Date: August 1st, 2008
Location: Shiodome Day Tele Tower B2 Open Space
Attendance: 1,300

Whenever I have to do reviews quickly, I always do short little events. Like this one! Its not a complete waste of a card though, as we get a rare 2008 Kobashi sighting. The other two matches showcase the younger wrestlers. This event is different as it is done outdoors, so it provides a different atmosphere. Here is the full card:

- Davey Richards vs. Ippei Ota
- Genba Hirayanagi vs. Taiji Ishimori
- Jun Akiyama and Atsushi Aoki vs. Kenta Kobashi and Akihiko Ito

Let's get started!

Davey Richards vs. Ippei Ota
Tie-up, Richards pushes Ota into the ropes and he gives a clean break. Tie-up again, wristlock by Richards, Ota reverses it but Richards gets out of it. Tie-up, side headlock by Richards, Ota Irish whips out of it but Richards shoulderblocks him to the mat. Hiptoss by Ota, both wrestlers go for dropkicks but they both miss. They circle each other, they go into a Test of Strength, kick to the stomach by Richards, Irish whip, and he delivers a lariat. Richards picks up Ota and hits a backdrop suplex, cover, but it barely gets two. Camel Clutch by Richards and he kicks Ota in the back. Richards picks up Ota and kicks him repeatedly until Ota falls back to the mat. Cover, but it gets a two count. Crab hold by Richards but Ota makes it to the ropes to force a break. Richards picks up Ota and hits a snap suplex, cover, but Ota kicks out. Richards goes off the ropes and hits a knee drop, cover, but again it gets two. Headscissors by Richards, he throws Ota into the corner, Irish whip, but Ota kicks Richards when he charges in. Richards goes off the ropes but Ota drops him with a dropkick. Neck breaker drop by Ota, he goes up to the top turnbuckle but Richards jumps up and headbutts him. Richards joins him up top but Ota pushes him off. Missile dropkick by Ota, cover, but it gets a two count. Ota picks up Richards and give him the 'ol airplane spin, he stops for a second before spinning him around again before hitting a Samoan drop. Corner Rebound Bulldog by Ota, cover, but it gets a two count. Ota picks up Richards, Irish whip, reversed, Ota kicks Richards back and hits a jumping neckbreaker off the second turnbuckle. Ota picks up Richards and goes for the airplane spin again, but Richards punches out of it. They trade blows, but Richards slams Ota back into the corner. Irish whip by Richards, reversed, but Richards slides through Ota's legs and hits an enzigieri. German suplex hold by Richards, but Ota gets a shoulder up. Richards picks up Ota, scoop slam, he goes up to the top turnbuckle but Ota moves out of the way of the diving headbutt.They trade waistlocks, cradle by Richards but it gets a two count. Richards kicks Ota in the stomach and goes for a powerbomb but Ota reverses it with a hurricanrana for a two count. Ota goes off the ropes but Richards kicks him in the chest and nails the powerbomb hold for a three count! Your winner: Davey Richards

Match Thoughts: Nothing offensive but really not very good. Ota isn't the most impressive of the dojo graduates and Richards is good but not near the level to carry this to an entertaining match. My main problem is that there was nothing at all resembling structure to the match. Richards won with a powerbomb, but nothing during the match had built up to that point. Ota had a few hope spots but nothing convincing, and some of the transitions were questionable at best. For an opener it was acceptable as Ota is still honing his craft, but for a three match card I wish they had paired them a little bit better as these two didn't have any chemistry. Score: 4.0

