The VOD portion of this year’s Best of the Super Junior got underway in Numazu as block A returned to action for their second match of the tournament.
These VOD shows only air the tournament matches… and they are using the fixed cameras that we usually see on Lion’s Gate Project outings… which is going to be all kinds of fun when we get to the dive-heavy matches!
Best of the Super Junior 25, Block A: YOH vs. Tiger Mask
Both these guys won on opening night, with Tiger Mask sneaking by Yoshinobu Kanemaru while YOH got past BUSHI.
After the initial respect handshake, we started on the mat as Tiger Mask tripped YOH and looked to work a headlock. It’s escaped, but YOH gets charged down with a shoulder tackle, before a kick to the knee sent him careering into the ropes. From there, YOH tries to return the favours from earlier, taking down Tiger Mask with a hammerlock, before taking the veteran into the corner with some boot choking that forced the referee to intervene.
From there, Tiger Mask forces YOH into the ropes with a key lock, before going back to the arm as he drops some knees en route to turning it into an armbar, again forcing a rope break. Some boots from Tiger Mask get followed up by kicks as YOH’s left arm was targeted… but finally YOH makes a comeback, swinging through the ropes and sliding back into the ring, before sending Tiger outside and we get our first dive of the night – a tope con giro away from the hard camera!
Tiger barely beat the count from that, and was taken back in with a backbreaker and a Falcon arrow from YOH, before turning the tables with a tiltawhirl backbreaker. On the resurgence, Tiger Mask heads up top for a butterfly superplex, but YOH fought free and shoved him down… only to get caught in a crucifix and another armbar as YOH was struggling here. Another rope break saved YOH, who came back with a flurry of kicks, knocking down Tiger Mask for a near-fall.
YOH looked to go for a reverse DDT, but Tiger Mask escaped… before YOH charged into him with a small package for a near-fall. A sunset flip garnered two-counts for both men, before a backslide from Tiger Mask drew another near-fall… followed by a Tiger Driver. After the kick-out, a head kick knocked YOH down to the mat again, as Tiger struggled to get him up for a butterfly superplex, before finally getting the move off for yet another two-count, before the eponymous Tiger Suplex got the win. Shockingly one-sided against YOH, and that made for a match that was patchy in parts. I guess in some respects, YOH’s still been looked at as a Young Lion? **½
Best of the Super Junior 25, Block A: Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Flip Gordon
Not wanting to Larry Csonka things, but you’ll be shocked to learn that a Suzuki-gun guy sneak attacked his opponent at the bell.
Gordon replies by doing his bouncy kip-ups to confuse Kanemaru, before catching a kick and scoring a roll-up as things were very Keystone Cops-like for Kanemaru in the early going. A low bridge takes him outside as Gordon flipped with a tope con giro, again away from the hard camera, but back in the ring it was a different story as Kanemaru caught him in the ropes with a dropkick, before heading back out for stuff at ringside, furthest away from the hard camera. You just about see Kanemaru Brookes’ing Gordon as the mobile camera was called into play, catching Kanemaru choking Gordon with a chair.
We’re back in the ring as Kanemaru catches Gordon in a camel clutch, before snuffing out a comeback attempt as he put the boots to the former Army member… at least until Flip came off the ropes with a springboard Slingblade to neutralise things. A missed dropkick in the corner looked to be the end, but Gordon flips out of a German suplex and returns fire with that corner dropkick for a near-fall.
Kanemaru cuts off Gordon on the top rope and looks for a superplex… but that’s fought out of as Gordon drops down for yet another dropkick, before returning to the top rope only to jump onto Kanemaru’s knees. A kitchen sink knee to the gut gets Kanemaru a near-fall as he looked to fly too… but his moonsault misses! Still, Kanemaru’s able to get back up and use the referee as a human shield to stop Gordon coming back, ahead of a satellite DDT that left both men on the mat.
After getting the near-fall, Kanemaru headed up top for the Deep Impact DDT, but Gordon superkicks it away and hits a standing shooting star press, before a roll-up and a backslide from Kanemaru drew some near-falls. From there, the pair go back-and-forth with strikes, before a springboard kick knocks Kanemaru off the top rope, as Gordon quickly snatched the win out of nowhere with a springboard 450. That looked a LOT like they were told to go ten minutes, because the ten minute timer had just been announced when Flip hit the springboard… a decent enough match, but not one you’ll be in any hurry to go back to after this. **¾
Best of the Super Junior 25, Block A: Taiji Ishimori vs. BUSHI
One of the early tournament favourites in the New-and-Improved Bone Soldier Ishimori got his campaign off to a flying start against Will Ospreay on Friday, and he started out the aggressor here, even if BUSHI was straight in with the mind games.
BUSHI takes Ishimori to the outside early, but the new Boner’s back to avoid a dive, only to get stomped into the corner as referee Red Shoes looked on disapprovingly. Ishimori fought back, springboarding in from the apron with a seated splash that he didn’t actually sit down on, meaning BUSHI got… erm, the Bone Soldier? From there, Ishimori keeps it grounded with a chinlock, before whipping BUSHI into the corner… where he set up for that sweet baseball slide German suplex.
