Okada with Fale is another big question mark in the current booking. YOSHI-HASHI 's comeback was very underwhelming. Not too high on Taichi feuding with Naito either, but Naito is the only one getting good matches out of Taichi and the angle between the two was the only good one on the show, so I won't complain about that. Chuckie's mental problems and Beretta's mom were memorable moments. The best bout was the Ospreay 6-man where Nagata and Ishii got heat. The rest was very average. Going to be interesting to see what NJPW will do from now to freshen up their product without the AEW guys. 

AJPW

AJPW on ajpw.tv - "NEW YEAR WARS 2019 - DAY 1" - January 2, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 2, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,440 Fans)
1. Atsushi Aoki & Hikaru Sato -vs- Atsuki Aoyagi & Danji Tamura - (Atsuki Aoyagi & Danji Tamura's Debut Match) [* 1/2]
2. Black Tiger VII & Gianni Valletta -vs- Jake Lee & Hokuto Omori [* 3/4]
3. Osamu Nishimura & Tajiri & Masanobu Fuchi -vs- Jun Akiyama & Kotaro Suzuki & Atsushi Maruyama [* 1/4]
4. 15-Man New Year Openweight Battle Royal [*]
5. Kento Miyahara & Naoya Nomura & Yuma Aoyagi & Yoshitatsu -vs- Zeus & KAI & Takao Omori & Black Menso~re [**]
6. Koji Iwamoto (c) -vs- Yusuke Okada - (AJPW Junior Title) [** 1/2]
7. Suwama & Shuji Ishikawa (c) -vs- Joe Doering & Dylan James - (AJPW Tag Title) [** 1/4]

AJPW's first show of was a little disappointing. Unremarkable effort on the undercard and when the main event did't become the heavyweight explosion it promised to be, the experience was a letdown. One thing's sure, Violent Giants next big one WILL be a explosion! BJW's Sekimoto & Okabayashi challenging. One of the positive things to come out of the show was AJPW's talented young guy Okada getting to challenge for the AJPW Junior Title. Was never going to be a great match, but it was a elevating one for someone who might become a player for the promotion in a few years. Okada showed he could step-up for a profile bout and Iwamoto has improved since I last saw him. He seems to be growing with the push. 

AJPW on ajpw.tv - "NEW YEAR WARS 2019 - DAY 2" - January 3, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - (2 3/4 hrs)
January 3, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,585 Fans Fans)
1. Yusuke Okada & Atsuki Aoyagi -vs- Hokuto Omori & Danji Tamura [* 3/4]
2. Osamu Nishimura & Hikaru Sato -vs- Masanobu Fuchi & Yoshitatsu [* 1/4]
3. Jake Lee & Koji Iwamoto & Ryouji Sai -vs- Jun Akiyama & Zeus & Atsushi Maruyama [** 1/4]
4. Suwama & Shuji Ishikawa & Atsushi Aoki -vs- Joe Doering & Dylan James & Gianni Valletta [**]
5. Tajiri (c) -vs- Minoru Fujita - (GAORA TV Title) [* 1/2]
6. Naoya Nomura & Yuma Aoyagi (c) -vs- Takao Omori & Black Menso~re - (All Asia Tag Title) [***]
7. Kento Miyahara (c) -vs- KAI - (Triple Crown Title) [*** 3/4]

"Much better than the day before! Even the meaningless undercard bouts were better. But what stole the show was the main title matches. First the All Asian tag Title bout. Cool match. Felt the challengers were a little sloppy, but that only helped get me excited whenever they were close to winning, as I really didn't want to see the belts on Omori & Menso~re. The champs showed good form in a very old school All Japan way. They dragged me into the action in a positive way. The show stealer was naturally the Triple Crown bout with Miyahara/KAI giving it their all, oozing of energy and determination. Lacked perhaps a clear thread, but what they were doing was excellent! In many ways they were mirroring each other in what became a climatic battle, and where KAI showed how great he can be when motivated. Miyahara was superb as always!

AJPW on ajpw.tv - "CHIBA EXTRA DREAM 21" - January 5, 2019, Chiba, Japan - (1 3/4 hrs)
January 5, 2019, Chiba, Japan - Chiba Blue Field (181 Fans)
1. Hokuto Omori -vs- Atsuki Aoyagi [3/4*]
2. Atsushi Aoki & Hikaru Sato -vs- Atsushi Maruyama & Danji Tamura [*]
3. Jun Akiyama & Yuki Sato -vs- Takao Omori & Black Menso~re [* 1/4]
4. Joe Doering & Dylan James & Gianni Valletta -vs- Suwama & Shuji Ishikawa & Yusuke Okada [* 1/2]
5. Zeus -vs- Yuma Aoyagi [**]
6. Jake Lee & Koji Iwamoto & Kaji Tomato -vs- Kento Miyahara & Naoya Nomura & Yoshitatsu [* 3/4]

I don't really like the atmosphere of Chiba Blue Field, the home of Kaientai Dojo. While the AJPW stars managed to create some noise in the small arena, a lot of the show just felt dead. Did get mildly into Zeus vs Aoyagi the elder, so that's the match to seek out from this All Japan house show. 

AJPW on ajpw.tv - "SPRING CITY REVITALIZATION SPECIAL ALL JAPAN CHARITY ATSUGI EVENT ~ I'LL ENERGIZE ATSUGI! OI!!" - January 6, 2019, Atsugi, Japan - (2 1/4 hrs)
January 6, 2019, Atsugi, Japan - Atsugi Ogino Sports Park Sub Arena (514 Fans)
1. Zeus -vs- Danji Tamura [* 1/2]
2. Naoya Nomura & Yoshitatsu -vs- Jake Lee & Koji Iwamoto [**]
3. Atsushi Aoki & Hikaru Sato & Yusuke Okada -vs- Atsushi Maruyama & Black Menso~re & Black Tiger VII - (Tire Match) [* 1/2]
4. Jun Akiyama & Atsuki Aoyagi -vs- Takao Omori & Hokuto Omori [* 3/4]
5. Joe Doering & Dylan James -vs- Kento Miyahara & Yuma Aoyagi [**]
6. Suwama & Shuji Ishikawa & El Excellente de Atsuki -vs- Mitsuya Nagai & Gianni Valletta & Mushuku no "Akatora" [* 1/2]

This was a fun house show, but it was also one where the biggest stars wasn't very noticeable. Thankfully the midcard guys were more in a mood to entertain. The main event was watered down by it's guest masked wrestlers and their lame gimmicks. For something different there was a tire match. Kind of fun for the gimmick of rolling wrestlers around.

NOAH

NOAH on Samurai TV - "NAVIGATION FOR THE FUTURE 2019 - DAY 1" - January 6, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - (3 hrs)
January 6, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,577 Fans)
1. Masa Kitamiya -vs- Kinya Okada [*]
2. Takashi Sugiura -vs- Yoshiki Inamura - (Yoshiki Inamura Moushin 7 Match Series 1st) [* 1/2]
3. Hi69 & Minoru Tanaka -vs- Atsushi Kotoge & Masao Inoue [* 3/4]
4. Hajime Ohara & Hitoshi Kumano -vs- Seiya Morohashi & Junta Miyawaki [** 1/4]
5. Akitoshi Saito & Mohammed Yone & Quiet Storm -vs- Mitsuya Nagai & KAZMA SAKAMOTO & Cody Hall [* 1/2]
6. YO-HEY & Yoshinari Ogawa & Kotaro Suzuki -vs- Daisuke Harada & Tadasuke & HAYATA [**]
7. Maybach Taniguchi & Yuji Hino (c) -vs- Katsuhiko Nakajima & Go Shiozaki - (GHC Tag Title) [** 1/2]
8. Kaito Kiyomiya (c) -vs- Kenoh - (GHC Title) [*** 1/2]

Kaito Kiyomiya at 22 years of age might not be 100% ready to carry NOAH, but it sure feels refreshing having him on top of a promotion that not that long ago was the most stale company in Japan. He keeps impressing and grows with each opportunity. And battling a former GHC Champion in Kenou to start the year was the right thing to create a positive vibe for what's to come in 2019. A slow builder of match. Very NOAH, but in a positive way, for the excitement increased, things got more intense, and they paced out the important moves in fine style! Kenou is excellent, and by the time the match was over, the same thing can be said about young ace. The rest of the card was a little lackluster and screwy with the Hooligans making their presence felt, but the GHC Tag Title clash was alright if you look past the lame invasion. 

GATOH MOVE

GATOH MOVE on YouTube.com - "Japan Tour #401" - January 1, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - (1 1/4 hrs)
January 1, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - Ichigaya Chocolate Hiroba (74 Fans)
1. Yuna Mizumori -vs- An Chamu [*]
2. Baliyan Akki & SAKI -vs- Antonio Honda & Mei Suruga [* 1/4]
3. Emi Sakura & Masahiro Takanashi -vs- Mitsuru Konno & Riho [*]

Gatoh Move shows have a wonderful intimate atmosphere, but I personally struggle to take the setting seriously as it relates to match quality. It's all so very niche with no rings, jumping onto walls and all that. As for this show, one of the first wrestling shows on 2019, the opener had it's issues. but I was loving the closing stages. The middle match was probable the most entertaining. Still very routine as far as indie wrestling goes. The main event had Emi Sakura working hard, but it also had Mitsuru Konno, who wasn't clicking in this match. Very average stuff, but still must have been cool for those fans who managed to fit into the small room.

GATOH MOVE on YouTube.com - "Japan Tour #402" - January 2, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - (1 hrs)
January 1, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - Ichigaya Chocolate Hiroba (74 Fans)
1. Baliyan Akki -vs- Mitsuru Konno [* 1/4]
2. Antonio Honda -vs- Jaki Numazawa -vs- Sayaka Obihiro - (3-Way Monoboke Death Match) [1/4*]
3. Emi Sakura & Masahiro Takanashi & Yuna Mizumori -vs- Makoto & Mei Suruga & Riho [-]

My second Gatoh Move of 2019 and it opened nicely with a fun little bout between Baliyan Akki vs Mitsuru Konno without it being anything must see. Okay, perhaps the leap that finished it is something worth seeing. The second match you probable have to be Japanese to understand. Comedy where they had to act out various references to things I don't have a clue about. Unfortunately the main event, which by the sound of things was good, was ruined as the picture froze on the stream a few minutes in. Both shows was shown on YouTube, but have since been removed.

DDT

DDT on ddtpro.com - “DDT LIVE! MAJI MANJI SUPER ~ NEW YEAR BALL SPECIAL! ALL SEATS 2,000 YEN BOX OFFICE!! 2019” - January 3, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - (3 1/2 hrs)
January 3, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,750 Fans)
1. Nobuhiro Shimatani -vs- El Lindaman [***]
2. KUDO & Yukio Sakaguchi & Masahiro Takanashi & Saki Akai -vs- Mike Bailey & Sammy Guevara & Veda Scott & Hoshitango [** 1/4]
3. 7-Man New Year’s Day! Burst Out Laughing! First Laughter Rumble [1/2*]
4. Daichi Hashimoto -vs- Kota Umeda - (Kota Umeda “Mad Dog” 7 Match Series – 6th Match) [** 1/2]
5. MAO & Jun Kasai -vs- Super Sasadango Machine & Antonio Honda -vs- Kazusada Higuchi & Mizuki Watase - (New Year! 3-Way Ladder Match) [**]
6. HARASHIMA & Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata & Yuki Ueno & Keisuke Ishii -vs- Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao & Tetsuya Endo & Mad Paulie & Puma King [** 3/4]
7. Shinya Aoki (c) -vs- Tanomusaku Toba - (DDT Extreme Title; Boxing Glove Match) [*]
8. CIMA & T-Hawk & Duan Yingnan (c) -vs- Konosuke Takeshita & Akito & Yuki Iino - (KO-D 6-Man Tag Title) [*** 1/2]

The opener for DDT's year was a surprise. I've never really liked Lindaman and I still can't remember Shunatani's name when I see him, but here they did a real fun short and sweet exchange. Every little thing counted and put a smile on everybody's face.To boot, the main event was hot! CIMA bringing his OWE project to DDT for a chaotic spectacle against ALL OUT. At times super amazing! One where Iino really shined with his power among the athletic boys. So entertaining that I might be underrating the effort! And most of the things in between was solid too. A good start for DDT in 2019.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO on ddtpro.com - “TOKYO JOSHI PRO ’19” - January 4, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - (2 3/4 hrs)
January 4, 2019, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,381 Fans)
1. Hikari Noa & Miu Watanabe & Pinano Pipipipi & Raku -vs- Marika Kobashi & Mina Shirakawa & Haruna Neko & Pom Harajuku - (Marika Kobashi Return Battle) [** 1/4]
2. Veda Scott -vs- Yuna Manase -vs- Hyper Misao - (Queen of USA Title Decision; 3-Way) [1/2*]
3. Natsumi Maki & Millie McKanzie -vs- Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino [* 3/4]
4. Saki Akai & YUMI -vs- Yuki Kamifuku & Himawari Unagi - (Himawari Unagi's Debut Match) [* 1/2]
5. Meiko Satomura -vs- Reika Saiki [***]
6. Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki (c) -vs- Shoko Nakajima & Riho - (TOKYO Princess Tag Title) [** 1/2]
7. Miyu Yamashita (c) -vs- Maki Ito - (TOKYO Princess Of Princess Title) [**]

The highlight of TJP's first show of '19 was Satomura vs Saiki. While TJP wrestlers isn't known for taking too much damage, it was a thrill seeing how the powerful beauty Reika Shiki would tackle Satomura's dangerous offense. They kept it basic and worked smart. Stuff mattered, but I wouldn't have minded a longer climax portion. The tag title match was also good. More a energy match than anything else, but they good a solid doze of action and excitement into the game, giving the fans their money's worth. Unfortunately the main event between TJP ace Miyu and crazy idol gal Maki Ito didn't live up to the hype. Couldn't get a proper flow and there were a few weak points. Still early days for Ito, but she does have a lot of improving to do before she should challenge for another shot at the title.

CMLL

CMLL on YouTube.com - "Sin Piedad" - January 1, 2019, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 1, 2019, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena México
1. El Coyote & Grako -vs- Arkalis & Robin [* 1/2]
2. Dalys & Amapola & La Seductora -vs- Lluvia & La Jarochita & Avispa Dorada [* 1/2]
3. Hijo del Signo & Yago -vs- Akuma & Camorra - (Mask vs Hair) [** 3/4]
4. Kráneo & Hijo de LA Park & Volcano -vs- Hijo del Villano III & Villano IV & Felino [* 3/4]
5. Dragón Lee & Penta 0M & King Phoenix -vs- Cuatrero & Forastero & Templario [***]
6. Carístico -vs- Último Guerrero [** 1/4]

Lucha Brothers teaming with Dragon Lee topped CMLL's first, and very uneven, Arena Mexico show of 2019. Lucha Brothers really shakes things up in CMLL and I hope they keep bringing guys like that in to give the often stale booking in CMLL some color. Fine heated stuff. The hair match was ugly and many will crap on it, but I appreciated the effort. Signo was killing himself in there trying to make a impossible match good. The main event was good, but way too short. It was on all the way, but ones always hopes for a true main event style match to close a show, which often doesn't happen in CMLL.

CMLL Guadalajara on YouTube.com - January 1, 2019, Guadalajara, Mexico - (3/4 hrs)
January 1, 2019, Guadalajara, Mexico - Arena Coliseo Guadalajara
1. Esfinge & Flyer & Tritón -vs- Okumura & Kawato San & Difunto [** 1/4]
2. Gran Guerrero & Cavernario & Mephisto -vs- Niebla Roja & Ángel de Oro & Místico [** 1/2]
3. Terrible -vs- Vangellys - (Mexican National Heavyweight Title) [**]

Solid Guadalajara outing from CMLL, but nothing outstanding. The main event was supposed to be Terrible against Diamante Azul, but Azul had been injured the day before, so they had Vangellys replace him. Hardly a good replacement, but the match was more interesting than it had any right to be. Kept it very simple, which I guess was the only way to not stink it up. 

CMLL on YouTube.com - "Super Viernes" - January 4, 2019, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 1/4 hrs)
January 4, 2019, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena México
1. Gran Guerrero & Ephesto & Templario -vs- Stuka Jr. & Guerrero Maya Jr. & Rey Cometa [** 3/4]
2. Titán -vs- Tritón - (Lightning Match) [***]
3. Carístico & Valiente & Volador Jr. -vs- Último Guerrero & Euforia & Mephisto [** 1/2]
4. Rush & La Bestia Del Ring & Terrible -vs- Atlantis & Kráneo & Volcano [**]
5. Dragón Lee -vs- Cavernario [*** 1/2]
6. Sansón & Cuatrero & Forastero (c) -vs- Niebla Roja & Ángel de Oro & Soberano Jr. - (Mexican National Trios Title) [*** 1/4]

This was a quality show from CMLL! A real Friday night spectacular. Damn good undercard with two matches which was allowed to built into something important closing the show. Dragón Lee/Cavernario was very CMLL formula, with a long final fall, but there was a terrific effort from the two giving us a exciting singles match. La Sangre Dinamita defending the Mexican National Trios Title was almost as good. Got enough time to feel special and of course there is enough history between the wrestlers for it to have some meaning. Definitely one of the better shows CMLL will have this year. 

AAA

AAA, LEGEND on Hand-Held YouTube.com - January 1, 2019, Tlalnepantla, Mexico - (1 hrs)
January 1, 2019, Tlalnepantla, Mexico - Arena Lopez Mateos
1. Bucker & Monje Solitario Jr. -vs- Marraneitor & Puercules [* 1/2]
2. Big Mami & Keneisha Moon & Lady Shani -vs- La Hiedra & Lilith Dark & Star Fire [* 1/2]
3. Parka Negra & Villano III Jr. -vs- Mexica & Sádico -vs- Cometa & Concord -vs- Alex Extreme & Ángel Cósmico - (4-Way) [*** 1/4]
4. Argenis & Bengala & Drago -vs- Chessman & Dave The Clown & Monsther Clown [* 3/4]
5. Máximo & Psycho Clown -vs- Goya Kong & La Máscara [** 1/2]

Arena Lopez Mateos is a cool arena which gives a loud and intimate atmosphere. Perfect for some Brazo family drama as Goya Kong beats up her own father, Super Porky, and low blows her two brothers Máximo & Psycho Clown. Especially for the crowd brawling was exciting. Overbooked in true AAA style, and hardly good from a technical perspective. But the crowd was eating it up! For some more spectacular wrestling the 4-way tag was amazing at times. Too spectacular as Sadico get injured doing something insane. A real lively fight worth seeking out.

AAA, Sanchez, Invasion on Hand-Held YouTube.com - January 1, 2019, Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl, Mexico - (1 hrs)
January 1, 2019, Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl, Mexico - Arena Neza
1. Ancla & Hantar & Kronoz -vs- Capricornio & Karma I & Karma II [* 1/2]
2. Bizarro & Turipache 2000 & Xibalba -vs- Príncipe Caballero & Príncipe Neza & Radiante [* 3/4]
3. La Máscara & Estrella Divina -vs- Máximo & Mamba [* 1/2]
4. Rey Escorpión & Texano Jr. (c) -vs- Pentagón Jr. & Psycho Clown - (AAA Tag Title) [**]
5. Pagano & Joe Lider & Mr. Águila -vs- Averno & Chessman & Súper Fly -vs- Carta Brava Jr. & Mocho Cota Jr. & Tito Santana II - (Cage; Copa Fusion 2019) [** 1/4]

AAA house show with a couple of matches with a purpose. Pentagón Jr. turned up as a surprise to team with Psycho Clown to challenge for the AAA Tag Titles. A little chaotic and simple, but it wasn't bad. The cage main event was better, but naturally it got a little messy as well. That's just the way AAA is. Even on smaller shows. 

IWRG

IWRG on Hand-Held YouTube.com - "23. ANIVERSARIO" - January 1, 2019, Naucalpan de Juarez, Mexico - (1 hrs)
January 1, 2019, Naucalpan de Juarez, Mexico - Arena Naucalpan
1. Güero Palma & Marduk & Taurino -vs- Divino & Juan Diego & Kid Jaguar -vs- Flyman & Flyman II & Gallito Colorado -vs- Manchitas & Psique & Puercules -vs- Atomic Star & Chicanito & Death Metal - (Cage; 5-Way; Mask vs Hair) [**]
2. Dragón Bane (c) -vs- Rey Horus - (IWRG Rey del Aire Title; Cage) [** 1/4]
3. Capo del Norte & Capo del Sur (IWRG c) -vs- Karaoui & Zumbi (TWS c) -vs- Oficial 911 & Oficial AK47 (hair) - (IWRG Intercontinental Tag Title vs Lucha Libre TWS Tag Title vs Hair) [* 1/2]
4. Leo & Mike -vs- Dinamic Black & Eragón -vs- Ra-Zhata & Shil-Kah -vs- Freelance & Relámpago - (Cage) [* 1/4]
5. Máscara Año 2000 Jr. -vs- Toscano - (Cage; Bull Terrier; Hair vs Hair) [*]

They did the all-cage match show last year, and it was just as ridiculous as this years. The main event is a hilarious mess worth seeing as to why you don't chain your wrestlers to the ropes in a ladder match. Hope no one ever books a similar match, but I love the novelty of having seen one! The rest of the cage matches weren't bad. Some were actually good in their messy state. Dragón Bane/Rey Horus was the best of the bunch, even if a little short for my liking (as Horus had other bookings to make that day).

LUCHA INDIES

LUCHA on Hand-Held YouTube.com - "BANDIDO: THE MOST WANTED" - January 1, 2019, Torreón, Mexico - (1 1/4 hrs)
January 1, 2019, Torreón, Mexico - Arena Azteca
1. Chris Stone Jr. & Ciclón Ramírez Jr. & Emperador Azteca -vs- Ángel Azteca Jr. & Galeno Del Mal & Zyrus [**]
2. Bandido (c) -vs- Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. - (The Crash Cruiserweight Title) [** 1/2]

The hand held footage wasn't of the best quality, but you do get a decent feel of the action going on. The tag bout was long. Too long and very uneven. Does have some quality portions, as well as equally embarrassing spots. But it was the main event which was the entire show! Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. against one of the hottest rising stars at the moment, the recently ROH signed luchador, Bandido. And it was a cool match. Definitely Bandido's match, showing he'll be a important addition to ROH roster in 2019. This match however had some odd down moments, always at the wrong parts of the match. I'll blame those on Dr. Wagner III who looked a little lost without his father nearby.

MexaWrestling on Hand-Held YouTube.com - "WAR OF STYLES" - January 1, 2019, Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl, Mexico - (1 1/2 hrs)
January 1, 2019, Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl, Mexico - Arena San Juan Pantitlan
1. Chico Che & Demasiado & Homero Simpson -vs- Diva Salvaje & Mike & Ñoño [**]
2. Auzter & Baby Star & Fly Warrior & Juve Venegas & Príncipe Aéreo & Tromba & Yoruba -vs- Amnesia & Arañita & Fandango & Freelance & Hausser & Máscara Mágica Jr. & Vaquero [** 1/4]
3. Keyra -vs- Lady Flammer -vs- Zeuxis -vs- Diosa Quetzal -vs- Hija De Gatuebla - (5-Way) [1/4*]
4. Amnesia & Fly Star & Gato De Ecatepec -vs- Demus & Diablo Jr. & Fantasma de la Ópera [* 1/2]
5. Fulgor I & Fulgor II & Metaleón & Mr. Leo -vs- Alas de Acero & Impulso & Iron Kid [* 3/4]
6. Alan Extreme & Centvrión -vs- Loco Max & Ricky Marvin [** 1/2]
7. Flamita -vs- Rey Horuz [** 1/4]
8. Carístico & Dragón Bane & Templario -vs- Aramis & Arkángel Divino & Toxin [** 1/2]

Found all the matches (of various lengths in hand-held form) on YouTube, and it was a fun show. Not a blow away one, but most of the matches where entertaining. The opener had some guy in a Homer Simpson costume fighting Michelangelo of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles with a few transvestites thrown in. Clusterfuck for sure, but one that'll easily put a smile on ones face. Flamita and Rey Horuz, who know each other well, had a solid short bout. Loco Max was on form in his tag and the main event was a easy pleaser with CMLL stars mixing with a few of the rising stars on the indie scene. 

IMPACT

IMPACT - "HOMECOMING" - January 6, 2019, Nashville, Tennessee, USA - (2 3/4 hrs)
January 6, 2019, Nashville, Tennessee, USA - The Asylum
1. Rich Swann -vs- Ethan Page -vs- Jake Crist -vs- Trey Miguel - (Ultimate X Match; Impact X-Division Title Decison) [** 3/4]
2. Allie & Su Yung -vs- Jordynne Grace & Kiera Hogan [**]
3. Eddie Edwards -vs- Moose - (Falls Count Anywhere) [*** 1/4]
4. Sami Callihan -vs- Willie Mack [***]
5. Eli Drake -vs- Abyss - (Monster's Ball) [**]
6. Ortiz & Santana (c) -vs- Pentagón Jr. & Rey Fénix - (Impact Tag Title) [** 1/2]
7. Tessa Blanchard (c) -vs Taya Valkyrie - (Impact Knockouts Title) [** 1/4]
8. Johnny Impact (c) -vs- Brian Cage - (Impact Title) [** 3/4]

Impact starts their new chapter in a good way! A little weird that I ended up with Edwards/Moose ass my favorite match on the show, but it was the best told story which didn't have any major issues about it. The main event was on it's way to become a real killer, but some major problems with some sequences, including a devastatingly poor finish, ruined the impression. Same with Valkyrie's big moment being sloppy. The X-Division bout had one purpose. Having people executing movies hanging on the ropes over the ring. Got a bit repetitive and choreographed for it's own good, but it had it's spectacular moments. I've seen people love the LAX vs Lucha Bros tag, but to me it was mainly a rushed spotfest. Fun for what it was, but not in any way a MOTY type deal. I don't get LAX anyway. Comes across as a gimmick which was out-of-date 20 years ago. They should really freshen their style.

DEFIANT

DEFIANT - on YouTube.com - "LOADED #5" - January 5, 2019, Newcastle, England, UK - (1 hrs)
January 5, 2019, Newcastle, England, UK - O2 Academy
1. El Phantasmo -vs- Man Like Dereiss [*]
2. BT Gunn -vs- Lucky Kid [**]
3. Kanji (c) -vs- Roxxy - (Defiant Women's Title) [* 1/2]
4. Joe Hendry -vs- Rory Coyle [3/4*]

Easy Defiant show. Light matches as it's only a TV taping and not one of their big events. Still Gunn vs Lucky Kid got good and Kanji came out of her match alright. Fun song for the final match, but the bout itself was a deliberately  lazy one.

--PUNQ--

Salman Hashimikov was during a experimental phase where NJPW invested a lot of money on ex-Soviet amateur wrestlers. Very unique period. The experiment only lasted a year or so, and in most ways could be seen as a transitional period when Inoki was stepping down and before New Japan had established their new generation of Muto/Hashimoto/Chono. The Russians was used for mostly short legit looking matches with a lot of suplexes. Hashimikov was probable the most credible of the bunch, but it was still a bit of a shock the way he would go on to win the big one. He didn't have much of a career after except for a spot in NWA's Pat O'Connor Tag Tourney of 1990 and a handful shots in UWFI in '93-94. Him winning the IWGP Title was a very 1989 thing.

A low impact week compared to the previous one, but with a handful great matches making it sweet anyhow. Mainly New Japan with their NJ Cup and CMLL doing something big bringing the most exciting wrestling, with a few surprises like Soya vs Ashino in W-1 and the Marvin vs Cerebro feud continuing to grow helping the diversity.

Top-20, Week 11, 2018:

1. March 16, 2018 - Hiroshi Tanahashi -vs- Juice Robinson - (New Japan Cup - Semi-Final) [****] (NJPW)
2. March 16, 2018 - Cuatrero -vs- Ángel de Oro - (Mark vs Mask) [*** 3/4] (CMLL)
3. March 15, 2018 - Zack Sabre Jr. -vs- Kota Ibushi - (New Japan Cup - Round 2) [*** 3/4] (NJPW)
4. March 14, 2018 - Shotaro Ashino (c) -vs- Manabu Soya - (WRESTLE-1 Title) [*** 1/2] (WRESTLE-1)
5. March 14, 2018 - Juice Robinson -vs- Michael Elgin - (New Japan Cup - Round 2) [*** 1/4] (NJPW)
6. March 18, 2018 - Dr. Cerebro (c) -vs- Ricky Marvin - (IWRG Intercontinantal Middleweight Title) [***] (IWRG)
7. March 16, 2018 - Volador Jr. & Valiente -vs- Terrible & Rey Bucanero - (CMLL Tag Title Tournament - Final) [** 3/4] (CMLL)
8. March 18, 2018 - Zack Sabre Jr. -vs- SANADA - (New Japan Cup - Semi-Final) [** 3/4] (NJPW)
9. March 17, 2018 - Psycho Clown & Máximo & La Máscara -vs- Averno & Chessman & Súper Fly -vs- Carta Brava Jr. & Mocho Cota Jr. & Tito Santana - (3-Way) [** 3/4] (AAA)
10. March 16, 2018 - Keith Lee -vs- Moose [** 3/4] (AAW)
11. March 12, 2018 - Volador Jr. (c) -vs- Cavernario - (NWA Historic Welterweight Title) [** 1/2] (CMLL)
12. March 13, 2018 - Cedric Alexander -vs- Roderick Strong - (WWE Cruiserweight Title Tournament - Semi-Final) [** 1/2] (WWE)
13. March 12, 2018 - SANADA -vs- Chuckie T - (New Japan Cup - Round 1) [** 1/2] (NJPW)
14. March 18, 2018 - Rey Wagner -vs- Rey Escorpión -vs- Hijo De Wagner - (3-Way) [** 1/2] (DINASTIA MORENO)
15. March 14, 2018 - Keiji Muto & Ryota Hama & SUSHI & Kazushi Miyamoto -vs- Masayuki Kono & Hiroshi Yamato & Yasufumi Nakanoue & KAI [** 1/2] (WRESTLE-1)
16. March 16, 2018 - Atlantis & Matt Taven & Niebla Roja -vs- Último Guerrero & Gran Guerrero & Euforia [** 1/2] (CMLL)
17. March 16, 2018 - Suwama & Shuji Ishikawa & Atsushi Aoki -vs- Kento Miyahara & Yoshitatsu & Naoya Nomura [** 1/2] (AJPW)
18. March 17, 2018 - Tritón -vs- Titán -vs- Laredo Kid -vs- Dragón Lee - (4-Way) [** 1/2] (CMLL)
19. March 15, 2018 - Hiroshi Tanahashi & Michael Elgin & Juice Robinson -vs- Kazuchika Okada & Tomohiro Ishii & Chuckie T [** 1/2] (NJPW)
20. March 17, 2018 - Dinastía & Dragón Solar & Pardux -vs- Bronco González Jr. & Fetiche & Mini Histeria [** 1/2] (AAA)

MARCH 12, 2018

NJPW - "NEW JAPAN CUP 2018 - DAY 4" - March 12, 2018, Takamatsu, Japan - (2 1/2 hrs)
March 12, 2018, Takamatsu, Japan - Takamatsu City Gym (1,365 Fans)
1. Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado -vs- Ryusuke Taguchi & Ren Narita [* 1/2]
2. Bad Luck Fale & Yujiro Takahashi & Tanga Loa -vs- Yuji Nagata & Shota Umino & Tetsuhiro Yagi [* 1/2]
3. Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI -vs- Michael Elgin & Tomoyuki Oka [* 3/4]
4. Tetsuya Naito & BUSHI -vs- Zack Sabre Jr. & Taka Michinoku [* 1/2]
5. Minoru Suzuki & Lance Archer & Takashi Iizuka & Taichi -vs- Hiroshi Tanahashi & Togi Makabe & Juice Robinson & Toa Henare [**]
6. Kazuchika Okada & Tomohiro Ishii -vs- Kota Ibushi & Chase Owens [* 3/4]
7. Toru Yano -vs- Davey Boy Smith Jr. - (New Japan Cup - Round 1) [* 1/2]
8. SANADA -vs- Chuckie T - (New Japan Cup - Round 1) [** 1/2]

Probable the worst day of the New Japan Cup tour. It still had a nice SANADA vs Chuckie T match. A semi-effort, though not exactly main event material as far as New Japan goes.

BJW - "HIROSHIMA "FRENZY" PRO-WRESTLING ~ STRONG CLIMB - DAY 3" - March 12, 2018, Hiroshima, Japan - (2 1/2 hrs)
March 12, 2018, Hiroshima, Japan - Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Hall (310 Fans)
1. Masaki Morihiro -vs- Takuho Kato - (Exhibition) [1/4*]
2. Kazuki Hashimoto & Kankuro Hoshino -vs- Tatsuhiko Yoshino & Kota Sekifuda [* 1/4]
3. Ryuji Ito & Takumi Tsukamoto -vs- Minoru Fujita & Toshiyuki Sakuta - (Barbed Wire Board Death Match) [3/4*]
4. Yasufumi Nakanoue & Ryuichi Kawakami & Yoshihisa Uto -vs- Daisuke Sekimoto & Hideyoshi Kamitani & Kazumi Kikuta [*]
5. Yuko Miyamoto & Isami Kodaka -vs- Masaya Takahashi & Takayuki Ueki - (Fluorescent Lighttubes Death Match) [* 1/2]
6. Ryota Hama -vs- Takuya Nomura - (Ikkitousen ~ Strong Climb - Block A) [* 1/4]
7. Daichi Hashimoto -vs- Yuya Aoki - (Ikkitousen ~ Strong Climb - Block A) [* 3/4]
8. Masashi Takeda (c) -vs- Ryuichi Sekine - (BJW Death Match Title; Fluorescent Lighttubes + Setouchi Lemon Blood Hell Death Match) [** 1/2]

Big Japan continues to stumble along. The Strong Climb tournament hasn't exactly made the most of the Strong division 3 shows in. Thankfully the hardcore division with Masashi Takeda continues to deliver good title matches, which is the main reason to follow this promotion in 2018.

CMLL - "Lunes Arena Puebla" - March 12, 2018, Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Puebla, Mexico - (2 1/4 hrs)
March 12, 2018, Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Puebla, Mexico - Arena Puebla
1. Ares & El Perverso -vs- Black Tiger & El Asturiano [* 1/2]
2. Amapola & La Comandante -vs- Princesa Sugehit & Kaho Kobayashi [* 3/4]
3. Virus & King Jaguar & Templario -vs- Audaz & Lestat & Pegasso [**]
4. Pólvora & Cuatrero & Sansón -vs- Valiente & Stuka Jr. & Titán [**]
5. Rush & La Bestia Del Ring & Sam Adonis -vs- Mr. Niebla & Euforia & Kráneo [* 3/4]
6. Volador Jr. (c) -vs- Cavernario - (NWA Historic Welterweight Title) [** 1/2]

Monday night vibes in Puebla. Not the most exciting CMLL shows, but the main event had at least some aura even if the formula was a bit standard. 

WWE - "Monday Night RAW/Main Event" - March 12, 2018, Detroit, Michigan, USA - (3 hrs)
March 12, 2018, Detroit, Michigan, USA - Little Caesar’s Arena (13,500 Fans)
Main Event #284
1. Goldust -vs- Curt Hawkins [*]
2. Akira Tozawa & Hideo Itami -vs- Gentleman Jack Gallagher & TJP [*]
Monday Night RAW #1294
3. Sasha Banks -vs- Sonya Deville [3/4*]
4. Finn Balor -vs- Seth Rollins [** 1/4]
5. Asuka -vs- Mickie James [**]
6. Nia Jax -vs- Joan King [1/4*]
7. Braun Strowman -vs- Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows -vs- Heath Slater & Rhyno -vs- Bo Dallas & Curtis Axel -vs- Dash Wilder & Scott Dawson -vs- Apollo & Titus O'Neil - (WWE RAW Tag Title #1 Contendership Battle Royal) [* 1/2]

This Raw was good at times, but almost all the angles going on to the big PPV was like "Hey, do you have anything for me at WrestleMania?". Feels like they're almost clueless as to what to deliver for a show they've had a year to plan. 

MARCH 13, 2018

CMLL - "Martes Arena Mexico" - March 13, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 hrs)
March 13, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico
1. Mercurio & Pequeño Violencia -vs- Angelito & Fantasy [* 1/2]
2. Nitro & Cancerbero & Raziel -vs- Robin & Eléctrico & Sensei [**]
3. Fuego & Blue Panther Jr. & The Panther -vs- Puma & Tiger & Kawato San [**]
4. Mephisto & Ephesto & Luciferno -vs- Titán & Stuka Jr. & Tritón [* 3/4]
5. Máscara Año 2000 -vs- La Bestia Del Ring [*]
6. Marco Corleone & Soberano Jr. & Valiente -vs- Mr. Niebla & Cavernario & Negro Casas [** 1/4]

Routine Tuesday show at Arena Mexico. Didn't help that the sole singles match they brought was 60 year old Mascara Ano 2000 against Rush's old dad Pierroth.

WWE - "SmackDown Live/205 Live" - March 13, 2018, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA - (2 1/2 hrs)
March 13, 2018, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA - Bankers Life Fieldhouse (7,00 Fans)
SmackDown Live #969
1. AJ Styles -vs- Rusev [* 1/2]
2. Harper & Rowan -vs- Big E & Jimmy Uso [*]
3. Jinder Mahal -vs- Bobby Roode [* 1/4]
4. Carmella -vs- Naomi [*]
Mixed Match Challenge #9
5. Bobby Roode & Charlotte Flair -vs- Rusev & Lana - (WWE Mixed Match Challenge - Quarterfinal) [* 1/2]
205 Live #68
6. Akira Tozawa & Hideo Itami -vs- Gran Metalik & Lince Dorado [* 3/4]
7. Gentleman Jack Gallagher -vs- Murphy Myers [3/4*]
8. Cedric Alexander -vs- Roderick Strong - (WWE Cruiserweight Title Tournament - Semi-Final) [** 1/2]

Smackdown seemed to feel less important as the show went on. Rusev & Lana is out. Thankfully Alexander and Strong delivered the best WWE had to offer this week, to end the day on a positive.

MARCH 14, 2018

NJPW - "NEW JAPAN CUP 2018 - DAY 5" - March 14, 2018, Fuji, Japan - (2 3/4 hrs)
March 14, 2018, Fuji, Japan - Fujisan Messe (1,290 Fans)
1. Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado -vs- Ryusuke Taguchi & Tetsuhiro Yagi [* 3/4]
2. David Finlay & Toa Henare & Ren Narita -vs- Yuji Nagata & Tomoyuki Oka & Shota Umino [* 1/4]
3. Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. -vs- Yujiro Takahashi & Tanga Loa [* 1/2]
4. Kota Ibushi & Chase Owens -vs- Zack Zabre Jr. & Taka Michinoku [** 1/4]
5. Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano & Chuckie T -vs- Tetsuya Naito & SANADA & BUSHI [* 1/2]
6. Kazuchika Okada & Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI -vs- Minoru Suzuki & Takashi Iizuka & Taichi [**]
7. Juice Robinson -vs- Michael Elgin - (New Japan Cup - Round 2) [*** 1/4]
8. Hiroshi Tanahashi -vs- Bad Luck Fale - (New Japan Cup - Round 2) [**]

I know they have all faith in Tanahashi, but letting him drag a main event caliber match out of Fale was asking too much. Juice and Elgin should have closed the show, a great match!

WRESTLE-1 - "WRESTLE-1 TOUR 2018 TRANS MAGIC - DAY 5" - March 14, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (2 hrs)
March 14, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,521 Fans)
1. Seigo Tachibana -vs- Masayuki Mitomi [* 1/4]
2. Yusuke Kodama & Drunk Andy -vs- Tsugutaka Sato & Kenshin Chikano [*]
3. Kaz Hayashi & Shuji Kondo & Ryuji Hijikata -vs- Daiki Inaba & Seiki Yoshioka & Jiro "Ikemen" Kuroshio [**]
4. Hana Kimura & Saori Anou -vs- Natsumi Maki & Sho Sekiguchi [* 1/2]
5. Koji Doi & Kumagoro & Takanori Ito (c) -vs- NOSAWA Rongai & MAZADA & FUJITA - (UWA Trios Title) [**]
6. Alejandro -vs- Andy Wu - (WRESTLE-1 Cruiser Fes - Final) [** 1/4]
7. Keiji Muto & Ryota Hama & SUSHI & Kazushi Miyamoto -vs- Masayuki Kono & Hiroshi Yamato & Yasufumi Nakanoue & KAI [** 1/2]
8. Shotaro Ashino (c) -vs- Manabu Soya - (WRESTLE-1 Title) [*** 1/2]

Average undercard with Muto's "final moonsault" being a uplifting highlight. The main event was a major surprise! Manabu Soya, coming off a goofy loosing streak gimmick has shaved his hair for a new beginning and pulls off a superb main event with champions Ashino! There was something very old school about the whole thing and it worked for that moment to surprising heights.

DDT - “SAKI AKAI PRODUCE ~ DDT COLLECTION” - March 14, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (2 1/2 hrs)
March 14, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Shinjuku FACE (352 Fans)
1. Mizuki Watase -vs- Daiki Shimomura [*]
2. Yoshiko -vs- Yuko Miyamoto -vs- Ryota Nakatsu -vs- Naomi Yoshimura -vs- Yukio Sakaguchi -vs- Nobuhiro Shimatani - (Outrage 6-Way) [1/2*]
3. 9-Person Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Doki ❤ Aja Full Paint Rumble [* 1/2]
4. Daisuke Sasaki & Tetsuya Endo -vs- Jun Kasai & DJ Nira [*]
5. Sakisama & Azusa Christie & Martha -vs- Margaret★Owashi & Kazuko Hirata & Kazuko Higuchi [3/4*]
6. KUDO & Akito & MAO -vs- Konosuke Takeshita & Soma Takao & Shunma Katsumata [* 3/4]
7. 26-Person One Day GM Competition [1/2*]

Saki Akai produces a DDT variety show of sorts. Sometimes entertaining, but also a bit of a lame duck. More for the comedy than the action.

