 Pre-Show: Great-O-Khan, Taiji Ishimori, Toru Yano and YOH in the New Japan Ranbo and Advanced to New Year Dash to Challenge for the Provisional KOPW 2024 ChampionshipThis accomplished what it always does and that's getting everyone on the show. I was surprised how many names I recognized were involved, but that's probably because Wrestle Kingdom was just one night this year and not spread across two or three. I didn't think it was much different than any other New Japan Ranbo I've seen in the past, but it was fine for a pre-show Battle Royal. Yano always seems to be one of the last remaining entrants in these things. Catch 2/2 def. Bullet Club War Dogs (Clark Connors and Drilla Moloney) to Win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team ChampionshipI've seen TJP and Francesco Akira several times in the past and they're a terrific team. TJP was almost unrecognizable with the Fiend-esque mask on, but that's because he lost a Casket match to Bullet Club War Dogs recently and they were able to avenge the loss here. This was a fun outing and the correct choice to start the show. Conners was as impressive as he has been in the past. Hiroshi Tanahashi def. Zack Sabre Jr. to Win the NJPW World Television ChampionshipSabre had been champion for a full year after becoming the inaugural NJPW World Television Champion at last year's Wrestle Kingdom. He's even defended the title on ROH TV in that time. He's overdue for a move up the card, but I didn't think Tanahashi would be the guy he lost it to. Yes, Tanahashi is an established star, but he's also in the twilight of his career and the damn president of the company at this point. What a weird choice to have him take the title. That said, this was as well-wrestled as you'd expect from them. Yuya Uemura def. Yota TsujiI'm very familiar with Uemura from the time he spent in IMPACT in 2022 and 2023. He was recently "fired" from the promotion in storyline, which I didn't know was done to explain his excursion ending so he could return to New Japan Pro-Wrestling. He has a bright future, and although I knew nothing about Tsuji, he stood out to me with his appearance alone. He then had a standout showing, so I can see the potential in both guys. This was a nice showcase for the next generation. Hopefully they can mix it up again after they go on to have more success. House of Torture (EVIL and Ren Narita) def. Shota Umino and Kaito KiyomiyaHouse of Torture do not have the greatest reputation with fans due to being a boring faction and I see it for myself whenever I watch New Japan content. Wasn't Umino a rising star a year or two ago? Why is he losing to House of Torture in a tag team match? Kiyomiya is apparently one of Pro Wrestling NOAH's to stars, so I don't see how this did him any favors, either. The matchup was decent but easily the weakest thing on the main card. Tama Tonga def. Shingo Takagi to Win the NEVER Openweight ChampionshipTakagi never ceases to shine every time I see him and Tonga is very skilled in his own right. They had quite the hard-hitting affair and it was a blast. I didn't mind who won between the two, but it is strange that Tonga announced after the show during the press conference that he'll be wrapping up with New Japan at the end of the month, begging the question of why he would win the title if that's the case. I guess that means he'll have a short reign, though it would have made more sense for him to do the honors here instead. NJPW Strong Openweight Tag Team Champions Guerrillas of Destiny (Hikuleo and El Phantasmo) def. Bishamon in a Winners Take All Match to Win the IWGP Tag Team ChampionshipI had no clue Hikuleo and Phantasmo joined Guerrillas of Destiny. I believe they were still in Bullet Club as of last year's Wrestle Kingdom. Nonetheless, they have quality chemistry as partners and were the more interesting team of the two. There wasn't anything out of the ordinary about this, but they filled the time well. Between this and what AEW has done with Eddie Kingston and the NJPW Strong Openweight Championship, I'm curious if New Japan is in the process of unifying all of their Strong titles. El Desperado def. Hiromu Takahashi to Win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight ChampionshipSimilar to Takagi, Takahashi is another New Japan star whose work I love to watch. The dude is tremendous. He's been a mainstay in the junior heavyweight division for the longest time and should move on to something else, but at least he consistently kills it at Wrestle Kingdom. They brought the best out of each other and had a top-notch match. Takahashi captured the title at last year's installment, so this seemed like an appropriate time for him to lose it. David Finlay def. Will Ospreay and Jon Moxley in a Three-Way Match to Become the Inaugural IWGP Global Heavyweight ChampionKazuchika Okada and Bryan Danielson arguably had the best bout of my night, but this was my personal favorite. Yes, all of the nearfalls and no-selling became a bit ridiculous by the end, but I was never once bored and all three guys worked wonderfully together. When I heard about Finlay being the one to probably take the title prior to the pay-per-view, I thought he was the wrong guy for the job, but it looks like he's come a long way from where he was. Ospreay is headed to AEW soon, so it was logical for him to eat the loss. Finlay has his next challenger lined up in Nic Nemeth (f.k.a. WWE's Dolph Ziggler), who brawled with him at ringside afterward. I'm excited to see what Nemeth can do outside of WWE. Kazuchika Okada def. Bryan DanielsonDanielson making his entrance in the Tokyo Dome was a surreal sight. I know he's competed in the promotion before, but that was almost two decades ago and long before he became the performer he is today. I enjoyed their original encounter at Forbidden Door last year, but this was definitely better. The action was excellent and they told a strong story with Danielson wanting revenge for Okada legitimately injuring him at Forbidden Door. I thought they'd go a little longer, but I'm actually glad they didn't. This was everything I wanted out of their rematch. It's an awesome Danielson was able to take part in Wrestle Kingdom before he winds down his full-time career later this year. Tetsuya Naito def. SANADA to Win the IWGP World Heavyweight ChampionshipThis felt like less of a main event than the previous two matches. Naito is no stranger to Wrestle Kingdom main events, but SANADA is. From what I can gather, he's had a solid run as champion over the last year, but I simply do not see him on the same level as Naito, Ospreay, Okada and other New Japan headliners despite being great. To their credit, they had a worthy main event, especially once it picked up in the second half. The crowd was into it at that point and popped big for Naito's title win. His last run with the top title was underwhelming, so let's hope this one is an improvement. Overall ShowWrestle Kingdom is the only NJPW-exclusive event I watch in its entirety every year and I'm always satisfied once it's over. The top three matches delivered, the rest of the card was entertaining, and it was obviously eventful with almost every championship changing hands. I like that Wrestle Kingdom is back to being one night as it forces them to do their strongest stuff on the same show. The promotion has lost a lot of its buzz since the pandemic, but Wrestle Kingdom remains one of the best events anywhere in wrestling all year.
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