Wrestle Kingdom 11 was the first major wrestling PPV event to kick off 2017 and many pro wrestling fans around the world are saying it's going to be a tough act to follow, especially after Dave Meltzer's grade of the first ever SIX stars ranking to the main event between Kenny Omega and champion Kazuchika Okada.
If you haven't seen that match in its entirety, check it out in the video below, but have yourself a few snacks on hand, it's a doozy.
I'll repeat what I said on social media after seeing the reactions of this match as the "greatest wrestling match of all time". I hate to shit on everyone's parade but I'm pretty sure I'm in the minority that wasn't really impressed with Omega vs Okada at the end of Wrestle Kingdom 11. I wasn't THAT impressed, but I still thought it was a solid match just not instant 5 stars and flawless like most people are acting on social media. To be honest, it wasn't even the best New Japan match I've ever seen either.
For one, that match was 45+ minutes long and definitely didn't need that much time. They could have given that time to the matches on the undercard that sorely deserved it. The last 20+ mins. is what most people will remember about this match from all of the crazy reversals and counters until the climax. I'm nowhere from being a Kenny Omega fan but he deserves props for his performance here though. I can't call this a Match of the Year candidate already when 80% of the match was one-sided as all hell and hard to keep interest until the spot-fest phase towards the end. I'm sure most people fell asleep like I did during this show watching live (despite taking a 5 hr nap prior) thanks to the slow start to this match. I like my technical mat based wrestling as much as the next guy but for almost an hour? C'mon that's asking a bit much from all fans save for the hardcore elitists. I hope they do some X-rays on Okada's (and Trent Beretta's...) necks after this show because they were taking FAR too many nasty bumps and drops on their necks for my taste. Just cut that shit out before you end up in a wheelchair or paralyzed.
To be fair, Okada and Omega did some amazing stuff in that match but overall that match was EXTREMELY overrated. I haven't seen many NJPW matches (currently trying to watch more of their product lately) but that was a far cry from the best one of NJPW's best matches that I've seen involving any of their talent. If I'm perfectly honest, I thought Naito/Tanahashi stole the show in their match on that same card and it had far much less crazy shit done in it but they told a better story and worked smarter.
If I have one pet peeve over anything else about modern pro wrestling it's those guys (WWE's talent is notorious for this nowadays but I applaud Lucha Underground's talent for being able to mask/hide this better than most) where they are CLEARLY cooperating on setting up the next big spot. You see guys sliding into position or crowding together, then with the worst offenders they are helping their opponent get in position for said spot. It stops looking like an athletic contest/sport and turns into a cheap Hollywood stunt.
Speaking of Hollywood stunts, Will Ospreay and Ricochet (Lucha Underground's Prince Puma) got fans arguing about whether or not their heavily choreographed style of wrestling is a spit in the face of the business or not last year with the match featured above. I'm leaning towards more towards the no argument, but I can see why the old school veterans are pissed off. Doing stuff like that peels back more layers to expose the business even more than it already is thanks to the Monday Night Wars and shoot interviews, but at the same time, wrestling styles have to evolve with the times and try more new things, even if that means adapting and integrating more Hollywood-esque techniques and tactics.
What I'm getting at that after the two matches in question, I fear that professional wrestling (especially in the mainstream eye with WWE, Impact Wrestling, New Japan, etc.) will try to do more of these risque and over the top spots in their high profile matches, only for more men and women to get hurt trying to outperform the pure insanity that Kenny Omega and Okada pulled off in that match - all of this while the fine art of storytelling and narrative continues to fade away in the landscape of modern pro wrestling in favor of high spots. I hope more wrestlers get hip and learn to work smarter and not stupider, trying to kill themselves or potentially their opponents creating unnecessary spots for cheap pops and minor praise.
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