Kenny Omega vs. Tomohiro Ishii

[8.0] "Good stuff. Some great counters. They were only scratching the surface of what their rivalry could achieve."

[10.0] "[5 Stars] Tomohiro Ishii's sell of Omega's V-Triggers is one of the greatest things in pro wrestling."

[9.0] "That match was a bit more controlled, slow pace to build a high intensity in the ending. That is NJPW style for like 95% of their matches and even with PW being so modern recently, it still works today. However, that style does not fit perfectly the style Kenny and Ishii use to produce great wrestling matches, that is why this match is far different from the next three they had. Ishii's victory was enjoyable and the OWA reversed into a Stunner was memorable. That is the good thing about two wrestlers with super protected finishers, they will cost so much to apply them, use tons of super moves and when they applied it, its over. No doubt on them."

[8.0] "My favorite part was the noise the Japanese crowd made when Omega did not end up powerbombing Ishii off the top rope. This match never ends, so I could easily give it a 7. Near the end, when Ishii hit the stunner reversal, the match ascends to another level where you know he is going to win."

[10.0] "Tomohiro Ishii on one side of the ring and Kenny Omega on the other. Two of the toughest wrestlers in the ring who will do anything not to lose, and this match was a complete endurance match. In the first match, the two wrestlers tired each other out and worked on each other's backs to get each other down, and from about the middle of the match, they started working on each other's heads to knock their opponents down with a finisher or a hard kick. Until the last seconds of the match, all their efforts were useless, and we witnessed some of the most unlikely nearfall in the career of these two."

[6.0] "This is really boring match , I dont find any interesting thing in this match , so bombs so chops ? Alright, but the match is really didnt click with me , Im happy it ended , the final 2 minutes were the best but its still not enough for me + the crowd was very sleepy which its make it worse and worse."

[10.0] "The first match of Kenny Omega and Tomohiro Ishii. This was incredible, two very different wrestlers but they put on a banger of a match. The strikes, chops, and slams were great. The sequences they did near the end was very good. Excellent first matchup between these wrestlers."

[9.0] "This match took a little bit to get going, but once it did it got really good. The final 10 minutes packed in a lot of great exchanges with Ishii's stunner counter of the OWA in particular being the standout. The first 15 or so minutes could've been trimmed down since there were a few lulls, but the second half of the match definitely brought the heat. ****1/2"

[9.0] "This was a fantastic match. Kenny Omega is firing on all cylinders at this point and Ishii is damn great, too. ****1/4"

[7.0] "Omega was disrespectful towards Ishii in the beginning. By the end Ishii had smacked some sense into Omega in a good match."

[9.0] "Kenny Omega wrestled the perfect match. He limited the mobility of the stronger opponent by systematically taking out the leg, neck, and shoulder of his stronger opponent. He paced his explosive offense to be executed between his more tactical approaches. He even showed remarkable adaptability in situations where his original plan was not working how he had expected it to. Most importantly: He knew exactly which buttons to push to make Tomohiro Ishii go into a fit of blind rage and lose his focus. The thing is? Kenny Omega had never wrestled anyone quite like Tomohiro Ishii. He had never witnessed a raw determination quite like the one that makes Ishii so special. He had never been hit quite as hard as Ishii consistently hit him. And he had never encountered someone as resourceful as The Stone Pitbull. Omega wrestled a perfect match that would have easily overwhelmed almost any other opponent. But nothing comes easy against Ishii. While Omega was masterfully executing his tactics of physical and psychological warfare, Ishii proved to have a few up his sleeve. A Super Hurricanrana to remind the former Junior Heavyweight that he is not the only one who can fly when need be. An Ishii V-Trigger that let Omega know that he was overplaying his hand. And a reversal to the One-Winged Angel that made me jump out of my seat. A phenomenal final few minutes put the finishing touches on a slow-burning story that kept me guessing and progressively secured my complete investment. 4.5 stars, 9 out of 10."

[8.0] "Doesn't hold up as well on rewatch, especially considering the quality of their later matches. Still a great match and I love Ishii's shock win, but it was maybe a bit too drawn out ****1/4."