IWRG - March 14, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - (1 1/2 hrs)
March 14, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - Arena Naucalpan
1. Chef Benito -vs- Power Bull [* 1/2]
2. Ángel Estrella Jr. & Toto -vs- Dark Alfa & Guerrero 2000 [* 3/4]
3. Shadow Boy & Súper Brazo Jr. -vs- Dragón Yuki & Leroy [*]
4. Black Dragón & Dinamic Black & Dragón Fly -vs- Diablo Jr. & Gallo Frances & Lunatic Xtreme [* 1/2]
5. Factor & Spector -vs- Mike & Teelo -vs- Capo del Norte & Máscara Año 2000 Jr. - (3-Way) [*]

Typical poorly attended mid-week IWRG show.

MARCH 15, 2018

NJPW - "NEW JAPAN CUP 2018 - DAY 6" - March 15, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (2 1/2 hrs)
March 15, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,718 Fans)
1. David Finlay & Ren Narita -vs- Tomoyuki Oka & Shota Umino [*]
2. Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI -vs- Togi Makabe & Toa Henare [* 1/2]
3. Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Takashi Iizuka & Taichi -vs- Bad Luck Fale & Yujiro Takahashi & Tanga Loa & Chase Owens [**]
4. Minoru Suzuki & Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado -vs- Tetsuya Naito & BUSHI & Hiromu Takahashi [** 1/4]
5. Hiroshi Tanahashi & Michael Elgin & Juice Robinson -vs- Kazuchika Okada & Tomohiro Ishii & Chuckie T [** 1/2]
6. SANADA -vs- Toru Yano - (New Japan Cup - Round 2) [**]
7. Zack Sabre Jr. -vs- Kota Ibushi - (New Japan Cup - Round 2) [*** 3/4]

Good show at the Hall, with a classic main event where Ibushi and Sabre clashed unique styles to everybody's pleasure! Crazy chemistry at times, and even crazier wrestling!

MARCH 16, 2018

NJPW - "NEW JAPAN CUP 2018 - DAY 7" - March 16, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (2 3/4 hrs)
March 16, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,716 Fans)
1. Yujiro Takahashi & Tanga Loa -vs- Tomoyuki Oka & Tetsuhiro Yagi [**]
2. Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Taichi -vs- Michael Elgin & David Finlay & Shota Umino [**]
3. Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano -vs- Togi Makabe & Toa Henare [* 3/4]
4. Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI & Chuckie T -vs- Kota Ibushi & Bad Luck Fale & Chase Owens [* 1/2]
5. Minoru Suzuki & Takashi Iizuka -vs- Kazuchika Okada & Gedo [**]
6. Tetsuya Naito & SANADA & BUSHI & Hiromu Takahashi -vs- Zack Sabre Jr. & Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Taka Michinoku & El Desperado [** 1/4]
7. Hiroshi Tanahashi -vs- Juice Robinson - (New Japan Cup - Semi-Final) [****]

Standard undercard. It's all about the main event on this tour, and this one was special. On one hand, almost over-doing the story part of the match with very animated exchanges trying to tell their tale with a teaspoon. Because of it, the match lacked a little of that energy rush to send the fans into a frenzy. But how often do we get great frenzy matches with limited story compared to story driven matches like these?! That's why Tanahashi vs Robinson stands-out as one of my highlights of the year thus far!

AJPW - "DREAM POWER SERIES 2018 - DAY 1" - March 16, 2018, Choshi, Chiba, Japan - (1 3/4 hrs)
March 16, 2018, Choshi, Chiba, Japan - Choshi City Gym (373 Fans)
1. Yohei Nakajima -vs- Rionne Fujiwara [* 1/2]
2. Hikaru Sato & Yusuke Okada -vs- Kotaro Suzuki & Keiichi Sato [** 1/4]
3. Tajiri -vs- Atsushi Maruyama [1/2*]
4. KAI -vs- Koji Iwamoto [* 1/2]
5. Jun Akiyama & Zeus -vs- Ryouji Sai & Black Tiger VII [**]
6. Suwama & Shuji Ishikawa & Atsushi Aoki -vs- Kento Miyahara & Yoshitatsu & Naoya Nomura [** 1/2]

Fairly small district show for AJPW, yet the wrestling was for the most part solid enough for a view. The main event especially.

CMLL - "Homenaje a Dos Leyendas 2018 (Lutteroth & Mil Mascaras)" - March 16, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 3/4 hrs)
March 16, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico (12,000 Fans)
1. Audaz & Flyer & Star Jr. -vs- Virus & Disturbio & Templario [**]
2. Dalys & La Seductora & Zeuxis -vs- Princesa Sugehit & Marcela & Kaho Kobayashi [**]
3. Rush & Dragón Lee & Mistico -vs- Máscara Año 2000 & Sansón & Forastero [** 1/4]
4. Atlantis & Matt Taven & Niebla Roja -vs- Último Guerrero & Gran Guerrero & Euforia [** 1/2]
5. Volador Jr. & Valiente -vs- Terrible & Rey Bucanero - (CMLL Tag Title Tournament - Final) [** 3/4]
6. Cuatrero -vs- Ángel de Oro - (Mark vs Mask) [*** 3/4]

The best and most important show of the week! CMLL bringing a big show with a big Mask match! Only thing holding it back was not stepping outside the typical CMLL big match formula, but make no mistake about this had amazing execution and emotional to boost between two 2nd generation stars fighting for the family heritage!

AAA - "PerroMania II" - March 16, 2018, Tlalnepantla, Mexico - (1 3/4 hrs)
March 16, 2018, Tlalnepantla, Mexico - Arena Lopez Mateos
1. Cometa & Súper Panda -vs- Chico del Barrio & Magia Negra [1/2*]
2. Fetiche & Villano III Jr. -vs- Concord & Raptor [**]
3. El Sable & La Hiedra & Mini Psycho Clown -vs- Big Mami & Dinastía & Némesis [* 1/4]
4. Averno & Chessman -vs- La Parka & Pagano [* 1/2]
5. Joe Lider & Kahn Del Mal & Mr. Águila -vs- Dave The Clown & Monsther Clown & Murder Clown [*]

AAA house show in hand-held format. Decent at times, and because it's a AAA show, a mess at times too!

AAW - "EPIC 2018: The 14th Anniversary Show" - March 16, 2018, Merrionette Park, Illinois, USA - (2 3/4 hrs)
March 16, 2018, Merrionette Park, Illinois, USA - 115 Bourbon Street
1. Ace Romero -vs- Hakim Zane [**]
2. Dezmond Xavier & Zachary Wentz -vs- Stephen Wolf & Trey Miguel [** 1/2]
3. Myron Reed -vs- DJ Z [**]
4. Connor Braxton & Curt Stallion & Jake Something -vs- Colt Cabana & Davey Vega & Mat Fitchett [* 1/2]
5. Jessicka Havok (c) -vs- Hudson Envy - (AAW Women's Title) [*]
6. Sami Callihan -vs- Eddie Kingston [** 1/4]
7. Maxwell Jacob Friedman -vs- PACO [*]
8. Dave Crist & Jake Crist -vs- Joey Janela & Teddy Hart [** 1/4]
9. Keith Lee -vs- Moose [** 3/4]
10. March 16, 2018 - ACH & Jushin Thunder Liger -vs- David Starr & Trevor Lee [**]

Fun and energetic show, for sure. Lee vs Moose had the most to offer, got the most time a well, on a show where it felt like they were rushing everything.

MARCH 17, 2018

WRESTLE-1 - "WRESTLE-1 TOUR 2018 TRANS MAGIC - DAY 6" - March 17, 2018, Yokohama, Japan - (2 hrs)
March 17, 2018, Yokohama, Japan - Yokohama Radiant Hall (192 Fans)
1. Ganseki Tanaka -vs- Masayuki Mitomi [*]
2. Jun Tonsho -vs- Tsugutaka Sato [*]
3. Seigo Tachibana -vs- Kaz Hayashi -vs- Jiro "Ikemen" Kuroshio - (3-Way) [* 1/4]
4. MAZADA & FUJITA -vs- Yusuke Kodama & Drunk Andy [*]
5. Seiki Yoshioka & Hiroshi Yamato -vs- Andy Wu & Alejandro [* 3/4]
6. Manabu Soya & Masayuki Kono & Shuji Kondo & NOSAWA Rongai -vs- Daiki Inaba & Koji Doi & Kumagoro & Takanori Ito [**]

Small and unimportant Wrestle-1 show. At least it got better toward the end.

OZ Academy - "SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER" - March 17, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (1 3/4 hrs)
March 17, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (760 Fans)
1. Tsubasa Kuragaki & Sakura Hirota & Aoi Kizuki -vs- Misaki Ohata & Mika Iida & Hiroe Nagahama [*]
2. Sonoko Kato -vs- Manami Katsu [**]
3. Aja Kong & Kaori Yoneyama & Hiroyo Matsumoto -vs- Yumi Ohka & Maya Yukihi & Alex Lee [* 3/4]
4. AKINO & Shoko Sekiguchi -vs- Yumiko Hotta & Miyuki Takase [* 1/2]
5. Hikaru Shida -vs- Rina Yamashita [* 3/4]
6. Yoshiko (c) -vs- Mayumi Ozaki - (OZ Academy Openweight Title; Dress Up Wild Fight) [** 1/4]

Oz Academy bringing one of their big Korakuen Hall shows, and continues to be too driven in chaos to make one fully appreciate what they're doing. That's what they've practically been doing for 20 years. Sometimes it works great, most of the time it's just annoying.

CMLL - "Ultimo Desafio" - March 17, 2018, Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico - (1/2 hrs)
March 17, 2018, Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico - Arena Pavilion del Norte
1. Lince de Oro -vs- Tormento Negro [* 3/4]
2. Espartaco & Nitro & Zorro Plateado Jr. -vs- Potro & Trauma I & Trauma II [*]
3. Negro Casas & Último Guerrero & Valiente -vs- Green Demon & Negro Navarro & Solar I [* 1/2]
4. Tritón -vs- Titán -vs- Laredo Kid -vs- Dragón Lee - (4-Way) [** 1/2]

CMLL guys mixing with the indies, hand-held action. The main event got quite spectacular with four talented fliers going at it!

AAA - March 17, 2018, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico - (2 1/4 hrs)
March 17, 2018, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico - Unidad Deportiva Miraval
1. Dinastía & Dragón Solar & Pardux -vs- Bronco González Jr. & Fetiche & Mini Histeria [** 1/2]
2. Pimpinela Escarlata & Mamba -vs- Estrella Divina & Ashley [**]
3. Psycho Clown & Máximo & La Máscara -vs- Averno & Chessman & Súper Fly -vs- Carta Brava Jr. & Mocho Cota Jr. & Tito Santana - (3-Way) [** 3/4]
4. Histeria & Psicosis -vs- Monsther Clown & Murder Clown [*]
5. Dark Cuervo & Dark Scoria (c) -vs- Joe Lider & Mr. Águila - (AAA Tag Title) [* 1/2]
6. La Parka & Pagano -vs- Dave The Clown & Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. [**]

AAA continues to be this era's version of WCW. Super colorful characters, ridiculous chaotic booking. It's a whole universe on it's own, so just love the madness they bring! Even on lesser TV-tapings like this.

CONTRERAS - March 17, 2018, Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - (1 3/4 hrs)
March 17, 2018, Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - Arena Neza
1. 13-Man Battle Royal [* 1/4]
2. Angel O Demonio & Leon Rojo & Obett -vs- Colombiano & Miserable & Xibalba [3/4*]
3. Mary Apache & Casandra & La Enfermera & Luna Mágica -vs- Diva Virtual & Keyra & La Seductora & Lady Pink [*]
4. Ángel Jr. & Divino & Dollar & Máscara Divina -vs- Gallego & Mohicano I & Monster & Mr. Cóndor [* 1/4]
5. May Flowers & Nigma -vs- Jessy Ventura & Pasion Kristal [* 1/2]
6. Genaro Contreas Jr. & Máscara Sagrada Jr. & Rey Del Espacio Jr. & Tiburón -vs- Black Warrior Jr. & Dr. Karonte Jr. & Fishman Jr. & Pirata Morgan Jr. [* 1/2]
7. Black Warrior & Enfermero Jr. & Okumura & Sangre Chicana -vs- Black Man & Chamaco Valaguez & Dr. Karonte & Mano Negra [* 1/2]
8. Atlantis & Rayo de Jalisco Jr. & Súper Astro -vs- Canek & Jerry Estrada & Pirata Morgan [*]

I just wanted to see the old guys I grew up with. Past their sell-by-date, and rather poorly put together show, even if the crowd was good bringing the happy vibes.

MARCH 18, 2018

NJPW - "NEW JAPAN CUP 2018 - DAY 8" - March 18, 2018, Hamamatsu, Japan - (2 3/4 hrs)
March 18, 2018, Hamamatsu, Japan - Act City Hamamatsu (2,750 Fans)
1. Shota Umino -vs- Ren Narita [* 1/2]
2. Bad Luck Fale & Yujiro Takahashi & Tanga Loa -vs- Togi Makabe & Toa Henare & Tomoyuki Oka [* 3/4]
3. Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano -vs- Takashi Iizuka & Taichi [* 1/4]
4. Michael Elgin & Juice Robinson -vs- Kota Ibushi & Chase Owens [**]
5. Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. -vs- Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI [* 3/4]
6. Tetsuya Naito & BUSHI & Hiromu Takahashi -vs- Minoru Suzuki & Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado [**]
7. Hiroshi Tanahashi & David Finlay -vs- Kazuchika Okada & Chuckie T [**]
8. Zack Sabre Jr. -vs- SANADA - (New Japan Cup - Semi-Final) [** 3/4]

No fireworks, but solid works. The whole tour have been one-match shows, so it was up to ZBJ and SANADA to blow our minds. Didn't quite do it, but didn't stop them from having a good match. SANADA is a slow starter and Sabre is that kind of a worker who takes advantage of a wrestler's aggression. So in that regard they weren't exactly ideal opponents. But both a technically sound, so we got a lot of that technical cool going on!

NOAH - "GLOBAL TAG LEAGUE 2018 - DAY 1" - March 18, 2018, Fukuoka, Japan - (2 hrs)
March 18, 2018, Fukuoka, Japan - Hakata Star Lane (515 Fans)
1. HAYATA -vs- Junta Miyawaki [*]
2. Jay Bradley -vs- Hitoshi Kumano [*]
3. Daisuke Harada & Tadasuke -vs- Yoshinari Ogawa & Hajime Ohara [**]
4. Hi69 -vs- Minoru Tanaka -vs- YO-HEY - (3-Way) [* 1/2]
5. Cody Hall & KAZMA SAKAMOTO -vs- Maybach Taniguchi & Mitsuya Nagai - (Global Tag League) [* 3/4]
6. Go Shiozaki & Kaito Kiyomiya -vs- Akitoshi Saito & Masao Inoue - (Global Tag League) [**]
7. Mohammed Yone & Quiet Storm -vs- Takashi Sugiura & Kenou - (Global Tag League) [** 1/4]
8. Katsuhiko Nakajima & Masa Kitamiya -vs- Naomichi Marufuji & Atsushi Kotoge - (Global Tag League) [**]

NOAH get their Global Tag League off to an average start. Not bad, but this show was lacking the magic. Especially with the main event where they started way too slow to get a real boost to what they were doing. On the plus side, the 50 Funky Powers continue to rule!

BASARA - “BASARA 62 ~BATTLE OF OKE OKAMA~” - March 18, 2018, Nagoya, Japan - (1 1/2 hrs)
March 18, 2018, Nagoya, Japan - Aichi Rokujima Sports Center (143 Fans)
1. Yusuke Kubo -vs- Akiyori Takizawa [3/4*]
2. MC.33 -vs- Gouma Ryu -vs- Tomoya Hasegawa - (Reversal Pro Wrestling Trial 3-Way) [1/4*]
3. FUMA -vs- Takato Nakano -vs- Yasu Urano - (3-Way) [* 1/2]
4. Kazuhiro Tamura -vs- Daichi Kazato [* 3/4]
5. Ryuichi Sekine & Ryota Nakatsu -vs- Fuminori Abe & Yusaku Ito [**]
6. Isami Kodaka & Takumi Tsukamoto -vs- SAGAT & Trans-Am ★ Shinya [**]

The DDT off-shot BASARA is probable the best of the DDT Universe sub-promotions as far as in-ring action goes. It's still pretty uninteresting, which is why Tokyo Joshi Pro is more fun to watch even with it's less developed workers. This was a standard house show, but the effort was nice enough. Not that there was anything interesting happening.

DDT - “SUNDAY KASUKABIAN! 2018” - March 18, 2018, Kasukabe, Japan - (2 hrs)
March 18, 2018, Kasukabe, Japan - Saitama Kasukabe Hall (260 Fans)
1. Makoto Oishi & Antonio Honda & Saki Akai -vs- Sanshiro Takagi & Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata [1/2*]
2. KUDO & Masahiro Takanashi -vs- MAO & Yuki Ueno [* 1/2]
3. Naomi Yoshimura -vs- Ethan Page [* 1/4]
4. Yukio Sakaguchi -vs- Kota Umeda [* 1/2]
5. Daisuke Sasaki & Nobuhiro Shimatani -vs- Danshoku Dino & Keisuke Ishii [3/4*]
6. HARASHIMA & Soma Takao -vs- Kazusada Higuchi & Kouki Iwasaki [* 1/2]
7. Konosuke Takeshita & Akito & Shunma Katsumata -vs- Shuji Ishikawa & Tetsuya Endo & Mad Paulie [**]

The goofiness was kept down, but the wrestling was still a bit too generic for my liking. Something is needed to bring their personality stronger into their work. 

CMLL/ERLL - March 18, 2018, Monterrey, Mexico - (1/4 hrs)
March 18, 2018, Monterrey, Mexico - Arena Coliseo Monterrey
1. Dragón Lee -vs- Titán -vs- El Divo -vs- Laredo Kid - (4-Way) [**]

Had similarities to the 4-way these guys had the day before, but substituting Tritón with El Divo made for a less satisfying difference.

IWRG - March 18, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - (1 3/4 hrs)
March 18, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - Arena Naucalpan
1. Lilith Dark & Star Fire -vs- Dulce Luna & Lady Cat [* 1/4]
2. Liderk & Spartan & Spector -vs- Leo & Mike & Teelo [* 3/4]
3. Emperador Azteca & Internacional Pantera & Veneno -vs- Black Warrior & Máscara Año 2000 Jr. & X-Fly [**]
4. Dr. Cerebro (c) -vs- Ricky Marvin - (IWRG Intercontinantal Middleweight Title) [***]
5. Hijo del Alebrije -vs- El Hijo del Medico Asesino -vs- Hijo de Pirata Morgan -vs- Capo del Norte -vs- Diablo Jr. -vs- Dr. Karonte -vs- Lunatic Xtreme -vs- Apolo Estrada Jr. -vs- Hijo del Pantera -vs- Máscara Mágica Jr. -vs- Hip Hop Man - (Rebelion de los Juniors) [** 1/4]

The 3rd of four quality matches Ricky Marvin would have with Cerebro in March, the best one yet. Marvin might be passed it, but he still can bring something extra when he wants. The rest of the show was okay too, without being to remarkable.

Dinastia Moreno - March 18, 2018, Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl, Estado de México, Mexico - (1 1/2 hrs)
March 18, 2018, Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl, Estado de México, Mexico - Arena Azteca Budokan
1. Mini Cibernetico (c) -vs- Mini Parkita - (Arena Azteca Budokan Minis Title) [**]
2. La Cacheta & Lokillius & Yoruba -vs- Diva Salvaje & Fulgor II & Máscara De Ángel [* 1/2]
3. Cinthia Moreno & Rossy Moreno & Yoruba -vs- Diosa Quetzal & Diva Virtual & Princesa [* 3/4]
4. El Bandido & Emperador Azteca & Metaleón -vs- Diamante & Imposible & Syrus [** 1/4]
5. Rey Wagner -vs- Rey Escorpión -vs- Hijo De Wagner - (3-Way) [** 1/2]

The Moreno family promoting a special show, getting the biggest current stars of the family in for a big main event, throwing Rey Escorpion in there to keep it from exploding. The Wagners kept it interesting, but could have been so much more without the extra guy there. Fun show overall.

--PUNQ--

It's an amazing time to be a wrestling fan! There is quality wrestling coming out nearly every day and weekends are packed! But for various reasons I haven't been able to watch wrestling coherently for the past 4 months, but finally I've got time to do it again. I've managed to finish everything I wanted to see from February, and from March and on.... things explode.

I've been keeping up with the hype and there is so much from all over the world I feel I can't miss! Yet, it's nearly impossible to catch-up if I want to see all I want. Either I continue from where I am 18 weeks behind and miss out on the in-the-now feeling, or I have to drop a ton of amazing stuff which would be even worse. Maybe I'll do a mix one day and jump to "right now" and try and watch the backlog whenever I run out of shows I need to watch? For now I'll just continue where I'm at and hopefully someone might see (or remember) something great they want to watch from 4 months ago!

Top-20, Week 10, 2018:

1. March 10, 2018 - John Klinger (c) -vs- WALTER -vs- Ilja Dragunov - (wXw Unified Title; 3-Way) [*** 3/4] (wXw)
2. March 9, 2018 - Dalton Castle (c) -vs- Jay Lethal - (ROH Title) [*** 1/2] (ROH)
3. March 10, 2018 - Bobby Gunns (c) -vs- Mike Bailey - (wXw Shotgun Title) [*** 1/2] (wXw)
4. March 6, 2018 - Tetsuya Naito -vs- Taichi [*** 1/2] (NJPW)
5. March 11, 2018 - Hijo de LA Park -vs- Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. [*** 1/2] (MDA)
6. March 9, 2018 - Michael Elgin -vs- Tomohiro Ishii - (New Japan Cup - Round 1) [*** 1/2] (NJPW)
7. March 6, 2018 - Mustafa Ali -vs- Buddy Murphy - (WWE Cruiserweight Title Tournament - Quarterfinal) [*** 1/4] (WWE)
8. March 11, 2018 - LA Park -vs- Rey Wagner -vs- Zorro - (3-Way) [*** 1/4] (MDA)
9. March 6, 2018 - Kazuchika Okada -vs- Will Ospreay [*** 1/4] (NJPW)
10. March 10, 2018 - Absolute Andy -vs- Matt Riddle - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Quarterfinal) [*** 1/4] (wXw)
11. March 11, 2018 - The Tiger -vs- Emperador Azteca [*** 1/4] (MDA)
12. March 6, 2018 - SANADA -vs- YOSHI-HASHI [*** 1/4] (NJPW)
13. March 9, 2018 - Marty Scurll -vs- Punishment Martinez [*** 1/4] (ROH)
14. March 6, 2018 - Minoru Suzuki (c) -vs- Togi Makabe - (IWGP Intercontinental Title) [***] (NJPW)
15. March 9, 2018 - Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson & Hangman Page (c) -vs- Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian & Scorpio Sky - (ROH 6-Man Tag Title; Las Vegas Street Fight) [***] (ROH)
16. March 11, 2018 - Absolute Andy -vs- David Starr - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Final) [***] (wXw)
17. March 11, 2018 - Zack Sabre Jr. -vs- Tetsuya Naito - (New Japan Cup - Round 1) [***] (NJPW)
18. March 10, 2018 - Timothy Thatcher -vs- Lucky Kid - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Quarterfinal) [***] (wXw)
19. March 11, 2018 - Absolute Andy -vs- Timothy Thatcher - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Semi-Final) [***] (wXw)
20. March 9, 2018 - Lucky Kid -vs- Matt Sydal - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Round 1) [***] (wXw)

MARCH 5, 2018

CMLL - "Lunes Arena Puebla" - March 5, 2018, Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Puebla, Mexico - (2 hrs)
March 5, 2018, Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Puebla, Mexico - Arena Puebla
1. Black Tiger & Meyer -vs- Fuerza Chicana & King Jaguar [* 1/2]
2. Akuma & Espanto Jr. -vs- Rey Samuray & Tigre Rojo Jr. [* 3/4]
3. Tritón & Audaz & Stigma -vs- Puma & Tiger & El Malayo [** 1/4]
4. Hechicero & Kráneo & Stuka Jr. -vs- Sam Adonis & Johnny Idol & Titán [**]
5. Mistico & La Bestia Del Ring & Rush -vs- Mr. Niebla & Diamante Azul & Euforia [* 1/2]
6. Cavernario -vs- Volador Jr. [*]

Slow start to the week with a standard Arena Puebla show from CMLL with a very disappointing main event which was over before it got any good. However it sets up a title match between the two for the next week which should be good.

WWE - "Monday Night RAW/Main Event" - March 5, 2018, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA - (3 hrs)
March 5, 2018, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA - BMO Harris Bradley Center (10,000 Fans)
Main Event #283
1. Apollo -vs- Curt Hawkins [*]
2. Gran Metalik & Kalisto -vs- Ariya Daivari & Tony Nese [*]
Monday Night RAW #1293
3. Asuka -vs- Nia Jax [3/4*]
4. Cesaro & Sheamus -vs- Dash Wilder & Scott Dawson [* 1/4]
5. John Cena -vs- Goldust [*]
6. Bayley -vs- Mandy Rose [* 1/4]
7. Braun Strowman -vs- Elias - (Symphony Of Destruction Falls Count Anywhere Match) [* 3/4]
8. Bray Wyatt -vs- Rhyno [1/4*]
9. Finn Balor & Seth Rollins -vs- The Miz & Bo Dallas & Curtis Axel - (Handicap) [**]

Mostly below par in-ring. Better out of the ring with the Ronda stuff, but WWE is still one of the promotions which is more of a chore to watch than most (of the many) promotions I watch. 

MARCH 6, 2018

NJPW - "46th ANNIVERSARY SHOW" - March 6, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (3 hrs)
March 6, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Ota City General Gym (3,864 Fans)
1. Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Jushin Thunder Liger & Tiger Mask & KUSHIDA & Ryusuke Taguchi -vs- Yuji Nagata & Toa Henare & Tomoyuki Oka & Shota Umino & Tetsuhiro Yagi [** 1/2]
2. Hirooki Goto & Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano -vs- Juice Robinson & David Finlay & Toa Henare [* 3/4]
3. SHO & YOH (c) -vs- BUSHI & Hiromu Takahashi -vs- Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado - (IWGP Junior Tag Title; 3-Way) [** 3/4]
4. SANADA -vs- YOSHI-HASHI [*** 1/4]
5. Tetsuya Naito -vs- Taichi [*** 1/2]
6. Minoru Suzuki (c) -vs- Togi Makabe - (IWGP Intercontinental Title) [***]
7. Kazuchika Okada -vs- Will Ospreay [*** 1/4]

Real good anniversary show from New Japan. I had dreamed of an extra gear in the main event, for I feel those two might create a special rivalry down the line, once Ospreay starts wrestling like a man instead of being a stunt kid. Great to see Naito getting another great match out of Taichi!

DRAGON GATE - "KOTOKA ROAD TO FINAL - THE ENDING" - March 6, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (2 3/4 hrs)
March 6, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuean Hall (1,850 Fans)
1. Hyo Watanabe & Shun Skywalker & U-T & Yuki Yoshioka -vs- Gamma & Kaito Ishida & Mondai Ryu & Shachihoko BOY [* 1/2]
2. K-ness -vs- Punch Tominaga [1/2*]
3. Ben-K & Big R Shimizu -vs- Takashi Yoshida & Yasushi Kanda [* 3/4]
4. Ryo Saito (c) -vs- Shingo Takagi - (Open The Owarai Gate Title) [* 1/2]
5. T-Hawk & Eita & El Lindaman -vs- Susumu Yokosuka & Genki Horiguchi & Kzy [**]
6. Masaaki Mochizuki & YAMATO & Don Fujii & Kagetora & Yosuke Santa Maria -vs- Kotoka & Masato Yoshino & Naruki Doi & CIMA & Dragon Kid [** 1/4]
7. Kotoka -vs- Oji Shiiba [*]

Dragon Gate's farewell to Kotoka. He's one that haven't made much of an impression of me, but he clearly had potential which was not realized before he was forced into retirement. The show however was the usual Dragin Gate "repeat-on-autopilot".

CMLL - "Martes Arena Mexico" - March 6, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 hrs)
March 6, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico
1. Mercurio & Pequeño Nitro -vs- Stukita & Último Dragóncito [* 3/4]
2. Magnus & Flyer & Príncipe Diamante -vs- Metálico & Príncipe Odín Jr. & Sangre Azteca [* 1/2]
3. Hijo del Signo -vs- Arkángel de la Muerte - (Lighting Match) [* 1/2]
4. Guerrero Maya Jr. & Drone & Fuego -vs- Misterioso Jr. & Disturbio & Sagrado [**]
5. Mephisto & Ephesto & Luciferno -vs- Dragón Lee & Blue Panther Jr. & Soberano Jr. [** 1/4]
6. Rush & Kráneo & Pierroth -vs- Marco Corleone & Gran Guerrero & Máscara Año 2000 [* 3/4]

Another plain CMLL show. Easy to digest, not much to remember.

CMLL - "Martes Arena Coliseo Guadalajara" - March 6, 2018, Guadalajara, Mexico - (1/2 hrs)
March 6, 2018, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico - Arena Coliseo Guadalajara
1. Titán & Esfinge & Tritón -vs- Sansón & Cuatrero & Forastero [** 1/4]
2. Último Guerrero & Euforia & Furia Roja -vs- Mistico & Diamante Azul & Valiente [**]

CMLL's Guadalajara show the same day looked better, but they didn't give us the big main event of Atlantis defending his Light Heavyweigth Title against Cavernario, so it was a bit of a bummer as well.

WWE - "SmackDown Live/205 Live" - March 6, 2018, Los Angeles, California, USA - (2 1/2 hrs)
March 6, 2018, Los Angeles, California, USA - Staples Center
SmackDown Live #968
1. Jinder Mahal -vs- Randy Orton [* 1/2]
2. Becky Lynch -vs- Carmella [*]
3. AJ Styles -vs- Dolph Ziggler [**]
4. Sami Zayn -vs- AJ Styles -vs- Baron Corbin -vs- Dolph Ziggler -vs- Kevin Owens - (Fatal Five Way) [** 1/2]
Mixed Match Challenge #8
5. Alexa Bliss & Braun Strowman -vs- Jimmy Uso & Naomi - (WWE Mixed Match Challenge - Quarterfinal) [**]
205 Live #67
6. Drew Gulak -vs- Mark Andrews - (WWE Cruiserweight Title Tournament - Quarterfinal) [** 1/2]
7. Akira Tozawa & Hideo Itami -vs- Nemeth Alexander & Scott James [*]
8. Mustafa Ali -vs- Buddy Murphy - (WWE Cruiserweight Title Tournament - Quarterfinal) [*** 1/4]

Smackdown... okay once we got the the main event. The Mixed Match Challenge.... adorable with Braun and Bliss! 205 Live.... Quality! First time I've really opened up for Ali with Murphy bumping like a madman for him! At this point the best TV match WWE has offered in 2018, and better than most PPV as well.

MARCH 7, 2018

DNA - “DNA 42” - March 7, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (2 hrs)
March 7, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Shin-Kiba 1st RING (147 Fans)
1. MAO & Rising HAYATO -vs- Choun-Shiryu & Rekka - (1st Sanshiro Takagi DNA SUPER TAG TOURNAMENT – Round 1) [* 1/4]
2. Ethan Page -vs- Tomoya Hirata [3/4*]
3. Yuki Ueno & Koju Takeda -vs- Keisuke Okuda & Kengo - (1st Sanshiro Takagi DNA SUPER TAG TOURNAMENT – Round 1) [* 1/2]
4. Minoru Tanaka -vs- Mizuki Watase [*]
5. Naomi Yoshimura & Akiro Jo -vs- Daiki Shimomura & Nobuhiro Shimatani - (1st Sanshiro Takagi DNA SUPER TAG TOURNAMENT – Round 1) [* 1/2]
6. Kouki Iwasaki & Ryota Nakatsu -vs- Kota Umeda & Shunma Katsumata - (1st Sanshiro Takagi DNA SUPER TAG TOURNAMENT – Round 1) [* 1/4]

DDT Universe keeps pouring out shows on their Network. Real value for money! However it offers too much generic indy style wrestling for my liking, meaning a lot of the smaller house shows are fairly forgettable.... like this one.

IWRG - March 7, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - (1/2 hrs)
March 7, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - Arena Naucalpan
1. Aramis & Máscara Magica Jr. -vs- Atomic Star & Lunatic Xtreme [* 1/4]
2. Capo del Norte & Capo del Sur & Eterno -vs- Hijo del Alebrije & Leo & Rafy [*]
3. Ovett -vs- Fantasma de la Ópera [3/4*]

....and a forgettable mid-week show from IWRG before the good one they would deliver during the weekend.

WWE - "WWE NXT #292-294" - March 7, 2018, Winter Park, Florida, USA - (3 hrs)
March 7, 2018, Winter Park, Florida, USA - Full Sail University
NXT #292
1. Pete Dunne & Roderick Strong -vs- Danny Burch & Oney Lorcan - (Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic 2018 - Round 1) [** 1/2]
2. Ember Moon -vs- Aliyah [3/4*]
3. Adam Cole -vs- Kassius Ohno [** 3/4]
NXT #293
4. Akam & Rezar -vs- Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford - (Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic 2018 - Semi-Final) [*]
5. Lars Sullivan -vs- John Silver [1/2*]
6. Pete Dunne & Roderick Strong -vs- Eric Young & Alexander Wolfe - (Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic 2018 - Semi-Final) [**]
NXT #294
7. Pete Dunne & Roderick Strong -vs- Akam & Rezar - (Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic 2018 - Final) [** 1/4]
8. Kairi Sane -vs- Vanessa Borne [*]
9. Killian Dain -vs- Lars Sullivan [*]

The positive with being 4 months behind is being able to watch entire TV-tapings without having to wait for months to get the feel of the entire show. Not NXT at their most essential, but angles are always buzzing and we got a few good matches to boot.

MARCH 8, 2018

BJW - "IKKITOUSEN ~ STRONG CLIMB - DAY 1" - March 8, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (2 hrs)
March 8, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Shin-Kiba 1st RING (311 Fans)
1. Hideyoshi Kamitani & Masaki Morihiro -vs- Kazumi Kikuta & Takuho Kato [* 1/2]
2. Fuminori Abe & Tatsuhiko Yoshino & Kota Sekifuda -vs- Shinobu & Kankuro Hoshino & Yuya Aoki [* 1/2]
3. Daisuke Sekimoto & Ryota Hama -vs- Yasufumi Nakanoue & Ryuichi Kawakami [**]
4. Ryuji Ito & Isami Kodaka & Ryuichi Sekine -vs- Masaya Takahashi & Takayuki Ueki & Toshiyuki Sakuda - (Barbed Wire Board Death Match) [**]
5. Yoshihisa Uto -vs- Kazuki Hashimoto - (Ikkitousen ~ Strong Climb - Block B) [**]
6. Daichi Hashimoto -vs- Takuya Nomura - (Ikkitousen ~ Strong Climb - Block A) [** 3/4]
7. Masashi Takeda & Takumi Tsukamoto (c) -vs- Jaki Numazawa & Kenji Fukimoto - (BJW Tag Title; EXCUSABLE HOMICIDE ~ 4 Corners Pain Death Match) [** 1/4]

Big Japan starting their version of the G1 Climax with the Strong Climb. Unfortunately BJW small shows are usually pretty bad and lifeless. This however is one of the better I've seen. Not that there is anything amazing going on, but there was some motivation all over this one.

BAR WRESTLING - "Bar Wrestling 10: March Of The Pigs" -  March 8, 2018, Baldwin Park, California, USA - (2 hrs)
March 8, 2018, Baldwin Park, California, USA - American Legion #241
1. B-Boy & Kevin Martenson & Scorpio Sky -vs- Eric Watts & Marty Martinez & Matt Cross [**]
2. Brian Cage -vs- Tyler Bateman [**]
3. Britt Baker & Chelsea Green -vs- Heather Monroe & Laura James [* 1/2]
4. Joey Ryan -vs- Hot Young Briley [*]
5. Killer Kross -vs- Willie Mack [* 3/4]
6. Taya Valkyrie -vs- Tessa Blanchard [* 1/2]
7. Penta El Zero M & Rey Fenix -vs- Ortiz & Santana [***]

BAR shows are fun. Always a ton of great wrestlers, but not always great cards. Mostly fun and shenanigans on this show, but The Lucha Brothers where there to give a high impact main event against LAX!

wXw - "Inner Circle 5" - March 8, 2018, Essen, Germany - (1 1/4 hrs)
March 8, 2018, Essen, Germany - wXw Wrestling Academy (170 Fans)
1. Travis Banks -vs- Alexander James  [** 1/4]
2. Timothy Thatcher -vs- Julian Pace [**]
3. David Starr -vs- Chris Brookes [**]
4. WALTER -vs- Jonah Rock [** 1/4]
5. Killer Kelly -vs- Veda Scott [* 3/4]
6. Mike Bailey -vs- Mark Haskins [** 3/4]

wXw starts their big week with a good warm-up show at their Academy. Not the arena for anything legendary happening, but they all gave it good effort to set the tone for 16 Carat Gold 2018.

MARCH 9, 2018

NJPW - "NEW JAPAN CUP 2018 - DAY 1" - March 9, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (2 3/4 hrs)
March 9, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,719 Fans)
1. Hirooki Goto & Toru Yano & Chuckie T -vs- Tomoyuki Oka & Shota Umino & Tetsuhiro Yagi [* 1/2]
2. Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. -vs- Bad Luck Fale & Tanga Loa [* 3/4]
3. Zack Sabre Jr. & Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado -vs- Tetsuya Naito & SANADA & BUSHI [**]
4. Minoru Suzuki & Takashi Iizuka & Taichi -vs- Hiroshi Tanahashi & David Finlay & Toa Henare [** 1/2]
5. Kazuchika Okada & YOSHI-HASHI -vs- Kota Ibushi & Chase Owens [**]
6. Juice Robinson -vs- Yujiro Takahashi - (New Japan Cup - Round 1) [***]
7. Michael Elgin -vs- Tomohiro Ishii - (New Japan Cup - Round 1) [*** 1/2]

For Friday New Japan starts their annual New Japan Cup with two Round 1 matches. Fairly good vibe at Korakuen Hall. Yujiro gave a much better effort that he normally does. Elgin vs Ishii was stiff as hell! Lost steam along the way, but a few murdering moves got the blood pumping again for the climax! Among one of the week's highlights.

CMLL - "Super Viernes" - March 9, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 1/2 hrs)
March 9, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico (5,000 Fans)
1. Cancerbero & Raziel -vs- Astral & Eléctrico [* 3/4]
2. Dalys & La Seductora & Tiffany -vs- Princesa Sugehit & Lady Maravilla & Sanely [** 1/4]
3. Rey Cometa & Guerrero Maya Jr. & The Panther -vs- Puma & Johnny Idol & Kawato San [**]
4. 8-Man Battle Royal [1/2*]
5. Ephesto & Mephisto -vs- Titán & Tritón - (CMLL Tag Title Tournament - Round 1) [* 3/4]
6. Diamante Azul & Stuka Jr. -vs- Blue Panther & Blue Panther Jr. - (CMLL Tag Title Tournament - Round 1) [* 1/2]
7. Rey Bucanero & Terrible -vs- Okumura & Sam Adonis - (CMLL Tag Title Tournament - Round 1) [*]
8. Marco Corleone & Niebla Roja -vs- Cavernario & Mr. Niebla - (CMLL Tag Title Tournament - Round 1) [* 1/4]
9. Diamante Azul & Stuka Jr. -vs- Ephesto & Mephisto - (CMLL Tag Title Tournament - Quarterfinal) [* 1/2]
10. Rey Bucanero & Terrible -vs- Marco Corleone & Niebla Roja - (CMLL Tag Title Tournament - Quarterfinal) [*]
11. Rey Bucanero & Terrible -vs- Diamante Azul & Stuka Jr. - (CMLL Tag Title Tournament - Semi-Final) [**]
12. Ángel de Oro & Atlantis & Volador Jr. -vs- El Cuatrero & Negro Casas & Último Guerrero [** 1/4]

These quick one-fall tournaments CMLL has been doing of late are unimpressive. No dull moments, but the matches are kind of over before they establish themselves into anything worthwild. So not to the standard we expect from CMLL of Friday nights.