After that, Ishimori gave BUSHI a taste of his own medicine, choking him out with his own t-shirt, before throwing it into the crowd as we got a shot of a Young Lion being ordered to retrieve the garment. They couldn’t spring for a shirt?! BUSHI returns fire with a ‘rana off the ropes, before using the ropes for an overhead kick and a missile dropkick… as the BUSH-a-roonie prepared for a tope suicida! In the ring, that earns BUSHI a near-fall, but Ishimori’s back in with an Ospreay-like handspring overhead kick, before getting caught on the top rope as BUSHI snapped him back into the ring with a top rope ‘rana! That’s only enough for another near-fall though, so BUSHI tried to turn up the pressure, only to take a back body drop, before returning with an enziguiri, which Ishimori quickly cut-off with a tombstone lungblower.
Some overhand chops from Ishimori earned him a rewind kick from BUSHI, before a Destroyer almost ended the match in the favour of the Ingobernables. The MX looked to follow, but Ishimori countered with one of his own before putting away BUSHI with the Bloody Cross. A pretty good outing, with Ishimori claiming a share of the joint lead after two matches – and so far you’d have to say the rocket is firmly on the new Boner, as New Japan are want to do with debutants. ***¾
Best of the Super Junior 25, Block A: ACH vs. Will Ospreay
After the shock loss to Ishimori on Friday, Ospreay will be wanting to pick up a win… and he’ll have to do it against someone he’s only ever faced in a singles match once before, in the unlikeliest of surroundings.
The London Cockpit in January 2016, when those Rev Pro shows were in their infancy. Ospreay won out there, and you’d think he’d be looking to go 2-2. ACH was on offence early, taking Ospreay into the corner, where his first attempt at a chop was ducked, before the pair exchanged leapfrogs… with ACH cartwheeling away to take out Ospreay’s legs in what looked like a potentially nasty landing.
Woah, Ospreay goes for a leapfrog but ACH takes out his leg! #NJPW #njbosj https://t.co/4ULitIni5Z pic.twitter.com/1D2mc2UTV0
— LARIATOOOO!! (@MrLARIATO) May 21, 2018
After steadying each other, Ospreay was the first to resume offence as they went back to running the ropes, this time feinting head kicks as ACH again tried to sweep away Ospreay’s flying, swinging and missing the legs in a backflip before taking him outside for an aborted plancha. Instead, ACH gets shoved into the post as Ospreay hits a baseball slide dropkick across the corners, before he started to make a point of going after ACH’s taped-up arm.
Chops from Ospreay sent ACH onto the apron for cover, but he’s dragged back in as Will keeps up on the arm, in spite of ACH’s attempts to go for the neck. A wheelbarrow roll-up was done with such force ACH couldn’t make the cover, but he instead went back for a splash as the tables turned, as a quick exchange led to a low dropkick and a double stomp on Ospreay, with ACH swiftly taking the upper hand.
Except he was sent into the corner, where he refused a Cheeky Nando’s, and instead had to counter a springboard forearm with a German suplex as ACH almost took him a win. More chops from ACH seemed to rattle Ospreay, particularly as the chops veered a little higher… but Will’s back with kicks to the arm, and this time they finally had an effect as ACH wasn’t able to use the arm for an Irish whip. A plan B, using the other arm, just saw Ospreay rebound with a handspring overhead kick before drilling ACH with the Shibata-ish dropkick and a standing shooting star press. ACH countered a Destroyer with a suplex of sorts, before going high with another chop, only to get met with an enziguiri as Ospreay tried to retain the upper hand… but his OsCutter’s stuffed and pulled up into a death valley driver for a near-fall.
ACH tries to follow up, but his charge into the corner comes up short as he sent himself to the outside… and now we get a dive towards the hard camera… except we don’t, as a Sasuke special’s cut-off with a gamengiri from the apron by ACH! He teases a suplex from the apron to the floor, but Ospreay stops that and comes back with a series of kicks, taking ACH to the floor for that Sasuke special, complete with a timely switch to the mobile camera!
Will keeps up the high flying with a corkscrew star press, but ACH is up at two from that, and stops Will climbing the ropes again… prompting an F-bomb from Will, and a nice overhead kick from ACH to knock Ospreay back down to the mat for a near-fall. A deadlift German suplex looked to follow, but Ospreay elbowed his way to freedom… or so he thought, as ACH got the move off anyway, before some running knees and a brainbuster followed…
Except Ospreay countered the brainbuster into a Stundog Millionaire, and the Ospreay comeback resumed with more kicks before hauling up ACH for the Storm Breaker. ACH escapes it and throws more chops… which pissed off Ospreay enough to take him down for a Revolution kick, before the Storm Breaker finally got the win. This was really good – not without it’s rough spots (I still can’t tell if that initial leapfrog was meant to have been a trip, for instance), but they buffed those out pretty quickly and powered on through. ****
Standings
Block A:
Taiji Ishimori, Tiger Mask (2-0)
ACH, Flip Gordon, Will Ospreay, YOH (1-1)
BUSHI, Yoshinobu Kanemaru (0-2)
Block B:
El Desperado, Dragon Lee, Chris Sabin, Hiromu Takahashi (1-0)
KUSHIDA, SHO, Marty Scurll, Ryusuke Taguchi (0-1)
Don’t you dare think that Tiger Mask is going to have a shout of winning this block. He’s the red herring in this, especially since he’ll be clocking up his 100th block match during this year’s tournament (against BUSHI on May 24)… a feat that’ll be matched by Ryusuke Taguchi later on (against Marty Scurll on June 2). After a decent quartet of matches, we’re back to Korakuen Hall on Tuesday for the last live show for a while – weirdly headlining with El Desperado vs. Hiromu Takahashi – as the Best of the Super Juniors continues on!