[8.0] "This was expected to be a hard-fought but ultimately victory performances for Omega, who had just had the greatest match of his career at WK11 against Okada. He came out the gate incredibly arrogant, expecting that the way he proved his skills at WK11 implied that he could easily take Ishii down and then make his way to winning the NJ Cup and re-challenging Okada for the title. Ishii wasn't going to allow that, though, because as much of a work-horse as Omega was, he forgot that Ishii's entire character consisted of absorbing everything his opponents could throw at him and then delivering it right back. Ishii dug deep and managed to put obstacle after obstacle in Omega's way, which eventually resulted in both men slowly chipping away at each other with their mid-level signature moves. This would continue to progress to the point that both men were bringing out out their big-time signature moves. While they executed all their exchanges very well, something about them also felt a bit forced. They became more explosive and creative in the second half, but they still felt a bit unnaturally orchestrated for whatever reason. Maybe it was because the crowd's investment in the match was so up and down. What really made the match more than just 'very good' was seeing Ishii bring out a few moves that he never uses and which were uncharacteristic of his style, giving the idea that he really had to go out of his comfort zone to put Omega down. They probably would have benefited from cutting this down by like 5 minutes. Definitely not their best match together but still a great one. ****"

[10.0] "The first of their 2017 trilogy, Omega and Ishii had an incredible match, the two men really bringing out the best in each other."

[7.0] "I'm in agreement of those saying this match went too long and became too repetitive, with constant kick outs at 2 until Ishii finally built enough offense in to get in his finisher. The first third of the match dragged as well, with both trying to figure each other out and kept a portion of their offense fairly basic. This was their first real singles match though, and the following matches were better as they got more experience with each other."

[7.0] "Re-watch. The match was too long. First 15 or so minutes there's no heat. From there onward it gets better. It's basically Omega's main event epic match formula, with Ishii doing Kenny's signature moves."

[7.0] "Tomohiro Ishii -vs- Kenny Omega [*** 1/2] Explosive, with its share of downtime. Takes a while before the momentum comes, but the spectacular stuff was spread through-out. There was a minute there where they were struggling with moves just as the excitement was seriously creeping in. They recovered well for a quality climax and a well deserving winner."

[10.0] "I think this match was technically better than their Dontoku match. The first 10 or 15 minutes were okay but the business picked up after that. Some amazing sequences and counters from both men and Ishii countering OVA into a Stunner was the moment of the match. Only takeaway from the match is the average Japanese commentary and the dead crowd otherwise it is a great match ****1/2"

[8.0] "An excellent match, their encounter from later in the year is perhaps slightly better but they offer very similar positives, hard hitting, lots of big action, two talented guys going at it. Where it starts to lose me a little is the length, which seemed a little excessive, and Ishii's insistence on throwing those stiff headbutts. This was before the infamous Shibata incident but there is more than enough info out there to know how dangerous and unsafe these kinds of moves are, and I would really like to stop seeing them. Otherwise, lots of really good stuff in this one."

[7.0] "This match came off as a bit flat, the first 10-15 mins was slow with little exciting action, things picked up psychology wise through the middle stretch but come the final 10 mins the match fell flat again. Omega continued to target Ishii's head and neck, that was followed by Ishii inconsistently selling the offense, Ishii then came alive and ended up winning in a very flat finish. This match had his moments but there was a lot of inconsistency to it."

[7.0] "It was good until the the 5 last minutes. I just don't get what is so appealing in watching two men kicking out at the last secon... AGAIN, AND AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN... It's so autistic!"

[7.0] "Didn't love this match. Sure the end was your normal NJPW frantic stiff pace finale but the parts leading up to the finish didn't captivate me. Ultimately the match to me was somewhat forgettable."

[1.0] "This is one these matches where I was waiting to be 'wowed', considering the ratings the cagematch users suggest. I love both Ishii and Omega but I thought nothing interesting happened in this match except the last 2 minutes. All the moves and spots they tried to trade came off as awkward. I noticed Ishii tried to sell at some points, but these 2 just had no chemistry together imo."

[7.0] "I have trouble with this one. On one hand, as someone who's not a fan at all of Ishii and expected Omega to carry him, they both did an admirable job and the match had good psychology and some good highs. However it also felt kinda of meg at times, like it didn't matter almost, moreso to me than to those in the ring, but part of the job is to make the crowd care as well. Overall it was impressive and quite entertaining."