ROH - "16th Anniversary Show" - March 9, 2018, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA - (3 hrs)
March 9, 2018, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA - Sam's Town Hotel & Gambling Hall
1. Sumie Sakai -vs- Hana Kimura - (ROH Women Of Honor Title Tournament - Round 1) [**]
2. Tenille Dashwood -vs- Brandi Rhodes - (ROH Women Of Honor Title Tournament - Quarterfinal) [* 1/4]
3. Hiromu Takahashi -vs- Flip Gordon [** 1/2]
4. Marty Scurll -vs- Punishment Martinez [*** 1/4]
5. Kenny King (c) -vs- Silas Young - (ROH Television Title) [** 3/4]
6. Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson & Hangman Page (c) -vs- Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian & Scorpio Sky - (ROH 6-Man Tag Title; Las Vegas Street Fight) [***]
7. Cody -vs- Matt Taven - (Grudge Match) [** 1/2]
8. Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin (c) -vs- Jay Briscoe & Mark Briscoe - (ROH Tag Title) [** 3/4]
9. Dalton Castle (c) -vs- Jay Lethal - (ROH Title) [*** 1/2]

One of the best shows of the week. ROH's 16th Anniversary Show brought a top-to-bottom entertaining show, with a main event where things came together real well for two that have struggled to take things by storm of late. Both Lethal and Castle have been a bit "meh" in my eyes the year I've been following. Good, but not connecting 100%. Here they showed what they can deliver on a good day, and it's a level I hope they can be more consistent at. Otherwise the big surprise was Scurll against Martinez. It was actually really fun! 

wXw - "16 Carat Gold 2018 - Day 1" - March 9, 2018, Oberhausen, Germany - (2 1/4 hrs)
March 9, 2018, Oberhausen, Germany - Turbinenhalle (970 Fans)
1. Emil Sitoci -vs- Ivan Kiev -vs- Julian Nero -vs- Julian Pace - (4-Way) [* 1/2]
2. Keith Lee -vs- Avalanche - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Round 1) [** 1/2]
3. Chris Brookes -vs- Alexander James - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Round 1) [** 1/4]
4. Lucky Kid -vs- Matt Sydal - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Round 1) [***]
5. David Starr -vs- Emil Sitoci - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Round 1) [** 1/2]
6. WALTER & Mike Bailey -vs- John Klinger & Bobby Gunns [** 1/4]
7. Matt Riddle -vs- Da Mack - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Round 1) [1/4*]
8. Travis Banks -vs- Mark Haskins - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Round 1) [** 3/4]
9. Timothy Thatcher -vs- Jonah Rock - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Round 1) [** 1/2]
10. Absolute Andy -vs- Marius Al-Ani - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Round 1) [**]

The 16 Carat Gold 2018! Round 1, and it's good. All good! Lacking perhaps a real stick-out match, but the show was buzzing!

MARCH 10, 2018

NJPW - "NEW JAPAN CUP 2018 - DAY 2" - March 10, 2018, Nagoya, Japan - (3 hrs)
March 10, 2018, Nagoya, Japan - Aichi Prefectural Gym (4,016 Fans)
1. Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado -vs- Ryusuke Taguchi & Ren Narita [* 1/2]
2. David Finlay & Tetsuhiro Yagi -vs- Yuji Nagata & Shota Umino [* 1/4]
3. Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano -vs- Michael Elgin & Tomoyuki Oka [* 3/4]
4. Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Takashi Iizuka -vs- Juice Robinson & Toa Henare [**]
5. Tetsuya Naito & SANADA & BUSHI -vs- Minoru Suzuki & Zack Sabre Jr. & Taka Michinoku [* 3/4]
6. Kazuchika Okada & Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI & Chuckie T -vs- Kota Ibushi & Yujiro Takahashi & Chase Owens & Hikuleo [**]
7. Bad Luck Fale -vs- Lance Archer - (New Japan Cup - Round 1) [**]
8. Hiroshi Tanahashi -vs- Taichi - (New Japan Cup - Round 1) [** 3/4]

Got to admit this was a disappointing show from the New Japan Cup tour. Two more tournament matches. Wasn't expecting anything from Archer/Fale, but with Tanahashi one expect miracles.... even against Taichi, who just came off a great match with Naito. However Tanahashi didn't take enough time off to fix his injuries and is not in top form, so we only got a semi exciting battle which went longer than it needed.

DDT - “YOKOHAMA TWILIGHT 2018 ~YAYOI~” - March 10, 2018, Yokohama, Japan - (2 hrs)
March 10, 2018, Yokohama, Japan - Yokohama Radiant Hall (225 Fans)
1. Masahiro Takanashi -vs- Daiki Shimomura [*]
2. Keisuke Ishii -vs- Daisuke Sasaki [**]
3. 9-Man Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Royal Rumble By Age [*]
4. Kota Umeda & Yuki Ueno & Koju Takeda -vs- KUDO & Yukio Sakaguchi & Tomomitsu Matsunaga [* 1/2]
5. The Great Homo -vs- Tetsuya Endo [1/4*]
6. Kazusada Higuchi & Kouki Iwasaki -vs- HARASHIMA & Ethan Page [* 1/4]
7. Konosuke Takeshita & Akito -vs- Shuji Ishikawa & Mad Paulie [*]
8. Konosuke Takeshita & Akito & Shunma Katsumata -vs- Shuji Ishikawa & Tetsuya Endo & Mad Paulie [* 1/2]

A DDT house show where you wish there was less of The Great Homo (Dino) and more imagination put into the rest of the card.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO - “LET’S GO! GO! IF YOU GO! WHEN YOU GO! IF YOU GET LOST JUST GO TO YOKOHAMA!” - March 10, 2018, Yokohama, Japan - (2 hrs)
March 10, 2018, Yokohama, Japan - Yokohama Radiant Hall (276 Fans)
1. Shoko Nakajima & Raku -vs- Hikari & Hinano [* 1/4]
2. Yuka Sakazaki -vs- Nodoka-oneesan -vs- Yuki Kamifuku - (3-Way) [1/2*]
3. Rika Tatsumi -vs- Maki Ito [3/4*]
4. Yuu -vs- Hyper Misao [*]
5. Sakisama & Azusa Christie -vs- Mizuki & Marika Kobashi [* 1/4]
6. Miyu Yamashita (c) -vs- Maho Kurone - (TOKYO Princess Of Princess Title) [* 1/2]

Cute wrestling, but not anywhere close to quality wrestling. The main event might have met the lower standards of a good promotion, but TJP is not the place you go for those classic matches.

ROH - "ROH on SBG #340-343" - March 10, 2018, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA - (3 1/2 hrs)
March 10, 2018, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA - Sam's Town Hotel & Gambling Hall
ROH on SBG #340
1. Kelly Klein -vs- Mandy Leon - (ROH Women Of Honor Title Tournament - Quarterfinal) [* 1/2]
2. Hangman Page & Marty Scurll -vs- Brandon & Brent [* 1/4]
3. Flip Gordon -vs- Scorpio Sky [* 1/2]
ROH on SBG #341
4. Sumie Sakai -vs- Kagetsu - (ROH Women Of Honor Title Tournament - Quarterfinal) [** 1/4]
4. Jay Briscoe & Mark Briscoe -vs- Dalton Castle & Kenny King [**]
5. Cheeseburger -vs- Kikutaro [1/4*]
6. Mayu Iwatani -vs- Deonna Purrazzo - (ROH Women Of Honor Title Tournament - Quarterfinal) [**]
ROH on SBG #342
7. Punishment Martinez -vs- Shane Taylor [* 1/2]
8. Jay Lethal -vs- Caprice Coleman [* 3/4]
9. Matt Taven -vs- Christopher Daniels -vs- Cody - (3-Way) [**]
ROH on SBG #343
10. Hiromu Takahashi -vs- Frankie Kazarian [**]
11. Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson -vs- Brian Milonas & The Beer City Bruiser -vs- Shaheem Ali -vs- Rhett Titus & Will Ferrara -vs- TK O'Ryan & Vinny Marseglia -vs- Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin - (Gauntlet Match) [** 1/2]

ROH follows up their anniversary show with a TV-taping the next day in the same arena. Some good matches, nice to see Stardom girls get some room to perform outside of Japan. But overall a fairly average TV-taping.

WRESTLE PRO - March 10, 2018, Brooklyn, New Rork, USA - (1/4 hrs)
March 10, 2018, Brooklyn, New Rork, USA - St. Patrick's Gym
1. KM -vs- Fallah Bahh [* 1/2]

Just a random match that aired on Impact's TV show, where they keep trying to pushing Fallah Bahh as someone they can potentially make something out of.

wXw - "AMBITION 9" - March 10, 2018, Oberhausen, Germany - (2 1/4 hrs)
March 10, 2018, Oberhausen, Germany - Turbinenhalle (450 Fans)
1. Timothy Thatcher -vs- Alexander James - (AMBITION 9 - Round 1) [**]
2. Bobby Gunns -vs- Marius Al-Ani - (AMBITION 9 - Round 1) [* 1/2]
3. Mike Bailey -vs- Jonah Rock - (AMBITION 9 - Round 1) [* 3/4]
4. David Starr -vs- Laurance Roman - (AMBITION 9 - Round 1) [**]
5. Matt Riddle -vs- WALTER [** 1/4]
6. Timothy Thatcher -vs- Bobby Gunns - (AMBITION 9 - Semi-Final) [** 1/2]
7. Mike Bailey -vs- David Starr - (AMBITION 9 - Semi-Final) [**]
8. Timothy Thatcher -vs- Mike Bailey - (AMBITION 9 - Final) [** 1/4]

In the middle of the 16 Carat Gold 2018 tour, wXw puts on a shoot-style/strong-style tournament! Short to-the-point matches which managed to create a good setting for Timothy Thatcher who fought real old school during this!

wXw - "16 Carat Gold 2018 - Day 2" - March 10, 2018, Oberhausen, Germany - (2 3/4 hrs)
March 10, 2018, Oberhausen, Germany - Turbinenhalle (1,050 Fans)
Shotgun #448
1. Martina -vs- Veda Scott [1/2*]
16 Carat Gold 2018 - Day 2
2. Da Mack & Ivan Kiev -vs- Francis Kaspin & Jay Skillet -vs- Mark Haskins & Matt Sydal -vs- Avalanche & Julian Nero - (4-Way) [**]
3. Keith Lee -vs- Chris Brookes - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Quarterfinal) [** 1/4]
4. Timothy Thatcher -vs- Lucky Kid - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Quarterfinal) [***]
5. David Starr -vs- Travis Banks - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Quarterfinal) [** 1/2]
6. Absolute Andy -vs- Matt Riddle - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Quarterfinal) [*** 1/4]
7. Alexander James -vs- Jonah Rock [**]
8. Bobby Gunns (c) -vs- Mike Bailey - (wXw Shotgun Title) [*** 1/2]
9. Toni Storm (c) -vs- Melanie Gray - (wXw Women's Title) [** 1/4]
10. John Klinger (c) -vs- WALTER -vs- Ilja Dragunov - (wXw Unified Title; 3-Way) [*** 3/4]

Show of the week!!! The 2nd day of the 16 Carat Gold 2018 with strong tournament matches and even stronger title matches. The main event had a surprise return of Ilja Dragunov, which turned out to quite a exciting booking for the wXw Title! Best match of the week as well!

MARCH 11, 2018

NJPW - "NEW JAPAN CUP 2018 - DAY 3" - March 11, 2018, Amagasaki, Japan - (3 hrs)
March 11, 2018, Amagasaki, Japan - Baycom Gymnasium (Amagasaki Memorial Park Gymnasium) (4,311 Fans)
1. Yuji Nagata & Tomoyuki Oka -vs- Tetsuhiro Yagi & Ren Narita [* 1/4]
2. El Desperado -vs- Shota Umino [* 3/4]
3. Bad Luck Fale & Yujiro Takahashi & Tanga Loa & Chase Owens -vs- Michael Elgin & Juice Robinson & David Finlay & Toa Henare [**]
4. Hirooki Goto & Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano -vs- Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Yoshinobu Kanemaru [* 3/4]
5. Takashi Iizuka & Taichi -vs- Hiroshi Tanahashi & Ryusuke Taguchi [* 1/2]
6. Kazuchika Okada & Chuckie T -vs- SANADA & BUSHI [* 1/2]
7. Kota Ibushi -vs- YOSHI-HASHI - (New Japan Cup - Round 1) [** 3/4]
8. Zack Sabre Jr. -vs- Tetsuya Naito - (New Japan Cup - Round 1) [***]

Lackluster undercard, but the two tournament matches saved the day for what was clearly a B-show in their mind. Sabre's push was nicely done! I'm loving that his stock keeps going up in the company. Ibushi should have gotten a stronger opponent. He did all the crazy Ibushi stuff, but YOSHI-HASHI couldn't generate much flow to capitalize on it.

NOAH - "GREAT VOYAGE 2018 IN YOKOHAMA" - March 11, 2018, Yokohama, Japan - (4 hrs)
March 11, 2018, Yokohama, Japan - Yokohama Bunka Gym (2,412 Fans)
1. LEONA -vs- Junta Miyawaki [*]
2. Tadasuke & YO-HEY -vs- Hajime Ohara & Hitoshi Kumano [* 1/2]
3. Cody Hall & KAZMA SAKAMOTO -vs- Masao Inoue & Seiya Morohashi [3/4*]
4. Maybach Taniguchi & Mitsuya Nagai -vs- KENSO & Jay Bradley [* 1/2]
5. Naomichi Marufuji & Atsushi Kotoge -vs- Shiro Koshinaka & Akitoshi Saito [* 3/4]
6. Go Shiozaki -vs- Kaito Kiyomiya [** 1/2]
7. Taiji Ishimori & Hi69 (c) -vs- Yoshinari Ogawa & Minoru Tanaka - (GHC Junior Tag Title) [** 1/2]
8. Daisuke Harada (c) -vs- HAYATA - (GHC Junior Title) [** 3/4]
9. Mohammed Yone & Quiet Storm (c) -vs- Katsuhiko Nakajima & Masa Kitamiya - (GHC Tag Title) [** 1/4]
10. Kenou (c) -vs- Takashi Sugiura - (GHC Title) [** 3/4]

A big show from NOAH. Unfortunately they fall back into old sins for a tame show of long matches for the sake of being long and not anything epic included. Solid, of course, but the effort was letdown.

BJW - "BIG JAPAN FULL METAL - IKKITOUSEN ~ STRONG CLIMB - DAY 2" - March 11, 2018, Fukuoka, Japan - (2 1/2 hrs)
March 11, 2018, Fukuoka, Japan - Hakata Star Lane (568 Fans)
1. Takuho Kato -vs- Yuki Ishikawa - (Exhibition) [1/4*]
2. Kazuki Hashimoto & Yuya Aoki -vs- Tatsuhiko Yoshino & Kota Sekifuda [* 1/2]
3. Ryota Hama & Takuya Nomura -vs- Daichi Hashimoto & Yoshihisa Uto [*]
4. Yuko Miyamoto & Minoru Fujita -vs- Ryuji Ito & Jaki Numazawa - (Barbed Wire Boad Death Match) [*]
5. Isami Kodaka & Takumi Tsukamoto & Ryuichi Sekine -vs- Masaya Takahashi & Takayuki Ueki & Toshiyuki Sakuda - (Fluorescent Lighttubes Death Match) [* 1/2]
6. Ryuichi Kawakami -vs- Kazumi Kikuta - (Ikkitousen ~ Strong Climb - Block B) [* 1/2]
7. Hideyoshi Kamitani -vs- Yasufumi Nakanoue - (Ikkitousen ~ Strong Climb - Block A) [* 3/4]
8. Daisuke Sekimoto -vs- Hideki Suzuki - (Ikkitousen ~ Strong Climb - Block B) [**]

This was more standard for Big Japan house shows. Tame. Which is a shame when you look at the potential of that main event!

DDT - “TAISHO DRAMATIC ROMANTIC 2018” - March 11, 2018, Osaka, Japan - (2 hrs)
March 11, 2018, Osaka, Japan - Osaka Azalea Taisho Hall (330 Fans)
1. Keisuke Ishii -vs- Kouki Iwasaki [*]
2. Naomi Yoshimura -vs- Kazuki Hirata -vs- Ethan Page -vs- Mad Paulie - (4-Way) [1/2*]
3. Sanshiro Takagi & Toru Owashi & Antonio Honda & Yuni -vs- Soma Takao & MAO & Nobuhiro Shimatani & Chinsuke Nakamura - (Falls Count Anywhere; No Touch Rule) [3/4*]
4. KUDO & Yukio Sakaguchi -vs- Kota Umeda & Yuki Ueno [* 1/2]
5. Danshoku Dino & Makoto Oishi -vs- Masahiro Takanashi & Mizuki Watase - (Give Up Only Match) [1/2*]
6. HARASHIMA -vs- Kazusada Higuchi [* 3/4]
7. Daisuke Sasaki & Shuji Ishikawa & Tetsuya Endo -vs- Konosuke Takeshita & Akito & Shunma Katsumata [**]

More of the generic indy house show wrestling from the DDT crowd. The main event got decent, but nothing which really stood out.

GANBARE☆WRESTLING - “YOU’RE MY SUNSHINE 2018” - March 11, 2018, Osaka, Japan - (2 hrs)
March 11, 2018, Osaka, Japan - Osaka Azalea Taisho Hall (101 Fans)
1. Takaku Fuke -vs- Gota Ihashi [3/4*]
2. Shuichiro Katsumura & Takeshi Okada -vs- Yumehito Imanari & Shuhei Washida [* 1/2]
3. HARUKAZE -vs- Miyako Matsumoto [1/2*]
4. Shota & Shinichiro Tominaga -vs- TORU & Katsumi Oribe [*]
5. Magnitude Kishiwada -vs- Ken Ohka [**]

....same with this show on DDT Universe. Special main event with Ohka facing a once-great, now-aging masked man Magnitude Kishiwada. Didn't flare-up, but it was nice to see the former Dragon Gate man in action again.

SENDAI GIRLS - March 11, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (2 hrs)
March 11, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Shinjuku FACE (438 Fans)
1. Eiger -vs- Sakura Hirota [1/4*]
2. Aja Kong & Hikaru Shida & Mio Momono -vs- Meiko Satomura & Ami Sato & Manami [*]
3. Mika Iwata -vs- Hana Kimura [* 1/2]
4. Chihiro Hashimoto & Hiroyo Matsumoto -vs- Ayako Hamada & Alex Lee [* 3/4]
5. KAORU & DASH Chisako (c) -vs- Cassandra Miyagi & Heidi Katrina - (SENDAI GIRLS Tag Title) [* 1/4]

Poor Sendai show. Lazy veterans and sloppy main event. Only thing that kept my interest somewhat was Kimura's draw with Iwata, but even that was very basic.

CMLL PLEU SPORTS - "Tormenta en el Ring" - March 11, 2018, Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl, Estado de México, Mexico - (1 3/4 hrs)
March 11, 2018, Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl, Estado de México, Mexico - Arena Azteca Budokan
1. Íkaro -vs- Eckus [** 1/4]
2. Mantra -vs- Crisis -vs- Tackle - (3-Way) [* 3/4]
3. Dalys & Ludark Shaitan & Zeuxis -vs- Lady Maravilla & Maligna & Sanely [* 1/2]
4. Sagrado & Fresero Jr. -vs- Fuego & Robin [* 3/4]
5. Blue Panther Jr. & The Panther -vs- Puma & Tiger [**]
6. Hechicero -vs- Diamante Azul [** 1/2]

One of those special sponsored house shows CMLL does from time-to-time. Fairly good, with Hechicero saving the day as usual!

IWRG - March 11, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - (1 1/2 hrs)
March 11, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - Arena Naucalpan
1. Chico Che & Hijo del Alebrije & Veneno -vs- El Hijo del Medico Asesino & Eterno & Ovett [** 1/4]
2. Ricky Marvin -vs- Dr. Cerebro [** 1/2]
3. Liderk & Spartan & Spector -vs- Aramis & Hijo del Pantera & Internacional Pantera -vs- Capo del Norte & Capo del Sur & Máscara Año 2000 Jr. -vs- Black Dragón & Dinamic Black & Dragón Fly - (4-Way) [**]
4. Black Warrior & Black Warrior Jr. (c) -vs- Rokambole Jr. & Villano V Jr. - (IWRG Intercontinental Tag Title) [** 3/4]

The best IWRG show I've seen so far! The second of 4 matches between Marvin and Cerebro with heat building up. Chico Che landed some smile-extracting heavy moves and a main event which got exciting! Not sure how closely I'll be following IWRG, but they do shine sometimes in their limited ways.

Lucha Memes - March 11, 2018, Coacalco, Estado de México, Mexico - (1/2 hrs)
March 11, 2018, Coacalco, Estado de México, Mexico - Coliseo Coacalco
1. Ricky Marvin -vs- Kawato [***]
2. Negro Casas -vs- Aramis [** 3/4]

Lucha Memes is a curious indy which does bring interesting match-ups. Here longtime NOAH guy shows his Japanese experience against NJPW Young Lion Kawate for a fast paced battle on a semi-outdoor show in the gravel. Super veteran Negro Casas gets to give some rub to one of the rising indy stars in Aramis as well.

MDA - March 11, 2018, Monterrey, Mexico - (1 1/4 hrs)
March 11, 2018, Monterrey, Mexico - Arena Coliseo Monterrey
1. Octagoncito -vs- Mini Hator [** 1/2]
2. Chik Tormenta -vs- Mystique Chik [1/2*]
3. The Tiger -vs- Emperador Azteca [*** 1/4]
4. Trauma I & Trauma II -vs- Caifan II & El Divo Resumen [** 3/4]
5. Hijo de LA Park -vs- Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. [*** 1/2]
6. Sharly Rockstar -vs- Juventud Guerrera [** 3/4]
7. LA Park -vs- Rey Wagner -vs- Zorro [*** 1/4]

This show was great! Probable went under the radar for most as it wasn't broadcast. Instead it's available in hand-held form on Youtube channels, so there is no production values to speak of. Instead you get close to the action for a show where they busted their ass off and delivered a spectacular event! Had it been a TV it might even have been show of the week, but even without the glitter of a TV production, this ruled big time! Something special for lucha fans!

WWE - "Fastlane 2018" - March 11, 2018, Columbus, Ohio, USA - (3 1/2 hrs)
March 11, 2018, Columbus, Ohio, USA - Nationwide Arena
1. Fandango & Tyler Breeze & Tye Dillinger -vs- Chad Gable & Shelton Benjamin & Mojo Rawley [* 1/2]
2. Shinsuke Nakamura -vs- Rusev [** 3/4]
3. Bobby Roode (c) -vs- Randy Orton - (WWE United States Title) [**]
4. Carmella & Natalya -vs- Becky Lynch & Naomi [*]
5. Jey Uso & Jimmy Uso (c) -vs- Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods - (WWE SmackDown Tag Title) [* 1/2]
6. Charlotte Flair (c) -vs- Ruby Riott - (WWE SmackDown Women's Title) [** 1/4]
7. AJ Styles (c) -vs- Baron Corbin -vs- Dolph Ziggler -vs- John Cena -vs- Kevin Owens -vs- Sami Zayn - (WWE Title; Six Pack Challenge) [** 1/2]

This was a disappointing PPV, wasn't it. Not even the main event did much for me. Playful booking, but absolutely standard in the ring. Flair worked hard in the semis, but overall a bit clumsy to really set root. Nakamura/Rusev was good, but I'm not sure why I should have cared for that one. WrestleMania next the next big stop for them. Should I be excited?

wXw - "16 Carat Gold 2018 - Day 3" - March 11, 2018, Oberhausen, Germany - (2 3/4 hrs)
March 11, 2018, Oberhausen, Germany - Turbinenhalle (1,050 Fans)
1. David Starr -vs- Keith Lee - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Semi-Final) [** 3/4]
2. Absolute Andy -vs- Timothy Thatcher - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Semi-Final) [***]
3. Emil Sitoci -vs- Alexander James -vs- Lucky Kid -vs- Mark Haskins - (4-Way) [**]
4. Toni Storm (c) -vs- Killer Kelly -vs- Martina -vs- Wesna - (wXw Women's Title) [* 3/4]
5. Ilja Dragunov (c) -vs- Matt Riddle - (wXw Unified Title) [** 3/4]
6. Travis Banks & Chris Brookes & Jonah Rock -vs- Marius Al-Ani & Matt Sydal & Mike Bailey [** 1/4]
7. WALTER & Timothy Thatcher (c) -vs- John Klinger & Da Mack - (wXw Tag Title) [**]
8. Absolute Andy -vs- David Starr - (16 Carat Gold Tournament 2018 - Final) [***]

The final night of 16 Carat Gold 2018, and it's a slight let-down compared to the other shows on the tour. Still a good one as they push one of their own. Dragonov/Riddle was full of energy, and each of the matches had some soul to make them fun.

wXw - "Shotgun #447-449" - March 11, 2018, Essen, Germany - (2 1/4 hrs)
March 11, 2018, Essen, Germany - Turbinenhalle 2 (390 Fans)
Shotgun #447
1. Bobby Gunns (c) -vs- Julian Pace - (wXw Shotgun Title) [* 3/4]
2. Marius Al-Ani -vs- Jonah Rock [* 1/2]
Shotgun #448
3. Avalanche & Julian Nero -vs- Dirty Dragan & Emil Sitoci [* 1/4]
Shotgun #449
4. Francis Kaspin & Jay Skillet -vs- Maggot & Prince Ahura [* 1/2]
5. Ivan Kiev -vs- Icarus [*]

And to end the long weekend, they have a little Shotgun-taping, which only really filled out some ring-time without doing much.

--PUNQ--

All I get from this discussion is how unbelievably bonkers spoiled the British wrestling fans have become at this point! I don't even think a Japanese wrestler has even appeared in my country. 

Hey, Carbomb! Been a while  I just recently got into things again last year. So nice to see a mild boom going on, instead of that depressing downward spiral the last time I followed the puroresu scene closely. Haven't been posting much yet. Just getting the feel of things, but have tried to keep a exaggerated match-log going since New Year. 

No work at the moment, so instead of doing something useful I watch a work-day worth of wrestling a day 

I doubt I'll keep this us for very long, at least not at this pace, but it's fun to try, especially in such a age where everything nearly comes available in real time, compared to the old days of tape trading when one always had wait a months to see the shows. Feels more part of the hype now.

5 hours ago, Kaz Hayashi said:

Speaking if which.. how has Scott Halls son progressed? I thought he’d have been in development by now.. I’ve either missed something or, his dads advised him not to yet, or he’s a bit shit.

Still mostly shit.... in NOAH. Fun to watch for the clusterfuck matches he has from time to time, but he's got a long way to go before he's able to work outside his his comfort zone... which basically means anything technical. Clumsy as hell. There was one match of his I liked from last year:

NOAH - June 4, 2017, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall (1,405 Fans)

Naomichi Marufuji & Maybach Taniguchi (c) -vs- Cody Hall & Randy Reign - (GHC Tag Title) [***]
--- I'm stunned! This delivered.... don't know how, but it did. Following the simple formula of big guys dominating, only to have the local stars gradually fight back. Marufuji looked so small next to Cody Hall and that added to the freak element. He kind of had to step up his game to look credible against such huge opposition. Taniguchi too, but he's stronger and could lift these guys up. It was naturally the towers that did most of the lifting, doing all kinds of double-team slams to keep the tag champs down. But Taniguchi headbutts lead to him bombing Reign down, and that's how they made the towers Hall & Reign fall.

After a SUPER January, where everybody wanted to start 2018 with a bang, February brings us back to the usual house shows and B-main events, which made for a fairly frustrating week for someone like me who watches "everything". Some good matches popped up here and there, but apart from New Japan's big Osaka show, there wasn't that much else that was must-see, and even that wasn't New Japan at it's best.

Top-20 Matches Week 6, 2018

1. February 10, 2018 - Will Ospreay (c) -vs- Hiromu Takahashi - (IWGP Junior Title) [*** 1/4] (NJPW)
2. February 4, 2018 - Io Shirai (c) -vs- Nicole Savoy - (Wonder of Stardom Title) [*** 1/4] (STARDOM)
3. February 10, 2018 - Kazuchika Okada (c) -vs- SANADA - (IWGP Title) [***] (NJPW)
4. February 2, 2018 - Kenou (c) -vs- Yuko Miyamoto - (GHC Title) [***] (NOAH)
5. February 9, 2018 - Matt Taven & TK O'Ryan & Vinny Marseglia -vs- Cody & Hangman Page & Marty Scurll [***] (ROH)

6. February 6, 2018 - Cuatrero -vs- Ángel de Oro [** 3/4] (CMLL)
7. February 6, 2018 - "King of Darkness" EVIL & SANADA (c) -vs- Kazuchika Okada & Hirooki Goto - (IWGP Tag Title) [** 3/4] (NJPW)
8. February 4, 2018 - David Starr -vs- Mike Bailey [** 3/4] (RevPro)
9. February 9, 2018 - Jay Lethal -vs- Jonathan Gresham [** 3/4] (ROH)
10. January 27, 2018 - Centvrión -vs- Metaleón [** 3/4] (MEXA)

11. January 10, 2018 - Matt Sydal & Taiji Ishimori -vs- El Hijo del Fantasma & Rohit Raju [** 3/4] (IMPACT)
12. February 1, 2018 - Eric Young & Killian Dain & Alexander Wolfe -vs- Adam Cole & Bobby Fish & Kyle O'Reilly - (Tornado Tag Match) [** 1/2] (NXT)
13. February 4, 2018 - Zack Sabre Jr. -vs- Travis Banks [** 1/2] (RevPro)
14. February 9, 2018 - Texano Jr. & Dave The Clown -vs- Hijo del Fantasma & Angelikal [** 1/2] (AAA)
15. February 9, 2018 - Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson -vs- Beretta & Chuckie T [** 1/2] (ROH)

16. February 6, 2018 - Roderick Strong -vs- Hideo Itami - (WWE Cruiserweight Title Tournament - Round 1) [** 1/2] (WWE)
17. February 10, 2018 - Tetsuya Naito -vs- YOSHI-HASHI [** 1/2] (NJPW)
18. February 9, 2018 - Punishment Martinez -vs- Flip Gordon [** 1/2] (ROH)
19. February 9, 2018 - Dr. Wagner Jr. (c) -vs- La Parka - (AAA Heavyweight Title) [** 1/4] (AAA)
20. February 2, 2018 - Mohammed Yone & Quiet Storm (c) -vs- Maybach Taniguchi & Mitsuya Nagai - (GHC Tag Title) [** 1/4] (NOAH)

WWE Universe

WWE - "WWE NXT #286" - February 1, 2018, Atlanta, Georgia, USA - (1 hr)
February 1, 2018, Atlanta, Georgia, USA - Center Stage
1. Otis Dozovic & Tucker Knight -vs- Riddick Moss & Tino Sabbatelli [* 1/4]
2. Bianca Belair -vs- Jessie Hill [1/4*]
3. Eric Young & Killian Dain & Alexander Wolfe -vs- Adam Cole & Bobby Fish & Kyle O'Reilly - (Tornado Tag Match) [** 1/2]

They built the main event up nicely and it was a wild mess. Wouldn't say I got too hard into the madness, but definitely a good TV bout.

WWE - "Monday Night RAW/Main Event" - February 5, 2018, Des Moines, Iowa, USA - (3 hrs)
February 5, 2018, Des Moines, Iowa, USA - Wells Fargo Arena
Main Event #279
1. Goldust -vs- Curt Hawkins [*]
2. Kalisto -vs- Ariya Daivari [* 3/4]
Monday Night RAW #1289
3. Roman Reigns -vs- Bray Wyatt - (Eliminiation Chamber Qualifying) [* 3/4]
4. Finn Balor & Karl Anderson -vs- Dash Wilder & Scott Dawson [* 1/4]
5. Cedric Alexander & Mustafa Ali -vs- Drew Gulak & Tony Nese [* 1/2]
6. Asuka -vs- Bayley [**]
7. The Miz -vs- Apollo Crews - (Eliminiation Chamber Qualifying) [* 1/2]
8. Cesaro & Sheamus (c) -vs- Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins - (WWE RAW Tag Title) [** 1/4]
9. Nia Jax -vs- Vanessa Floyd [1/4*]
10. Mickie James -vs- Sonya Deville [1/2*]
11. Elias -vs- Braun Strowman -vs- John Cena - (Triple Threat) [**]

They are filling Raw with a lot of wrestling. I'm liking it. Still a far way from delivering a essential product, but who knows, they might get it right eventually.

WWE - "SmackDown Live/205 Live" - February 6, 2018, Philadelphia, Kansas, Missouri, USA - (2 1/2 hrs)
February 6, 2018, Philadelphia, Kansas, Missouri, USA - Sprint Center Arena
205 Live #63
1. Kalisto -vs- Lince Dorado - (WWE Cruiserweight Title Tournament - Round 1) [** 1/4]
2. Roderick Strong -vs- Hideo Itami - (WWE Cruiserweight Title Tournament - Round 1) [** 1/2]
SmackDown Live #964
3. Charlotte Flair -vs- Liv Morgan [*]
4. Harper & Rowan -vs- Kenny Alfonso & Mat Fitchett [1/4*]
5. Bobby Roode (c) -vs- Rusev - (WWE United States Title) [** 1/4]
6. Chad Gable & Shelton Benjamin -vs- Konnor & Viktor [* 1/4]
7. Kevin Owens -vs- Sami Zayn  [**]
Mixed Match Challenge #4
8. Jimmy Uso & Naomi -vs- Goldust & Mandy Rose - (WWE Mixed Match Challenge - Round 1) [* 1/2]

The Cruiserweight Tournament is one of the highlights of WWE TV at the moment. They're allowed to work a little more "epic" and that helps. It's still in the questionable WWE atmosphere, but some of the quality shined through. Smackdown a little bit better this week comapred to how it's been all year, but still nothing to truly shout loud about.

US Indys

IMPACT - "Impact Wrestling #707-708" - January 10, 2018, Orlando, Florida, USA - (1 1/2 hrs)
January 10, 2018, Orlando, Florida, USA - Universal Studios
1. Matt Sydal & Taiji Ishimori -vs- El Hijo del Fantasma & Rohit Raju [** 3/4]
2. Caleb Konley & Trevor Lee -vs- Mike Monroe & TC Read [*]
3. Laurel Van Ness (c) -vs- Kiera Hogan - (Impact Knockouts Title) [* 1/2]
4. Hania The Howling Huntress -vs- Amber Nova [*]
5. Johnny Impact -vs- Alberto El Patron -vs- Ethan Carter III -vs- Moose - (4-Way) [** 1/4]

They're getting mileage out of their international collaboration from NOAH and AAA, as well as from talent who left the promotion after this series of TV-tapings, like ECIII. Good show, at least the start and finish.

ROH - "ROH on SBG #333" - January 20, 2018, Nashville, Tennessee, USA - (1 hr)
January 20, 2018, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
1. Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin -vs- Beretta & Chuckie T - (ROH Tag Title) [* 1/2]
2. Marty Scurll -vs- Shane Taylor [* 3/4]
3. Cody -vs- Matt Taven [**]

ROH - "Honor Reigns Supreme 2018" - February 9, 2018, Concord, North Carolina, USA - (3 hrs)
February 9, 2018, Concord, North Carolina, USA - Cabarrus Arena
1. Punishment Martinez -vs- Flip Gordon [** 1/2]
2. Kenny King -vs- Shane Taylor [* 3/4]
3. Silas Young -vs- Josh Woods [**]
4. Scorpio Sky & Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian -vs- Dalton Castle & Brandon & Brent [** 1/4]
5. Tenille Dashwood & Mandy Leon -vs- Kelly Klein & Stacy Shadows [* 1/2]
6. Jay Lethal -vs- Jonathan Gresham [** 3/4]
7. Matt Taven & TK O'Ryan & Vinny Marseglia -vs- Cody & Hangman Page & Marty Scurll [***]
8. Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson -vs- Beretta & Chuckie T [** 1/2]

ROH finally enters 2018 with it's first episode from their January TV-taping and a free live-streaming show. They pretty much follow-up where they left off in 2017. Trying their best to get the most out of the talent they have available, without really convincing 100%. The live show was good though. The Kingdom with Matt Tavern were hot and I'm liking where they're taking the feud with Bullet Club. They are really picking up steam with a faction which was a DUD last year. Many felt the Lethal/Gresham match was fantastic. Me - only good. There was something about the double limb selling felt too much like pretence. Didn't fall for the illusion. They were almost smiling in satisfaction when they got the fans approval for actually selling something. Best Friends vs Young Bucks were too long, but was good too.

NJPW

NJPW - "ROAD TO THE NEW BEGINNING - DAY 6" - February 5, 2018, Tokyo - (2 1/2 hrs)
February 5, 2018, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall (1,604 Fans)
1. Jushin Thunder Liger & Tiger Mask & KUSHIDA -vs- Shota Umino & Tetsuhiro Yagi & Ren Narita [* 3/4]
2. Yujiro Takahashi & Hikuleo -vs- Manabu Nakanishi & Tomoyuki Oka [* 1/4]
3. Hiroyoshi Tenzan -vs- Katsuya Kitamura - (Katsuya Kitmura 7 Match Trial Series #4) [**]
4. Rocky Romero & SHO & YOH -vs- Taka Michinoku & Taichi & El Desperado [**]
5. Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano -vs- Juice Robinson & Toa Henare [* 3/4]
6. Togi Makabe & Michael Elgin & KUSHIDA -vs- Minoru Suzuki & Takashi Iizuka & Yoshinobu Kanemaru [** 1/4]
7. Jay White -vs- David Finlay [* 3/4]
8. Tetsuya Naito & "King of Darkness" EVIL & SANADA & Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI -vs- Kazuchika Okada & Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI & Will Ospreay & Gedo - (Elimination) [** 1/4]

NJPW - "ROAD TO THE NEW BEGINNING - DAY 7" - February 6, 2018, Tokyo - (2 1/2 hrs)
February 6, 2018, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall (1,706 Fans)
1. Jushin Thunder Liger & Tiger Mask & Ryusuke Taguchi -vs- Shota Umino & Tetsuhiro Yagi & Ren Narita [**]
2. Yujiro Takahashi & Hikuleo -vs- Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Tomoyuki Oka [* 1/2]
3. Manabu Nakanishi -vs- Katsuya Kitamura - (Katsuya Kitmura 7 Match Trial Series #5) [* 1/2]
4. Rocky Romero & SHO & YOH -vs- Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Taka Michinoku & El Desperado [* 3/4]
5. Jay White & Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano -vs- Juice Robinson & David Finlay & Toa Henare [**]
6. Minoru Suzuki & Takashi Iizuka & Taichi -vs- Togi Makabe & Michael Elgin & Ryusuke Taguchi [**]
7. Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI -vs- YOSHI-HASHI & Will Ospreay & Gedo [**]
8. "King of Darkness" EVIL & SANADA (c) -vs- Kazuchika Okada & Hirooki Goto - (IWGP Tag Title) [** 3/4]

The Korakuen shows where they usual mid-level effort by New Japan. Just keeping storylines alive and looking good rather than delivering something good. The IWGP Tag Title bout was solid. It was what one could expect from a show like that. One could always hope for more with world-class talent like that, but it was interesting enough without needing to complain.

NJPW - "THE NEW BEGINNING IN OSAKA" - February 10, 2018, Osaka - (3 1/4 hrs)
February 10, 2018, Osaka Edion Arena (5,481 Fans)
1. Yuji Nagata -vs- Katsuya Kitamura - (Katsuya Kitmura 7 Match Trial Series #6) [**]
2. Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado -vs- SHO & YOH [** 1/4]
3. Togi Makabe & Michael Elgin & KUSHIDA & Ryusuke Taguchi -vs- Minoru Suzuki & Takashi Iizuka & Taka Michinoku & Taichi [**]
4. Jay White & Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano -vs- Juice Robinson & David Finlay & Toa Henare [* 3/4]
5. BUSHI -vs- Gedo [* 1/2]
6. Tetsuya Naito -vs- YOSHI-HASHI [** 1/2]
7. Will Ospreay (c) -vs- Hiromu Takahashi - (IWGP Junior Title) [*** 1/4]
8. Hirooki Goto (c) -vs- "King of Darkness" EVIL - (NEVER Openweight Title) [* 1/2]
9. Kazuchika Okada (c) -vs- SANADA - (IWGP Title) [***]

Quality show from NJPW. Your enjoyment of the main event depends on how easily you're fooled by the long-match formula. It's a good 15-minute match held hostage in their standard 30-min epic format. SANADA works slow, but he always makes his explosive parts count and that came in handy for this token defense against Okada. I liked Ospreay/Takahashi better, but they relied a bit too much on potentially career neding drops without adding too much else to the game. Goto/EVIL was boring. YOSHI-HASHI however suprised against Naito, and it looks like we'll have a rematch between Naito and Taichi, which I'm all for!

PuroresuDream

Changes to the world of internet puroresu. RealHero Archive is shutting down as a result of copyright issues, but have set-up PuroresuDream which links to both legal streaming services along with more dubious links for those promotions that's still not in the streaming game.

Ice Ribbon - New Ice Ribbon #860 ~ Yokohama Ribbon 2018 - January 6, 2018, Yokohama - (2 hrs)
January 6, 2018, Yokohama Radiant Hall (350 Fans)
1. Giulia & Hamuko Hoshi & Ibuki Hoshi -vs- Karen DATE & Mio Momono & Tsukushi [* 1/4]
2. Miyako Matsumoto -vs- Miki Tanaka [3/4*]
3. Kyuri -vs- Tae Honma [*]
4. Akane Fujita & Maika Ozaki & Satsuki Totoro -vs- Maruko Nagasaki & Matsuya Uno & Tequila Saya [* 1/2]
5. Tsukasa Fujimoto -vs- Hana DATE [**]
6. Mochi Miyagi & Risa Sera -vs- Maya Yukihi & Mika Iida [* 1/2]
7. Hiragi Kurumi (c) -vs- Nao DATE - (ICExInfinity Title) [* 1/4]

Ice Ribbon's January 6th show finally airs a month after it happened. Not that there was any rush seeing this lightweight show.

