The Cleaner has arrived

Last year, I wrote no less than a couple thousand words about Wrestle Kingdom 10, perhaps my longest wrestling-related post to date. It was only my second time watching New Japan Pro Wrestling's equivalent to Wrestlemania, but it left a huge impression on me, especially in the main event department, where Kazuchika Okada and Hiroshi Tanahashi had a rematch for the IWGP Heavyweight Title that contained several interesting callbacks to their previous encounter. It showed such grace, intensity, and continuity, that I became a NJPW mark for life. Since then, I've gone out of my way to follow as much "puro" as I can, and it's getting all the easier thanks to things like the FiteTV service and english commentary from vocal legends like Jim Ross.



That main event between Okada and Tanahashi would be a tough act to follow for sure, but here we are one year later, staring at the first ever match to be awarded six(!) stars by Dave Meltzer's Wrestling Observer. Let me be clear: there has only been one six star match and this is it. Wrestling pundits and journalists are calling this the best match ever.

EVER.

I'm talking about this year's Wrestle Kingdom main event, which saw Okada defend his title against Kenny "The Cleaner" Omega, former hitman for the Bullet Club and current head honcho of The Elite, a group consisting of former Bullet Clubbers and other heels. Omega's ascension to the top of the card in Japan has been a nice one to follow over the last two years. He's been elevated from rookie villain to underboss to main villain, without a hint of losing momentum. His appearances outside of the ring, doing things like video game streams and other multimedia appearances have made him one of the most visible non-WWE contracted performers on the planet.

The reigning champ Okada is still king of the mountain. His victory over Omega was hard fought and the man who was "knocking on the door of opportunity" two years ago has now taken Tanahashi's spot as the godfather and defender of New Japan. Omega represents to Okada what former Bullet Club leader A.J. Styles represented to Tanahashi: a foreign element that looks to taint the purity of NJPW through western influence. The Bullet Club, like the nWo and DX before them, are a gang of scoundrels whose distaste for sportsmanship and good conduct is rivaled only by their in-ring capabilities.

The match itself is a slow build, beginning with the usual holds and sequences you'd see in any NJPW main event. The hard strikes that are a staple in New Japan are all over the place in this match, from Okada's lariats to Omega's knee strikes. Unlike many main events however, the predictable sequence of "hey, let's hit each other in the face over and over and see who can take it" is absent from this bout. The strikes are in no short supply, but they are applied logically, and in Omega's case, unexpectedly.

As main event type matches often do, the action spills out of the ring on more than one occasion. The table spots employed here look much more painful than the table-based antics you'd see in a WWE ring. When Omega is launched over the top rope and onto a table in one sequence, his head seems to bounce off of one particularly sturdy piece of the table that refuses to break. It looks less staged and more like . . . well, it looks more like someone flying through a table. It ain't pretty and it shouldn't be.

Okada has the usual counters for most of Omega's offense, but his agility is what keeps him out of harm's way (most of the time). Avoiding Omega's finisher on several occasions thanks to his catlike grace, Okada comes across as an underdog, even though he and Omega are relatively the same size. Add to that the way Omega's relentless assault seems to have no holes in it and you get to see a usually dominant wrestler on the run for most of the match.

I came away from this match satisfied and more than entertained, but the overwhelming amount of gushing from wrestling critics blew me away. I can't say that this is my personal favorite match of all time or anything, but its a surefire contender for match of the year.

And damn, it's only January. Slow down, guys.

Okada's reign goes on, but I can't help but wonder what is in store for Kenny. Last year's Wrestle Kingdom launched guys like A.J. Styles and Shinsuke Nakamura into the stratosphere and both of them came to the 'E pretty hastily. Omega claims he isn't interested in a WWE run, but hey, Sting said the same thing. I bet if Omega continues along his current trajectory, he'll end up in the WWE sooner or later. Money talks, after all, and no one is louder in that regard than the 'E.

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