[10.0] "Tremendous match here that featured a great clash of styles and a bunch of memorable spots. The first half of the match was the usual Omega shtick, brawl to the outside--hit the moonsault from the barricade and eventually do a plancha. But after these two started innovating inside the ring with the top rope frankensteiner, this match ascended to the next tier. Great last stretch with some awesome counters (specifically the one-winged angel into a stunner-- WOW! ), as the men reeled off some great false finishes. It was cool to see the upset finish with Ishii going over. If I'm being a bit nitpicky with the match, there was a slight hitch in fluidity between the two as Ishii is more of a stop and go kind of guy whereas Kenny constantly looks urgent and animated and so there is some detachment between the two. There was also one point where both men struggled hoisting each other into the electric chair position back-to-back which was rectified later in the match as I assume they got a better feel for each other. Still none of the drawbacks are enough to take away from this fine match. Thought it might've been 5 stars when I first watched, but on re-watch I'll leave it at ****3/4"

[9.0] "What a match! Omegas big match return shows hes developed no rust and may have actually gotten better, but there was something of a disconnect between the two at the beginning and some of the early spots (the barricade one in general) felt maybe a bit forced and awkward. That being said from the headbutt-uppercut on Omega onwards the match was outstanding. Close to a ***** for me but the first ten minutes keep it from being as such. **** 3/4"

[6.0] "There was too much wasted time to get to the point, however, this is New Japan, right? You tend to lose Ishii and Omega in such long matches, especially the first: i wonder how so-called "booker of the year" thinks about it even by knowing him for a long time. *** - ***1/4"

[8.0] "If I was to dare to highlight a drawback to Ishii, my favorite big-match wrestler in the world, it's that his complete ambivalence in pandering and 'playing the star' makes it very difficult for casual fans and most women to imbibe themselves into his matches. A man w/ his diminutive stature and complete lack of physique would be an acquired taste to begin with, but by completely de-sentimentalizing the pro wrestling game, save for in-ring competition, it turns fans into receiving their plaudits from him not from words or emotions, but rather by spirit, which is ironically, one of the essential calling cards of Japanese wrestling. Who better persuades us of his fighting spirit than the epic single matches Ishii can create? His moveset is unspectacular and unchanging, but every high-profile singles match he throws a kink to convention. Tonight's was the stunner. Yet this match, (and even that move as Omega went down too soon, ) though daring to be great, was, as many have pointed out, besotted with 'communication issues. ' Yet those 'issues' were non-verbal. A remarkable thing about Okada/Omega was that despite their unfamiliarity with each other, like tonight it was their first ever singles match, didn't hamper the timing and build of that classic. Here, the build was fine, its effectiveness hampered by the sucky crowd. But the timing of two guys with, though similar mindsets, different backgrounds hurt. (Ishii's unfamiliarity w/ a gaikokujin's cruiserweight style, while Okada comes from D Gate, Elgin the indie scene, Tana is a wrestler of mobility, etc. ) To sum up, Ishii allows for greater moments of space and pause, whereas Omega naturally wants to rush to the next sequence. I'm betting a better crowd and more time sharing a ring (ala Ishii/Naito) will improve their inevitable rematch. Despite all analyzing, kudos to both men for putting on a very good show. Kudos to Kenny and his facials/urgency and Ishii for involving me in his equilibrium issues. 8. 25"

[10.0] "A bit slow for the first 10-15 min or so with Kenny working on top, but it had some nice spots like the moonsault off the railing and the apron powerslam. I do really like Omega’s eccentric nature, feels kinda like Nakamura in that aspect. The rest of this match was GREAT. Those knees by Omega might be one of my favorite moves right now, and we got a bunch of them again, along with Ishii’s headbutts. Ishii was great as a tough as a tank of a dude who could take punishment and keep coming back, and I really appreciate how often they teased but didn’t deliver on the one wing angel (the stunner counter was awesome! ). Surprised that Ishii won actually, but it was a really really wonderful match, and they really sold Omega’s frustration that he lost really well. ****1/2"