K-DOJO - "KAIENTAI DOJO NEW YEAR FIGHT" - January 7, 2018, Tokyo - (2 hrs)
January 7, 2018, Tokyo - Shin-Kiba 1st RING (195 Fans)
1. Taishi Takizawa & GO Asakawa -vs- Ricky Fuji & Marines Mask [* 1/2]
2. Ayumu Honda -vs- Koharu Hinata -vs- Yuma -vs- Yoshihiro Horaguchi -vs- Kaji Tomato -vs- Shiori Asahi -vs- Massimo -vs- Bambi - (One Count Gauntlet Match) [* 3/4]
3. Toru Sugiura -vs- Kyu Mogami - (Hardcore) [** 1/4]
4. Brahman Shu & Brahman Kei -vs- Kotaro Yoshino & Dinosaur Takuma [* 1/2]
5. Kunio Toshima -vs- Daigoro Kashiwa [* 1/4]
6. Tank Nagai & Isami Kodaka (c) -vs- Taka Michinoku & MEN`s Teioh - (STRONGEST-K Tag Title) [**]
7. 23-Person New Year´s Battle Royal [*]

For a non-Korakuen Hall Kaientai Dojo show, this was good. Nothing exceptional, but the K-Dojo shows I've seen of late haven't been very impressive, but here they kept their nonsense to a minimum.

NOAH - "NAVIGATION FOR THE FUTURE - DAY 9" - February 2, 2018, Tokyo - (2 hrs)
February 2, 2018, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall (1,015 Fans)
1. YO-HEY -vs- Junta Miyawaki [3/4*]
2. Daisuke Harada & Tadasuke -vs- Hajima Ohara & Masao Inoue [1/2*]
3. Go Shiozaki & Atsushi Kotoge -vs- Cody Hall & Jay Bradley [*]
4. Yoshinari Ogawa & Minoru Tanaka & Seiya Morohashi -vs- Taiji Ishimori & Hi69 & LEONA [* 3/4]
5. Katsuhiko Nakajima & Masa Kitamiya -vs- Takashi Sugiura & Akitoshi Saito [**]
6. HAYATA -vs- Hitoshi Kumano [* 3/4]
7. Naomichi Marufuji -vs- Kaito Kiyomiya [**]
8. Mohammed Yone & Quiet Storm (c) -vs- Maybach Taniguchi & Mitsuya Nagai - (GHC Tag Title) [** 1/4]
9. Kenou (c) -vs- Yuko Miyamoto - (GHC Title) [***]

Kenou/Miyamoto was a interesting. A little too reliant on table related offense, but those two mixed so smoothly within the style of match they decided to work that it became a positive experience regardless of not being a traditional NOAH-style main event. 

DDT Universe

DDT - "DDT STILL DOES NOT KNOW GUNMA 2018" - February 4, 2018, Maebashi, Gunma, Japan - (1/2 hr)
February 4, 2018, Maebashi, Gunma, Japan - Yamada Green Dome Maebashi Sub Arena (196 Fans)
1. Konosuke Takeshita & Akito -vs- Shuji Ishikawa & Mad Paulie [**]

DDT had a quiet week, but one solid match to offer.

YAROZ - “YAROZ PART 6” - February 6, 2018, Tokyo - (2 1/2 hrs)
February 6, 2018, Tokyo - Shin-Kiba 1st RING (227 Fans)
1. Naomi Yoshimura & Akira Jo -vs- Akito & Daiki Shimomura [3/4*]
2. Samara & Saori Anou -vs- Cherry & Nao Kakuta [1/2*]
3. Yumehito Imanari & DT-YUTA -vs- Sanshiro Takagi & Toru Owashi [1/2*]
4. Kohei Sato -vs- Kazuki Hirata & Brother Mon - (Kickboxing) [*]
5. Ryuichi Sekine -vs- Danshoku Dino -vs- Antonio Honda -vs- Kikutaro - (4-Way) [1/2*]
6. Kazusada Higuchi & Ken Ohka & Gota Ihashi -vs- Makoto Oishi & Mizuki Watase & Konosuke Takeshita [* 1/4]

BASARA - "VAJRA 59 ~ KOKORO DOTAI*" - February 11, 2018, Tokyo - (2 1/4 hrs)
February 11, 2018, Tokyo - Basement MON☆STAR (160 Fans)
1. Hercules Senga -vs- Daiki Shimomura [* 1/4]
2. FUMA & SAGAT -vs- Takato Nakano & Akiyori Takizawa - (Iron Fist Tag Tournament - Round 1) [* 1/2]
3. Best Stretchman V3 & Tsutomu Oosugi -vs- Isami Kodaka & Yoshihisa Uto - (Iron Fist Tag Tournament - Round 1) [* 3/4]
4. Manabu Hara & Fuminori Abe -vs- Trans Am ★ Ryuichi & Yusuke Kubo - (Iron Fist Tag Tournament - Round 1) [* 1/2]
5. Ryuichi Sekine & Ryota Nakatsu -vs- Takumi Tsukamoto & Yasu Urano - (Iron Fist Tag Tournament - Round 1) [** 1/4]

GANBARE☆WRESTLING - “BODY FEELS EXIT 2018” - February 11, 2018, Tokyo - (2 1/4)
February 11, 2018, Tokyo - Basement MON☆STAR (134 Fans)
1. Katsumi Oribe -vs- Shuhei Washida [* 1/2]
2. Yukihiro Abe -vs- Gota Ihashi [* 1/4]
3. Brian Aki & Samara -vs- Shota & HARUKAZE [*]
4. MEN’S Teioh -vs- Shinichiro Tominaga [* 1/2]
5. Shuichiro Katsumura & Black Ribera -vs- Ken Ohka & Yumehito Imanari [* 3/4]

For it was mostly DDT's sub-brands that got the attention this week on their network with three live shows. Three very indie-standard shows with plenty of comedy and sub-par wrestling. Most intersting was the start of the Iron Fist Tag Tournament and a strip-kickboxing match. 

BJW

BJW - "DAINICHI WINTER UENO PRO-WRESTLING FESTIVAL ~ DAY 1 PART 1" - February 1, 2018, Tokyo - (1 1/4 hrs)
February 1, 2018, Tokyo - Ueno Park Outdoor Stage (Water Music Hall) (107 Fans)
1. Yuichi Taniguchi & Toshiyuki Sakuda -vs- Masaki Morihiro & Takuho Kato [1/2*]
2. Yasufumi Nakanoue & Tatsuhiko Yoshino & Kota Sekifuda -vs- Daichi Hashimoto & Kazuki Hashimoto & Yuya Aoki [* 1/4]
3. Daisuke Sekimoto & Ryuji Ito -vs- Yoshihisa Uto & Kazumi Kikuta [1/2*]
4. Ryuichi Kawakami & Kankuro Hoshino -vs- Takayuki Ueki & Takuya Nomura [3/4*]
5. Abdullah Kobayashi & Ryota Hama & Masaya Takahashi -vs- Hideki Suzuki & Jaki Numazawa & Hideyoshi Kamitani [1/4*]

BJW - "DAINICHI WINTER UENO PRO-WRESTLING FESTIVAL ~ DAY 1 PART 2" - February 1, 2018, Tokyo - (1 hr)
February 1, 2018, Tokyo - Ueno Park Outdoor Stage (Water Music Hall) (75 Fans)
1. Toshiyuki Sakuda & Yuya Aoki -vs- Ryuichi Kawakami & Tahuko Kato [*]
2. Hideki Suzuki & Yuichi Taniguchi -vs- Kazumi Kikuta & Masaki Morihiro [3/4*]
3. Jaki Numazawa & Hideyoshi Kamitani -vs- Yasufumi Nakanoue & Yoshihisa Uto [*]
4. Kazuki Hashimoto & Kota Sekifuda -vs- Kankuro Hoshino & Tatsuhiko Yoshino [* 1/2]
5. Daichi Hashimoto & Daisuke Sekimoto & Ryota Hama & Takuya Nomura -vs- Abdullah Kobayashi & Ryuji Ito & Masaya Takahashi & Takayuki Ueki - (Pond Pocha Match) [1/4*]

BJW - "DAINICHI WINTER UENO PRO-WRESTLING FESTIVAL ~ DAY 2 PART 1" - February 2, 2018, Tokyo - (1 hr)
February 2, 2018, Tokyo - Ueno Park Outdoor Stage (Water Music Hall) (71 Fans)
1. Daisuke Sekimoto -vs- Takuho Kato [1/2*]
2. Jaki Numazawa & Kota Sekifuda -vs- Takuya Nomura & Yuya Aoki [3/4*]
3. Stan Kobayashi & Big Hama Vader -vs- Toshiyuki Sakuda & Masaki Morihiro [1/4*]
4. Hideyoshi Kamitani -vs- Kazumi Kikuta [*]
5. Yasufumi Nakanoue & Ryuichi Kawakami -vs- Masaya Takahashi & Takayuki Ueki [*]

BJW - "DAINICHI WINTER UENO PRO-WRESTLING FESTIVAL ~ DAY 2 PART 2" - February 2, 2018, Tokyo - (1 1/4 hrs)
February 2, 2018, Tokyo - Ueno Park Outdoor Stage (Water Music Hall) (95 Fans)
1. Ryuichi Kawakami -vs- Takuho Kato [1/2*]
2. Yoshihisa Uto -vs- Yuchi Taniguchi [*]
3. Tatsuhiko Yoshino & Kota Sekifuda -vs- Naoki Ueki (Jaki Numazawa) & Masaya Takahashi [1/2*]
4. Kankuro Hoshino & Kazuki Hashimoto -vs- Toshiyuki Sakuda & Yuya Aoki [* 1/4]
5. Ryuji Ito & Hideki Suzuki -vs- Daichi Hashimoto & Takayuki Ueki [1/4*]

BJW - "DAINICHI WINTER UENO PRO-WRESTLING FESTIVAL ~ DAY 2 PART 3" - February 2, 2018, Tokyo - (1 hr)
February 2, 2018, Tokyo - Ueno Park Outdoor Stage (Water Music Hall) (67 Fans)
1. Kazuki Hashimoto -vs- Yuichi Taniguchi [3/4*]
2. Big Hama Vader & Kazumi Kikuta -vs- Tatsuhiko Yoshino & Takuya Nomura [1/2*]
3. Yasufumi Nakanoue -vs- Masaki Morihiro [3/4*]
4. Hashif Khan (Daichi Hashimoto) & Stan Kobayashi -vs- Hideyoshi Kitao & Antonio Hoshino [1/4*]
5. Hashif Khan & Hideyoshi Kitao & Great Zebra & Antonio Hoshino -vs- Stan Kobayashi & Sandman Ito & Brody The Hideki & Dick Uto Murdoch - (Pond Poncha Full Settlement Match) [1/4*]

BJW - "DAINICHI WINTER UENO PRO-WRESTLING FESTIVAL ~ DAY 3 PART 1" - February 3, 2018, Tokyo - (1 1/4 hrs)
February 3, 2018, Tokyo - Ueno Park Outdoor Stage (Water Music Hall) (114 Fans)
1. Yasufumi Nakanoue -vs- Masaki Morihiro [1/2*]
2. Kazuki Hashimoto & Takumi Tsukamoto -vs- Kazumi Kikuta & Takuya Nomura [*]
3. Ryota Hama & Kota Sekifuda -vs- Taishi Takizawa & Takuho Kato [*]
4. Hideki Suzuki & Yoshihisa Uto -vs- Brahman Shu & Brahman Kei [3/4*]
5. Daisuke Sekimoto & Tsutomu Oosugi & Hercules Senga -vs- Masaya Takahashi & Takayuki Ueki & Toshiyuki Sakuda [1/2*]

BJW - "DAINICHI WINTER UENO PRO-WRESTLING FESTIVAL ~ DAY 4 PART 1" - February 4, 2018, Tokyo - (1 hr)
February 4, 2018, Tokyo - Ueno Park Outdoor Stage (Water Music Hall) (271 Fans)
1. Akira Hyodo -vs- Yuki Ishikawa - (Exhibition) [1/4*]
2. Kazuki Hashimoto & Masaki Morihiro -vs- Takumi Tsukamoto & Takuho Kato [*]
3. Takuya Nomura & Fuminori Abe -vs- Kota Sekifuda & Yuya Aoki [* 1/4]
4. Yuko Miyamoto & Tsutomu Ouosugi & Hercules Senga -vs- Brahman Shu & Brahman Kei & Toshiyuki Sakuda [1/2*]
5. Daisuke Sekimoto & Yasufumi Nakanoue -vs- Ryuji Ito & Tatsuhiko Yoshino [3/4*]
6. Abdullah Kobayashi & Hideki Suzuki & Yoshihisa Uto -vs- Daichi Hashimoto & Ryuichi Kawakami & Kazumi Kikuta [3/4*]

BJW uploaded 7 of their 10 festival shows on their bjwcore.com network. The ring is set-up on a stage and it's a terrible view for the camera only focusing on the stage door and no fans on that side. The wrestlig ranges from decent young guys doing basic matches and veterans dressing up and doing pretend pretend-fighting. It's not for everyone, other than hardcore Big Japan-family fans. The best bits was Hama doing a Vader gimmick. The most interesting thing to come out of these throwaway shows was Razor Ramon's son Cody Hall and Jay Bradley joining in on the action while being in the audience watching. Apparently out of this comes a group featuring the two and Hideki Suzuki, wanting to cause chaos in BJW, NOAH and Ice Ribbon!

STARDOM

STARDOM - "NEW YEAR STARS 2018 - DAY 6" - January 28, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (2 hrs)
January 28, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Shin-Kiba 1st RING (335 Fans)
1. Kaori Yoneyama & Ruaka -vs- Xia Brookside & Hanan [3/4*]
2. AZM & Momo Watanabe -vs- Shiki Shibusawa & Starlight Kid [*]
3. Kay Lee Ray & Nicole Savoy & Miranda -vs- Mary Apache & Hiromi Mimura & Konami [* 1/2]
4. Mayu Iwatani & Tam Nakano -vs- Jungle Kyona & Natsuko Tora [**]
5. Io Shirai & Viper & HZK (c) -vs- Kagetsu & Hana Kimura & Natsu Sumire - (Artist Of Stardom Title) [** 1/4]

STARDOM - "STARDOM KYOTO MAX 2018" - February 4, 2018, Kyoto, Japan - (2 hrs)
February 4, 2018, Kyoto - KBS Hall (325 Fans)
1. Momo Watanabe & AZM & HZK -vs- Xia Brookside & Miranda & Starlight Kid [**]
2. Kagetsu & Hana Kimura & Sumire Natsu -vs- Kaori Yoneyama & Jungle Kyona & Natsuko Tora [* 1/2]
3. Mari Apache & Mayu Iwatani & Tam Nakano -vs- Hiromi Mimura & Konami & Shiki Shibusawa [* 3/4]
4. Viper -vs- Kay Lee Ray [** 1/4]
5. Io Shirai (c) -vs- Nicole Savoy - (Wonder of Stardom Title) [*** 1/4]

Viper/Key Lee Ray's first single match against each other in Japan! Solid mechanics. The real highlight of the matches they uploaded this week on Stardom-World.com was Io defending the belt against Savoy. What I liked most about it was how credible Savoy looked against Shirai. It's a tightly wrestled, nearly old-shool, feel about it. Not only was it a highlight of this weeks Stardom, but also the entire week world-wide. Artist Of Stardom Title was okay, but suffered from Oedo Tai having more personality than skills.

DIANA

Diana - "Dojo Show" - January 13, 2018, Kawasaki - (1/2 hrs)
January 13, 2018, Kawasaki, Kanagawa - Kawasaki Axe Ring
1. Kyoko Inoue & Kaoru Ito -vs- Jaguar Yokota & Megumi Yabushita [* 1/4]

Diana - "Dojo Show" - February 4, 2018, Kawasaki - (1/2 hrs)
February 4, 2018, Kawasaki, Kanagawa - Kawasaki Axe Ring
1. Kyoko Inoue & Kaoru Ito -vs- Jaguar Yokota & Ayako Sato [* 1/2]

Diana - "Dojo Show" - February 10, 2018, Kawasaki - (1/2 hrs)
February 10, 2018, Kawasaki, Kanagawa - Kawasaki Axe Ring
1. Sareee -vs- Kaoru Ito [*]

Apparently the women's group Diana has started streaming the main events on their dojo shows on YouTube. There have been very little footage available from them since they opened shop in 2011, but it had familiar veterans like Kyoko Inoue, Kaoru Ito and Jaguar Yokota on the roster, but naturally the average age of those are about 50 and a around 20 years past their prime, so one haven't been missing much based off this.

CMLL

CMLL - "Lunes Arena Puebla" - February 5, 2018, Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Puebla, Mexico - (1 3/4 hrs)
February 5, 2018, Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Puebla, Mexico - Arena Puebla
1. París & Vega -vs- Policeman & Saurón [* 3/4]
2. Astro & Último Dragóncito -vs- Joker & Pierrothito [* 1/2]
3. Starman & Lestat & Tigre Rojo Jr. -vs- Hijo del Signo & El Perverso & Rey Apocalipsis  [* 1/2]
4. Stigma -vs- Tiger - (Lightning Match) [** 1/4]
5. Dragón Lee & Soberano Jr. & Titán -vs- Mephisto & Ephesto & Luciferno [**]
6. Atlantis & Pierroth & Rush -vs- Último Guerrero & Gran Guerrero & Marco Corleone [* 1/4]

CMLL - "Martes Arena Mexico" - February 6, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 1/4 hrs)
February 6, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico
1. Fantasy & Último Dragóncito -vs- Pequeño Violencia & Pierrothito  [*]
2. Star Jr. & Oro Jr. & Astral -vs- Nitro & Espanto Jr. & Sangre Azteca [**]
3. Virus & Kawato San & Misterioso Jr. -vs- Fuego & Audaz & Guerrero Maya Jr. [**]
4. Rey Bucanero & Felino & Hechicero -vs- Titán & Rey Cometa & Soberano Jr. [* 1/4]
5. Cuatrero -vs- Ángel de Oro [** 3/4]
6. Carístico & Niebla Roja & Valiente -vs- Mephisto & Ephesto & Luciferno [**]

CMLL - "Martes Arena Coliseo Guadalajara" - February 6, 2018, Mexico - (1 hr)
February 6, 2018, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico - Arena Coliseo Guadalajara
1. Tiffany & Comandante & Reyna Isis -vs- Sanely & Lady Maravilla & Kaho Kobayashi [* 3/4]
2. The Panther & Blue Panther Jr. & Tritón -vs- Puma & Tiger & Disturbio [**]
3. Último Guerrero & Gran Guerrero & Euforia -vs- Volador Jr. & Dragón Lee & Marco Corleone [**]

CMLL - "Super Viernes" - February 9, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 1/4 hrs)
February 9, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico
1. Hijo del Signo & Yago -vs- Magia Blanca & Magnus [**]
2. Dalys & Zeuxis & Amapola -vs- Princesa Sugehit & Marcela & Kaho Kobayashi [**]
3. 8-Man Battle Royal [1/2*]
4. Atlantis & Mr. Niebla -vs- Ángel de Oro & Cuatrero - (Parejas Increible Tournament - Round 1) [* 1/4]
5. Rush & Terrible -vs- Forastero & Stuka Jr. - (Parejas Increible Tournament - Round 1) [**]
6. Carístico & Euforia -vs- Dragón Lee & Sansón - (Parejas Increible Tournament - Round 1) [**]
7. Marco Corleone & Shocker -vs- Blue Panther Jr. & Máscara Año 2000 - (Parejas Increible Tournament - Round 1) [*]
8. Rush & Terrible -vs- Atlantis & Mr. Niebla - (Parejas Increible Tournament - Quarterfinal) [* 3/4]
9. Carístico & Euforia -vs- Marco Corleone & Shocker - (Parejas Increible Tournament - Quarterfinal) [* 1/4]
10. Rush & Terrible -vs- Carístico & Euforia - (Parejas Increible Tournament - Semi-Final) [* 1/2]
11. Mistico & Diamante Azul & Volador Jr. -vs- Último Guerrero & Cavernario & Kráneo [* 1/2]

Unfortunately CMLL continues their medicore run. They continued with the Parejas Increible Tournament setting up a cool final of Rush & Terrible vs Último Guerrero & Volador Jr. for February 16. Super rushed matches though. One angle was interesting though. Cuatrero and Ángel de Oro continuing where they left off on the Japan tour, only turning the heat up with a lot of mask-pulling.

AAA

AAA - "Gira de Conquista" - February 9, 2018, Aguascalientes, Mexico - (2 3/4 hrs)
February 9, 2018, Aguascalientes, Mexico - Palenque de la Feria Nacional De San Marcos
1. Estrella Divina & Lady Shani -vs- Ashley & Faby Apache [* 1/2]
2. Australian Suicide -vs- Hijo Del Vikingo - (AAA Cruiserweight Title) [**]
3. Dark Cuervo & Dark Scoria (c) -vs- Joe Lider & Parka Negra - (AAA Tag Title) [* 3/4]
4. La Máscara & Máximo -vs- Aguascalientes Local 1 & Aguascalientes Local 2 & Corazón Forajido & Discovery & Príncipe Seir & Xtrem X [1/4*]
5. Averno & Chessman & Súper Fly -vs- Carta Brava Jr. & Mocho Cota Jr. & Tito Santana [** 1/4]
6. Texano Jr. & Dave The Clown -vs- Hijo del Fantasma & Angelikal [** 1/2]
7. Dr. Wagner Jr. (c) -vs- La Parka - (AAA Heavyweight Title) [** 1/4]

I'm happy AAA have switched to Twitch.tv airing full shows live each week! It makes their product more urgent and easy to follow instead of having to wait a month for their TV taped shows to air. It's still wild and bizarre WCW style booking which will turn many off, but in a world were wrestling has become a little too clean, AAA provides a vital madness. A lot of screwjobs though, but one got to love Angelikal's bladejob, random surprise run-ins, and Faby Apache being a bitch to her partner.

Lucha Libre Independents

MEXA WRESTLING - January 27, 2018, Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl, Estado de México - (1 hr)
January 27, 2018, Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl, Estado de México - Arena San Juan Pantitlan
1. Leo & Mike & Rafy & Teelo -vs- Astrolux & Lunatik Fly & Pumita & Torito [**]
2. Keyra -vs- Lady Flammer [* 1/2]
3. Freelance & Mike Segura -vs- Corsario Negro Jr. & Drako [*]
4. Ricky Marvin -vs- Aramis -vs- Toxin - (3-Way) [**]
6. Trauma I & Trauma II -vs- Arez & Eterno [* 3/4]
7. Centvrión -vs- Metaleón [** 3/4]

IWRG - January 31, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - (1 hr)
January 31, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - Arena Naucalpan
1. Black Puma & Guerrero 2000 & Voltar -vs- Fireman & Rayado & Toto [* 3/4]
2. Dranzer & Full Contact & Hausser -vs- Chicanito & Dragón Infernal & Power Bull [* 1/2]
3. Celestial Boy & Haziel & Príncipe Omni -vs- Adrenalina & Dragón Bane & Voltan [**]

CLLDM/Super Astro - February 3, 2018, Cuauhtémoc, Mexico - (1 1/4 hrs)
February 3, 2018, Cuauhtémoc, Mexico - Tortas Super Astros
1. Apando Negro Jr. & Hijo De Dr. Pólux Jr. & Lucifer & Maravilla Strong & Murciélago Plateado Jr. & Perro Callejero Jr. -vs- Aguilita Mágica & Atomik Star & Centellita De La Muerte & Eterno & Kalibus & Takle [** 1/4]
2. Rossy Moreno -vs- Baronessa -vs- Diosa Quetzal - (3-Way) [* 3/4]
3. Wotan -vs- Demus [* 1/2]
4. Jerry Estrada -vs- Fresero Jr. [*]
5. Diva Salvaje & Zorro -vs- Chica Ye-Ye & Garza Jr. [* 1/4]

Not too much going on this week in the indy lucha world except cool effort from Centvrión/Metaleón.

UK

RevPro - "Live At The Cockpit 26" - February 4, 2018, Marylebone, England, UK - (2 1/4 hrs)
February 7, 2018, Marylebone, England, UK - The Cockpit
1. Kurtis Chapman (c) -vs- Chris Brookes -vs- Morgan Webster - (RevPro British Cruiserweight Title; 3-Way) [**]
2. Adam Brooks -vs- El Phantasmo [** 1/4]
3. Josh Bodom -vs- Dan Magee [* 3/4]
4. David Starr -vs- Mike Bailey [** 3/4]
5. Sammii Jayne -vs- Nina Samuels [* 1/2]
6. Kyle Fletcher & Mark Davis -vs- Gideon Grey & No Fun Dunne [* 3/4]
7. Zack Sabre Jr. -vs- Travis Banks [** 1/2]

This was one of the better Cockpit shows I've seen. It's still RevPro's B-show, so you're not going to get many of those dream matches, but Starr/Speedball was quality. Same with Sabre/Banks, which was somewhat low-key, but so damn solid underneath. 

DEFIANT - "DEFIANT #9" - December 12, 2017, London, England, UK - (2 1/4 hrs)
December 12, 2017, London, England, UK - Coronet Theatre
1. Primate (c) -vs- Jimmy Havoc - (Defiant Hardcore Title) [**]
2. Rampage & Mihai & Amir Jordan -vs- Zack Gibson & Drake & Alex Gracie [* 1/2]
3. Gabriel Kidd & Prince Ameen -vs- Pastor Eaver & Liam Slater [*]
4. Mark Haskins & Chris Ridgeway -vs- Primate & Jimmy Havoc [*]

Too much Havoc for my liking and it wasn't exactly a super show either. Last from last year's tapings I hope, and we'll see where Defiant/WhatCulture is in 2018. Or if they have to downsize some more.

--PUNQ--

Yes and mostly NO. I probable have the comps I did between 2006-2010 in storage boxes in the basement, but I have no system to do anything with them at now, so unfortunately I can't revive them unless I find a creative solution to convert them. 

Toni Strom is coming in for the February 18th Korakuen Hall show where she faces none other than Meiko Satomura in a special non-title match. That sound like it's going to be good. On the same show Mayu Iwatani & Tam Nakano challenge for the tag titles, and Momo Watanabe faces Io Shirai for her title.

Yeah, I agree the booking ended up being predictable for that Stardom 5 v 5, especially when their stips left us with only two alternatives in the first place, and one could basically read the rest. But I was greatly entertained by the scenario anyway. There was such a good vibe to it all, and at least they did enough variations in how the eliminations happened to give the fans a playful Gauntlet match.

On 2/5/2018 at 2:30 AM, clintthecrippler said:

Goddamn PUNQ I am glad you are back doing these wrestling binge recaps. 

It's a hell of a lot more fun now in the streaming/On-Demand age, than in the tape/DVD trading days. In January alone I've watched more 3* + matches than I did from entire 2010 when I was only following Japan and their slump. Only things wrong is that it's too much available now. I'm going all-in as usual so expect a burnout!

After a exhausting week of emotional wrestling last week, Week 5 was a bit of a breather. Not so many big shows, which gave me a chance to check out promotions I usually would do. Especially from the US, without any of them feeling like I must check them out again. But there are some gems spread-out if one look for them and at least 3 great shows this week. PROGRESS: Jan 28, TAKATAICHIMANIA: Jan 23 and AAA: Jan 26. All worth checking out.

Top-20 Matches Week 5, 2018

1. January 28, 2018 - WALTER (c) -vs- Timothy Thatcher - (PROGRESS Atlas Title) [*** 3/4] (PROGRESS)
2. January 23, 2018 - Tetsuya Naito -vs- Taichi - (Taichi's 15th Anniversary Match) [*** 1/2] (TAKATAICHIMANIA)
3. January 26, 2018 - Averno & Chessman & Super Fly (c) -vs- Carta Brava Jr. & Mocho Cota Jr. & Tito Santana -vs- Aerostar & Drago & Raptor -vs- Angelikal & Bengala & Mascara de Bronce - (AAA Trios Title; 4-Way Elimination) [*** 1/2] (AAA)
4. January 23, 2018 - Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI -vs- Taka Michinoku & Kaji Tomato [*** 1/2] (TAKATAICHIMANIA)
5. January 28, 2018 - Difunto I -vs- Ángel Dorado Jr. - (Mask vs Mask) [*** 1/4] (CMLL/ERLL)
6. February 3, 2018 - Suwama & Shuji Ishikawa (c) -vs- Kento Miyahara & Yoshitatsu - (AJPW Tag Title) [***] (AJPW)
7. January 26, 2018 - Lanzeloth (c) -vs- Australian Suicide - (AAA Cruiserweight Title) [***] (AAA)
8. January 23, 2018 - Takashi Iizuka -vs- Jun Kasai - (Hardcore) [***] (TAKATAICHIMANIA)
9. January 27, 2018 - Roderick Strong -vs- Tyler Bate [***] (NXT)
10. January 14, 2018 - Ayako Hamada -vs- Yoshiko [***] (SEAdLINNNG)
11. January 28, 2018 - Zack Sabre Jr. -vs- Chris Brookes -vs- Trent Seven - (3-Way) [** 3/4] (PROGRESS)
12. January 10, 2018 - Johnny Impact & Moose -vs- Alberto El Patron & Ethan Carter III [** 3/4] (IMPACT)
13. January 26, 2018 - Lady Shani (c) -vs- Faby Apache - (AAA Reina de Reinas Title) [** 3/4] (AAA)
14. January 26, 2018 - Austin Aries -vs- Matt Riddle - (HOH Twitch Television Title Tournament - Round 1) [** 3/4] (HOH)
15. January 28, 2018 - Lunatic Xtreme -vs- Demonio Infernal - (Hair vs Hair) [** 3/4] (IWRG)
16. January 18, 2018 - Delilah Doom & Eli Everfly -vs- Joey Janela & Penelope Ford [** 3/4] (BAR)
17. February 2, 2018 - Austin Theory (c) -vs- Martin Stone - (FIP Title) [** 3/4] (FIP)
18. January 28, 2018 - Travis Banks (c) -vs- TK Cooper - (PROGRESS Title) [** 1/2] (PROGRESS)
19. January 26, 2018 - Psycho Clown -vs- Rey Escorpion - (Bull Terrier Match) [** 1/2] (AAA)
20. January 30, 2018 - TJP -vs- Tyler Bate - (WWE Cruiserweight Title Tournament - Round 1) [** 1/2] (WWE)

WWE Universe

WWE - "NXT #285" - January 27, 2018, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - (1 hr)
January 27, 2018, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - Wells Fargo Center
1. Nikki Cross -vs- Lacey Evans [* 1/2]
2. Nick Miller & Shane Thorne -vs- Gabriel Ealy & Uriel Ealy [* 1/2]
3. Roderick Strong -vs- Tyler Bate [***]

This weeks NXT featured some leftover matches from NXT TakeOver: Phiadelphia, and Strong/Bate was PPV worthy. Didn't get as much time as I'd hoped, but they made the most of it.

WWE - "Monday Night RAW/Main Event" - January 29, 2018, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - (3 hrs)
January 29, 2018, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - Wells Fargo Center
Main Event #278
1. Bayley -vs- Sonya Deville [*]
2. Kalisto & Gran Metalik & Lince Dorado -vs- TJP & Ariya Daivari & Jack Gallagher [* 1/4]
Monday Night RAW #1288
3. Braun Strowman -vs- Kane - (Eliminiation Chamber Qualifying; Last Man Standing Match) [* 1/2]
4. Elias -vs- Matt Hardy - (Eliminiation Chamber Qualifying) [* 1/4]
5. The Miz (c) -vs- Roman Reigns - (WWE Intercontinental Title) [** 1/4]
6. Dash Wilder & Scott Dawson -vs- Heath Slater & Rhyno [*]
7. Asuka -vs- Sasha Banks [** 1/2]
8. Cesaro & Sheamus (c) -vs- Titus O'Neil & Apollo Crews - (WWE RAW Tag Title) [* 1/4]
9. John Cena -vs- Finn Balor - (Eliminiation Chamber Qualifying) [* 1/2]

WWE following-up Royal Rumble with a PPV line-up for RAW! Of course executed in their sloppy TV style wrestling. But still it was nice of them to at least try to give us something special as we close in on WrestleMania.

WWE - "SmackDown Live/205 Live" - January 30, 2018, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 30, 2018, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - Wells Fargo Center
205 Live #62
1. Cedric Alexander -vs- Gran Metalik - (WWE Cruiserweight Title Tournament - Round 1) [**]
2. TJP -vs- Tyler Bate - (WWE Cruiserweight Title Tournament - Round 1) [** 1/2]
SmackDown Live #963
3. Rusev -vs- Jinder Mahal -vs- Kofi Kingston -vs- Zack Ryder - (WWE United States Title #1 Contendership; Fatal Four Way) [* 1/2]
4. Harper & Rowan -vs- Chris Wylde & Rory Gulak [1/4*]
5. Baron Corbin -vs- Tye Dillinger [*]
6. Chad Gable & Shelton Benjamin -vs- Fandango & Tyler Breeze [* 1/4]
7. AJ Styles & Shinsuke Nakamura -vs- Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn [* 3/4]
Mixed Match Challenge #3
8. Alexa Bliss & Braun Strowman -vs- Becky Lynch & Sami Zayn - (WWE Mixed Match Challenge - Round 1) [**]

205 Live beat SmackDowns ass this week, Spud is in the WWE and is that love I see in Br-exa’s eyes?! So while the two bonus shows were good, Smackdown pretty much sucked.

US Indys

IMPACT - "Impact Wrestling #707" - January 10, 2018, Orlando, Florida, USA - (1 1/2 hrs)
January 10, 2018, Orlando, Florida, USA - Universal Studios
1. Matt Sydal (c) -vs- Fallah Bahh - (Impact Grand Title) [** 1/2]
2. Lashley -vs- KM [*]
3. Kiera Hogan -vs- Laurel Van Ness [* 1/2]
4. Johnny Impact & Moose -vs- Alberto El Patron & Ethan Carter III [** 3/4]
5. Eli Drake (c) -vs- Austin Aries - (Impact Global Title) [1/4*]

Good Impact episode. The new era re-start #24882 for them. Still very clearly Impact. What I liked about this one was that it included real tag style wrestling. It wasn't just guys tagging in and out, they also isolated guys and tried to be smart about it. A real slick affair. Alberto & EC3 was having beef with each other, but their mechanics as a heel side was impeccable. Real sweet while Impact and Moose getting their babyface comebacks. I liked Sydal/Bahh too. Speedy and energetic bout. Pure Sydal, but Bahh's involvement gave some weight to this. And you had Aries making his IMPACT comeback by winning the main title in less than a minute! All in street clothes. How prestigious.

ROH - December 16, 2017, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - (1 hr)
December 16, 2017, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - 2300 Arena (800 Fans)
1. Punishment Martinez -vs- Dobbs [1/2*]
2. Leon St. Giovanni & Shaheem Ali -vs- Hanson & Raymond Rowe [** 1/2]
3. Scorpio Sky & Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian -vs- Cody & Hangman Page & Marty Scurll [** 1/2]

The last leftover matches from the December TV taping with two matches worth seeing. One tag with the Bullet Club, the other with the departing War Machine doing a good job giving the rub to Coast 2 Coast on the way out.

Bar Wrestling - "Bar Wrestling 8: Happily Ever After" - January 18, 2018, Baldwin Park, California, USA - (2 hrs)
January 18, 2018, Baldwin Park, California, USA - American Legion #241
1. Brian Cage -vs- Scorpio Sky [** 1/4]
2. Heather Monroe & Laura James & Brody King -vs- Taya Valkyrie & Bill Carr & Dan Barry [**]
3. Jeff Cobb -vs- Luchasaurus [**]
4. Delilah Doom & Eli Everfly -vs- Joey Janela & Penelope Ford [** 3/4]
5. Billy Gunn -vs- Hot Young Briley [* 1/2]
6. Peter Avalon & Ray Rosas -vs- Kerry Awful & Nick Iggy -vs- B-Boy & Willie Mack - (3-Way) [* 3/4]
7. Candice LeRae -vs- Joey Ryan [** 1/2]

This Bar wresting show was fun, but nothing really special. It's like a mini-PWG show. The Janela tag was awesome for Eli (will N)Everfly (Again) taking some absolutely SICK bumps! How he ever got up from that second rope belly-to-belly piledriver, I'll never know. And I bet he wish he hadn't for he landed just as crazy on the floor on that tope dive right before the match ended! The main event was a happy nonsense match between two former partners, and one can't help but feel happy too!

HOH - "HOH 37" - January 26, 2018, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - (3 hrs)
January 26, 2018, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - 2300 Arena
1. Swoggle -vs- Mike Mondo - (HOH Twitch Television Title Tournament - Round 1) [3/4*]
2. Ken Doane -vs- Lisa Marie Varon - (HOH Twitch Television Title Tournament - Round 1) [1/2*]
3. Bull James -vs- Eddie Kingston - (HOH Twitch Television Title Tournament - Round 1) [1/2*]
4. Alex Reynolds -vs- Super Crazy - (HOH Twitch Television Title Tournament - Round 1) [* 1/2]
5. Crazzy Steve -vs- Maxwell Jacob Friedman - (HOH Twitch Television Title Tournament - Round 1) [* 1/4]
6. Killer Kross -vs- Little Guido - (HOH Twitch Television Title Tournament - Round 1) [* 1/2]
7. Dan Maff -vs- Ace Romero - (HOH Twitch Television Title Tournament - Round 1) [** 1/4]
8. Tommy Dreamer & Billy Gunn -vs- Nick Aldis & Joey Mercury [* 3/4]
9. Austin Aries -vs- Matt Riddle - (HOH Twitch Television Title Tournament - Round 1) [** 3/4]
10. Willie Mack -vs- Luchasaurus -vs- Matt Cross - (3-Way) [**]
11. Brian Cage -vs- Sami Callihan - (HOH Twitch Television Title Tournament - Round 1) [** 1/2]

Tommy Dreamer's House of Hardcore got a lucky break being featured on twitch.tv, having their show air live and free for all. One had to sit through a lot of shit, but you also had all these old ECW guys showing up, so it was kind of fun too. Aries/Riddle was kind of a dream match and it was good, unfortunately the flow kept being interrupted by that damn time limit. Cage/Sami was a fun car crash too.

SHINE - "SHINE 48" - January 26, 2018, Ybor City, Florida, USA - (2 3/4 hrs)
January 26, 2018, Ybor City, Florida, USA - The Orpheum
1. Amber Nova -vs- Chelsea Durden [1/2*]
2. Stormie Lee -vs- Tesha Price [*]
3. Holidead -vs- Dynamite DiDi [* 1/2]
4. Brandi Lauren -vs- Leva [*]
5. Candy Cartwright & Dementia D'Rose & Kiera Hogan -vs- Aerial Monroe & Priscilla Kelly & Vanessa Kraven [**]
6. Jordynne Grace -vs- Natalia Markova [* 3/4]
7. Santana -vs- Renee Michelle [* 1/2]
8. Ivelisse & Mercedes Martinez (c) -vs- Chardonnay & Isla Dawn - (SHINE Tag Title) [**]
9. LuFisto (c) -vs- Rain - (SHINE Title) [* 3/4]

All-women's show. Decent, but a bit lightweight and not any matches which tried to go out and deliver something great.

IWA Mid-South - "Guardians Of Hardcore" - January 27, 2018, Memphis, Indiana, USA - (3 hrs)
January 27, 2018, Memphis, Indiana, USA - IWA Arena
1. Eddie Kingston -vs- Nate Webb [* 1/2]
2. MASADA -vs- Brad Cash - (Electrified Light Bulbs, Electrified Light Tubes and Cinder Blocks Death Match) [* 1/2]
3. Kikyo -vs- Ludark Shaitan - (World Series Of Glass Death Match) [* 3/4]
4. Mance Warner -vs- JC Rotten - (Homerun Derby Death Match) [* 1/4]
5. Bryant Woods -vs- Rob Marsh - (DLC Death Match) [* 1/2]
6. John Wayne Murdoch & Reed Bentley (c) -vs- Ciclope & Miedo Extremo -vs- Dale Patricks & Josh Crane - (GCW Tag Title; 3-Way; Fans Bring The Weapons Death Match) [** 1/4]
7. Homeless Jimmy -vs- Markus Crane - (Shopping Cart Death Match) [* 3/4]
8. Rickey Shane Page -vs- Nick Gage - (House Of Horrors Death Match) [* 1/2]

I knew from reputation that IWA MS was trashy and here I got to expeirence that for the first time. While I can enjoy Big Japan and their hardcore, this was just white trash garbage. Sure, they do a lot of crazy stuff, but it's boring to watch. There is no fire in their eyes in what they're doing. It's like they're dead inside. I'm sure they can create some great hardcore matches from time to time, but this show wasn't one of those.

FIP - "Everything Burns 2018" - February 2, 2018, Ybor City, Florida, USA - (2 1/2 hrs)
February 2, 2018, Ybor City, Florida, USA - The Orpheum
1. Darius Lockhart -vs- Blanco Loco -vs- Saieve Al Sabah -vs- Snoop Strikes - (4-Way) [* 1/2]
2. Rhett Giddins -vs- Alex Herzog [* 1/4]
3. Priscilla Kelly (c) -vs- Amanda Carolina Rodriguez - (SHINE Nova Title) [* 1/2]
4. Jon Davis (c) -vs- Darby Allin - (FIP Florida Heritage Title) [**]
5. Effy -vs- Graham Bell [1/2*]
6. Francisco Ciatso -vs- Joey Ozbourne [1/4*]
7. Austin Theory (c) -vs- Martin Stone - (FIP Title) [** 3/4]
8. Devin Cutter & Mason Cutter (c) -vs- Odinson & Parrow - (FIP Tag Title) [** 1/2]

So I gave FIP a try. Easy to watch, but it wasn't overly interesting. Took a long while for the show to warm-up, but the final two matches were satisfying. Thank God, Hillbillies still exist in wrestling! That it was a fun brawl. Ugly as it should be. Theory/Stone had some real tight wrestling, and a real treat getting something a little different for a show consisting mostly of wrestlers who are similarly styled. Stone brought something more respectful to the ring action.