Genba Hirayanagi vs. Taiji Ishimori
Tie-up to start, they trade elbows, Ishimori goes off the ropes and hits a spinning headscissors, sending Hirayanagi out of the ring. Ishimori goes off the ropes to do a dive, but Hirayanagi runs to the other side of the ring so Ishimori flips himself back. Hirayanagi returns, wristlock by Ishimori, reversed by Hirayanagi but Ishimori flips out of the hold and reverses it back. Hirayanagi regains the advantage but Ishimori trips him up and applies a side headlock. Hirayanagi struggles to his feet and bites on Ishimori's finger to get out of the hold. Hirayanagi kicks Ishimori in the corner, Irish whip, reversed, but Ishimori connects with a back elbow. Hirayanagi rolls out of the ring to recover, he thinks about sliding in but goes back out to the floor. Ishimori goes out after him but Hirayanagi quickly gets back in the ring. Ishimori tries to get back into the ring but Hirayanagi kicks the second rope up into his groin. Hirayanagi picks up Ishimori, Irish whip, and he delivers an elbow. Cover, but it gets a two count. Camel Clutch by Hirayanagi, Hirayanagi picks up Ishimori and they trade elbows. Eye rake by Hirayanagi and he delivers a DDT. Cocky cover, but it gets a two count. Hirayanagi picks up Ishimori, Irish whip to the corner and he hits a running back elbow. Hirayanagi stomps on Ishimori in the corner, but Ishimori fights back. Ishimori throws Hirayanagi into the other corner and jumps down onto Hirayanagi's shoulders. Hirayanagi pushes Ishimori back, which knocks the referee down, and Hirayanagi takes the opportunity to kick Ishimori low. Hirayanagi takes some tape off his wrist and chokes Ishimori with it, but he releases it after a moment. Hirayanagi picks up Ishimori, Irish whip from the corner, reversed, Ishimori charges Hirayanagi but Hirayanagi back bodydrops him over the top rope. Ishimori lands on the apron however and hits a swandive dropkick. Ishimori picks up Hirayanagi, Irish whip, reversed, but Ishimori delivers the handstand rebound heel kick for a two count cover. Back up they trade waistlocks, Hirayanagi goes for a German suplex but Ishimori lands on his feet and hits a German suplex hold of his own for a two count. Irish whip by Ishimori, reversed, but Ishimori kicks Hirayanagi back. Ishimori gets on the top turnbuckle but Hirayanagi recovers and slams him off. Hirayanagi then hits a second turnbuckle elbow drop, cover, but it gets a two count. Back up, Hirayanagi goes for a suplex, Ishimori fights him off but Hirayanagi hits an STO. Saito Suplex by Hirayanagi, cover, but Ishimori barely kicks out. Irish whip by Hirayanagi to the corner, reversed, Hirayanagi jumps up to the top turnbuckle but Ishimori armdrags him off. German suplex hold by Ishimori, but it gets a two count. Ishimori picks up Hirayanagi but Hirayanagi rakes him in the eyes and nails the SHORYU-GENBA! He is too hurt to cover however, after he recovers he picks up Ishimori but Ishimori gets away. He goes for the move again but Ishimori ducks it and hits a release German suplex followed by a crucifix pin for a two count. Ishimori picks up Hirayanagi, scoop slam, and he delivers the Superstar Elbow. Cover, and he picks up the three count. Your winner: Taiji Ishimori

Match Thoughts: Better then the last match, as Hirayanagi looked pretty good heeling it up and Ishimori hit all his spots. It was a safe bet that Ishimori was going to win, but Hirayanagi had some good close calls and at times it felt like he might pull off the upset. It was far from perfect though, they seemed to stop and restart quite a few times and there was never a "beat down" period as they just took turns being in control until Ishimori hit the better move and picked up the pin. Still, it was a solid match, just utterly void of substance. Score: 5.5