[10.0] "Holy shit this one blew away all expectations. I mean you have Big Match Omega AND Big Match Ishii in the same ring? You should know you are in for a classic, and an amazing classic is what they delivered. With Kenny's "humbling" turn hes starting to get more face fan fare, or at least borders on being a tweener. Ishii on the other hand was super over in this match, thanks in part to Omega because it was obvious he was leading this match. Things started off slow with both men testing the waters and feeling eachother out, but once Ishii hits a freaking second rope Frankensteiner, things really kicked into high gear. I mean just the moves and reversals these guys were doing was just mind boggling; Kenny pulled out a god damn CROYTS WRATH! A big story in this match was, akin to the six star match, Kenny threw everything at his opponent yet still couldn't hit the big One Winged Angel, which Ishii once reversed into a god damn freaking stunner. After this rollarcoaster of a match and some kick outs of Ishii Lariatos, Based Pitbull finally put down Based Cleaner with a finishing Brainbuster. Kenny might be going through a humility story right now, but mark my words The Cleaner will have his moment in the sun sooner than later, ****3/4."

[10.0] "A bout that many considered as a dream match happened in a relatively small venue on a minor NJ Cup show, yet those two managed to get a lot of buzz once again. Those two are just unbelievable, the absolute elite of pro wrestling, Omega may be the best as the overall package, but Ishii may even edge him in the ring work. His selling is incredible, his match structures are so freaking good, he draws sympathy, and there isn't a high profile NJPW wrestler that he didn't have a memorable match with. This was, as expected, fucking incredible. Those two managed to interest what was at first a very quiet crowd, at the end they were stamping their feet, which kinda shows you how good this was. The only issue I had was that the first half was just a little bit too long, I could have done without the long Omega heat segment. But aside from that, this was just nuts, last few minutes blew me away, and that Stunner counter may be the spot of the year. Ishii won, which means we are getting a rematch sooner than later, and I can't fucking wait for that. Top tier MOTYC for sure. **** 3/4."

[10.0] "Wow. Thats what I call a great NJPW main event. When you put two of the most intense wrestlers in the world in one ring, you shouldnt expect anything but a masterpiece. Ishii was amazing as usual, he killed it once again with those chops and lariats, he even managed to hit a hurricanrana! And Omega wasnt holding anything back either, those knee strikes were brutal as F*CK! The last five minutes was pure insanity, the drama of hitting the One Winged Angel was spectacular. Tho the result REALLY suprised me, but hey, Omega vs Ishii is like a dream come true to me, it blown everything in the tournament so far and indeed exceeded my expectations. The only flaw I can think of was the lack of synergy in the beginning, made the tradings a bit sloppy imo, but this was their first meeting so it didnt bother me that much, Im sure they can pull out a even better rematch in the future. Btw, I know its your freedom to rate whatever number ypu like, but this Nasty guy had given dozens of great matches ratings of “0 or 1”, which is just retarded if you ask me, just ignore his ratings guys, I promise this match is definitely enjoyable and worth your time."

[4.0] "This one just didn't click for me and I wouldn't consider this good or great like some would have you to believe this was. Ishii was awesome as usual but these two just seemed to have communication issues and some spots came off awkward especially when Ishii tried to pull off a top rope frankensteiner. Last 5 minutes were just nuts which were expected and I felt they went a tad overkill with near falls as well. (**)"

[10.0] "Probably one of the best matches I've ever seen. There was just everything, and even more. Unexpected victory of Ishii, of course, also pleased. I hope for the final match against Shibata (****3/4)"

[8.0] "Really good match, a lot of unexpected kick outs and a surprisingly awesome Ishii, I'm not a huge Ishii fan but in this match he was really good, as regards Kenny he was fantastic as always. Not expected this to be better than Suzuki vs Shibata, really"

[1.0] "I thought that this was wayy too long, Omega dominated WAY, and I mean WAY too much of it - his work on top was painfully boring. Truly sucked the life out of the match. In the last 10 mins or so they started busting out big bombs, and that sure was more enjoyable than the first 2/3 of the match - loved Ishii countering One Winged Angel attempt into a goddamn STUNNER - but it wasn't interesting enough to bring it to good levels. *1/4"

[10.0] "This match was everything I'd hoped it'd be. A lot of stiff chops and strikes as well as great moves. These guys had a great chemistry and made a really compelling match. The story of Omega getting too cocky and Ishii just not having it was done very well. Hoping to see another match by these guys soon as this was fantastic ****1/2"