The RealHero Archive

YMZ - January 1, 2018, Tokyo - (1 3/4 hrs)
January 1, 2018, Tokyo - Shin-kiba 1st Ring (169 Fans)
1. Makoto & Cherry & Noa Igarashi -vs- Kamen & Tarou (Choun Shiryu) & Jyoun (Hoshitango) [1/2*]
2. Rocky Kawamura -vs- Eito & Hankouki Bii [1/4*]
3. Eiger -vs- Kunio Toshima [1/4*]
4. Isami Kodaka -vs- ASUKA [3/4*]
5. Ayako Hamada & Kaori Yoneyama & Best Stretchman V3 -vs- Atsushi Aoki & Hikaru Sato & Hikaru Shida [1/2*]

Pure crap. Lazy indy show from Yoneyama with stars phoning it in and joke wrestlers just shitting on the place.

SEAdLINNNG - "SEAdLINNNG 2018 OPENING ~ NOW OR NEVER!"- January 14, 2018, Tokyo - (2 hrs)
January 14, 2018, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall (753 Fans)
1. Rin Kadokura -vs- Satsuki Totoro [1/2*]
2. Mika Iida -vs- SUGI -vs- Asuka - (High Speed 3-Way) [*]
3. Saki Akai (c) & Tsukasa Fujimoto & Kurumi Hiragi & Takumi Iroha -vs- Mio Momono (c) & Ryo Mizunami & Akane Fujita & Hiroe Nagahama - (Captain's Fall) [**]
4. Arisa Nakajima -vs- Misaki Ohata [** 1/4]
5. Ayako Hamada -vs- Yoshiko [***]

The main event had a lot of spirit. A heavyweight clash. They definitely went out there motivated, but I'm not going to call it a pretty match. Of course that's part of the charm in matches like this. Yoshiko takes no shit and Hamada loves to just drop opponents around. That made for a satisfying ending to 2018's first SEAdLINNNG show which featured too much lightweight stuff.

TAKA & Taichi Produce - "TAKATAICHIMANIA" - January 23, 2018, Tokyo - (2 hrs)
January 23, 2018, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall (1,525 Fans)
1. Kotaro Yoshino & Dinosaur Takuma & Marines Mask -vs- Tank Nagai & Ayumu Honda & Kyu Mogami [* 1/2]
2. Bambi & Ayame Sasamura -vs- Saori Anou & Koharu Hinata [* 1/4]
3. Minoru Suzuki & Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Hikaru Sato -vs- Yoshitatsu & Taishi Takizawa & GO Asakawa [**]
4. Takashi Iizuka -vs- Jun Kasai - (Hardcore) [***]
5. Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI -vs- Taka Michinoku & Kaji Tomato [*** 1/2]
6. Tetsuya Naito -vs- Taichi - (Taichi's 15th Anniversary Match) [*** 1/2]

This was a real surprise! One of the best shows of the week. Helps that Taka Michinoku & Taichi work with New Japan. Three quality bouts. Iizuka/Kasai was simply a feel-bad hardcore match fighting all over the arena with sticks and knives. Had to be stopped before they murdered each other. I was smiling too much though this! I didn't expect Takahashi/BUSHI -vs- Taka/Tomato to be this fun! But they really had an inspired performance. High work-ethic from the New Japan guys and on a rare occasion Taka put on his working-shoes too! It was simply a energetic fun-time match from start to finish! And the Naito/Taichi main event was oozing. Taichi has been wrestling for 15 years and 99% of the time he's been shit. He does step-up on once in a while and this was one of those. Doesn't hurt that he's living his gimmick now. He's still trying to hang with the aces without being at their level. That's always been his problem. But playing off of Naito's cool we have a rather terrific battle of nonchalance! And it only enhance the experience having Miho Abe there all spellbound. Sweet stuff!

AJPW - "YOKOHAMA TWILIGHT BLUES SPECIAL 2018" - February 3, 2018, Yokohama - (3 3/4 hrs)
February 3, 2018, Yokohama Bunka Gym (1,998 Fans)
1. Kotaro Suzuki & Hikaru Sato & Yohei Nakajima & Koji Iwamoto -vs- Shuji Kondo & Atsushi Maruyama & Yusuke Okada & Keiichi Sato [* 3/4]
2. Ultimo Dragon & Tsuyoshi Kikuchi -vs- Masanobu Fuchi & SUSHI [*]
3. Zeus & The Bodyguard & Yutaka Yoshie -vs- Osamu Nishimura & Black Tiger VII & Masakado [* 1/2]
4. Jun Akiyama & Yuji Nagata -vs- Ryouji Sai & Naoya Nomura - (All Asia Tag Title Decision) [** 1/4]
5. Tajiri (c) -vs- Atsushi Aoki - (AJPW Junior Title) [* 3/4]
6. Suwama & Shuji Ishikawa (c) -vs- Kento Miyahara & Yoshitatsu - (AJPW Tag Title) [***]
7. Joe Doering (c) -vs- KAI - (Triple Crown Title) [** 1/2]

One of the big shows of the week was AJPW in Yokohama with 4 title matches. Poor crowd reaction hurt the show, but the worth ethic wasn't on top either. Still had a few matches worth checking out. I think I heard a couple of fans applaud that great Champion Carnival line-up and the news of AJPW launching their own streaming service. 

Best match was the AJPW Tag Title bout. I was not ready to be happy for that title win, for this was another one-month reign. They did a ton of them last year too. Why can't anyone book a decent tag division these days instead of all these hotshot title defenses? I loved Suwama & Shuji Ishikawa as tag champs. They were like a throw-back to the old days and should have dominated all year. On the plus side, this is part of the Yoshitatsu resurrection. He's growing loads with Miyahara as his tag partner, and though this wasn't as good as their Real World Tag League match from last year, this was damn good! Especially the last 5 minutes was great with finisher-mania! After the match Zeus & The Bodyguard came out for a shot at the title, but more wild was 3-time former IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuyuki Fujita coming out and beating up Suwama!

The best thing about Doering/KAI Triple Crown match was KAI accidentally headbutting Doering's cock on a powerbomb! Doering gave a real manly roar on that one! The match was buzzing, but never climatic. Typical of KAI, who've literary gone the school of SANADA as far as effort/potential is concerned. So it mostly came down to how much of a beating Doering was in the mood to give. Thankfully he gave enough to retain, setting up a match with Kento Miyahara for a more interesting outing.

DDT Universe

TOKYO JOSHI PRO - “LET’S GO! GO! IF YOU GO! WHEN YOU GO! IF YOU GET LOST JUST GO TO NERIMA!” - February 3, 2018, Tokyo - (2 hrs)
February 3, 2018, Tokyo - Nerima Coconeri Hall (412 Fans)
1. Mizuki -vs- Yuki Kamifuku [1/2*]
2. Miyu Yamashita & Raku & Hinano -vs- Rika Tatsumi & Hikari & Miu [* 1/2]
3. Yuna Manase -vs- Hyper Misao [1/2*]
4. Yuu & Nodoka-oneesan -vs- Maho Kurone & Samara [* 1/4]
5. Nonoko -vs- Maki Ito - (Nonoko Graduation Match) [*]
6. Shoko Nakajima & Yuka Sakazaki (c) -vs- Saki-sama & Azusa Christie - (TOKYO Princess Tag Title) [* 3/4]

You don't watch TJP shows for the quality in-ring action. It's all about the personalities. All cute and frail.  Samara making her TJP debut and heightens the quality of wrestling a lot regardless of this match featuring two silly characters. And then they had Samara jobbing to the silliest of all. Nonoko graduated/retired from TPJ in a match suitable for her qualities. The tag title match, which was a decent energy match. Pretty much a house show standard by every other joshi promotion, but for TJP this is main event level. Didn't embarrass themselves too much and we've got a more interesting champion team now. Saki-sama & Azusa Christie! Saki hates the belts, Christie loves them both!

DDT - “DRAMATIC NERIMA THE FIGHTER 2018” - February 3, 2018, Tokyo - (3 hrs)
February 3, 2018, Tokyo - Nerima Coconeri Hall (358 Fans)
1. Joey Ryan & Samara -vs- Antonio Honda & Kazuki Hirata [*]
2. Tetsuya Endo & Mad Paulie -vs- Kouki Iwasaki & Mizuki Watase [* 1/2]
3. Yukio Sakaguchi & Masahiro Takanashi & Kota Umeda -vs- Yuki Ueno & Koju Takeda & Nobuhiro Shimatani [* 3/4]
4. Ken Ohka -vs- Gota Ihashi [* 1/4]
5. Konosuke Takeshita & Akito & Shunma Katsumata -vs- Toru Owashi & Keisuke Ishii & Makoto Oishi [**]
6. HARASHIMA & Soma Takao -vs- Kazusada Higuchi & MAO [* 3/4]
7. Daisuke Sasaki -vs- Danshoku Dino [*]
8. Yuko Miyamoto (c) -vs- KUDO - (DDT Extreme Title; Hardcore) [** 1/4]

Not half-bad with so many serious matches on offer. Naturally it wasn't the type of show that was going to stand-out much. Miyamoto/KUDO had it's moments. Nothing new, but it's time-tested. These two could have had the same match 10 years ago, and probable did too. It's good though. Not so much the hardcore element, but the grace when landing their patented spots. They really didn't need the ladders and chairs, they'd have a good match anyhow. 

CMLL

CMLL/ERLL - "Arena Coliseo Monterrey" - January 28, 2018, Monterrey, Mexico - (1 1/4 hrs)
January 28, 2018, Monterrey, Mexico - Arena Coliseo Monterrey
1. Azteka Warrior & Cancerbero & Raziel -vs- Bengalí & Pesadilla & Violento Jack [* 1/2]
2. Titán -vs- Aeroboy [** 1/2]
3. Caifan II & El Divo -vs- Fuego & Tritón [* 1/4]
4. Atlantis & Soberano Jr. -vs- Ephesto & Luciferno  [*]
5. Difunto I -vs- Ángel Dorado Jr. - (Mask vs Mask) [*** 1/4]

CMLL working with indy promotors for a decent show. That main event was something else. Real ugly, but for me it was one of the highlights this week. Two guys trying to go far beyond their abillity, not really managing, but still overachieving greatly. They were landing crazy hard all the time. A real odd experience, but I just had to appreciate the sacrifice even if they didn't have the stamina for a match this length. Found it rewarding viewing. It can be seen here.

CMLL - "Lunes Arena Puebla" - January 29, 2018, Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Puebla, Mexico - (1 3/4 hrs)
January 29, 2018, Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Puebla, Mexico - Arena Puebla
1. El Hijo De Centella Roja & Millenium -vs- Ares & Sombra Diabólika [* 1/4]
2. Príncipe Diamante & Asturiano & Lestat -vs- Rey Apocalipsis & Espíritu Maligno & Guerrero Espacial [* 1/2]
3. Tiger & Misterioso Jr. & Sagrado -vs- Blue Panther Jr. & Stigma & The Panther [**]
4. Shocker & Rey Bucanero & Terrible -vs- Niebla Roja & Ángel de Oro & Diamante Azul [* 1/2]
5. Atlantis & Dragón Lee & Rush -vs- Último Guerrero & Gran Guerrero & Euforia [* 3/4]

CMLL - "Martes Arena Mexico" - January 30, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 hrs)
January 30, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico
1. Shockercito & Stukita -vs- Mercurio & Pequeño Nitro [* 1/2]
2. Hijo del Signo & Espanto Jr. & Sangre Azteca -vs- Magnus & Flyer & Magia Blanca [* 1/2]
3. Fuego & Audaz & Tritón -vs- Nitro & Cancerbero & Raziel [**]
4. Tiger -vs- Disturbio - (Lightning Match) [*]
5. Ephesto & Luciferno & Pólvora -vs- Stuka Jr. & Blue Panther Jr. & Guerrero Maya Jr. [**]
6. Rush & Ángel de Oro & Dragón Lee -vs- Shocker & Cuatrero & Terrible [* 3/4]

CMLL - "Martes Arena Coliseo Guadalajara" - January 30, 2018, Mexico - (1 hr)
January 30, 2018, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico -     Arena Coliseo Guadalajara
1. Princesa Sugehit & Kaho Kobayashi & La Jarochita -vs- Dalys & Metálica & Reyna Isis [**]
2. Difunto & Misterioso Jr. & Virus -vs- Rey Cometa & Esfinge & Star Jr. [**]
3. Niebla Roja & Soberano Jr. & Titán -vs- Sansón & Forastero & Universo 2000 Jr. [** 1/4]

CMLL - "Super Viernes" - February 2, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 hrs)
February 2, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico
1. El Coyote & Templario -vs- Astral & Eléctrico [** 1/4]
2. Rey Cometa & Audaz & Pegasso -vs- Virus & Misterioso Jr. & Kawato San [** 1/2]
3. 8-man Battle Royal [1/2*]
4. Gran Guerrero & Niebla Roja -vs- Blue Panther & Sam Adonis - (Parejas Increible Tournament - Round 1) [* 1/2]
5. Mephisto & Mistico -vs- Hechicero & Soberano Jr. - (Parejas Increible Tournament - Round 1) [**]
6. Último Guerrero & Volador Jr. -vs- Cavernario & Titán - (Parejas Increible Tournament - Round 1) [* 3/4]
7. Diamante Azul & Pierroth -vs- Rey Bucanero & Valiente - (Parejas Increible Tournament - Round 1) [* 1/4]
8. Mephisto & Mistico -vs- Gran Guerrero & Niebla Roja - (Parejas Increible Tournament - Quarterfinal) [** 1/2]
9. Último Guerrero & Volador Jr. -vs- Diamante Azul & Pierroth - (Parejas Increible Tournament - Quarterfinal) [* 1/2]
10. Último Guerrero & Volador Jr. -vs- Mephisto & Mistico - (Parejas Increible Tournament - Semi-Final) [**]
11. Atlantis & Ángel de Oro & Carístico -vs- Euforia & Cuatrero & Sansón [** 1/4]

The main CMLL shows were mostly disappointing this week. Probable the weakest week I've seen since I started watching CMLL fulltime 6 months ago. Very standard stuff and no stand-out matches. There was a Goodguy/Badguy tag tournament, but that one was so rushed little drama sunk in.

Most in interesting thing was two Japanese wrestlers making their CMLL debut, both looking good in their new environment. New Japan's Kawato and women's wrestler Kaho Kobayashi, both are talent to look out for.

AAA

AAA - "Guerra De Titanes 2018" - January 26, 2018, Mexico - (3 1/2 hrs)
January 26, 2018, Ciudad de Mexico, Mexico - Gimnasio Olimpico Juan de la Barrera
1. Lanzeloth (c) -vs- Australian Suicide - (AAA Cruiserweight Title) [***]
2. Lady Shani (c) -vs- Faby Apache - (AAA Reina de Reinas Title) [** 3/4]
3. La Parka & Cuervo & Escoria -vs- Dave The Clown & Monster Clown & Murder Clown - (Street Fight) [**]
4. Averno & Chessman & Super Fly (c) -vs- Carta Brava Jr. & Mocho Cota Jr. & Tito Santana -vs- Aerostar & Drago & Raptor -vs- Angelikal & Bengala & Mascara de Bronce - (AAA Trios Title; 4-Way Elimination) [*** 1/2]
5. Psycho Clown -vs- Rey Escorpion - (Bull Terrier Match) [** 1/2]
6. Johnny Mundo (c) -vs- Rey Wagner - (AAA Heavyweight Title) [**]
7. El Hijo del Fantasma (c) -vs- El Texano Jr. - (AAA Latin America Title; Cage) [* 1/2]

AAA are showing their big shows free on twitch.tv now. Go watch this one! Vampiro's booking is worse than WCW, but they have some of the hottest talent underneath giving motivated performances! And this card is loaded!

AAA - "Gira de Conquista: AAA Worldwide in Toluca 2018" - February 2, 2018, Mexico - (3 hrs)
February 2, 2018, Toluca, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - Salon Rojo del Club
1. Big Mami & Lady Shani -vs- Faby Apache & Ashley [** 1/4]
2. Dave the Clown -vs- Nino Hamburguesa [*]
3. Mr. Aguila & Joe Lider -vs- Psicosis & Histeria [* 3/4]
4. Argenis & Angelical & Hijo del Vikingo & Lanzelot -vs- Australian Suicide & Averno & Chessm an & Super Fly [** 1/2]
5. La Parka & Dark Cuervo & Dark Scoria -vs- Carta Brava Jr. & Mocho Cota Jr. & Tito Santana [** 1/4]
6. Hijo del Fantasma & Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. -vs- Texano Jr. & Villano III Jr. [**]
7. Psycho Clown & Vampiro -vs- Dr. Wagner Jr. & Rey Escorpión [*]

Another one of their twitch.tv show. This one is more of a standard TV-taping in-between the big show. Trying too hard to continue storylines and the focus is not on bringing the epics. Solid show though.

Lucha Libre Independents

IWRG - January 28, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - (1 1/2 hrs)
January 28, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - Arena Naucalpan
1. Odín -vs- Celestial Boy -vs- Shadow Boy -vs- Alas de Acero -vs- Súper Brazo Jr. - (5-Way) [**]
2. Liderk & Spartan & Spector -vs- Black Dragón & Dinamic Black & Dragón Fly [* 3/4]
3. Hijo del Pantera & Internacional Pantera -vs- Trauma I & Trauma II [** 1/2]
4. Lunatic Xtreme -vs- Demonio Infernal - (Hair vs Hair) [** 3/4]
5. Bombero Infernal (c) -vs- Dr. Cerebro - (IWRG Intercontinantal Middleweight Title) [** 1/4]

IWRG’s best show so far in 2018! Interesting and varied show. The Pantera vs Negro Navarro's boys feud is getting interesting. Lunatic Xtreme/Demonio Infernal's Hair vs Hair match reminds of a early-2000 indy bloodfest. Trashy, with a lot of cuts to the head letting the blood pour. Got fairly dramatic. The main event went technical, kind of a different pace.

Lucha Memes - January 7, 2018, Coacalco, Estado de México, Mexico - (1/4 hr)
January 7, 2018, Coacalco, Estado de México, Mexico - Coliseo Coacalco
1. Ricky Marvin -vs- Keyra [** 1/2]

All kinds of indy-sloppy, but it was so much fun watching Ricky-boy beat up a girl!

Promociones NOBA - January 27, 2018, Mexico - (1/4 hr)
January 27, 2018, Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico - Perinorte Papagayo
1. Enigma & Mercurio -vs- Black Silver Jr. & Hijo de Black Silver [* 1/4]
2. Daga & Penta 0M -vs- Garza Jr. & Látigo [* 3/4]

Luchaz Neza - January 28, 2018, Nezahualcóyotl, Mexico - (3/4 hr)
January 28, 2018, Nezahualcóyotl, Mexico -  Arena Neza
1. Black Warrior Jr. & New Warrior -vs- Dr. Maligno & Full Contact  [*]
2. Barbita Negra & Espectrito -vs- Coquito & Hijo De La Parkita [* 1/2]
3. Pandemónium & Pandemónium Jr. & Xibalba -vs- Leo & Mike & Teelo [*]
4. Máximo & Taurus -vs- Black Warrior & Lizmark Jr. [* 1/4]

Toryumon Mexico - January 28, Miguel Hidalgo, Mexico - (3/4 hr)
January 28, Miguel Hidalgo, Mexico - Gimnasio Cuauhtemoc
1. Eléctrico -vs- Notorius [*]
2. Leo & Rafy -vs- Fireman & Thunder Storm [*]
3. Reina Isis & Tiffany -vs- Lluvia & Princesa Sugehit [* 1/2]
4. Arkángel de la Muerte & Karonte Jr. & Patán -vs- Argos & Oro Jr. & Súper Ciudadano [* 3/4]
5. Último Dragón & Magnus -vs- Diamante & Sam Adonis [**]

CLLDM - January 28, Cuautla, Morelos, Mexico - (3/4 hr)
January 28, Cuautla, Morelos, Mexico - Auditorio Unidad Deportiv
1. Ciclón Infernal & Kalibus -vs- Alas De Oro & Divino Boy [**]
2. Diva Salvaje -vs- Diosa Quetzal [**]
3. Golden Magic -vs- Fresero Jr. -vs- Imposible [* 3/4]
4. LA Park & Hijo de LA Park -vs- Rush & Pierroth [** 1/4]

DTU - February 2, 2018, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico - (1/2 hr)
February 2, 2018, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico - Centro Cultural Olimpia
1. Stevie Fierce -vs- Jimmy -vs- Pesadilla -vs- Draztick Boyv -vs- Moira - (5-Way) [* 1/2]
2. Crazy King & Halloween -vs- Aero Boy & Violento Jack -vs- Cíclope & Miedo Extremo - (3-Way) [* 3/4]

ANCLA - "Maniacomanía" - February 3, 2018, Ecatepec, Estado de México, Mexico - (3/4 hrs)
February 3, 2018, Ecatepec, Estado de México, Mexico -  Salón Citlalli
1. Miss Tiger & Star Queen -vs- Baronessa & Lady Pink [* 3/4]
2. Candy Swing & Mary Caporal -vs- Gracy & Melissa [* 1/2]
3. Diosa Quetzal & Lilith Dark -vs- Lluvia & Sanely [* 1/4]
4. Keyra & Lady Maravilla -vs- Marcela & Zeuxis [* 1/2]

The rest of these hand-held lucha shows were standard indy spot shows. Nothing really worth going one of one's way to see, but perfectly enjoyable if a lucha fan.

UK

DEFIANT - "DEFIANT #8" - December 12, 2017, London, England, UK - (1 hr)
December 12, 2017, London, England, UK - Coronet Theatre
1. Kay Lee Ray (c) -vs- Little Miss Roxxy & Veda Scott - (Defiant Women's Title) [* 1/4]
2. Jim Hunter & Lee Hunter -vs- Ashley Dunn & Kelly Sixx [* 3/4]
3. BT Gunn & Joe Coffey -vs- Kyle Fletcher & Mark Davis [**]
4. Austin Aries (c) -vs- Gabriel Kidd - (Defiant Title) [* 1/2]

I have a feeling Definat is only getting a B-level Aries. He's not exactly giving them full money's worth. Then again the promotion lacks image, so what to build anything interesting around?

ICW:UK - "Fight Club - It's Always Raining In Glasgow" - January 21, 2018, Glasgow, Scotland, UK - (1 1/4 hrs)
January 21, 2018, Glasgow, Scotland, UK - The Garage
1. Joseph Conners -vs- DCT [* 1/4]
2. Bram & Martina -vs- Kasey & Ravie Davie [*]
3. Aaron Echo & Kenny Williams & Jack Jester & Sha Samuels & Lionheart -vs- Aspen Faith & Lewis Girvan & Stevie Boy & Krieger & Lou King Sharp - (Street Fight) [* 3/4]

The rest of the January 21st show aired this week and it was okay, but nothing mind-blowing. They've got some interesting guys, but they didn't seem to have much to book towards for this show and had too much comedy going on.

PROGRESS - "Chapter 62: Fear No More, Come To Dust" - January 28, 2018, UK - (3 1/4 hrs)
January 28, 2018, Camden, Greater London, England, UK - Electric Ballroom (700 Fans)
1. Chris Ridgeway -vs- Omari - (Natural Progression Series V - Qualifying) [**]
2. Roy Johnson -vs- William Eaver [* 1/4]
3. Zack Sabre Jr. -vs- Chris Brookes -vs- Trent Seven - (3-Way) [** 3/4]
4. Travis Banks (c) -vs- TK Cooper - (PROGRESS Title) [** 1/2]
5. Toni Storm (c) -vs- Chakara - (PROGRESS Women's Title) [* 1/2]
6. Jimmy Havoc & Mark Haskins -vs- Danny Jones & Mark Andrews [** 1/2]
7. Morgan Webster -vs- Doug Williams [** 1/4]
8. WALTER (c) -vs- Timothy Thatcher - (PROGRESS Atlas Title) [*** 3/4]

And then we come to PROGRESS. As most Chapters, real fun show!  Trent Seven got to be my favorite comedy guy in wrestling! He's so damn casual about it. And in his weird mentality he thought he could hang with ace technicians ZSJ & Brookes?! Fun watching it go wrong all the time! WALTER vs Timothy Thatcher..... Amazingly brutal! WALTER was simply ruthless towards his tag partner! Gave him a inhumane punishment. Thatcher body looked completely battered. Sick stuff! A little too reliant on the stiffness, as they sure could have done something more interesting for the early portion of the fight. But nonetheless, the climax, the entire scenario - incredible!

--PUNQ--

On 1/23/2018 at 1:21 AM, Philjax said:

I quite enjoyed Doering vs Zeus! Have they got anymore hosses in AJPW like that?

Not impressed with the two juniors contesting the GHC Heavyweight title though  Not sure what I expected from a promotion that made Eddie Edwards their previous champ though.....

NOAH is a hell of a lot easier to watch now than a year, or even 6 months ago. Their shift to more "junior" action has been a good thing for them. Being so set in their old ways for so many years they needed to freshen things up and I'm liking their current product. Plus it's not like there are many big heavyweights available in Japan, or for that matter, that big a difference in size between the divisions these days.

Top-20 Matches Week 4, 2018

1. January 27, 2018 - Andrade Almas (c) -vs- Johnny Gargano - (NXT Title) [**** 3/4] (NXT)
2. January 21, 2018 - Io Shirai & AZM & HZK & Viper & Momo Watanabe -vs- Kagetsu & Hana Kimura & Kris Wolf & Sumire Natsu & Tam Nakano - (Queen´s Quest vs. Oedo Tai Loser Leaves Unit Elimination Match) [*** 1/2] (STARDOM)
3. January 27, 2018 - Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) -vs- Minoru Suzuki - (IWGP Intercontinental Title) [*** 1/2] (NJPW)
4. January 28, 2018 - 30-Man Royal Rumble [*** 1/2] (WWE)
5. January 28, 2018 - Shuji Ishikawa -vs- HARASHIMA - (D-Oh Grand Prix – Final) [*** 1/4] (DDT)

6. January 27, 2018 - Ember Moon (c) -vs- Shayna Baszler - (NXT Women's Title) [*** 1/4] (NXT)
7. December 16, 2017 - Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson -vs- Beretta & Chuckie T -vs- Dragon Lee & Titan - (3-Way) [*** 1/4] (ROH)
8. January 27, 2018 - Aleister Black -vs- Adam Cole - (Extreme Rules) [***] (NXT)
9. January 20, 2018 - WALTER & Timothy Thatcher & Avalanche & Julian Nero -vs- John Klinger & Ivan Kiev & Lucky Kid & Tarkan Aslan - (Cage) [***] (wXw)
10. January 27, 2018 - Bobby Fish & Kyle O'Reilly (c) -vs- Akam & Rezar - (NXT Tag Title) [***] (NXT)

11. January 21, 2018 - Ryuichi Sekine -vs- Ryota Nakatsu - (60-Min Iron Man Match) [***] (BASARA)
12. January 21, 2018 - Mayu Iwatani -vs- Rachael Ellering - (Mayu Iwatani Return Match) [***] (STARDOM)
13. December 12, 2017 - Zack Sabre Jr -vs- Mike Bailey - (Defiant Internet Title) [***] (DEFIANT)
14. January 16, 2018 - Tiger & Sagrado & Misterioso Jr. -vs- Oro Jr. & Astral & Audaz [***] (CMLL)
15. January 23, 2018 - Mephisto (c) -vs- Titán - (CMLL Welterweight Title) [** 3/4] (CMLL)

16. January 27, 2018 - The Velveteen Dream -vs- Kassius Ohno [** 3/4] (NXT)
17. January 28, 2018 - Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson (c) -vs- SHO & YOH - (IWGP Junior Tag Title) [** 3/4] (NJPW)
18. January 20, 2018 - Absolute Andy -vs- Bobby Gunns [** 3/4] (wXw)
19. January 23, 2018 - Diamante Azul -vs- Terrible [** 3/4] (CMLL)
20. December 16, 2017 - Aerostar & Drago & Raptor -vs- Averno & Chessman & Super Fly -vs- Carta Brava Jr. & Mocho Cota Jr. & Tito Santana -vs- Argenis & Bengala & Mascara de Bronce - (4-Way Elimination) [** 3/4] (AAA)

WWE Universe

WWE - "NXT #282-284" - January 4, 2018, Atlanta, Georgia, USA - (1 hr)
January 4, 2018, Atlanta, Georgia, USA - Stage Center[/B]
1. No Way Jose -vs- Cezar Bononi [3/4*]
2. Bianca Belair -vs- Latoya Allsopp [* 1/4]
3. Johnny Gargano -vs- The Velveteen Dream [** 1/2]

The last NXT show before TakeOver: Phiadelphia and I'm liking Bianca Belair even if she only got a squash match. However, Gargano and Velveteen Dream warming-up for the big show was pretty good.

WWE - "Monday Night RAW/Main Event" - January 22, 2018, New York, USA - (3 hrs)
January 22, 2018, New York, USA - Barclays Center
Main Event #277
1. Goldust -vs- Curt Hawkins [3/4*]
2. Gran Metalik & Kalisto -vs- TJP & Jack Gallagher [*]
Monday Night RAW #1287
3. Asuka & Sasha Banks & Bayley & Mickie James -vs- Nia Jax & Mandy Rose & Sonya Deville & Alicia Fox [* 1/4]
4. Roman Reigns (c) -vs- The Miz - (WWE Intercontinental Title) [**]
January 22, 2018, New York, USA - Manhattan Center
5. Bray Wyatt -vs- Matt Hardy [1/2*]
January 22, 2018, New York, USA - Barclays Center
6. Heath Slater & Rhyno -vs- Apollo Crews & Titus O'Neil [1/4*]
January 22, 2018, New York, USA - Manhattan Center
7. Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows -vs- Dash Wilder & Scott Dawson [1/4*]

Not much of a 25th Anniversary celenbration, was it?

WWE - "SmackDown Live/205 Live" - January 23, 2018, Laredo, Texas, USA - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 23, 2018, Laredo, Texas, USA - Laredo Energy Arena
205 Live #61
1. Kalisto & Gran Metalik & Lince Dorado -vs- TJP & Ariya Daivari & Tony Nese [* 3/4]
2. Hideo Itami -vs- Gentleman Jack Gallagher [* 1/2]
3. Cedric Alexander -vs- Mustafa Ali [**]
SmackDown Live #962
4. Chad Gable -vs- Jey Uso [* 1/2]
5. Naomi -vs- Liv Morgan [1/2*]
6. Shinsuke Nakamura -vs- Baron Corbin [* 3/4]
7. Bobby Roode & Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods -vs- Jinder Mahal & Rusev & Aiden English [* 1/4]
8. AJ Styles -vs- Kevin Owens [1/2*]
9. Sami Zayn -vs- AJ Styles [** 1/4]
Mixed Match Challenge #2
10. The Miz & Asuka -vs- Big E & Carmella - (WWE Mixed Match Challenge - Round 1) [*]

Smackdown and 205 Live was a little better, but it wasn't like one was too hyped for Royal Rumble after this.

WWE - "NXT TakeOver: Phiadelphia" - January 27, 2018, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 27, 2018, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - Wells Fargo Center
1. Bobby Fish & Kyle O'Reilly (c) -vs- Akam & Rezar - (NXT Tag Title) [***]
2. The Velveteen Dream -vs- Kassius Ohno [** 3/4]
3. Ember Moon (c) -vs- Shayna Baszler - (NXT Women's Title) [*** 1/4]
4. Aleister Black -vs- Adam Cole - (Extreme Rules) [***]
5. Andrade Almas (c) -vs- Johnny Gargano - (NXT Title) [**** 3/4]

But what a weekend the WWE had! NXT delivered a great show! And that was before THAT main event! Andrade Almas -vs- Johnny Gargano was that type of match you can ramble on and on about, or just say " This was epic style delivered right! " Almas came across as a true champion while Gargano was the heart and soul - pumping hard! Amazing match which has got to be one of the main picks for Match of the Year 2018 regardless of it only being January!

Aleister Black -vs- Adam Cole was for the most part a very traditional American style hardcore match, and that's why it took so long for I started appreciating it. The turning point was that Cole back bump on top of the standing chairs! That looked nasty. The match quickly grew from there. The ending was well-timed too leaving a happy impression. The NXT Tag Title match was real heavyweight! The Authors Of Pain were on a mission, and the only issue they had was Akam having a bad knee. Only slowed them down, as their still bulldozed the champs with authority. The Velveteen Dream -vs- Kassius Ohno had some absolutely awesome moments, yet I can't help feel The Velveteen Dream being a little green to really deliver on his potential. Ohno really put him over and the fans reacted to the climax, so definitely a positive experience.

However, of the undercard matches Ember Moon -vs- Shayna Baszler pleased me the most. Baszler mirroring Minoru Suzuki in an excellent way! I loved the lay-out of this one. Along with the angle they did with Baszler with the arm, this told a story of a dangerous predator. And I felt the danger. This was a fight between fighters. One MMA specialist, another an instinct driven creature, and it played out so nicely! 

WWE - "WWE Royal Rumble 2018" - January 28, 2018, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - (6 hrs)
January 28, 2018, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - Wells Fargo Center
1. Kalisto & Gran Metalik & Lince Dorado -vs- TJP & Gentleman Jack Gallagher & Drew Gulak [**]
2. Dash Wilder & Scott Dawson -vs- Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows [* 1/2]
3. Boddy Roode (c) -vs- Mojo Rawley - (WWE United States Title) [* 1/4]
4. AJ Styles (c) -vs- Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn - (WWE Title) [** 1/2]
5. Jey Uso & Jimmy Uso (c) -vs- Chad Gable & Shelton Benjamin - (WWE SmackDown Tag Title; 2/3 Falls) [** 3/4]
6. 30-Man Royal Rumble [*** 1/2]
7. Jason Jordan & Seth Rollins (c) -vs- Cesaro & Sheamus - (WWE RAW Tag Title) [**]
8. Brock Lesnar (c) -vs- Braun Strowman -vs- Kane - (WWE Universal Title; Triple Threat) [** 1/2]
9. 30-Woman Royal Rumble [** 3/4]

Exhausting show with 2 Rumbles, but ultimately it was a real good night. For fans of Japanese wrestling, anyway. The first ever WWE Women’s Rumble takes the main event! I was a bit worried if they’d pull it off, and while it had its down portions, they delivered an entertaining Rumble filled with nostalgia from the diva era as well and giving the most obvious result ever. And then Ronda Rousey came out to great fanfare and did… close to nothing.

The men's Royal Rumble was the best on the show. Why the Royal Rumble was so positive for me was that I realized how many on the roster I really like. I was like “Yey!” for majority of entrances and they kept the Rumble alive for the duration with all kinds of entertaining ideas. Until the finish when things started looking scary with two of the most over-pushed guys in focus. One feared they’d make the same mistake as every year and force someone down our throat, but that was the idea they wanted to feed us until making Shinsuke Nakamura the fresh Royal Rumble winner! A rare happy moment in the WWE Universe. Shinsuke Nakamura vs AJ Styles at WrestleMania!

Brock Lesnar/Braun Strowman/Kane was so God damn ugly one had to like it! I loved how they teased the Uso tag to be a epic 2/3 Falls tag, only to do swerve and do two quick falls. The best thing about the Raw Tag Title match was the bickering between Booker T and the rest of the announcers! AJ Styles vs Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn was fun, but I wouldn’t have minded a better world title atmosphere.

US Indys

IMPACT - "Impact Wrestling #706" - Novemebr 8 & 10, 2017, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada - (1 1/2 hrs)
Novemebr 10, 2017, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada - Aberdeen Pavilion
1. Ethan Carter III (c) -vs- Matt Sydal - (Impact Grand Title) [** 3/4]
2. Laurel Van Ness (c) -vs- Allie - (Impact Knockouts Title) [* 1/2]
3. Moose -vs- Lashley [** 1/2]
Novemebr 8, 2017, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada - Aberdeen Pavilion
4. Eli Drake (c) -vs- Alberto El Patron -vs- Johnny Impact - (Impact Global Title; 3-Way; Six Sides Of Steel) [** 1/4]

The last show from the November tapings? Was a good show with some big matches for Impact. Going to be interesting where the road leads to in 2018 with new management and so many of their stars leaving.

ROH - December 16, 2017, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - (1 hr)
December 16, 2017, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - 2300 Arena (800 Fans)
1. Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin (c) -vs- Rhett Titus & Will Ferrara - (ROH Tag Title) [**]
2. Jonathan Gresham -vs- Josh Woods [* 3/4]
3. Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson -vs- Beretta & Chuckie T -vs- Dragon Lee & Titan - (3-Way) [*** 1/4]

And this was the final show from ROH's December tapings? Had a real entertaining and wild 3-way tag with the Young Bucks/Best Friends and the awesome CMLL team of Dragon Lee & Titan!

NJPW

NJPW - "THE NEW BEGINNING IN SAPPORO ~ 2 SAPPORO SNOW BATTLES - DAY 1" - January 27, 2018, Sapporo - (3 1/2 hrs)
January 27, 2018, Sapporo - Hokkaido Prefectural Sports Center Hokkai Kitayell (4,862 Fans)
1. Michael Elgin -vs- Katsuya Kitamura - (Katsuya Kitmura 7 Match Trial Series #2) [**]
2. Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Manabu Nakanishi & Jushin Thunder Liger & Tiger Mask & KUSHIDA -vs- Takashi Iizuka & Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Taka Michinoku & Taichi & El Desperado [** 1/4]
3. Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano -vs- Yujiro Takahashi & Chase Owens [* 1/2]
4. Bad Luck Fale & Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa (c) -vs- Togi Makabe & Toa Henare & Ryusuke Taguchi - (NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Title) [* 3/4]
5. Cody & Hangman Page & Marty Scurll -vs- Kota Ibushi & Juice Robinson & David Finlay [** 1/4]
6. Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi -vs- Will Ospreay & YOSHI-HASHI [**]
7. Kazuchika Okada & Hirooki Goto & Gedo -vs- "King of Darkness" EVIL & SANADA & BUSHI [* 3/4]
8. Jay White & SHO & YOH -vs- Kenny Omega & Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson [**]
9. Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) -vs- Minoru Suzuki - (IWGP Intercontinental Title) [*** 1/2]

NJPW first big(ish) shows since Tokyo Dome sends them to Sapporo for the usual presentation. Meaning only one match means anything, but with entertaining quick matches underneath. This was naturally all about Tanahashi vs Suzuki. This was both amazing and frustrating. Tanahashi is so broken down at this point it’s not even funny. He really needs to take a time-out and heal his injuries. However, they played that up in this match, with Suzuki going after the bad knee and punishing and tearing the leg apart. Both good and bad, they were milking that to death without Tanahashi wanting to quit. This went on forever and you felt his pain. You I also felt them taking an unnecessary long time it took to get to the inevitable conclusion. But it was no doubt effective storytelling.

NJPW - "THE NEW BEGINNING IN SAPPORO ~ 2 SAPPORO SNOW BATTLES - DAY 2" - January 28, 2018, Sapporo, Japan - (3 1/2 hrs)
January 28, 2018, Sapporo, Japan - Hokkaido Prefectural Sports Center Hokkai Kitayell (5,140 Fans)
1. Juice Robinson -vs- Katsuya Kitamura - (Katsuya Kitmura 7 Match Trial Series #3) [**]
2. Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Taka Michinoku & Taichi & El Desperado -vs- Jushin Thunder Liger & Tiger Mask & Ryusuke Taguchi & Shota Umino [**]
3. Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano -vs- Yujiro Takahashi & Hikuleo [* 1/4]
4. Bad Luck Fale & Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa & Chase Owens -vs- Togi Makabe & Hiroyoshi Tanzan & Manabu Nakanishi & Tomoyuki Oka [* 1/2]
5. Minoru Suzuki & Takashi Iizuka -vs- Michael Elgin & Toa Henare [* 1/4]
6. Cody & Hangman Page & Marty Scurll -vs- Kota Ibushi & David Finlay & KUSHIDA [**]
7. Tetsuya Naito & "King of Darkness" EVIL & SANADA & Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI -vs- Kazuchika Okada & Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI & Will Ospreay & Gedo [** 1/4]
8. Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson (c) -vs- SHO & YOH - (IWGP Junior Tag Title) [** 3/4]
9. Kenny Omega (c) -vs- Jay White - (IWGP US Title) [** 1/2]

The second night in Osaka wasn't as successful in the ring. Young Bucks vs Rappongi 3K didn’t have as much life as their Tokyo Dome bout, but there was a lot of sweet moments here too. Matt continued the hurting back thing, but in reality the Young Bucks still dominated this defense until the upset. The Kenny Omega against Jay White US Title bout was another overly long New Japan main event with Omega. This time it didn’t work to full effect. Apart from the V-Triggers, which were excellent, the rest was rarely engaging. Followed the same pattern as the Young Bucks match where Omega was murdering White for the longest time, and there was no real crowd support for any comeback. And then the Switchblade won! Shocker! White’s push feels so forced and I’m not exactly hyped about what he’s been delivering since his return. White still has a lot of proving to do. However interesting things happened after the match as Cody turned on Omega and Ibushi came to the rescue! And the two hugged with confetti coming down on them. That I can appreciate!

DDT Universe

GANBARE☆WRESTLING - “TRY ME 2018” - January 20, 2018, Tokyo - (3/4 hr)
January 20, 2018, Tokyo - Basement MON☆STAR (138 Fans)
1. Shuichiro Katsumura & Takeshi Okada defeated Ken Ohka & Yumehito Imanari [* 1/2]

Not all that much to get excited about. You know it's not going to be great wrestling when Ken Ohka is the biggest name involved, but it wasn't embarrassing wrestling. They managed to keep it focused.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO - “LET’S GO! GO! IF YOU GO! WHEN YOU GO! IF YOU GET LOST JUST GO TO THE PRINCE!” - January 20, 2018, Tokyo - (1/2 hrs)
January 20, 2018, Tokyo - Basement MON☆STAR (150 Fans)
1. Miyu Yamashita & Syoko Nakajima -vs- Nonoko & Yuna Manase [*]

Very standard women's action with the ace picking up the win with her running knee, cutely called Crash Rabbit Heat.