Jun Akiyama and Atsushi Aoki vs. Kenta Kobashi and Akihiko Ito
Everyone was expecting the young guys to start, but Akiyama and Kobashi begin the match. Tie-up, Kobashi pushes Akiyama into the ropes and he gives a clean break. Tie-up again, Akiyama pushes Kobashi into the ropes this time but he gives a clean break as well. Side headlock by Akiyama, Kobashi Irish whips out of it and they collide in the middle of the ring. Akiyama goes off the ropes but Kobashi catches him with a shoulderblock. Back up they go into a Test of Strength, Kobashi pushes Akiyama into the ropes and he chops Akiyama in the chest before backing off. Akiyama tags in Aoki and Kobashi tags in Ito. They circle each other, kick to the stomach by Aoki, Irish whip, reversed, but Aoki hits a shoulderblock. Aoki goes off the ropes but Ito catches him with a dropkick. Armdrag by Ito but Aoki applies a headscissors before both wrestlers get back to their feet. Wristlock by Aoki, Ito trips him up and goes for a side headlock, but Aoki goes back to the arm and tags in Akiyama. Akiyama and Ito tie-up, Akiyama pushes Ito into the ropes and he gives a clean break. They jockey for position, waistlock by Ito, reversed by Akiyama into an armbar and he pushes Ito to the mat. Kobashi gets into the ring after a moment and chops Akiyama in the back. Akiyama tags in Aoki, elbow by Aoki but Ito returns fire. Scoop slam by Aoki, cover, but it only gets one. Aoki picks up Ito, Irish whip, and Aoki hits a back elbow before hitting Kobashi who was still on the apron. Irish whip by Aoki to Ito to the corner but Ito kicks him when he charges in. Missile dropkick by Ito and he makes the tag to the still pissed off Kobashi. Chops to the chest by Kobashi but Akiyama runs in and throws Kobashi out of the ring. Akiyama joins Kobashi on the outside and nails a DDT on the floor. Akiyama has such a mean streak. Akiyama stomps Kobashi before picking him up and throwing him into the ring post. Akiyama finally slides Kobashi back into the ring, Aoki covers him with one foot but it gets a one count. Aoki picks up Kobashi and he makes the tag to Akiyama. Stomp to the chest by Akiyama and he applies a reverse chinlock. Kobashi tries to muscle out of it but Akiyama kicks him down and tags in Aoki.

Stomps by Aoki and he applies a sleeperhold. Kobashi struggles to his feet and gets into the ropes, chops by Aoki but Kobashi just looks at him and knocks him down with one chop. Aoki gets back up but he eats a few more chops. Kobashi picks up Aoki and chops him in the before tagging in Ito. Ito chops Aoki in the corner, but Kobashi stops him to show him how. They take turns for a moment, wristlock by Ito, Irish whip, and Ito delivers a knee to the stomach. Cover, but it gets a two count. Stomps to the back by Ito, snapmare, and he runs over to elbow Akiyama before kicking Aoki. Ito throws Aoki out of the ring where Kobashi greets him and nails the Burning Sword. Kobashi brings Aoki to the other side of the ring and does the move there as well so that the fans don't feel left out. Kobashi then slides Aoki back into the ring and joins him, cover, but it gets a two count. Kobashi applies a reverse chinlock to Aoki and he chops Aoki in the nose. Kobashi throws Aoki into the apron and chops him in the back, he then puts him up onto the top turnbuckle before pulling him down and chopping him in the chest, sending him to the mat. Cover, but Aoki kicks out. Kobashi puts Aoki into a crab hold but Aoki makes it to the ropes. Kobashi throws Aoki into the corner and chops him in the chest before tagging in Ito. Irish whip by Ito from the corner and he hits a running elbow, but when he goes off the ropes he goes too close to Akiyama who pulls him out of the ring. Akiyama goes to join Ito outside but Ito quickly slides back in the ring and then dropkicks Akiyama as he gets on the apron. Ito puts Aoki in a front facelock but lets go so he can elbow him in the face. Aoki returns fire, he goes off the ropes but Ito catches him with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for a two count. Ito picks up Aoki but Aoki hits a quick backdrop suplex. Akiyama grabs Ito's foot from outside the ring and pulls him out to the floor so he can slam him to the mat, while in the ring Kobashi chops on Aoki. They then take turns beating their respective young team mates while staring at each other until Kobashi backs off and Akiyama slides Ito back in the ring. Cover by Aoki but it gets a two count.