BASARA - "VAJRA 58 ~ OJI NO KITSUNE*" - January 21, 2018, Tokyo - (1 1/4 hrs)
January 21, 2018, Tokyo - Basement MON☆STAR (133 Fans)
1. Ryuichi Sekine -vs- Ryota Nakatsu - (60-Min Iron Man Match) [***]

Ryuichi Sekine celebrating his 10 years in the business with an hour long Iron Man match in a small club! Crazy and I honestly didn't think they'd pull it off. They slowly proved me wrong. The atmosphere of the fight was like a pals-y beat-down. The tone was relaxed, but they certainly didn't hold back when on attack. They also had a thing for ass kicking, as in kicking each others behind. But things turned more serious once they got past the first 3rd of the bout once they started picking up points. Nakatsu was the first to win one, working over the arm and getting the tap with a cross-armbreaker. Sekine has submission holds of his own, like that elevated Boston Crab of his called Let`s Combine, which proved to be his most valuable asset in this fight. Sekine would lose one more fall via count out, but he would win three falls - ALL with that Let`s Combine hold! That tells a simple and effective story!

DNA - "DNA40" - January 21, 2018, Kawaguchi - (3/4 hr)
January 21, 2018, Kawaguchi Industrial Technology Center (250 Fans)
1. Naomi Yoshimura & Keisuke Okuda & Akira Jo -vs- Kota Umeda & Kouki Iwasaki & MAO - (DNA Hontai vs Yoshimura Gundan Full Confrontation Elimination Match) [** 1/2]

Quite good for a indy bout. I might have been more into it had I been more familiar with these guys, but their characters and style were simple enough to get. And as long as they worked focused and hard, this was a easy digest.

DDT - “D-KING GRAND PRIX 2018 THE FINAL!!” - January 28, 2018, Tokyo - (3 hrs)
January 28, 2018, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall (1,214 Fans)
1. Naomi Yoshimura -vs- Nobuhiro Shimatani [*]
2. Yukio Sakaguchi & Kota Umeda -vs- Mizuki Watase & Yuki Ueno [* 1/2]
3. Super Sasadango Machine & Saki Akai -vs- Antonio Honda & Tanomusaku Toba - (Infomercial Match – Takahashi Tax Accounting Office) [1/4*]
4. KUDO & Masahiro Takanashi -vs- Soma Takao & Kouki Iwasaki -vs- Kazusada Higuchi & Daiki Shimomura - (3-Way) [* 1/4]
5. Danshoku Dino & Keisuke Ishii -vs- Jiro Kuroshio & Joey Ryan [1/2*]
6. Makoto Oishi & Shunma Katsumata & MAO -vs- Sanshiro Takagi & Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata - (NωA FINAL CONCERT In Korakuen Hall) [* 1/2]
7. Daisuke Sasaki & Tetsuya Endo & Mad Paulie -vs- Konosuke Takeshita & Akito & Mike Bailey [** 1/2]
8. Shuji Ishikawa -vs- HARASHIMA - (D-Oh Grand Prix – Final) [*** 1/4]

A rather pointless undercard. Poor Ikemen. That facial expression while being humped by Dino said it all. The main event was of course the show stealer and another feather in those two veterans cap. The anticipated D-Oh final got off to an odd start when the ropes came loose. Looked like they would have to rethink their game plan because the ropes were useless and dangerous. Thankfully they weren't broken so they managed to screw it tight again and they could continue in familiar fashion. First it was HARASHIMA who came with the surprise attacks to stun the giant, but as the match progressed it became more and more Ishikawa's game, landing all his finishers in brutal manner. Really great stuff. On the other side of the DDT spectrum you had Danshoku Dino/Keisuke Ishii -vs- Jiro Kuroshio/Joey Ryan. This is exactly THE type of match you do NOT show any of your friends, family or anybody! How many minutes did Dino hump Ikemen?!

BIG JAPAN

BJW - "~TO WAS GAT EARLY~" - January 17, 2018, Tokyo - (2 hrs)
January 17, 2018, Tokyo - Shin-Kiba 1st RING (206 Fans)
1. Hideyoshi Kamitani -vs- Takuho Kato [* 1/2]
2. Kazuki Hashimoto -vs- Masaki Morihiro [*]
3. Daichi Hashimoto -vs- Takayuki Ueki [* 1/4]
4. Tatsuhiko Yoshino & Kota Sekifuda -vs- Yoshihisa Uto & Kazumi Kikuta [* 3/4]
5. Yuya Aoki -vs- Yusuke Okada [**]
6. Fuminori Abe -vs- Takuya Nomura [* 3/4]

Small show focusing on the younger serious wrestlers at BJW's disposal. Good idea, but it's not exactly the biggest stage they? re working from here. Not yet on bjwcore.com, but I guess it's just around the corner.

STARDOM

STARDOM - "STARDOM 7TH ANNIVERSARY" - January 21, 2018, Tokyo - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 21, 2018, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall (950 Fans)
1. Starlight Kid & Shiki Shibusawa & Hanan -vs- Hiromi Mimura & Konami & Ruaka [*]
2. Kaori Yoneyama & Jungle Kyona & Natsuko Tora -vs- Nicole Savoy & Xia Brookside & Miranda [* 1/2]
3. Mari Apache (c) -vs- Kay Lee Ray - (High Speed Title) [**]
4. Mayu Iwatani -vs- Rachael Ellering - (Mayu Iwatani Return Match) [***]
5. Io Shirai & AZM & HZK & Viper & Momo Watanabe -vs- Kagetsu & Hana Kimura & Kris Wolf & Sumire Natsu & Tam Nakano - (Queen´s Quest vs. Oedo Tai Loser Leaves Unit Elimination Match) [*** 1/2]

Stardom's first big show of the year and it had two really good matches with Mayu back! And in form! Last match for Ellering on this tour and she clearly wanted to go out in style, delivering a much better fight than when challenging for Io Shirai's Wonder of Stardom Title. She was real good, but naturally the focus was on Miyu and her looking better in her return. And she did that splendidly showing the fire and joy of fighting in the Korakuen Hall! But of course the real draw was the Gauntlet match where either Tam Nakano or Momo Watanabe was going to have to leave their stable. And it was a really lively event, full of flair and energy! The singles matches ranged from super short to the full time-limit, and the varied the endings satisfactory. When I first heard this main event was booked I was lukewarm to the idea, but after seeing it unfold - super happy!

The RealHero Archive

OZ Academy - "THE WIZARD OF OZ 2018" - January 7, 2018, Tokyo - (1 3/4 hrs)
January 7, 2018, Tokyo - Shinjuku FACE (486 Fans)
1. Mayumi Ozaki & Maya Yukihi -vs- Aja Kong & Hiroyo Matsumoto [* 1/2]
2. Kaho Kobayashi -vs- Shoko Sekiguchi [3/4*]
3. Meiko Satomura & Mika Shirahime -vs- Tsubasa Kuragaki & Aoi Kizuki [* 3/4]
4. Yoshiko -vs- Sakura Hirota [1/2*]
5. AKINO & Yumi Ohka & Alex Lee -vs- Sonoko Kato & Kaori Yoneyama & Rina Yamashita - (Last Woman Standing Elimination Match) [** 1/2]

All about the main event which was nearly 40 minutes of Oz wrestling. Thankfully not their brawling style, but their in-ring fighting, so it was good. Still it lacked heat and crowd enthusiasm to get as engaging as it should have. But appreciate it for AKINO's efforts.

WRESTLE-1 - "WRESTLE-1 TOUR 2018 SUNRISE" - January 8, 2018, Tokyo - (2 hrs)
January 8, 2018, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall - (985 Fans)
1. Seigo Tachibana -vs- Tsugutaka Sato [*]
2. Masayuki Mitomi & Joji Otani & Kouju Takeda -vs- Jun Tonsho & Hajime & Takumi Baba [**]
3. Seiki Yoshioka & Andy Wu & Ryuji Hijikata -vs- Shotaro Ashino & Yusuke Kodaka & Drunk Andy [* 3/4]
4. Jiro Kuroshio -vs- Masayuki Kono -vs- MAZADA - (3-Way) [** 1/4]
5. Ganseki Tanaka & Akira -vs- Manabu Soya & NOSAWA Rongai [* 1/2]
6. Koji Doi & Kumagoro (c) -vs- Daiki Inaba & Takanori Ito - (WRESTLE-1 Tag Title) [**]
7. Keiji Muto & The Great Sasuke & Ultimo Dragon -vs- Kaz Hayashi & Shuji Kondo & Dick Togo - (Kaz Hayashi Debut 25th Anniversary Memorial Match) [* 1/2]

While most companies have decided to start 2018 with a bang, Wrestle-1 decides to start the year in a low-key way with Kaz Hayashi celebrating his 25 year in the business with a bunch of veterans who can't really work anymore. Mildly fun, with Muto ATTEMPTING a plancha over the ropes and Suzuki doing weird, but not weird enough stuff. No one really stepped up for the anniversary boy. Not even the anniversary boy himself. Jiro "Ikemen" Kuroshio however goes all-out even if he's put in a pointless 3-Way! Crazy dude!

WAVE - "Young OH! OH! ~Adult Ceremony~" - January 8, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (1 1/4 hrs)
January 8, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - GEN Sports Palace 4F (122 Fans)
1. Kaho Kobayashi -vs- Mika Iida [* 3/4]
2. ASUKA -vs- Kyuri -vs- Tae Honma [*]
3. Nao Kakuta -vs- Fairy Nihonbashi [1/2*]
4. Hiroe Nagahama -vs- Ami Sato [* 1/4]
5. Rina Yamashita & Maruko Nagasaki -vs- Miyuki Takase & Satsuki Totoro [**]

A very small show, but a couple of their matches were watchable. What I loved most was that they used the ring mat of Riki Choshu's failed promotion World Japan which went bust 15 years ago!

DRAGON GATE - "OPEN THE NEW YEAR GATE 2018 - DAY 2" - January 14, 2018, Osaka - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 14, 2018, Osaka Edion Arena #2 (1,300 Fans)
1. Jason Lee & Oji Shiiba -vs- Kaito Ishida & Problem Dragon [* 1/4]
2. YAMATO & Kzy & Yosuke ♡ Santa Maria -vs- Susumu Yokosuka & Don Fujii & Gamma [* 1/2]
3. BxB Hulk -vs- Big R Shimizu [* 3/4]
4. Ben-K -vs- Genki Horiguchi [*]
5. CIMA & Dezmond Xavier & Zachary Wentz -vs- Ryo Saito & Flamita & Bandido [**]
6. Masaaki Mochizuki & Kagetora -vs- Eita & El Lindaman [* 1/2]
7. Naruki Doi & Masato Yoshino & Kotoka -vs- T-Hawk & Yasushi Kanda & Takashi Yoshida [**]

Dragon Gate really need to shake things up. They look bored now. Highlight was old CIMA trying to get some rub off the new guys in a 'happy action' match, but even the kid they invited to the ring had no comment in regards to their current product. 

NOAH - "NAVIGATION FOR THE FUTURE" - January 20, 2018, Yokohama - (2 1/4 hrs)
January 20, 2018, Yokohama Radiant Hall (353 Fans)
1. Go Shiozaki -vs- Junta Miyawaki [1/2*]
2. Cody Hall & LEONA -vs- Akitoshi Saito & Seiya Morohashi [*]
3. Maybach Taniguchi & Mitsuya Nagai -vs- Andrew Everett & Jay Bradley [* 1/2]
4. Daisuke Harada & HAYATA & YO-HEY & Tadasuke -vs- Hajime Ohara & Taiji Ishimori & Hi69 & Hitoshi Kumano [** 3/4]
5. Takashi Sugiura -vs- Masao Inoue [3/4*]
6. Yuko Miyamoto & Minoru Tanaka -vs- Naomichi Marufuji & Atsushi Kotoge [** 1/4]
7. Katsuhiko Nakajima & Masa Kitamiya -vs- Mohammed Yone & Quiet Storm [** 1/2]
8. Kenou -vs- Kaito Kiyomiya [** 1/2]

For a smaller NOAH show, this was really good. It's like there is a fresh spirit going on. Probable most interest was in the Kenou/Kaito Kiyomiya rematch coming already two weeks after their GHC Title bout. This one doesn't have the same urgency because there is not much on the line and they get 8 minutes less to work in the climax. So needless to say it doesn't match the January 6th battle. Doesn't matter though, because they still deliver a damn solid fight. Let's hope they don't push young Kiyomiya too far back now that he's returned. Kenou comes off looking the champion that he is.

CMLL

CMLL - "Martes Arena Coliseo Guadalajara" - January 16, 2018, Mexico - (1 hr)
January 16, 2018, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico -     Arena Coliseo Guadalajara
1. Arkangel de la Muerte & Cancerbero & Gran Kenut -vs- Sensei & Angel del Amor & Vaquero Jr. [** 1/2]
2. Tiger & Sagrado & Misterioso Jr. -vs- Oro Jr. & Astral & Audaz [***]
3. El Terrible -vs- Diamante Azul -vs- Esfinge -vs- Forastero -vs- Guerrero Maya Jr. -vs- Hechicero -vs- Rey Bucanero -vs- Rey Cometa -vs- Triton -vs- Pierroth - (10-Man Cibernetico) [** 3/4]

The Guadalajara fans probable got the best CMLL show during the 2 weeks half the main roster was in Japan!

CMLL - "Lunes Arena Puebla" - January 22, 2018, Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Puebla, Mexico - (2 1/4 hrs)
January 22, 2018, Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Puebla, Mexico - Arena Puebla
1. Hijo de Centella Roja & Meyer -vs- Policeman & Sombra Diabólika [* 1/4]
2. El Malayo & Fuerza Chicana & Perverso -vs- Tigre Rojo Jr. & Arkalis & Black Tiger [* 1/2]
3. Amapola & Reyna Isis -vs- Princesa Sugehit & Lady Maravilla [* 3/4]
4. Ephesto & Luciferno & Tiger -vs- Rey Cometa & Esfinge & Tritón [** 1/4]
5. Titán & Diamante Azul & Stuka Jr. -vs- Sam Adonis & Hechicero & Johnny Idol [** 1/2]
6. Carístico & Kráneo & Valiente -vs- Terrible & Rey Bucanero & Vangellys [**]

Decent Arena Puebla show, but I'll be glad when the rest of the CMLL roster arrives from their tour of Japan. The cards have felt the effect of their absence. The Sam Adonis thing cheered the place up. Hechicero was great the little he was involved, but naturally Adonis and his "hair" takes center stage. 

CMLL - "Martes Arena Mexico" - January 23, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 23, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico
1. Shockercito & Stukita -vs- Pequeño Olímpico & Pierrothito [* 1/2]
2. Marcela & La Jarochita & Sanely -vs- Tiffany & La Comandante & Metálica [* 1/2]
3. Pegasso & Magia Blanca & Stigma -vs- Tiger & Sangre Azteca & Universo 2000 Jr. [**]
4. Rey Cometa & Esfinge & Tritón -vs- Shocker & Hechicero & Pólvora [**]
5. Mephisto (c) -vs- Titán - (CMLL Welterweight Title) [** 3/4]
6. Marco Corleone & Guerrero Maya Jr. & Stuka Jr. -vs- Mr. Niebla & Pierroth & Rey Bucanero [* 1/2]

One-match show and also that one didn't try to stand-out among the usual climax matches. Followed a very familiar CMLL title match formula with two quick falls and a long one with a ton of near falls for the climax. A little too formula to really get exciting, but naturally with so many near falls the excitement crept in there and it became an entertaining match. At least it's the last one before the rest of the guys returns from Japan. 

CMLL - "Martes Arena Coliseo Guadalajara" - January 23, 2018, Mexico - (1 hr)
January 23, 2018, Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico -     Arena Coliseo Guadalajara
1. Arkangel de la Muerte & Freezer & Espanto Jr. -vs- Magnus & Electrico & Magico [**]
2. Blue Panther Jr. & Starman & The Panther -vs- Misterioso Jr. & Hijo del Signo & Sagrado [** 1/4] 
3. Diamante Azul -vs- Terrible [** 3/4]

Another good Guadalajara with Azul/Terrible having a better singles match than their title match on the next show....

CMLL - "Super Viernes" - January 26, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 1/4 hrs)
January 26, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico
1. Akuma & Espanto Jr. -vs- Flyer & Robin [* 1/4]
2. Nitro & Cancerbero & Raziel -vs- Star Jr. & Astral & Eléctrico [* 3/4]
3. Virus & Disturbio & Misterioso Jr. -vs- Soberano Jr. & Audaz & Starman [** 1/4]
4. Ángel de Oro & Niebla Roja & Stuka Jr. -vs- Sansón & Cuatrero & Forastero [**]
5. Terrible (c) -vs- Diamante Azul - (Mexican National Heavyweight Title) [** 1/2]
6. Atlantis & Dragón Lee & Volador Jr. -vs- Último Guerrero & Gran Guerrero & Euforia [** 1/4]

What a bummer. Wasn't feeling this show much. Even with a lot of stars returned from their tour of Japan they didn't elevate the experience. Actually this show was worse than any of the Arena Mexico shows the past two weeks when they had 18 guys away working for NJPW. But at least we have the conclusion to the Diamante Azul/Terrible feud which had gone on all week.

AAA

AAA - December 16, 2017, Apizaco, Tlaxcala, Mexico - (1 1/4 hrs)
December 16, 2017, Apizaco, Tlaxcala, Mexico - Plaza de Toros Monumental
1. Aerostar & Drago & Raptor -vs- Averno & Chessman & Super Fly -vs- Carta Brava Jr. & Mocho Cota Jr. & Tito Santana -vs- Argenis & Bengala & Mascara de Bronce - (4-Way Elimination) [** 3/4]
2. El Texano Jr. & Rey Escorpion -vs- El Hijo del Fantasma & Psycho Clown [**]
3. El Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. -vs- Hernandez [** 1/4]

The second portion of the December 16, 2017 show with the main matches. Enjoyable, but not major show effort. Actually I missed AAA's biggest show of the week, Guerra De Titanes 2018, which aired live. That one is supposed to have some great stuff on it, but I've been unable to find a link for broadcast, though hand-held versions of the matches are out there.

Lucha Libre Independents

IWRG - January 21, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - (1 1/2 hrs)
January 21, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - Arena Naucalpan
1. Fly Warrior & Séptimo Rayo -vs- Diablo Jr. & Eterno [* 1/2]
2. Cerebro Negro -vs- Emperador Azteca [**]
3. Black Dragón & Dinamic Black & Dragón Fly -vs- Liderk & Rayan & Spector [* 3/4]
4. Hijo del Pantera & Internacional Pantera & Pantera I -vs- Chico Che & Hijo del Alebrije & Veneno [**]
5. Dr. Cerebro & Trauma I & Trauma II -vs- Bombero Infernal & Rocambole Jr. & Villano V Jr. [**]

My 3rd IWRG show and I'm starting to 'get' their tempo. Neither loving or hating it at this point. We'll see once they deliver some of their more priority shows.

AULL - January 21, 2018, Mexico - (1/4 hr)
January 21, 2018, Tlalnepantla, Mexico - Arena Lopez Mateos
1. Sádico -vs- Judas el Traidor [* 1/2]

Just a random indy lucha match that turned up. Two skinny guys going at it.

APW/Wrestling In Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl - January 21, 2018, Mexico - (1 hr)
January 21, 2018, Col. Benito Juárez, Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl, Estado de México, Mexico - Arena 2 de Junio
1. Alimaña & Reina Oscura -vs- La Fuerza & Melissa -vs- Filder & Isis -vs- Dante & Mary Coporal - (4-Way) [3/4*]
2. Aerodinamic -vs- Shere Khan -vs- Memo Romero -vs- Thunder Stroom -vs- Parkour -vs- Caballero de Plata -vs- Blue Star - (Aerial Assault) [* 1/4]
3. Crazy King -vs- Psicótico -vs- Epydemius - (3-Way) [*]
4. Nueva Ángel (c) -vs- Súper Bick -vs- Tiago -vs- Alfa - (APW Cruiserweight Title) [* 3/4]
5. Master Fly -vs- Shura -vs- Lobo -vs- Rocco -vs- Teco -vs- Blue Ángel -vs- Príncipe Azteca Jr. -vs- Sombra de Dragón -vs- Gargo - (9-Man Cibernetico; Mask vs Hair) [1/2*]
6. Marcela & Star Fire -vs- Lilith Dark & Metálica [* 1/2]

Watching this indy show from Mexico you realize how great the difference in quality between those that work in the national promotions compared to local ones like this. Not that it was horrendous. There was just something very lightweight about it.

MEXA WRESTLING - January 27, 2018, Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl, Estado de México - (1 hr)
January 27, 2018, Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl, Estado de México - Arena San Juan Pantitlan
1. Leo & Mike & Rafy & Teelo -vs- Astrolux & Lunatik Fly & Pumita & Torito [**]
2. Keyra -vs- Lady Flammer [* 1/2]
3. Freelance & Mike Segura -vs- Corsario Negro Jr. & Drako [*]
4. Ricky Marvin -vs- Aramis -vs- Toxin - (3-Way) [**]
6. Trauma I & Trauma II -vs- Arez & Eterno [* 3/4]

There is something very surreal about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles doing a better 25th Anniversary tribute to RAW from a run-down building in Mexico than what WWE did!

UK

DEFIANT - "DEFIANT #7" - December 12, 2017, London, England, UK - (1 1/4 hrs)
December 12, 2017, London, England, UK
1. David Starr & El Ligero -vs- Travis Banks & Chris Brookes [**]
2. Millie Mckenzie -vs- Xia Brookside [* 1/2]
3. Millie Mckenzie -vs- Bea Priestley [* 3/4]
4. Zack Gibson -vs- Mihai [*]
5. Zack Sabre Jr -vs- Mike Bailey - (Defiant Internet Title) [***]

They're doing the gimmick of ICW:UK being in control of Defiant, which made the storyline aspect of this weeks show more fun. Plus it had ZSJ vs Speedball, which was real nice!

ICW:UK - "Fight Club - It's Always Raining In Glasgow" - January 21, 2018, Glasgow, Scotland, UK - (1 1/2 hrs)
January 21, 2018, Glasgow, Scotland, UK - The Garage
1. Jackie Polo & Mark Coffey (c) -vs- Rampage Brown & Ashton Smith - (ICW Tag Title) [*]
2. Mikey Whiplash -vs- Jordan Devlin [**]
3. Chris Renfrew -vs- Leyton Buzzard [* 1/2]
4. Wolfgang -vs- Kid Fite [* 3/4]

My first ICW:UK show. Not invested in their product yet, but it was a decent introduction without anything blowing me away.

GERMANY

wXw - "Back To The Roots XVII" - January 20, 2018, Oberhausen, Germany - (2 1/4 hrs)
January 20, 2018, Oberhausen, Germany - Turbinenhalle 1 (575 Fans)
1. Martina -vs- Melanie Gray - (Hardcore) [* 1/4]
2. Jurn Simmons -vs- Dirty Dragan [*]
3. Da Mack -vs- Chris Colen [* 1/2]
4. Absolute Andy -vs- Bobby Gunns [** 3/4]
5. Killer Kelly (c) -vs- Toni Storm - (wXw Women's Title) [* 1/2]
6. WALTER & Timothy Thatcher & Avalanche & Julian Nero -vs- Ivan Kiev & John Klinger & Lucky Kid & Tarkan Aslan - (Cage) [***]

A little disappointed. The main event was a lot of fun, but apart from one other match, the rest of the card was lacking that something special. The main event was a little too chaotic with 8 guys in such a small space, and it didn't help that some of the action moves around the ringside area. But that apart, this was also a total brawl with many cool moments. I? m just glad the camera caught the important bits within all they wounded bodies lying around. To add to the drama, there was also problems in Bad Bones' faction which played out to be important to how this long fight would evolve. Naturally you had dives off the top and Thatcher was bleeding from the ear. And even more naturally, the two bosses would fight it out to make it feel important. Absolute Andy -vs- Bobby Gunns was good. Relied strongly on Gunns fire trying to take the bigger man down with submissions. Andy however has a lot more going for him and with his strength kept surviving. But Gunns ambitions were admirable.

--PUNQ--

Hey, people still remembers me! Not been able to see the newest RevPro show, but I definitely will! Looks awesome. I'll post about it next week. Or sooner. Might post more often instead of binge-drop massive lists like this. Hell, maybe even daily, as it takes too long to compile my excessive viewing habits on a weekly basis 

Top-20 Matches Week 3, 2018

1. January 2, 2018 - Masashi Takeda (c) -vs- Takumi Tsukamoto - (BJW Death Match Title; Five Nails Board, Fluorescent Lighttubes & Cage Death Match) [*** 3/4] (BJW)
2. January 19, 2018 - Niebla Roja (c) -vs- Gran Guerrero - (CMLL Light Heavyweight Title) [*** 1/2] (NJPW/CMLL)
3. January 14, 2018 - Will Ospreay -vs- Adam Brooks [*** 1/2] (PROGRESS)
4. January 21, 2018 - Volador Jr. (c) -vs- El Barbaro Cavernario - (NWA Historic Welterweight Title) [*** 1/4] (NJPW/CMLL)
5. January 6, 2018 - Kenou (c) -vs- Kaito Kiyomiya - (GHC Title) [*** 1/4] (NOAH)

6. January 14, 2018 - Pete Dunne (c) -vs- Joseph Conners - (WWE United Kingdom Title) [*** 1/4] (PROGRESS)
7. January 2, 2018 - Daichi Hashimoto (c) -vs- Ryuichi Kawakami - (BJW Strong Title) [*** 1/4] (BJW)
8. January 19, 2018 - Soberano Jr. (c) -vs- Sanson - (Mexican National Welterweight Title) [*** 1/4] (NJPW/CMLL)
9. January 2, 2018 - Shuji Ishikawa & Kohei Sato -vs- Daisuke Sekimoto & Hideki Suzuki [***] (BJW)
10. January 15, 2018 - Hechicero -vs- Guerrero Maya Jr. - (Lightning Match) [***] (CMLL)

11. January 22, 2018 - Ultimo Guerrero & Gran Guerrero -vs- Mistico & Dragon Lee - (CMLL Brothers Tag Tournament - Final) [***] (NJPW/CMLL)
12. January 14, 2018 - Travis Banks (c) -vs- Chris Brookes - (PROGRESS Title) [** 3/4] (PROGRESS)
13. January 19, 2018 - Angel de Oro (c) -vs- Cuatrero - (CMLL Middleweight Title) [** 3/4] (NJPW/CMLL)
14. January 16, 2018 - Carístico -vs- Euforia [** 3/4] (CMLL)
15. January 3, 2018 - Jun Akiyama & Takao Omori (c) -vs- Suwama & Shuji Ishikawa - (AJPW Tag Title) [** 3/4] (AJPW)

16. January 21, 2018 - Ultimo Guerrero & Gran Guerrero -vs- Niebla Roja & Angel de Oro - (CMLL Brothers Tag Tournament - Semi Final) [** 3/4] (NJPW/CMLL)
17. January 19, 2018 - Jacob Fatu & The Almighty Sheik (c) -vs- Jimmy Jacobs & Joey Janela - (PCW ULTRA Tag Title) [** 3/4] (PCW Ultra)
18. January 19, 2018 - Kráneo -vs- Hechicero - (Lightning Match) [** 3/4] (CMLL)
19. January 22, 2018 - Sanson & Cuatrero -vs- Niebla Roja & Angel de Oro - (CMLL Brothers Tag Tournament - 3rd Place) [** 3/4] (NJPW/CMLL)
20. January 19, 2018 - ACH -vs- Rey Fenix [** 3/4] (PCW Ultra)

WWE Universe

WWE - "Monday Night RAW/Main Event" - January 15, 2018, San Antonio, Texas, USA - (3 hrs)
January 15, 2018, San Antonio, Texas, USA - AT&T Center
Main Event #276
1. Rhyno -vs- Curt Hawkins [* 3/4]
2. Mustafa Ali -vs- TJP [* 1/4]
Monday Night RAW #1286
3. Apollo Crews & Titus O'Neil -vs- Cesaro & Sheamus [**]
4. Cedric Alexander -vs- Tony Nese [*]
5. Asuka -vs- Nia Jax [* 1/2]
6. Dash Wilder & Scott Dawson -vs- Aaron Solow & Ricky Starks [1/2*]
7. Roman Reigns -vs- Bo Dallas & Curtis Axel [* 1/2]
8. Sonya Deville -vs- Sasha Banks [3/4*]
9. Matt Hardy -vs- Heath Slater [*]
10. Seth Rollins -vs- Finn Balor [** 1/2]

In short. The first hour was good. The Titus tag was fine and they kept the show interesting with Braun on the loose. Then things got uninteresting the middle-hour, before Balor/Rollins sent to show off on a positive. The Main Event C-show was better than usual, but nothing one has to go out of one's way to see.

WWE - "SmackDown Live/205 Live" - January 16, 2018, Laredo, Texas, USA - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 16, 2018, Laredo, Texas, USA - Laredo Energy Arena
205 Live #60
1. Gran Metalik -vs- TJP [* 1/2]
2. Goldust -vs- Ariya Daivari & Drew Gulak & Tony Nese [1/2*]
SmackDown Live #961
3. Jinder Mahal -vs- Xavier Woods - (WWE United States Title Tournament - Semi-Final) [* 3/4]
4. Bobby Roode -vs- Mojo Rawley - (WWE United States Title Tournament - Semi-Final) [* 1/4]
5. Ruby Riott & Liv Morgan & Sarah Logan -vs- Charlotte Flair & Becky Lynch & Naomi [*]
6. Bobby Roode -vs- Jinder Mahal - (WWE United States Title Tournament - Semi-Final) [* 1/2]
Mixed Match Challenge #1
7. Finn Balor & Sasha Banks -vs- Shinsuke Nakamura & Natalya - (WWE Mixed Match Challenge - Round 1) [* 3/4]

I'm going try and stay positive. Not that the wrestling was any good. Or the promos. Aw, failed already, but at least the show had a focus instead of just throwing random stuff out there, which is what they do every week. The US Title tournament deciding rounds and a women's match as intermission. I prefer to have my matches longer than 5 minutes too, but I appreciate them presenting the tournament that way. They just selected the worst possible guys to do it with.

For 205 Live the Metalik stuff was okay, but Goldust -vs- Ariya Daivari & Drew Gulak & Tony Nese was a complete waste of time and pretty much also killed 205 Live and the cruiserweigths as a waste of time with 3 of them losing to a washed-up heavyweight. The Mixed Match Challenge starts to a expected average. Colorful blend, but really nothing one need to go out of their way to see.

WWE - "NXT #283" - January 4, 2018, Atlanta, Georgia, USA - (2 hrs)
January 4, 2018, Atlanta, Georgia, USA - Stage Center
1. Riddick Moss & Tino Sabbatelli -vs- Otis Dozovic & Tucker Knight [*]
2. Roderick Strong -vs- Fabian Aichner [* 1/4]
3. Lacey Evans -vs- Aliyah [3/4*]
4. Akam & Rezar -vs- Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford [* 1/2]

The matches were decent this week, but only from a presentation point-of-view. Glorified squashes and nothing big being presented, building for more important stuff happening in the weeks to come. So, forgettable.

US Indys

IMPACT - "Impact #705" - November 9-10, 2017, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada - (2 hrs)
November 10, 2018, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada - Aberdeen Pavilion
1. Taiji Ishimori (c) -vs- Dezmond Xavier - (Impact X-Division Title) [** 1/4]
November 9, 2018, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada - Aberdeen Pavilion
2. Kongo Kong -vs- Chandler Park [1/4*]
BCW - December 3, 2017, Detrit, Michigan, USA
3. Eli Drake (c) -vs- Alberto El Patron -vs- Johnny Impact - (Impact Global Title; 3-Way) [* 1/2]
November 10, 2018, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada - Aberdeen Pavilion
4. Rosemary -vs- KC Spinelli [*]
November 9, 2018, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada - Aberdeen Pavilion
5. Homicide & Ortiz & Santana -vs- Sami Callihan & Dave Crist & Jake Crist - (Barbwire Ropes Match) [** 1/2]

This weeks Impact was at least interesting. First off, it had a good X-Division defens. It also had a brief look at the Impact Title being defended in Border City Wrestling. But most of all, it had a Barbwire match! If it's among the great hardcore matches in history is highly doubtful, but it made for something different on Impact TV and I loved how Chris got rolled in it!

ROH - December 16, 2017, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - (1 hr)
December 16, 2017, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA -     2300 Arena (800 Fans)
1. Jay Lethal -vs- Will Ospreay [***]
2. Kenny King -vs- Brian Milonas [1/2*]
3. Dalton Castle & Brandon & Brent -vs- Matt Taven & TK O'Ryan & Vinny Marseglia [** 1/4]

Good episode of ROH too. Much thanks to a fine performance from Ospreay and Lethal. Castle proving himself championship quality, at least within the ROH "universe", ended to show nicely too. 

Style Battle #01.08 - January 14, 2018, New York, USA - (2 hrs)
January 14, 2018, New York, USA - Saint Finbar Catholic Church Gym
1. Matt Riddle -vs- Rayo - (Style Battle #8 - Round 1) [1/4*]
2. Kyle The Beast -vs- Brody King - (Style Battle #8 - Round 1) [* 1/4]
3. Joey Janela -vs- Brandon Watts - (Style Battle #8 - Round 1) [* 1/2]
4. Nick Gage -vs- WALTER - (Style Battle #8 - Round 1) [*]
5. Matt Riddle -vs- Kyle The Beast - (Style Battle #8 - Semi-Final) [* 1/2]
6. Jimmy Lloyd -vs- Jack Gallow [1/2*]
7. James Bandy (c) -vs- Liam Gray -vs- Jaxon Vile -vs- Adrian Alanis - (WWA4 Title; 4-Way) [* 1/4]
8. Matt Riddle -vs- Joey Janela - (Style Battle #8 - Final) [** 1/4]

I enjoyed EVOLVE 98 & 99, but in the middle of this weekend WWN also produced this Style Battle show, and this wasn't really for me. Too many barely known wrestlers along with some big indy guys for quick matches in front of very few fans. The final was alright, but by that time I had given up omn the show.

PCW ULTRA - "PCW ULTRA 2K18" - January 19, 2018, Wilmington, California, USA - (3 hrs)
January 19, 2018, Wilmington, California, USA - ILWU Memorial Hall
1. ACH -vs- Rey Fenix [** 3/4]
2. Kikutaro -vs- El Mariachi Loco [1/2*]
3. Shane Strickland -vs- Brody King -vs- Flip Gordon - (3-Way) [** 1/4]
4. Alexander Hammerstone -vs- Brian Cage [** 1/2]
5. Douglas James (c) -vs- Ganseki Tanaka - (PCW ULTRA Light Heavyweight Title) [**]
6. Jacob Fatu & The Almighty Sheik (c) -vs- Jimmy Jacobs & Joey Janela - (PCW ULTRA Tag Title) [** 3/4]
7. Great Muta & Penta El Zero M -vs- John Ultra & Sami Callihan [** 1/4]

The Great Muta in the US... last time? He can't move much anymore, but he has the aura. Funny moment saw his mask fall off!!! He also threw fire and blew mist. Not much else except the Shining Wizard, if it was that Muta was trying to execute. Penta had to do most of the work, and Johnny Whatever-promotion-I-work-for and Sami certainly had a lot of the offense before falling victim to the legendary tricks. It's not a great match, but a feel-good one. The show had plenty of other good offerings like Cage/Hammerstone for a heavyweight speed match, Fenix/ACH for a compeitive opener and a tag title bout for bloody violence. So a pretty good show, but none of that MOTYC stuff.

NJPW

NJPW - "NJPW PRESENTS CMLL FANTASTICA MANIA 2018" - January 12, 2018, Nagoya - (2 hrs)
January 12, 2018, Nagoya International Conference Hall Event Hall (1,554 Fans)
1. Drone -vs- Disturbio [* 1/2]
2. Puma & OKUMURA -vs- Star Jr. & Fuego [**]
3. Cuatrero & Rocky Romero & YOH & SHO -vs- Angel de Oro & Jushin Thunder Liger & Tiger Mask & Ryusuke Taguchi [** 1/4]
4. Volador Jr. & Niebla Roja & Soberano Jr. -vs- Gran Guerrero & El Barbaro Cavernario & Sanson [**]
5. Rush & Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI -vs- Satoshi Kojima & KUSHIDA & Dragon Lee & Hirai Kawato [** 1/4]
6. Atlantis & Mistico & Hiroshi Tanahashi -vs- Ultimo Guerrero & Kazuchika Okada & Gedo [**]

This one didn't air on their network, but instead a Samurai TV exclusive which can be found at RealHero Archive. The opening day of the Fantastica Mania 2018 tour and pretty much what one could expect. A bunch of showcasign tags. Fun, but it wasn't on this show they were going to go all-out.

NJPW - "NJPW PRESENTS CMLL FANTASTICA MANIA 2018 - DAY 6" - January 19, 2018, Tokyo - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 19, 2018, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall (1,522 Fans)
1. Okumura -vs- Fuego [**]
2. Rush & Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI -vs- Satoshi Kojima & Star Jr & Dragon Lee & Hirai Kawato [** 1/4]
3. Atlantis & Mistico & Volador Jr. & Drone -vs- Ultimo Guerrero & El Barbaro Cavernario & Puma & Disturbio [**]
4. Angel de Oro (c) -vs- Cuatrero - (CMLL Middleweight Title) [** 3/4]
5. Soberano Jr. (c) -vs- Sanson - (Mexican National Welterweight Title) [*** 1/4]
6. Niebla Roja (c) -vs- Gran Guerrero - (CMLL Light Heavyweight Title) [*** 1/2]

The Fantastica Mania 2018 tour comes to Korakuen Hall for the first of three nights. And what a way to bring lucha to Japan with three title matches to end the show in a great manner! Easily the best night of the tour!

NJPW - "NJPW PRESENTS CMLL FANTASTICA MANIA 2018 - DAY 7" - January 21, 2018, Tokyo - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 21, 2018, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall (1,590 Fans)
1. Puma & Disturbio -vs- Drone & Star Jr. [* 1/2]
2. Ryusuke Taguchi & Soberano Jr. & Fuego -vs- Okumura & SHO & YOH [**]
3. Tetsuya Naito & Rush & Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI -vs- Satoshi Kojima & Atlantis & KUSHIDA & Hirai Kawato [** 1/2]
4. Ultimo Guerrero & Gran Guerrero -vs- Niebla Roja & Angel de Oro - (CMLL Brothers Tag Tournament - Semi Final) [** 3/4]
5. Mistico & Dragon Lee -vs- Sanson & Cuatrero - (CMLL Brothers Tag Tournament - Semi Final) [** 1/2]
6. Volador Jr. (c) -vs- El Barbaro Cavernario - (NWA Historic Welterweight Title) [*** 1/4]

Day 2 at the Korakuen Hall brings more goodies. Especially the main event, which felt familiar to Barbaro's big singles match in Japan from the previous year. Great effort with a couple of good siblings tags to boot.

NJPW - "NJPW PRESENTS CMLL FANTASTICA MANIA 2018 - DAY 8" - January 22, 2018, Tokyo - (2 1/4 hrs)
January 22, 2018, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall (1,546 Fans)
1. Ryusuke Taguchi & Fuego -vs- Puma & Disturbio [* 1/2]
2. Okumura & Rocky Romero & SHO & YOH -vs- Jushin Thunder Liger & Tiger Mask & KUSHIDA & Star Jr. [**]
3. Sanson & Cuatrero -vs- Niebla Roja & Angel de Oro - (CMLL Brothers Tag Tournament - 3rd Place) [** 3/4]
4. El Barbaro Cavernario & Gedo -vs- Atlantis & Hirai Kawato - (Hirai Kawato Send Off Match) [** 1/4]
5. Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI -vs- Volador Jr. & Soberano Jr. & Drone [** 1/2]
6. Satoshi Kojima -vs- Rush [**]
7. Ultimo Guerrero & Gran Guerrero -vs- Mistico & Dragon Lee - (CMLL Brothers Tag Tournament - Final) [***]

Okay, this one's from week 4, but it happened before I had this list done and it was the tour ender, so I'll include it with this post. I enjoyed the other two Korakuens better, but this did have Kawato's send-off and the finals of the brothers tournament to offer. Plus I might criminally underrate Rush/Kojima. Need to see that one again. Had moments.

DDT Universe

BASARA - “VAJRA 57 ~OSHU KAIMICHI~” - January 14, 2018, Tokyo - (1/2 hr)
January 14, 2018, Tokyo - Sendai City Miyagino Ward Cultural Center (148 Fans)
1. Isami Kodaka & Ryuichi Sekine & Ryota Nakatsu -vs- FUMA & Yusuke Kubo & SAGAT [* 1/4]

After 2 weeks with nearly a dozen live shows and extras, in week 3 DDT Universe brings us.... ONE match.... on tape-delay. And it was a very indy match from their sub-brand BASARA, not really worth your time. They have uploaded 2 shows with English commentary, which might be interesting for those that don't care about Japanese commentary.

STARDOM

STARDOM - "NEW YEAR STARS 2018 - DAY 4" - January 7, 2018, Hamamatsu, Japan - (1 1/2 hrs)
January 7, 2018,     Hamamatsu, Japan - Shimizu Marine Building Multipurpose Hall (205 Fans)
1. Momo Watanabe -vs- Shiki Shibusawa [1/2*]
2. Kay Lee Ray & Xia Brookside -vs- Mari Apache & Konami [* 1/4]
3. Hana Kimura -vs- Hiromi Mimura [* 1/2]
4. Kagetsu & Natsu Sumire -vs- Jungle Kyona & Natsuko Tora [* 3/4]
5. Rachael Ellering & Nicole Savoy & Miranda -vs- Io Shirai & AZM & HZK [**]

House show wrestling. Cute and forgettable, but builds for Rachael Ellering challenging for the title.

STARDOM - "NEW YEAR STARS 2018 - DAY 5" - January 13, 2018, Yokohama, Japan - (1 1/2 hrs)
January 13, 2018, Yokohama, Japan - Yokohama Radiant Hall (275 Fans)
1. Ruaka -vs- Hanan -vs- Miranda - (3-Way) [*]
2. Mari Apache & Hiromi Mimura -vs- Kaori Yoneyama & Natsuko Tora [* 1/4]
3. Kagetsu & Hana Kimura & Sumire Natsu -vs- Kay Lee Ray & Nicole Savoy & Xia Brookside [**]
4. Viper & AZM & HZK & Momo Watanabe -vs- Jungle Kyona & Starlight Kid & Konami & Shiki Shibusawa [* 3/4]
5. Io Shirai (c) -vs- Rachael Ellering - (Wonder of Stardom Title) [** 1/4]

And here it was, Rachael Ellering challenging for a Japanese belt 37 years after her father actually held a title in Japan, The IWA Tag Title in old IWE. Not the prettiest of matches, and Io might have ruined it more than Ellerings limitations, but it had a "hunting" feeling with Rachael lurking and trying to keep the champ down.

BIG JAPAN

BJW - "NEW YEAR 2018" - January 2, 2018, Tokyo - (2 hrs)
January 2, 2018, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall (1,568 Fans)
1. Yuya Aoki & Masaki Morihiro -vs- Takuya Nomura & Takuho Kato - (Kato's Debut) [* 1/4]
2. Kazuki Hashimoto & Tatsuhiko Yoshino & Kota Sekifuda -vs- Shinobu & Tsutomu Oosugi & Hercules Senga [* 1/2]
3. Yuko Miyamoto & Isami Kodaka & Minoru Fujita & Ryuichi Sekine -vs- Tajiri & Brahman Shu & Brahman Kei & Kankuro Hoshino [*]
4. Ryota Hama & Yasufumi Nakanoue & Taishi Takizawa -vs- Hideyoshi Kamitani & Yoshihisa Uto & Kazumi Kikuta [** 1/4]
5. Abdullah Kobayashi & Ryuji Ito & Jaki Numazawa -vs- Masaya Takahashi & Takayuki Ueki & Toshiyuki Sakuda - (Barbed Wire Board Death Match) [**]
6. Shuji Ishikawa & Kohei Sato -vs- Daisuke Sekimoto & Hideki Suzuki [***]
7. Daichi Hashimoto (c) -vs- Ryuichi Kawakami - (BJW Strong Title) [*** 1/4]
8. Masashi Takeda (c) -vs- Takumi Tsukamoto - (BJW Death Match Title; Five Nails Board, Fluorescent Lighttubes & Cage Death Match) [*** 3/4]

Not on BJW's streaming service yet, but can be found other places as it's a Samurai TV episode. A great card, really getting 2018 off to a fantastic start. Two quality Strong matches and my favorite bout of thr week. The Death Match Title in a real violent fight wasting no time!

BJW - "DEATH MATCH KING DEATH" - January 4, 2018, Tokyo - (2 hrs)
January 4, 2018, Tokyo - Shin-Kiba 1st RING (328 Fans)
1. Kazumi Kikuta -vs- Masaki Morihiro [*]
2. Kazuki Hashimoto & Tatsuhiko Yoshino & Kota Sekifuda -vs- Tsutomu Oosugi & Hercules Senga & Yuya Aoki [* 3/4]
3. Daichi Hashimoto & Hideyoshi Kamitani -vs- Yoshihisa Uto & Takuya Nomura [**]
4. Ryota Hama & Yasufumi Nakanoue -vs- Daisuke Sekimoto & Ryuichi Kawakami [* 3/4]
5. Abdullah Kobayashi & Ryuji Ito & Yuko Miyamoto -vs- Minoru Fujita & Brahman Shu & Brahman Kei - (Battlefield New Year´s Party) [1/2*]
6. Isami Kodaka -vs- Kankuro Hoshino - (G Shock Death Match) [** 1/2]
7. Masashi Takeda & Jaki Numazawa & Takumi Tsukamoto -vs- Masaya Takahashi & Takayuki Ueki & Toshiyuki Sakuda - (New Year Bloodbath Fluorescent Lighttubes Death Match) [** 1/4]

The first 2018 show to be uploaded to the new bjwcore.com site. Small show, but good house show action. I appreciated Kodaka/Hoshino in a match which mixed shoot-style and hardcore. Bizarre. They also had this years first real Lighttubes Death Match as well as a decent effort underneath.

The RealHero Archive

AJPW - "NEW YEAR WARS 2018 - DAY 3" - January 3, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 3, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,438 Fans)
1. Yohei Nakajima -vs- Yusuke Okada [*]
2. Ultimo Dragon & Koji Iwamoto -vs- Osamu Nishimura & Masanobu Fuchi [**]
3. Atsushi Aoki & Hikaru Sato -vs- Kotaro Suzuki & Keiichi Sato [* 3/4]
4. Tajiri & KAI -vs- Joe Doering & Black Tiger VII [* 1/2]
5. Ryouji Sai -vs- Naoya Nomura [** 1/2]
6. Kento Miyahara & Yoshitatsu & Yuma Aoyagi -vs- Zeus & The Bodyguard & Atsushi Maruyama [** 1/4]
7. Jun Akiyama & Takao Omori (c) -vs- Suwama & Shuji Ishikawa - (AJPW Tag Title) [** 3/4]

Solid show, but the main event took some time before it got interesting. Typical when there are tired old veterans involved. Nomura/Sai had it's moments, but I had hoped Nomura was going to look stronger in that match-up. The rest okay without being anything special.

AJPW - "NEW YEAR WARS 2018 - DAY 5" - January 14, 2018, Kofu - (1 3/4 hrs)
January 14, 2018, Kofu - Ai Messe Yamanashi (512 Fans)
1. Ganseki Tanaka -vs- Yusuke Okada [3/4*]
2. Atsushi Aoki & Naoshi Sano -vs- Black Tiger VII & Atsushi Maruyama [*]
3. KAI -vs- Yohei Nakajima -vs- Keiichi Sato - (3-Way) [1/2*]
4. Joe Doering & Hikaru Sato -vs- Ryouji Sai & Koji Iwamoto [* 1/4]
5. Suwama -vs- Yoshitatsu [* 1/2]
6. Kento Miyahara & Keiji Muto & Naoya Nomura & Yuma Aoyagi -vs- Jun Akiyama & Zeus & Yutaka Yoshie & Tajiri [**]

Small AJPW show which doesn't really offer anything apart from a fairly poor Yoshi Tatsu singles match. The guy has no chemistry for one-on-ones, but tagging with Miyahara he's shining like few others! Plus there's a guest appearance from Keiji Muto.

NOAH - "NAVIGATION FOR THE FUTURE" - January 6, 2018, Tokyo - (2 hrs)
January 6, 2018, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall (1,598 Fans)
1. Yoshinari Ogawa -vs- Junta Miyawaki [1/4*]
2. Mitsuya Nagai & Yuko Miyamoto & Cody Hall -vs- Mohammed Yone & Quiet Storm & Akitoshi Saito [* 1/2]
3. Minoru Tanaka & Hi69 & Hajime Ohara & Hitoshi Kumano & Seiya Morohashi -vs- Daisuke Harada & Tadasuke & HAYATA & YO-HEY & LEONA [** 1/4]
4. Takashi Sugiura -vs- Jay Bradley [1/2*]
5. Katsuhiko Nakajima & Masa Kitamiya -vs- Go Shiozaki & Atsushi Kotoge [**]
6. Naomichi Marufuji -vs- Maybach Taniguchi [* 3/4]
7. Taiji Ishimori (c) -vs- Andrew Everett - (Impact X-Division Title) [** 1/4]
8. Kenou (c) -vs- Kaito Kiyomiya - (GHC Title) [*** 1/4]

NOAH gets the year started in a positive way. 21 year old Kaito Kiyomiya has returned and it has a positive effect on everyone. The undercard lacked something special, but the main event was class.

DRAGON GATE - "OPEN THE NEW YEAR GATE 2018" - January 16, 2018, Tokyo - (2 3/4 hrs)
January 16, 2018, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall (1,850 Fans)
1. Kaito Ishida -vs- Yuki Yoshioka [*]
2. Ben-K & Genki Horiguchi & Jason Lee & Kotoka -vs- Kagetora & K-ness & Shun Skywalker & Mondai Ryu [* 1/4]
3. Takashi Yoshida & Yasushi Kanda -vs- BxB Hulk & U-T [*]
4. Shingo Takagi -vs- Punch Tominaga [1/2*]
5. Ryosuke ♡ Santa Maria & Hyosuke ♡ Santa Maria & Yosuke ♡ Santa Maria -vs- CIMA & Gamma & Don Fujii - (Kissing-Style Pinfall Match) [1/4*]
6. Desmond Xavier & Zachary Wentz -vs- Flamita & Bandido [** 1/4]
7. YAMATO & Kzy -vs- Masaaki Mochizuki & Susumu Yokosuka [* 3/4]
8. T-Hawk & Eita & El Lindaman -vs- Naruki Doi & Masato Yoshino & Big R Shimizu [**]

Stuggling to get into Dragon Gate these days. They are really running out of ideas with few changes to their roster the past 15 years. That's why their fresh batch of foreigners was the most positive thing on their first televised show of the year. The kissing match was abysmal! Really off-putting.

CMLL

CMLL - "Lunes Arena Puebla" - January 15, 2018, Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Puebla, Mexico - (2 1/4 hrs)
January 15, 2018, Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Puebla, Mexico - Arena Puebla
1. Meyer & París -vs- Guerrero Espacial & Sombra Diabólika [* 1/2]
2. Flyer & Príncipe Diamante & Rey Samuray -vs- Hijo del Signo & King Jaguar & Perverso [**]
3. Stigma & Audaz & Lestat -vs- Raziel & El Malayo & Universo 2000 Jr. [* 3/4]
4. Hechicero -vs- Guerrero Maya Jr. - (Lightning Match) [***]
5. Carístico & Kráneo & Valiente -vs- Vangellys & Rey Bucanero & Terrible [**]
6. Marco Corleone (c) -vs- Diamante Azul - (CMLL Title) [** 1/2]

The singles matches were easily the best thing going on in Puebla. Hechicero had a real good week, having one-fall matches with both Guerrero Maya Jr. and Kráneo, both stealing the shows they were on. Here Azul and Corleone had a cool battle of over-the-top-rope leaps!

CMLL - "Martes Arena Mexico" - January 16, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 16, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico
1. Pequeño Olímpico & Pequeño Violencia -vs- Acero & Aéreo [* 1/2]
2. La Vaquerita & La Jarochita & Sanely -vs- Dalys & Metálica & Reyna Isis [* 3/4]
3. Starman & Magia Blanca & Pegasso -vs- Virus & Nitro & Templario [* 1/2]
4. Sam Adonis & Johnny Idol & Vangellys -vs- Blue Panther & Blue Panther Jr. & The Panther [**]
5. Valiente & Stuka Jr. & Titán -vs- Mephisto & Ephesto & Luciferno [** 1/4]
6. Carístico -vs- Euforia [** 3/4]

With 18 men touring Japan with NJPW, it's the singles matches that saves CMLL's Mexican shows. Here Caristico (the original Mistico and original Sin Cara in WWE) does alright with Euforia. Unfortunately most of the show wasn't very interesting. They were missing a few good men here.

CMLL - "Super Viernes" - January 19, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 1/4 hrs)
January 19, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico
1. Mercurio & Pequeño Nitro -vs- Fantasy & Último Dragóncito [* 3/4]
2. Princesa Sugehit & Lady Maravilla & Marcela -vs- Zeuxis & Amapola & Tiffany [* 1/2]
3. Tiger & Raziel & Sagrado -vs- Rey Cometa & Esfinge & Tritón [** 1/2]
4. Kráneo -vs- Hechicero - (Lightning Match) [** 3/4]
5. Euforia & Felino & Mr. Niebla -vs- Valiente & Stuka Jr. & Titán [**]
6. Carístico & Diamante Azul & Marco Corleone -vs- Terrible & Rey Bucanero & Vangellys [** 1/4]

Kráneo/Hechicero is a real happy match! It'll put a smile on your face. The rest was very average, but leads to Azul getting a title match with Terrible next week. Maybe.

AAA

AAA - December 16, 2017, Apizaco, Tlaxcala, Mexico - (1 1/4 hrs)
December 16, 2017, Apizaco, Tlaxcala, Mexico - Plaza de Toros Monumental
1. Lady Shani (c) -vs- Faby Apache - (AAA Reina de Reinas Title) [* 1/2]
2. Dave The Clown & Mr. Aguila -vs- La Parka & Pagano [**]
3. Monster Clown & Murder Clown (c) -vs- Cuervo & Escoria -vs- Histeria & Psicosis - (AAA Tag Title; 3-Way) [** 1/4]

Like ROH and Impact, AAA are still in 2017 for a couple of more weeks. A semi-good show, leading up to a bigger show. Part two comes next week.

Lucha Libre Independents

IWRG - January 14, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - (1 hr)
January 14, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - Arena Naucalpan
1. Odín & Shadow Boy -vs- Demonio Infernal & Lunatic Xtreme [* 1/2]
2. Bombero Infernal -vs- Danny Casas [3/4*]
3. Dragón Yuki & Fly Warrior & Séptimo Rayo -vs- Emperador Azteca & Hijo del Alebrije & Veneno [* 1/2]
4. Cerebro Negro & Dr. Cerebro & Eterno -vs- Ovett & Trauma I & Trauma II [**]
5. Pantera I (c) -vs- Aramis - (IWRG Intercontinental Lightweight Title) [** 1/4]

Poor crowd, but the main event was likable as Aramis tries the dethrone an old panther. Otherwise it was anothing 'nothing special' offering from IWRG.

Luchando por Ellos - January 20, 2018, Mexico - (1 1/4 hrs)
January 20, 2018, Cuajimalpa, Ciudad de México, Mexico - Deportivo Morelos (2,000 Fans)
1. Luzbel Jr. -vs- Tanque Infernal -vs- Sucesor -vs- Rider -vs- Pequeño Warrior -vs- Canibal-vs- Súper Bufon -vs- Alfa -vs- Omega-vs- Hip Hop Man -vs- Saru - (Copa Lucha) [**]
2. El Hijo de Dos Caras -vs- Apolo [*]
3. Mini Rey Misterio & Sexy Star -vs- Lady Sensación & Mini Psicosis [* 3/4]
4. Caristíco & Tinieblas Jr -vs- Psicosis II & Luzbel Jr. [* 1/2]
5. Dos Caras Sr. & Octagón & Solar I -vs- Canek & Fuerza Guerrera & Pirata Morgan [*]
6. El Patrón Alberto & El Hijo del Fantasma -vs- Dr. Wagner Jr. & Cibernético [* 3/4]

This was Alberto's indy show. Allegedly for charity. Brought a few stars for a decent crowd. The matches wasn't anything special and the Casas family won everything they were involved in. 

UK

PROGRESS - "Live At The Dome #3" - January 10, 2018, UK - (2 1/4 hrs)
January 10, 2018, Tufnell Park, England, UK - The Dome
1. William Eaver -vs- Kip Sabian [* 1/4]
2. Nina Samuels -vs- Charli Evans [*]
3. Charlie Carter & Oisin Delaney -vs- Gabriel Kidd & Saxon Huxley [* 1/2]
4. TK Cooper -vs- Mike Bird [**]
5. Millie McKenzie -vs- Bea Priestley [* 3/4]
6. Roy Johnson -vs- Amir Jordan [*]
7. Maverick Mayhew -vs- Connor Mills - (Natural Progression Series V - Qualifying) [3/4*]

PROGRESS in house show mode without the stars. A little frustrating, but a good practice ground from the lowcarders. The main event unfortunately rubbed me the wrong way. Felt like kids having seen Japanese wrestling, imitating it backyard-style. Really, REALLY fake choreo of an epic fight. Not impossible they'll become big news one day, but they need a legit reality check first. I felt bad for them. They were not ready for this. This really wasn't good. Not surprised Will Ospreay was endorsing it. Great as he is, he himself has issues wrestling like a kid when he should be fighting like a man.

PROGRESS - "Chapter 61: Don't Touch Me ... Don't ... Don't Touch Me" - January 14, 2018, UK - (3 hrs)
January 14, 2018, Birmingham, England, UK - O2 Academy Birmingham
1. Zack Gibson & James Drake (c) -vs- Trent Seven & Tyler Bate - (PROGRESS Tag Title) [** 1/2]
2. Drew Parker -vs- Chris Ridgeway [**]
3. Charli Evans & Millie McKenzie -vs- Bea Priestley & Nina Samuels [* 1/2]
4. Pete Dunne (c) -vs- Joseph Conners - (WWE United Kingdom Title) [*** 1/4]
5. Will Ospreay -vs- Adam Brooks [*** 1/2]
6. Mark Haskins & Jimmy Havoc -vs- Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher [** 1/4]
7. Travis Banks (c) -vs- Chris Brookes - (PROGRESS Title) [** 3/4]

Then for the proper PROGRESS! Yes, this was more like it. Along with BJW's January 2 show and the CMLL/NJPW at Korakuen Day 1, as my favorite shows of the week. Ospreay brings something unexpectedly great out of Adam Brooks and Dunne gets down to business with Conners in a awesome way. The main event was also good, but a little too much shenanigans for my liking.

DEFIANT - "Defiant #6" - December 11, 2017, Leeds, England, UK - (1 hr)
December 11, 2017, Leeds, England, UK
1. Rampage -vs- Alex Gracie [* 1/2]
2. Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher -vs- Primate & Jimmy Havoc [* 3/4]
3. Joe Coffey & Travis Banks -vs- Joe Hendry & El Ligero [**]
4. Mark Haskins -vs- Martin Kirby [** 1/4]

Defiant continues to be medicore, but the inter-promotional feud with IPW:UK might turn things around. I've yet to explore IPW:UK, so it serves as an introduction.

Following-up with week two of marathon watching, trying to keep up with everything relevant as it comes available.

Top-20 Matches Week 2, 2018

1. December 30, 2017 - Pete Dunne (c) -vs- Jack Gallagher - (WWE United Kingdom Title) [****] (PROGRESS)
2. December 30, 2017 - Travis Banks (c) -vs- Will Ospreay - (PROGRESS Title) [*** 3/4] (PROGRESS)
3. January 2, 2018 - Joe Doering (c) -vs- Zeus - (Triple Crown Title) [*** 1/2] (AJPW)
4. January 1, 2018 - Masato Tanaka (c) -vs- Yusaku Obata - (ZERO1 Title) [*** 1/4] (ZERO1)
5. January 13, 2018 - Zack Sabre Jr. (c) -vs- Darby Allin - (EVOLVE Title) [*** 1/4] (EVOLVE)

6. January 7, 2018 - Zack Sabre Jr. (c) -vs- Martin Stone - (RevPro British Heavyweight Title) [*** 1/4] (RevPro)
7. January 14, 2018 - Shuji Ishikawa -vs- Kazusada Higuchi - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [***] (DDT)
8. January 14, 2018 - WALTER -vs- Zack Sabre Jr. [***] (EVOLVE)
9. January 6, 2018 - Pete Dunne -vs- El Phantasmo [***] (RevPro)
10. January 13, 2018 - WALTER & Timothy Thatcher -vs- Dominic Garrini & Tracy Williams [***] (EVOLVE)

11. January 10, 2018 - Shuji Ishikawa -vs- Yukio Sakaguchi - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 3/4] (DDT)
12. January 14, 2018 - Konosuke Takeshita -vs- Keisuke Ishii - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [** 3/4] (DDT)
13. January 7, 2018 - Pete Dunne -vs- Chris Brookes [** 3/4] (RevPro)
14. January 11, 2018 - Jiro Kuroshio -vs- Keisuke Ishii - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [** 3/4] (DDT)
15. January 13, 2018 - Shuji Ishikawa -vs- Soma Takao - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 3/4] (DDT)

16. January 14, 2018 - Shingo Takagi & Naomichi Marufuji -vs- Masato Tanaka & Masa Kitamiya [** 1/2] (Riki Choshu)
17. January 6, 2018 - Trent Seven & Tyler Bate (c) -vs- Chris Brookes & Travis Banks - (RevPro British Tag Title) [** 1/2] (RevPro)
18. January 13, 2018 - Kazusada Higuchi -vs- Mike Bailey - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 1/2] (DDT)
19. January 5, 2018 - Kagetsu & Hana Kimura (c) -vs- HZK & Momo Watanabe - (Goddesses of Stardom Title) [** 1/2] (STARDOM)
20. January 12, 2018 - Titán -vs- Rey Cometa - (Lighting Match) [** 1/2] (CMLL)

WWE Universe

WWE - "Monday Night RAW/Main Event" - January 8, 2018, Memphis, Tennessee, USA - (3 hrs)
January 8, 2018, Memphis, Tennessee, USA - FedEx Forum
Main Event #275
1. Alicia Fox -vs- Dana Brooke [1/2*]
2. Akira Tozawa & Mustafa Ali -vs- Ariya Daivari & Drew Gulak [*]
Monday Night RAW #1285
3. Sasha Banks & Bayley -vs- Mandy Rose & Sonya Deville [* 1/4]
4. Matt Hardy -vs- Curt Hawkins [*]
5. Enzo Amore (c) -vs- Cedric Alexander - (WWE Cruiserweight Title) [* 1/2]
6. Titus O'Neil & Apollo Crews -vs- Cesaro & Sheamus [*]
7. Samoa Joe -vs- Rhyno [3/4*]
8. Finn Balor & Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows -vs- Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins & Jason Jordan [** 1/4]

I'm loving WWE are resorting to going the Bullet Club direction. We all know they'll mess it up in the end for something WWE created, but lets just enjoy it for the moment. Otherwise it was a lackluster RAW.

WWE - "SmackDown Live/205 Live" - January 9, 2018, Birmingham, Alabama, USA - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 9, 2018, Birmingham, Alabama, USA - Legacy Arena at The BJCC
SmackDown Live #960
1. Becky Lynch -vs- Ruby Riott [*]
2. Harper & Rowan -vs- Konnor & Viktor [1/4*]
3. Mojo Rawley -vs- Zack Ryder - (WWE United States Title Tournament - Round 1) [*]
4. Fandango & Tyler Breeze -vs- Rusev & Aiden English [3/4*]
5. AJ Styles & Randy Orton & Shinsuke Nakamura -vs- Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn - (No-DQ/No-Count Out) [* 1/2]
205 Live #59
6. Gran Metalik -vs- TJP [* 3/4]
7. Cedric Alexander -vs- Tony Nese [* 1/4]

205 Live is back to being the bland guys show and Smackdown seems set to destroy everything they've got going for them. Rusev was just about to take over the world with "Rusev Day", so yeah, lets have him lose to Fandango. And the main event, just stop it with the Shane McMahon stuff. He's surpassing his sister's negative screen presence.

WWE - "NXT #282" - January 4, 2018, Atlanta, Georgia, USA - (1 hr)
January 4, 2018, Atlanta, Georgia, USA - Stage Center
1. Shayna Baszler -vs- Dakota Kai [1/2*]
2. Kassius Ohno -vs- Raul Mendoza [* 3/4]
3. Lars Sullivan -vs- Lio Rush [1/2*]
4. Bobby Fish & Kyle O'Reilly (c) -vs- Aleister Black & Roderick Strong - (NXT Tag Title) [**]

First proper NXT show of the year and it had a decent tag title defense, but the best thing was that little Baszler moment. Talk about twisting the arm in a nasty direction!

US Indys

IMPACT - "Impact #704" - November 9, 2017, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada - (1 1/2 hrs)
November 9, 2017, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada - Aberdeen Pavilion
1. Ethan Carter III -vs- Petey Williams [* 1/2]
2. Laurel Van Ness (c) -vs- KC Spinelli - (Impact Knockouts Title) [*]
3. Dezmond Xavier & Garza Jr. & Sonjay Dutt -vs- Trevor Lee & Caleb Konley & Hakim Zane [* 3/4]
4. Lashley & KM -vs- Eddie Edwards & Moose [* 1/2]

This weeks Impact wasn't anything special. They're pushing KM, which killed the main event. And the rest was routine stuff.

ROH - December 16, 2017, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA - (1 hr)
December 16, 2017, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA -     2300 Arena (800 Fans)
1. Silas Young (c) -vs- Simon Grimm - (ROH Television Title) [* 3/4]
2. Jay Briscoe & Mark Briscoe -vs- Ryan Nova & ? [1/4*]
3. Marty Scurll -vs- Flip Gordon [** 1/2]

I enjoyed the main event. While Flip can be a very generic flipper. Scurrl brings something different to the table and makes the match interesting. Silas's token defense had it's little moments.

EVOLVE - "EVOLVE 98" - January 13, 2018, New York, USA - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 13, 2018, New York, USA - La Boom
1. Jason Kincaid -vs- Brody King -vs- Jarek 1-20 -vs- Snoop Strikes - (4-Way) [* 1/4]
2. WALTER & Timothy Thatcher -vs- Dominic Garrini & Tracy Williams [***]
3. Chris Dickinson -vs- Parrow - (No-DQ) [*]
4. AR Fox -vs- Matt Riddle [** 1/4]
5. Austin Theory (c) -vs- Fred Yehi - (FIP Title; Anything Goes Match) [**]
6. Jaka -vs- Keith Lee [** 1/2]
7. Zack Sabre Jr. (c) -vs- Darby Allin - (EVOLVE Title) [*** 1/4]

EVOLVE - "EVOLVE 99" - January 14, 2018, New York, USA - (3 hrs)
January 14, 2018, New York, USA - La Boom
1. Brody King -vs- Darby Allin [* 1/2]
2. Jarek 1:20 -vs- Snoop Strikes [3/4*]
3. Kyle the Beast -vs- Wheeler YUTA [1/2*]
4. Austin Theory -vs- Jason Kincaid [* 1/4]
5. Timothy Thatcher -vs- Fred Yehi [** 1/2]
6. Odinson & Parrow -vs- Dominic Garrini & Tracy Williams - (Tornado Tag Match) [*]
7. Matt Riddle -vs- Jaka [** 1/4]
8. WALTER -vs- Zack Sabre Jr. [***]
9. Keith Lee (c) -vs- Chris Dickinson - (WWN Title) [**]

EVOLVE is always a mixed bag, but when you have such guys as Zack Sabre Jr, WALTER, Matt Riddle, Keith Lee, etc, you can sit through the shit knowing some great stuff will come. 

NJPW

No shows this week.

DDT Universe

BASARA - "VAJRA 55 ~ UTAGE" - January 6, 2018, Tokyo - (1/2 hr)
January 6, 2018, Tokyo - Shin-Kiba 1st RING (210 Fans)
1. Trans Am Ryuichi & FUMA & Yusuke Kubo & SAGAT -vs- Isami Kodaka & Tank Nagai & Takumi Tsukamoto & Yasu Urano - (New Year Elimination Match) [* 3/4]

BASARA - “VAJRA 56 ~OSAKA WINTER TEAM AND PEOPLE~” - January 8, 2018, Osaka - (2 1/4 hrs)
January 8, 2018, Osaka Hirano Community Hall (204 Fans)
1. Akiyori Takizara & Yuki Aoki -vs- Daichi Kazato & Takato Nakano [* 1/4]
2. Kuishinbo Kamen -vs- Gouma Ryu -vs- Atsushi Maruyama - (Reversal Pro Wrestling Trial 3-Way) [1/4*]
3. Manabu Hara -vs- SAGAT [* 1/4]
4. Trans-Am Ryuichi & Yusuke Kubo & HUB -vs- Ryuichi Sekine & Ryota Nakatsu & Fuminori Abe [* 1/2]
5. Takumi Tsukamoto & Yasu Urano -vs- Naoki Tanizaki & Shoichi Uchida [*]
6. Isami Kodaka (c) -vs- FUMA - (Union MAX Title) [**]

The BASARA brand suffers from not understanding what it wants to be. A bunch of random indy ideas mixed together with only really Isami Kodaka coming out of it undamaged. Not too impressed with my first look at their brand.

DDT "D-OH GRAND PRIX 2018 IN OSAKA 2DAYS - DAY 2" - January 8, 2018, Osaka, Japan - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 8, 2018, Osaka Hirano Kumin Hall (335 Fans Fans)
1. Danshoku Dino Sometimes Throws Away The Heavy Responsibilities Of A Producer To Hit The Desire Of Man New Year’s Special 9-Person Battle Royal [*]
2. Keisuke Ishii -vs- Masahiro Takanashi - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [**]
3. Soma Takao -vs- Mike Bailey - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [**]
4. HARASHIMA -vs- Jiro Kuroshio - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [** 1/4]
5. Daisuke Sasaki -vs- Kazusada Higuchi - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 1/2]
6. Konosuke Takeshita -vs- Joey Ryan - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [* 1/2]
7. Shuji Ishikawa -vs- Akito - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 1/4]

DDT - "D-OH GRAND PRIX 2018 IN NERIMA" - January 10, 2018, Tokyo - (2 1/4 hrs)
January 10, 2018, Tokyo - Nerima Coconeri Hall (356 Fans)
1. Mike Bailey & Makoto Oishi & Shunma Katsumata & MAO -vs- KUDO & Masahiro Takanashi & Kouki Iwasaki & Nobuhiro Shimatani [* 1/2]
2. Kazusada Higuchi -vs- Akito - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [**]
3. Joey Ryan -vs- Keisuke Ishii - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [* 3/4]
4. Daisuke Sasaki -vs- Soma Takao - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [**]
5. Tetsuya Endo -vs- Jiro Kuroshio - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [** 1/2]
6. Shuji Ishikawa -vs- Yukio Sakaguchi - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 3/4]
7. Konosuke Takeshita -vs- HARASHIMA - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [** 1/4]

DDT - "D-OH GRAND PRIX 2018 IN YOKOHAMA" - January 11, 2018, Yokohama - (2 hrs)
January 11, 2018, Yokohama Radiant Hall (241 Fans)
1. HARASHIMA & Antonio Honda & Mizuki Watase & Rekka -vs- Kazusada Higuchi & MAO & Daiki Shimomura & Nonbuhiro Shimatani [* 1/4]
2. Tetsuya Endo -vs- Joey Ryan - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [* 1/2]
3. Soma Takao -vs- Akito - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [* 3/4]
4. Jiro Kuroshio -vs- Keisuke Ishii - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [** 3/4]
5. Mike Bailey -vs- Yukio Sakaguchi - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 1/2]
6. Masahiro Takanashi -vs- Konosuke Takeshita - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [**]
7. Daisuke Sasaki -vs- Shuji Ishikawa - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 1/4]

DDT - “D-KING GRAND PRIX 2018 IN SHIMIZU” - January 13, 2018, Shizuoka - (2 3/4 hrs)
January 13, 2018, Shizuoka Shimizu Marine Bill (235 Fans)
1. Makoto Oishi & Shunma Katsumata & MAO -vs- Konosuke Takeshita & Antonio Honda & Kouki Iwasaki -vs- Daisuke Sasaki & Mad Paulie & Nobuhiro Shimatani [*]
2. Akito -vs- Yukio Sakaguchi - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 1/4]
3. Joey Ryan -vs- Jiro Kuroshio - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [3/4*]
4. Shuji Ishikawa -vs- Soma Takao - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 3/4]
5. HARASHIMA -vs- Masahiro Takanashi - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [**]
6. Kazusada Higuchi -vs- Mike Bailey - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 1/2]
7. Keisuke Ishii -vs- Tetsuya Endo - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [** 1/2]

DDT "D-KING GRAND PRIX 2018 IN SHINKIBA" - January 14, 2018, Tokyo - (3 hrs)
January 14, 2018, Tokyo - Shin-Kiba 1st RING (328 Fans)
1. Makoto Oishi & Shunma Katsumata & MAO -vs- Kouki Iwasaki & Mizuki Watase & Yuki Ueno [* 1/2]
2. KUDO -vs- Akito -vs- Mad Paulie -vs- Toru Owashi -vs- Kazuki Hirata -vs- Antonio Honda - (P-King Grand Prix) [1/2*]
3. Soma Takao -vs- Yukio Sakaguchi - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [**]
4. Joey Ryan -vs- Masahiro Takanashi - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [*]
5. Mike Bailey -vs- Daisuke Sasaki - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 1/2]
6. Shuji Ishikawa -vs- Kazusada Higuchi - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [***]
7. Konosuke Takeshita -vs- Keisuke Ishii - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [** 3/4]
8. HARASHIMA -vs- Tetsuya Endo - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [** 1/4]

We can clearly say the D-Oh Grand Prix was a success. A indy G-1 with a bunch of good matches and a excellent service from the DDTUniverse.com airing all of the shows live! Kept the nonsense to a minimum too.

STARDOM

Stardom - "NEW YEAR STARS 2018 - DAY 2" - January 5, 2018, Nagoya, Japan - (1 3/4 hrs)
January 5, 2018, Nagoya, Japan - Nagoya City Village Sports Center (255 Fans)
1. Konami & Hiromi Mimura -vs- Kaori Yoneyama & Shiki Shibusawa [*]
2. Mari Apache & Nicole Savoy -vs- Kay Lee Ray & Xia Brookside [* 3/4]
3. Sumire Natsu -vs- Io Shirai -vs- AZM - (3-Way) [* 1/2]
4. Rachael Ellering & Miranda -vs- Jungle Kyona & Natsuko Tora [* 1/4]
5. Kagetsu & Hana Kimura (c) -vs- HZK & Momo Watanabe - (Goddesses of Stardom Title) [** 1/2]

Stardom - "NEW YEAR STARS 2018 - DAY 3" - January 6, 2018, Osaka, Japan - (1 1/4 hrs)
January 6, 2018, Osaka, Japan - Osaka Konohana Ward Citizen Hall (265 Fans)
1. Hiromi Mimura & Konami -vs- Mari Apache & Shiki Shibusawa [* 1/4]
2. HZK & Momo Watanabe -vs- Kay Lee Ray & Xia Brookside [* 1/2]
3. Nicole Savoy & Rachael Ellering & Miranda -vs- Kaori Yoneyama & Jungle Kyona & Natsuko Tora [* 1/4]
4. Kagetsu -vs- AZM [* 1/2]
5. Io Shirai -vs- Sumire Natsu [* 3/4]

Two shows uploaded to their service this week. Light fun shows if you prefer your product cute, but one match stood-out. The Goddesses of Stardom Title was at least good and shows they can deliver when they want to. The main focus however is building up for the Korakuen Hall show on January 21st.

The RealHero Archive

They uploaded a ton of shows this week, many older ones from 2012-13, as well as from December 2017, but I'll focus on the ones from 2018...

ZERO1 - "HAPPY NEW YEAR" - January 1, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (2 hrs)
January 1, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (835 Fans)
1. Ganseki Tanaka & Tsugutaka Sato -vs- Towa Iwasaki & Shoji Fukushima [* 1/2]
2. Shinjiro Otani & Yuko Miyamoto -vs- TARU & Yuji Hino [* 1/4]
3. Super Tiger (c) -vs- KAMIKAZE -vs- Yoshikazu Yokoyama -vs- Hartley Jackson - (NWA UN Title; 4-Way) [* 1/2]
4. Sean Guinness (c) -vs- Tatsuhito Takaiwa - (NWA Junior Title & International Junior Title) [** 1/4]
5. Ikuto Hidaka & Takuya Sugawara (c) -vs- SUGI & Masamune - (NWA International Lightweight Tag Title) [** 1/2]
6. Kohei Sato & Hideki Suzuki (c) -vs- Yutaka Yoshie & Masayuki Okamoto - (NWA Intercontinental Tag Title) [**]
7. Masato Tanaka (c) -vs- Yusaku Obata - (ZERO1 Title) [*** 1/4]

Not as fun as last year’s January 1 show, but ZERO1 has been in such a slump since it’s positive they actually delivered a good show for the start of 2018. Let’s hope Z1 can turn things around. The main event was a brutal affair!

AJPW - "NEW YEAR WARS 2018" - January 2, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (2 hrs)
January 2, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,522 Fans)
1. Keiichi Sato -vs- Yusuke Okada [**]
2. Masanobu Fuchi & Dick Togo & Atsushi Maruyama -vs- Osamu Nishimura & Ultimo Dragon & Yohei Nakajima [* 1/2]
3. Kento Miyahara & Yoshitatsu & Naoya Nomura & Yuma Aoyagi -vs- Ryouji Sai & The Bodyguard & KAI & Hikaru Sato [**]
4. 18-Man New Year Openweight Battle Royal [* 3/4]
5. Suwama & Shuji Ishikawa & Atsushi Aoki -vs- Jun Akiyama & Takao Omori & Koji Iwamoto [** 1/4]
6. Tajiri (c) -vs- Kotaro Suzuki - (AJPW Junior Title) [**]
7. Joe Doering (c) -vs- Zeus - (Triple Crown Title) [*** 1/2]

AJPW gets off to a positive start, getting the most out of the undercard with quick matches and continuing to deliver in the main events as Zeus gets his Triple Crown Title shot! The main event is one of this week's big matches.

SENDAI GIRLS - "New Year Senjo 2018" - January 6, 2018, Tokyo - (2 hrs)
January 6, 2018, Tokyo - Shinjuku FACE (485 Fans)
1. Ami Sato -vs- Manami [*]
2. Eiger -vs- Sakura Hirota [1/4*]
3. Chihiro Hashimoto & Hiroyo Matsumoto & Hikaru Shida -vs- Aja Kong & Heidi Katrina & Cassandra Miyagi [** 1/2]
4. DASH Chisako & Hana Kimura -vs- Alex Lee & Mika Shirahime [** 1/4]
5. Ayako Hamada -vs- Meiko Satomura [**]

The veterans didn’t do this show any favors. But there was some positives here, let’s hope 2018 keeps the attention of the younger girls.

Riki Choshu Produce - "POWER HALL 2018 ~ SET BACK THE CLOCK" - January 14, 2018, Tokyo - (2 hrs)
January 14, 2018, Tokyo - Korakuen Hall (1,687 Fans)
1. Katsuhiko Nakajima -vs- Keisuke Okuda [* 1/2]
2. Andrew Everett & Jay Bradley -vs- Daisuke Harada & Tadasuke [**]
3. Takashi Sugiura & Yoshinari Ogawa & LEONA -vs- Maybach Taniguchi & Hajime Ohara & Mitsuhiro Yoshida [**]
4. Go Shiozaki & Quiet Storm & Hideyoshi Kamitani -vs- Shiro Koshinaka & AKIRA & Akitoshi Saito [** 1/4]
5. Shingo Takagi & Naomichi Marufuji -vs- Masato Tanaka & Masa Kitamiya [** 1/2]
6. Riki Choshu & Kota Ibushi & Gota Ihashi -vs- Tatsumi Fujinami & Daisuke Sekimoto & Taka Michinoku [** 1/4]

Fun show from Riki Choshu, but of course for these one-off shows it's mostly exhibition wrestling than anything important. At least we got a bunch of unique matches. Who's idea was it to bring Gota Ihashi into this?! Well, he was both the heart and frustration of this crash!
 

CMLL

CMLL - "Lunes Arena Puebla" - January 8, 2018, Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Puebla, Mexico - (1 3/4 hrs)
January 8, 2018, Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Puebla, Mexico - Arena Puebla
1. Ares el Guerrero & Guerrero Espacial -vs- Centella Roja & Vega [* 1/2]
2. Flyer & Millenium & Pegasso -vs- Hijo del Signo & Fuerza Chicana & Police Man [* 3/4]
3. Stuka Jr. & Guerrero Maya Jr. & Stigma -vs- Hechicero & Polvora & Universo 2000 Jr. [** 1/4]
4. Mr. Niebla & Felino & Euforia -vs- Valiente & Dragon Lee & El Soberano Jr. [**]
5. Diamante Azul & Pierroth & Gran Guerrero -vs- Marco Corleone & El Terrible & Rey Bucanero [* 1/4]

The first Arena Puebla show to air on Youtube and the main event was a shocker! Their most protected guy, Marco Corleone, jobbed to Diamante Azul in two quick falls! They are really making Azul the focus before 18 of their top stars go over to Japan for the joint tour with New Japan. CMLL has a big enough roster to cover for their loses the next couple of weeks, they just got to make things interesting with the guys they have and Azul will be challenging for two belts during that time.

CMLL - "Martes Arena Mexico" - January 9, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 hrs)
January 9, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico
1. Magia Blanca & Retro -vs- Akuma & Yago [* 1/2]
2. Drone & Fuego & Star Jr. -vs- Nitro & Arkángel de la Muerte & Sangre Azteca [**]
3. Puma -vs- Disturbio - (Lightning Match) [* 3/4]
4. Sam Adonis & Johnny Idol & Okumura -vs- Niebla Roja & Ángel de Oro & Rey Cometa [** 1/2]
5. Rush & Dragón Lee & Soberano Jr. -vs- Máscara Año 2000 & Sansón & Cuatrero [**]
6. Carístico & Atlantis & Volador Jr. -vs- Último Guerrero & Gran Guerrero & Euforia [* 1/4]

The international trio of Adonis, Idol & Okumura are getting their profile heightened. Now each one have the American, New Zealand and Japanese flags on their tights. And with Adonis coming off a hair loss to Negro Casas, he was sporting a long curly wig which came off during the match for a crowd pleasing moment. And I got to say he looks much better bold than with their lightweight blond hair of his. Something a little more Steve Austin about that. This stable might get hot during 2018. Second day in a row the main event was the least interesting match on the show.