Aoki tags in Akiyama, Akiyama picks up Ito and bodyslams him to the mat. Crab hold by Akiyama, but Ito makes it to the ropes after a moment. Akiyama tags in Aoki, Aoki picks up Ito and elbows him in the back. Another elbow by Aoki but Ito returns fire. Irish whip by Aoki and he delivers a hiptoss. Aoki applies a single leg crab hold but Ito crawls to the ropes and forces a break. Akiyama comes in the ring, double Irish whip to Ito and they hit double elbows. Akiyama picks up Ito and body slams him to the mat. Akiyama picks him up again and delivers a second one, cover, but it gets two. Ito gets close to making the tag but Akiyama runs over and boots Kobashi in the face before tagging in Aoki. Ito tries to fight them both off but doesn't succeed, as Aoki hits Ito with a vertical suplex for a two count. Aoki picks up Ito and tags in Akiyama, chops in the corner by Akiyama, but Ito fights him off. Ito goes off the ropes and avoids a Akiyama boot before hitting a lariat. Ito finally tags in Kobashi and Kobashi chops Akiyama in the corner before hitting his rapid fire chops. Aoki finally comes in to help but Kobashi knocks him back. Elbow by Akiyama onto Kobashi but Kobashi chops him in the neck and then puts him draping over the top rope so he can chop him some more. Kobashi picks up Akiyama and goes for a half nelson suplex, but Akiyama blocks it. Chop to the neck by Kobashi and he goes for it again, but Aoki grabs Akiyama's hand from the apron. Ito runs in and dropkicks Aoki off the apron, but Akiyama elbows Kobashi. Irish whip by Akiyama to the corner but Kobashi kicks him when he charges in. Kobashi sits on the top turnbuckle but Akiyama runs over and hits an exploder for a two count. Akiyama goes off the ropes and hits Kobashi with a running knee, cover, but again it gets two. Akiyama applies the grounded front facelock, but Ito breaks it up. Ito goes off the ropes but Akiyama hits him with a boot.

Kobashi comes up from behind and puts Akiyama in the sleeperhold, Akiyama reaches for the ropes but Kobashi grabs his arm and nails the sleeper suplex! Kobashi gets up first but Akiyama hits a jumping knee and tags in Aoki. Aoki picks up Kobashi and dropkicks him in the knee, he then delivers a dragon screw leg whip. Dropkick to the leg by Aoki, he picks up Kobashi and goes for another dragon screw, but Kobashi blocks it and drops him with a half nelson suplex. Kobashi tags in Ito, who comes up to the top turnbuckle and hits a missile dropkick onto Aoki. Cover by Ito but it gets a two count. Ito picks up Aoki but Aoki gets out of the hold. Aoki goes off the ropes and attempts a sunset flip, but Ito rolls through it and delivers a dropkick. Kobashi runs in to knock Akiyama off the apron, Ito goes up to the top turnbuckle and hits a diving body press for a two count. Ito picks up Aoki and delivers a double arm suplex hold, but again it gets two. Meanwhile, Akiyama DDTs Kobashi outside the ring, rendering him useless. In the ring, Ito goes for another body press but Aoki moves out of the way, and Akiyama runs in the ring to hit him with a running knee. Both wrestlers hit running strikes in the corner to Ito, Aoki sits up on the top turnbuckle while Akiyama hands Ito to him, and Aoki delivers an avalanche powerbomb. Cover, but Kobashi breaks it up. Akiyama stomps on Kobashi and they roll out of the ring, while Aoki picks up Ito and hits a Northern Lights Suplex. Ito rolls through it though and connects with a death valley bomb. Cover by Ito but Akiyama breaks it up. Akiyama and Kobashi trade blows and Akiyama hits him with an exploder, but Kobashi jumps back to his feet and hits a lariat. They roll to the apron while Aoki hits Ito with a German suplex hold for a two count. Running knee by Aoki in the corner and he nails Ito with the Assault Point for the three count! Your winners: Jun Akiyama and Atsushi Aoki

Match Thoughts: My initial reaction was "damn this match was long," but I guess when you only have a three match card they can't all be short. The match had its moments as Kobashi and Akiyama were fun interacting with each other and with the young guys, but there was a lot of dead time and a good 10 minutes could have been cut out of it. Aoki looked really good here, he is still my favorite NOAH dojo graduate right now as he is really crisp and seems to understand a bit about structuring a match. It was good to see Kobashi again, but except for a few of his altercations with Akiyama there wasn't anything special about the match. Score: 6.0

Final Thoughts:

It is a novelty event since it is outdoors and seems open to the public, but three matches is a really short card, especially when two are under 10 minutes. I can't give the event a recommendation as the first two matches are opener-level quality, and while the main event definitely had its moments it wasn't enough to justify going out of your way to see. This type of event is only for diehards and completist, but its unique and I like when promotions do something a little different.

Not Recommended

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review completed 12/9/08