CMLL - "Super Viernes" - January 12, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 1/4 hrs)
January 12, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico
1. Eléctrico & Stukita -vs- Mercurio & Pequeño Nitro [* 3/4]
2. Raziel & Cancerbero & Universo 2000 Jr. -vs- Pegasso & Flyer & Stigma [**]
3. Virus & Sagrado & Tiger -vs- Blue Panther Jr. & The Panther & Tritón [** 1/4]
4. Titán -vs- Rey Cometa - (Lighting Match) [** 1/2]
5. Valiente & Blue Panther & Stuka Jr. -vs- Mephisto & Ephesto & Sam Adonis [** 1/4]
6. Carístico & Diamante Azul & Marco Corleone -vs- Terrible & Kráneo & Vangellys [**]

Good, but nothing exceptional. A lot of the stars were missing because of the Japan tour, so I guess they did okay covering up. Titán/Rey Cometa had a good speed match and Azul's big push continues. That and Adonis getting a new American flag.... with a bald Trump!

AAA

AAA - December 2, 2017,    Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico - (1 1/4 hrs)
December 2, 2017,    Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico - Arena Xalapa
1. Histeria & Psicosis -vs- Dave The Clown & La Parka [* 1/2]
2. Monster Clown & Murder Clown (c) -vs- Cuervo & Escoria - (AAA Tag Title) [* 3/4]
3. Dr. Wagner Jr. & El Hijo del Fantasma & Psycho Clown -vs- El Texano Jr. & Hernandez & Rey Escorpion [**]

AAA - December 9, 2017, Ciudad de Mexico, Distrito Federal, Mexico - (1/2 hr)
December 9, 2017, Ciudad de Mexico, Distrito Federal, Mexico - Gimnasio Olímpico Juan de la Barrera
1. La Parka Negra & Joe Lider & Super Fly -vs- Aerostar & Drago & Raptor [* 3/4]
2. La Parka & Cuervo & Escoria -vs- Dave The Clown & Monster Clown & Murder Clown [**]

Real messy wrestling from this weeks AAA output. Part of Vampiro's lazy booking, just throwing a ton of pointless stuff in there to create heat. Sure, some of it was wild, but ugly in every way possible.

AAA - January 12, 2018,    Ciudad de Toluca, Mexico - (1/2 hr)
January 12, 2018,    Ciudad de Toluca, Mexico - Plaza Sendero Toluca
1. Hahastary & Tiger Boy -vs- Ashley & Angelikal [1/2*]
2. Máscara de Bronce & Raptor -vs- Carta Brava Jr & Mocho Cota Jr [* 3/4]
3. La Parka & Niño Hamburguesa -vs- Dark Cuervo & Dark Scoria [* 1/2]

Then for something different. Hand-held mall show, far away from the glitz and glamour of AAA's TV taped shows. The fans were still packed and hot for this. Nothing must see, but a alternative AAA world.

Lucha Libre Independents

IWRG - January 7, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - (1 1/2 hrs)
January 7, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - Arena Naucalpan
1. Dragon Horus & Super Brazo Jr. -vs- Leroy & Lunatic Extreme [*]
2. Odin -vs- Shadow Boy [* 1/4]
3. Capo Del Norte & Capo Del Sur & Obett -vs- Chico Che & Danny Casas & Veneno [* 1/2]
4. Trauma I & Trauma II -vs- El Hijo del Pantera & El Pantera II [**]
5. Aramis -vs- Black Dragon -vs- Alas de Acero -vs- Diablo Jr. I -vs- Dinamic Black -vs- Dragon Fly -vs- El Hijo del Alebrije -vs- El Pantera I -vs- Eterno -vs- Freelance -vs- Heddi Karaoui -vs- Imposible -vs- Leo -vs- Mike -vs- Rafy -vs- Teelo - (Zona de Ejecucion) [** 1/4]

This weeks IWRG show was a little more traditional, slower lucha style. A couple of good matches, but this promotion still got to grow on me.

UK

DEFIANT - "DEFIANY #5" - December 11, 2017, Leeds, England, UK - (1 hr)
December 11, 2017, Leeds, England, UK
1. Jurn Simmons -vs- Luke Menzies [* 1/4]
2. Zack Gibson -vs- Flash Morgan Webster [* 3/4]
3. Mike Bailey -vs- Drake [**]
4. Austin Aries -vs- Travis Banks - (Defiant Title) [** 1/4]

DEFIANT is basically your cost-saving version WhatCulture. Not really feeling the product that much, even with Aries there. We'll see what they can do once the rebranding gets established.

PROGRESS - "Chapter 60: Unboxing Live! 2 - Unbox Harder" - December 30, 2017, Camden, England, UK - (3 1/2)
December 30, 2017, Camden, England, UK -     Electric Ballroom
1. Tyler Bate & Chris Brookes & James Drake & Mark Davis -vs- Trent Seven & Zack Gibson & Inflatable Kid Lykos & Kyle Fletcher - (Elimination) [** 1/2]
2. Jack Sexsmith -vs- Joe Coffey [**]
3. Millie McKenzie -vs- Candyfloss -vs- Chakara -vs- Charlie Morgan -vs- Charli Evans -vs- Sierra Loxton - (6-Way) [* 1/2]
4. Jimmy Havoc & Mark Haskins -vs- Clint Margera & Drew Parker - (Hardcore) [* 3/4]
5. Rampage Brown -vs- Morgan Webster [** 1/2]
6. Travis Banks (c) -vs- Will Ospreay - (PROGRESS Title) [*** 3/4]
7. Pete Dunne (c) -vs- Jack Gallagher - (WWE United Kingdom Title) [****]

PROGRESS is my favorite promotion in the UK at the moment and this was sweet! Especially the last two matches which were pretty amazing! Those are essentials. Just to think the generic Brit gimmick that is Jack Gallagher can barely have a good match in the big WWE, but here in a guest appearance rules the earth!

RevPro - "Live At The Cockpit 24" - January 6, 2018, Marylebone, England, UK - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 6, 2018, Marylebone, England, UK - The Cockpit
1. Martin Stone -vs- Dan Magee [**]
2. Zoe Lucas -vs- Zan Phoenix - (RevPro British Women's Title Tournament - Round 1) [*]
3. Deonna Purrazzo -vs- Sammii Jayne - (RevPro British Women's Title Tournament - Round 1) [* 1/4]
4. Josh Bodom & Zack Gibson -vs- Kurtis Chapman & Ryan Smile [* 1/2]
5. Pete Dunne -vs- El Phantasmo [***]
6. Jinny -vs- Nina Samuels - (RevPro British Women's Title Tournament - Round 1) [* 1/2]
7. Millie McKenzie -vs- Charli Evans - (RevPro British Women's Title Tournament - Round 1) [* 1/4]
8. Trent Seven & Tyler Bate (c) -vs- Chris Brookes & Travis Banks - (RevPro British Tag Title) [** 1/2]

RevPro shows can go either way. Here a mixed bag, with the women's matches being fairly lackluster, but Dunne and Mustache Mountain showing their worth!

RevPro - "Live At The Cockpit 25" - January 7, 2018, Marylebone, England, UK - (2 1/4 hrs)
January 7, 2018, Marylebone, England, UK - The Cockpit
1. Gideon Grey -vs- Eddie Dennis [* 1/2]
2. Deonna Purrazzo -vs- Zoe Lucas - (RevPro British Women's Title Tournament - Semi-Final) [* 3/4]
3. Jinny -vs- Millie McKenzie - (RevPro British Women's Title Tournament - Semi-Final) [*]
4. Will Ospreay & Travis Banks & Kurtis Chapman -vs- Zack Gibson & Josh Bodom & Rob Lias [**]
5. Pete Dunne -vs- Chris Brookes [** 3/4]
6. Charli Evans & Nina Samuels -vs- Sammii Jayne & Zan Phoenix [* 1/2]
7. Zack Sabre Jr. (c) -vs- Martin Stone - (RevPro British Heavyweight Title) [*** 1/4]
8. Jinny -vs- Deonna Purrazzo - (RevPro British Women's Title Tournament - Final) [** 1/4]

Again the women's matches don't bring enough, but I guess they need to find their way being fairly fresh on the scene. And again you have Pete Dunne, and most of all ZSJ showing pure class!
 

Okay, I know this is overkill in every way, but since I have a lot of free time at the start of this year I decided to watch and explore wrestling from all over. Trying out a few subscription services and whatever archives are out there to see what's going on in the world. This week I watched a ton of US, Japanese and Mexican wrestling and this was how the experience was. Almost a flashback from the days when I used to do those PUNQ's Guide to Japanese Wrestling threads back in 2006 to 2010. While I watched "too much" (if there is such a thing), the variety helps make it more enjoyable. Hell, even WWE became easier to watch because it so different to the rest of the wrestling world. So this is what became available last week at the various services.

Top-20 Matches Week 1, 2018

1. January 4, 2018 - Kenny Omega (c) -vs- Chris Jericho - (IWGP US Title) [**** 1/2] (NJPW)
2. January 4, 2018 - Kazuchika Okada (c) -vs- Tetsuya Naito - (IWGP Title) [**** 1/4] (NJPW)
3. January 4, 2018 - Marty Scurrl (c) -vs- Will Ospreay -vs- KUSHIDA -vs- Hiromu Takahashi - (IWGP Junior Title; 4-Way) [****] (NJPW)
4. January 4, 2018 - Kota Ibushi -vs- Cody [****] (NJPW)
5. January 5, 2018 - Jiro Kuroshio -vs- Konosuke Takeshita - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [*** 3/4] (DDT)

6. January 4, 2018 - SHO & YOH (c) -vs- Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson - (IWGP Junior Tag Title) [*** 3/4] (NJPW)
7. January 5, 2018 - Shuji Ishikawa -vs- Mike Bailey - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [*** 1/2] (DDT)
8. January 6, 2018 - Niebla Roja -vs- Gran Guerrero [*** 1/2] (CMLL)
9. January 6, 2018 - Titán & Pegasso -vs- Virus & Raziel [*** 1/4] (CMLL)
10. January 6, 2018 - Sansón & Cuatrero & Forastero -vs- Guerrero Maya Jr. & Drone & Esfinge [*** 1/4] (CMLL)

11. January 4, 2018 - Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. (c) -vs- "King of Darkness" EVIL & SANADA - (IWGP Tag Title) [*** 1/4] (NJPW)
12. December 9, 2017 - El Hijo del Fantasma & Pagano & Psycho Clown -vs- Averno & Chessman & El Texano Jr. [*** 1/4] (AAA)
13. January 4, 2018 - Minoru Suzuki (c) -vs- Hirooki Goto - (NEVER Openweight Title; Hair vs Title; No Seconds Death Match) [***] (NJPW)
14. January 6, 2018 - Soberano Jr. -vs- Rey Cometa [***] (CMLL)
15. January 6, 2018 - Último Guerrero & Valiente -vs- Cavernario & Volador Jr. [***] (CMLL)

16. January 6, 2018 - Flyer & Audaz & Magia Blanca -vs- Yago & El Coyote & Templario [** 3/4] (CMLL)
17. January 1, 2018 - Roman Reigns (c) -vs- Samoa Joe - (WWE Intercontinental Title) [** 3/4] (WWE)
18. January 1, 2018 - Negro Casas -vs- Sam Adonis - (Hair vs Hair) [** 3/4] (CMLL)
19. January 3, 2018 - HARASHIMA & Kazusada Higuchi & Jiro Kuroshio -vs- Konosuke Takeshita & Shuji Ishikawa & Mike Bailey [** 1/2] (DDT)
20. January 5, 2018 - Yukio Sakaguchi -vs- Kazusada Higuchi - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 1/2] (DDT)
 

WWE Universe

WWE - "Monday Night RAW/Main Event" - January 1, 2018, Miami, Florida, USA - (3 hrs)
January 1, 2018, Miami, Florida, USA - American Airlines Arena
Main Event #274
1. Dana Brooke -vs- Mickie James [3/4*]
2. Akira Tozawa -vs- Tony Nese [* 1/4]
Monday Night RAW #1284
3. Jason Jordan -vs- Cesaro [** 1/4]
4. Bray Wyatt -vs- Apollo Crews [* 1/4]
5. Asuka -vs- Alexa Bliss [* 1/2]
6. Braun Strowman -vs- Rhyno [3/4*]
7. Roman Reigns (c) -vs- Samoa Joe - (WWE Intercontinental Title) [** 3/4]
8. Goldust & Cedric Alexander -vs- Ariya Daivari & Drew Gulak [*]
9. Finn Balor & Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows -vs- Elias & Bo Dallas & Curtis Axel [* 1/4]

Raw has become a lot more watchable since they started doing longer matches a few weeks back. While not all the guys are "big match" guys, they gain a lot of ring experience and they put more effort into the lay-out for the matches, which is more to my appeal as talk is cheap, especially WWE style talking. I'm getting into Jordan's cocky persona and Reigns/Joe had a real good TV bout.

WWE - "SmackDown Live/205 Live" - January 2, 2018, Orlando, Florida, USA - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 2, 2018, Orlando, Florida, USA - Amway Center
SmackDown Live #959
1. Jey Uso & Jimmy Uso (c) -vs- Chad Gable & Shelton Benjamin - (WWE SmackDown Tag Title) [**]
2. Xavier Woods -vs- Aiden English - (WWE United States Title Tournament - Round 1) [* 1/2]
3. Ruby Riott & Liv Morgan & Sarah Logan -vs- Natalya & Tamina & Carmella [*]
4. Sami Zayn -vs- AJ Styles [* 3/4]
205 Live #58
5. TJP -vs- Akira Tozawa [* 1/2]
6. Goldust & Cedric Alexander -vs- Ariya Daivari & Drew Gulak [* 1/4]

SmackDown on the other hand continues to be a rocky road. Not a major fan of the Shane McMahon stuff, and I feel they're bringing the wrestlers down with them. But of course this was Aiden English Day! So it was nto all bad. Good tag title bout, even with the screwy mess that concluded it.

WWE - "NXT #281" - Novemebr 17, 2017, San Antonio, Texas, USA - (1/2 hr)
November 17, 2017, San Antonio, Texas, USA - Aztec Theatre
1. Drew McIntyre (c) -vs- Adam Cole - (NXT Title) [** 1/4]
*Special Referee: Shawn Michaels

The NXT show was mostly a recap of 2017 show, but they did have this special exlusive. Shawn Michaels as guest referee for the Drew/Cole title match! Good fun, but perhaps more shenanigans than excitement in that one.

IMPACT

IMPACT - Air Date: January 4, 2018 - (1 1/2 hrs)
November 9, 2017, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada - Aberdeen Pavilion
1. Trevor Lee (c) -vs- Taiji Ishimori - (Impact X-Division Title) [**]
2. Ethan Carter III (c) -vs- Fallah Bahh -vs- Matt Sydal - (IMPACT Grand Title; 3-Rounds) [* 1/2]
3. Dan Lambert -vs- James Storm - (Career vs Career) [1/4*]
4. Chandler Park -vs- Jon Bolen [1/4*]
WrestlePro - December 9, 2017, Rahway, New Jersey, USA - Rahway Rec Center
5. Eli Drake (c) -vs- Alberto El Patron - (Impact Global Title) [**]
November 9, 2017, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada - Aberdeen Pavilion
6. Dave Crist & Jake Crist (c) -vs- Ortiz & Santana - (Impact Tag Title) [** 1/4]

Impact was back after two weeks of "2017 in review" repeats. Of course they're still stuck with the TV tapings from November. This had a real anti-climatic exit for James Storm and totally uninteresting Park brother debut, but oVe had their best Impact match since first appearing for the company and the bout where Ishimori won the X-Division Title finally aired. About time as Ishimori has already defended the belt in Japan weeks ago. Plus as part of their extended partnership with other promotions we got a Drake/Alberto title match from New Jersey's WrestlePro.
 

NJPW

NJPW - "BIG PRO-WRESTLING FESTIVAL 2018" - January 3, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (1 hr)
January 3, 2018, Tokyo - Differ Ariake (1,700 Fans)
1. Tiger Mask & Ren Narita -vs- Jushin Thunder Liger & Tetsuhiro Yagi [* 1/2]
2. Satoshi Kojima & Katsuya Kitamura -vs- Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Tomoyuki Oka [* 3/4]
3. Yuji Nagata & Hirai Kawato -vs- Manabu Nakanishi & Shota Umino [* 1/2]

Part of the build-up to the Dome festival where they annually book the least interesting matches they possibly can. Better than last year's pre-Dome show, much due to eager rookies working hard.

NJPW - "WRESTLE KINGDOM 12 IN TOKYO DOME" - January 4, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (6 hrs)
January 4, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Tokyo Dome (34,995 Fans)
1. 21-Man New Japan Rumble [** 1/2]
2. SHO & YOH (c) -vs- Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson - (IWGP Junior Tag Title) [*** 3/4]
3. Bad Luck Fale & Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa (c) -vs- Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano & Beretta -vs- Togi Makabe & Juice Robinson & Ryusuke Taguchi -vs- Takashi Iizuka & Zack Sabre Jr. & Taichi -vs- Michael Elgin & Raymond Rowe & Hanson - (NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Title; Gauntlet Match) [** 1/2]
4. Kota Ibushi -vs- Cody [****]
5. Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. (c) -vs- "King of Darkness" EVIL & SANADA - (IWGP Tag Title) [*** 1/4]
6. Minoru Suzuki (c) -vs- Hirooki Goto - (NEVER Openweight Title; Hair vs Title; No Seconds Death Match) [***]
7. Marty Scurrl (c) -vs- Will Ospreay -vs- KUSHIDA -vs- Hiromu Takahashi - (IWGP Junior Title; 4-Way) [****]
8. Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) -vs- Jay White - (IWGP Intercontinental Title; No-DQ) [** 1/4]
9. Kenny Omega (c) -vs- Chris Jericho - (IWGP US Title) [**** 1/2]
10. Kazuchika Okada (c) -vs- Tetsuya Naito - (IWGP Title) [**** 1/4]

Amazing show! Probable the best we'll see in 2018. Exhausting too, as New Japan gave every match time to shine. That's what we get for complaining that New Japan undercarfd matches are pointless. Here they had all types of styles getting epic level ring-time, and it sure delivered in a big way! And hats off to Jericho proving how good of a ring general he can be when motivated. I'm one of the few that preferred the result of the main event. Naito doesn't need the title, he's popular in spite of the belt, and Okada is still a executive level main eventer who's still got milage at the gate. 

NJPW - "NEW YEAR DASH" - January 5, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (3 hrs)
January 5, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,737 Fans)
1. Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima & Yuji Nagata & Manabu Nakanishi -vs- Tomoyuki Oka & Shota Umino & Tetsuhiro Yagi & Ren Narita [* 1/2]
2. Takashi Iizuka & Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Taichi & El Desperado & Taka Michinoku -vs- Togi Makabe & Toa Henare & Jushin Thunder Liger & Tiger Mask & Hirai Kawato [**]
3. Jay White -vs- Katsuya Kitamura - (Katsuya Kitmura 7 Match Trial Series #1) [* 3/4]
4. Kenny Omega & Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson -vs- SHO & YOH & Cheeseburger [**]
5. Cody & Yujiro Takahashi & Chase Owens & Marty Scurll & Leo Tonga -vs- Kota Ibushi & Juice Robinson & David Finlay & KUSHIDA & Ryusuke Taguchi [**]
6. Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano & Beretta (c) -vs- Bad Luck Fale & Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa - (NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Title) [** 1/4]
7. Minoru Suzuki & Zack Sabre Jr. & Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. -vs- Hiroshi Tanahashi & Michel Elgin & Raymond Rowe & Hanson [** 1/4]
8. Tetsuya Naito & "King of Darkness" EVIL & SANADA & BUSHI & Hiromu Takahashi -vs- Kazuchika Okada & Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI & Will Ospreay & Gedo [** 1/2]

Fun "Raw after Mania" show, but it was a clear nachspiel atmosphere in the ring where everybody could breath safely and relax from the pressure of the successful Dome show. So the matches weren't anything special. Instead it was teh angles time to come. Naito vs Jericho, yes please! Omega vs White... meh, but let's hope White can do better than against Tanahashi.

DDT Universe

DDT - “NEW YEAR’S SPECIAL! 2018” - January 3, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (3 hrs)
January 3, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,187 Fans)
1. Hoshitango & Rekka -vs- Mizuki Watase & Daiki Shimomura [* 1/4]
2. Akito -vs- Yuki Ueno [* 3/4]
3. KUDO & Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai -vs- Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata & Veda Scott - (Infomercial Match – “LADY NINJA: A Blue Shadow” Movie) [*]
4. 10-Man New Year Kakizome Rumble [*]
5. Soma Takao -vs- Masahiro Takanashi [* 1/2]
6. Makoto Oishi & Shunma Katsumata & MAO -vs- Danshoku Dino & Brahman Shu & Brahman Kei [1/2*]
7. Daisuke Sasaki & Tetsuya Endo -vs- Colt Cabana & Antonio Honda [**]
8. HARASHIMA & Kazusada Higuchi & Jiro Kuroshio -vs- Konosuke Takeshita & Shuji Ishikawa & Mike Bailey [** 1/2]

First show of the year had a sick Dino 6-man! Bring a bucket to puke in if you're going to watch that one. The main event was good, but only a warm-up for the D-oh tournament. Antonio Honda & Colt Cabana teaming brought a few laughs as well.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO - “TOKYO JOSHI PRO ’18” - January 4, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - (3 hrs)
January 4, 2018, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,201 Fans)
1. Miu & Hinano -vs- Raku & Hikari - (Miu, Hinano, Raku & Hikari Debut Match) [1/2*]
2. Yuu & Nodoka-oneesan & Marika Kobashi -vs- Rika Tatsumi & Hyper Misao & Yuki Kamifuku [*]
3. Veda Scott -vs- Maho Kurone [3/4*]
4. Danshoku Dino -vs- Maki Ito [* 1/2]
5. Saki-sama & Azusa Christie -vs- Nonoko & Yuna Manase [*]
6. Yuka Sakazaki & Shoko Nakajima (c) -vs- Riho & Mizuki - (TOKYO Princess Tag Title) [**]
7. Reika Saiki (c) -vs- Miyu Yamashita - (TOKYO Princess Of Princess Title) [** 1/4]

First time I see a TJP show. Not overly impressed so far, but there are a few characters that caught my eye. The last two matches were good and the kissy Dino/Ito bout is one some will love.

DDT - "D-OH GRAND PRIX 2018 IN SHINJUKU" - January 5, 2017, Tokyo - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 5, 2017, Tokyo - Shinjuku FACE (464 Fans)
1. Joey Ryan & Veda Scott -vs- Soma Takao & Antonio Honda -vs- KUDO & Toru Owashi -vs- Makoto Oishi & Shunma Katsumata - (4-Way) [* 1/2]
2. Yukio Sakaguchi -vs- Kazusada Higuchi - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 1/2]
3. Tetsuya Endo -vs- Masahiro Takanashi - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [**]
4. Akito -vs- Daisuke Sasaki - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 1/4]
5. Keisuke Ishii -vs- HARASHIMA - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [** 1/2]
6. Shuji Ishikawa -vs- Mike Bailey - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [*** 1/2]
7. Jiro Kuroshio -vs- Konosuke Takeshita - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [*** 3/4]

Then for the start of January's highlight for DDT. The D-Oh Grand Prix opening day, which was much better than the bigger Korakuen Hall show a couple of days earlier. Especially look out for Ishikawa/Bailey and Takeshita/Ikemen! Both excellent, especially considering it's from a indy platform.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO - “LET’S GO! GO! IF YOU GO! WHEN YOU GO! IF YOU GET LOST JUST GO TO OSAKA!” - January 7, 2018, Osaka - (2 1/4 hrs)
January 7, 2018, Osaka Hirano Community Hall (397 Fans)
1. Miu & Raku -vs- Hikari & Hinano [3/4*]
2. Yuka Sakazaki -vs- Nodoka-oneesan [1/2*]
3. Shoko Nakajima -vs- Hyper Misao - (Drinking Games Rules) [*]
4. Rika Tatsumi & Maho Kurone & Mizuki -vs- Nonoko & Yuna Manase & Yuki Kamifuku [* 1/4]
5. Saki-sama & Azusa Christie -vs- Yuu & Marika Kobashi [* 1/2]
6. Miyu Yamashita (c) -vs- Veda Scott - (TOKYO Princess Of Princess Title) [* 3/4]

TJP, along with the rest of the DDT Universe, goes off to Osaka for a few days. Not a very attractive card except the curio of Veda Scott challenging for the TJP Title.

DDT "D-OH GRAND PRIX 2018 IN OSAKA 2DAYS - DAY 1" - January 7, 2018, Osaka, Japan - (3 hrs)
January 7, 2018, Osaka Hirano Kumin Hall (438 Fans)
1. Shunma Katsumata & MAO & Veda Scott -vs- Danshoku Dino & Kazuki Hirata & Yuki Ueno [3/4*]
2. Keisuke Ishii -vs- Toru Owashi -vs- Naomi Yoshimura -vs- Kouki Iwasaki - (4-Way) [*]
3. Kazusada Higuchi -vs- Soma Takao - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 1/4]
4. HARASHIMA -vs- Joey Ryan - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [**]
5. Mike Bailey -vs- Akito - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [** 1/2]
6. Jiro Kuroshio -vs- Masahiro Takanashi - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [** 1/4]
7. Yukio Sakaguchi -vs- Daisuke Sasaki - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block B) [**]
8. Konosuke Takeshita -vs- Tetsuya Endo - (D-Oh Grand Prix - Block A) [** 1/4]

The second day of the D-Oh Grand Prix wasn't as good as the first day, but it was constantly solid and worth your time. Takeshita/Endo continue to do epic style wrestling, but I felt Bailey/Akito got the most out of their fight.

STARDOM

STARDOM - "NEW YEAR STARS 2018 - DAY 1" - January 3, 2018, Tokyo - (1 3/4 hrs) 
January 3, 2018, Tokyo - Shin-Kiba 1st RING (445 Fans)
1. Shiki Shibusawa -vs- Hanan -vs- Ruaka - (3-Way) [*]
2. Kaori Yoneyama -vs- Hiromi Mimura [* 1/2]
3. Xia Brookside & Miranda -vs- Konami & Starlight Kid [* 3/4]
4. Kay Lee Ray & Nicole Savoy & Rachael Ellering -vs- Mari Apache & Jungle Kyona & Natsuko Tora [**]
5. Io Shirai & AZM & HZK & Momo Watanabe -vs- Kagetsu & Hana Kimura & Kris Wolf & Sumire Natsu [**]

One show was loaded-up on Stardom World, their first of the years from a packed Shin-kiba. More of a "Road to..." Korakuen Hall on January 21st where the main event sets up a 5 vs 5 match. It was most interesting to see all the foreigners, many who was a part of th Mae Young Classics last year.
 

The RealHero Archive

3 shows uploaded last week, all from last year. We have to wait a few weeks for the New Years shows from Z-1, W-1, AJPW, BJW, etc...

K-DOJO - "TOKYO BIG SHOW" - December 17, 2017, Tokyo - (1 1/2 hrs)
December 17, 2017, Tokyo - Shin-Kiba 1st RING (165 Fans)
1. Kotaro Yoshino & Dinosaur Takuma & Bambi -vs- Ricky Fuji & Daigoro Kashiwa & Yoshihiro Horaguchi [*]
2. Shiori Asahi -vs- Ayame Sasamura [3/4*]
3. Kunio Toshima & Kyu Mogami -vs- GO Asakawa & Yuma [* 1/4]
4. Massimo & Marines Mask -vs- Tank Nagai & Ayumu Honda [*]
5. Daisuke Sasaki (c) -vs- Taka Michinoku - (Independent Junior Title) [* 1/2]
6. Taishi Takizawa (c) -vs- Kaji Tomato - (STRONGEST-K Title) [* 3/4]

Kaientai Dojo's not so Tokyo Big Show. Too much how K-Dojo is. Taking a page out of modern Taka Michinoku work ethic. No fire, some smarts, but mostly nothing at all.

WRESTLE-1 - "WRESTLE-1 WINTER FESTIVAL 2017" - December 23, 2017, Tokyo, Japan - (1 1/4 hrs)
December 23, 2017, Tokyo, Japan - WRESTLE-1 Dojo (240 Fans)
1. Hajime -vs- Takumi Baba [1/2*]
2. Ganseki Tanaka -vs- Jun Tonsho [3/4*]
3. Daiki Inaba & Takanori Ito -vs- Jiro Kuroshio & Tsugataka Sato [**]
4. 8-Man Royal Rumble [*]

W-1's last show of 2017 was just a small dojo show. Only for the real hardcore W-1 fans with one fun match and 3 very forgettable ones.

TOSHIKOSHI PRO-WRESTLING 2017 "TOSHIWASURE! SHUFFLE TAG TOURNAMENT" - Decemebr 31, 2017, Tokyo, Japan - (5 hrs)
Decemebr 31, 2017, Tokyo, Japan - Korakuen Hall (1,411 Fans)
1. Daisuke Sekimoto & Kazusada Higuchi -vs- Ryota Hama & Takao Soma - (Shuffle Tag Tournament - Block A - Round 1) [* 1/4]
2. Kazuki Hashimoto & Akito -vs- Kota Sekifuda & Ryota Nakatsu - (Shuffle Tag Tournament - Block B - Round 1) [* 1/2]
3. Daisuke Sasaki & Brahman Kei -vs- Antonio Honda & Takuya Nomura - (Shuffle Tag Tournament - Block C - Round 1) [3/4*]
4. Danshoku Dino & Daichi Hashimoto -vs- Keisuke Ishii & Zangief Ueki (Takayuki Ueki) - (Shuffle Tag Tournament - Block D - Round 1) [*]
5. HARASHIMA & Yuko Miyamoto -vs- Yukio Sakaguchi & Yuya Aoki - (Shuffle Tag Tournament - Block E - Round 1) [*]
6. Isami Kodaka & Yoshihisa Uto -vs- Masahiro Takanashi & Tatsuhiko Yoshino - (Shuffle Tag Tournament - Block F - Round 1) [* 1/2]
7. Abdullah Kobayashi & Colt "Boom Boom" Cabana -vs- Minoru Fujita & Shunma Katsumata - (Shuffle Tag Tournament - Block G - Round 1) [1/2*]
8. Hideki Suzuki & Konosuke Takeshita -vs- Great Kojika & Tetsuya Endo - (Shuffle Tag Tournament - Block H - Round 1) [* 1/4]
9. Daisuke Sekimoto & Kazusada Higuchi -vs- Kazuki Hashimoto & Akito - (Shuffle Tag Tournament - Round 2) [*]
10. Daisuke Sasaki & Brahman Kei -vs- Danshoku Dino & Daichi Hashimoto - (Shuffle Tag Tournament - Round 2) [3/4*]
11. HARASHIMA & Yuko Miyamoto -vs- Isami Kodaka & Yoshihisa Uto - (Shuffle Tag Tournament - Round 2) [**]
12. Brody the Hideki (Hideki Suzuki) & Jimmy Takeshidata (Konosuke Takeshita) -vs- Abdullah Kobayashi & Colt "Boom Boom" Cabana - (Shuffle Tag Tournament - Round 2) [1/2*]
13. Daisuke Sekimoto & Kazusada Higuchi -vs- HARASHIMA & Yuko Miyamoto - (Shuffle Tag Tournament - Semi-Final) [**]
14. Brody the Hideki & Jimmy Takeshidata -vs- Daisuke Sasaki & Brahman Kei - (Shuffle Tag Tournament - Semi-Final) [* 1/4]
15. Kotaro Yoshino & Dinosaur Takuma & Kazumi Kikuta & MAO -vs- Taka Michinoku & Dick Togo & Ryuji Ito & Sanshiro Takagi - (Taka Michinoku 25th Anniversary Match) [* 1/2]
16. Hideki Suzuki & Konosuke Takeshita -vs- Daisuke Sekimoto & Kazusada Higuchi - (Shuffle Tag Tournament - Final) [** 1/4]

The annual New Years indy show with BJW/DDT. A real party, but not exactly a show which brings the snowflakes regardless of being entertaining. It's a tradition, and a highly watchable one at that.

CMLL

CMLL - "Lunes Arena Mexico" - January 1, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 1, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico
1. Eléctrico & Último Dragóncito -vs- Mercurio & Pequeño Olímpico [* 3/4]
2. Starman & Oro Jr. & Star Jr. -vs- Raziel & Cancerbero & El Hijo del Signo [** 1/4]
3. Blue Panther Jr. & The Panther & Pegasso -vs- Virus & Nitro & Sagrado [**]
4. Mr. Niebla & Shocker & Vangellys -vs- Titán & Drone & Esfinge [* 1/2]
5. Valiente & Ángel de Oro & Niebla Roja -vs- Sansón & Cuatrero & Forastero [**]
6. Negro Casas -vs- Sam Adonis - (Hair vs Hair) [** 3/4]

CMLL open the year with a ordinary show with a special treat. A hair match between Casas/Adonis! That one was fun. Only wish it had lasted longer for the drama to sink in.

CMLL - "Martes Arena Mexico" - January 2, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 hrs)
January 2, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico
1. Fantasy & Shockercito -vs- Pequeño Nitro & Pierrothito [* 1/2]
2. Starman & Astral & Robin -vs- Nitro & Cancerbero & Hijo del Signo [*]
3. Dalys & La Metálica & Tiffany -vs- Princesa Sugehit & La Jarochita & Maligna [* 1/2]
4. The Panther -vs- Tritón - (Lightning Match) [** 1/2]
5. Stuka Jr. & Guerrero Maya Jr. & Soberano Jr. -vs- Mr. Niebla & Felino & Sagrado [** 1/4]
6. Carístico & Ángel de Oro & Niebla Roja -vs- Sansón & Cuatrero & Forastero [**]

Day 2 brought a standard show. Dull undercard, a unlucky Lighting Match where Triton knocked himself out on a corkscrew moonsault after a firey pace and rushed main events. 

CMLL - "Sabados Arena Mexico" - January 6, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - (2 1/2 hrs)
January 6, 2018, Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Mexico
1. Flyer & Audaz & Magia Blanca -vs- Yago & El Coyote & Templario [** 3/4]
2. Titán & Pegasso -vs- Virus & Raziel [*** 1/4]
3. Soberano Jr. -vs- Rey Cometa [***]
4. Sansón & Cuatrero & Forastero -vs- Guerrero Maya Jr. & Drone & Esfinge [*** 1/4]
5. Niebla Roja -vs- Gran Guerrero [*** 1/2]
6. Último Guerrero & Valiente -vs- Cavernario & Volador Jr. [***]

But for their Saturday show (no Friday show) they did something big. A rematch special of last years most hyped matches. And it was great show top-to-bottom! Only beat by New Japan's Tokyo Dome show! A good way to start your lucha year.

AAA

AAA - December 9, 2017, Ciudad de Mexico, Distrito Federal, Mexico - (1/2 hr)
December 9, 2017, Ciudad de Mexico, Distrito Federal, Mexico - Gimnasio Olímpico Juan de la Barrera
1. El Hijo del Fantasma & Pagano & Psycho Clown -vs- Averno & Chessman & El Texano Jr. [*** 1/4]

AAA have been doing Best of 2017 recap shows for a few weeks, and it was mostly that this week too, with the exception of this benefit show match-up where the AAA put their working shoes on and entertained the fans to finance a school struck by the earthquake in September.
 

Lucha Libre Independents

IWRG - January 1, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - (1 1/2 hrs)
January 1, 2018, Naucalpan de Juarez, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - Arena Naucalpan
1. Cadillac -vs- Chicanito -vs- Diablo Jr. I -vs- Dragon Bane -vs- Fulgor II -vs- Guerrero 2000 -vs- Motocross -vs- Ram El Carnero -vs- Lunatik Extreme -vs- X-Corpio - (Lucha De Apuesta Mask vs Hair; Cage) [* 1/2]
2. Aramis -vs- Alas de Acero -vs- Black Dragon -vs- Dinamic Black -vs- Emperador Azteca -vs- Fly Warrior -vs- Freelance -vs- Septimo Rayo - (Reyes Del Aire; Cage) [**]
3. Chico Che -vs- Obett - (Hair vs Hair; Cage) [* 1/2]
4. Trauma I & Trauma II -vs- Capo Del Norte & Capo Del Sur -vs- Danny Casas & Veneno -vs- Rokambole Jr. & Villano V Jr. - (Cage) [* 1/4]
5. Imposible (c) -vs- Dr. Cerebro - (IWRG Rey Del Ring Title; Ladder; Cage) [* 3/4]

My first IWRG show. I saw someon call IWRG both the best and worst promotion of 2017, which tells you all you need really. Seems to be a creative group for both joys and frustration. Their first show of 2018 was a all-cage show of various rules. Pretty chaotic for someone not used to their product. The main event however is a MUST! The brawling wasn't bad, but the WCW level booking and cock-ups made it more awkward fun. Rules first. Cage battle until 10 minutes when a Ladder was brough in. You then had to take down the belt hanging over the ring before you had to climb out of the cage with the belt. Corny. And to make it worse, the champion Imposible had it won, but managed to lose the belt back in the ring as he was going over the cage, so he had to climb back in and climb back out again for the anti-climax! I think I might enjoy this 

Invasion Indy - January 1, 2018, Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - (1/2 hrs)
January 1, 2018, Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - Arena Neza
1. Alan Extreme -vs- Bizarro -vs- Flama Roja -vs- Motocross -vs- Oro Negro -vs- Yoruba -vs- Vampiro Metalico -vs- Guerrero Mixtico - (Hair vs Hair; Cage) [*]
2. Rey Wagner & El Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. -vs- Mr. Electro & Sharlie Rockstar [**]

I decided to try out of a few independent lucha companies. On this one Dr. Wagner Jr (aka Rey Wagner) ruled the ringw. Not that there was much else to report from the limited hand-held footage from this one.

Promociones TSW - January 1, 2018, Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl, Estado de Mexico, Mexico - (1 hr)
January 1, 2018, Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl, Estado de Mexico, Mexico
1. Toro Negro Jr. -vs- Heddi Karaoui [* 1/4]
2. Black Warrior -vs- Toxin [* 3/4]
3. Oro Jr. & Starman -vs- Lokillus & Yoruba [** 1/4]
4. Golden Magic -vs- El Sagrado [* 1/2]
5. Blue Panther Jr. & The Panther -vs- Ciclon Ramirez Jr. & Emperador Azteca [** 1/2]
6. Bandido -vs- Niebla Roja [** 1/4]

This one was interesting. A CMLL vs TSW inter-promotional show! The big leagues against a local promotion. Some of the matches were brutally out-matched, but there still was a lot of curiosity value in those matches. 

FULL - January 5, 2018, Explanada de la Delegacion, Cuauhtémoc, Distrito Federal, Mexico - (3/4 hrs)
January 5, 2018, Explanada de la Delegacion, Cuauhtémoc, Distrito Federal, Mexico
1. La Parkita & Máscarita Sagrada -vs- Mini Cibernetico & Pequeño Warrior [* 1/2]
2. Ángel Del Amor & Reyna Dorada & Saru -vs- Hip Hop Man & Quimera & Ryder [* 1/2]
3. Hijo de Máscara Año 2000 & Luzbel & Psicosis II -vs- Hijo de Máscara Sagrada & Máximo & Oriental [**]
4. Penta Zero M & Tinieblas Jr -vs- Pirata Morgan & Hijo del Pirata Morgan [** 1/4]

For the intrigue of watching a lucha show outdoors in the dark. Pretty cool main event with the help of the mini mascot!
 

No, that's actually from the short IWGP Heavyweight Title reign Takada had in 1996, a match that took place on March 1, 1996 at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo. But those 1986 and 1987 matches Takada and Koshinaka had are amazing. Some of the best junior action New Japan had in the 1980s. Rival the Tiger Mask vs Dynamite Kid feud.

Georges M

Sorry, I no longer deal in tape trading. My system got old and broken down and I decided not to upgrade for trading as it would cost too much compared to the interest of Japanese wrestling these days. I haven't even watched wrestling in 3 months and stopped at the 2010 footage.

 

 

--PUNQ--

Boo-urns!

 

I enjoyed the Japanese wrestling threads on here i still keep up with DG and New Japan via the respective websites (iheartDG and puroresufan), but did enjoy your thread with the pics andstuff.

Yeah, it was 5 good years of reviewing around 2500 shows and 15,000 matches. Had a lot of fun doing it even if a little frustrating to see the scene as a whole stagnate like it did and the change of the world wide wresting climate limit the fire in their wrestling mentality. Would be fun to continue doing what I did for half a decade, but it kind of didn't introduce any new fans to puro as I'd hoped it would and in the end there wasn't much purpose to do it anymore.

I still keep up with the news and results and there is a lot of stuff I'm curious to watch like the continuing growth of the young AJPW generation thats getting established and their feud with the Big Japan guys, the re-orgainized joshi scene (with the creation of STARDOM, REINA, DIANA), NJPW going in a fresh direction with a young champion, and for different reason the demise of NOAH to see how the cope and re-structure after they lost their main TV deal and mentor. Not to mention the development of 'Shinya' Hashimoto Jr. in Zero-One along with the usual crazy stuff from Dragon Gate, DDT and the hundred other promotions going on in Tokyo alone. So a lot that going on that I want to see, but for now I've decided to stop watching. If that will be permanent, I don't know. But for now its stop.

--PUNQ--