Power Struggle/ Tag League Tour Review *Spoilers*

Hey guys,

So another month's gone and another NJPW tour is under our belts, this time it was Power Struggle which was combined with the Super Jr Tag League (which I wrote about earlier). This tour has seen some amazing matches, some great storytelling and a Super Jr Tag League that really shows that New Japan has some of the best jrs in the world. 

 Before I talk about the league itself, we can't forget about all the other matches this tour which have been building up storylines for the next few months. We've had Tanahashi tagging with other Taguchi Japan members (hai) against the mix of Yujiro, Kota Ibushi and my boy Chase Owens (#AceCommentator) in the lead up to the Tokyo Dome. Even without Kenny, the lead up for this has been great with us seeing the pain in Ibushi's eyes for some reason or another, to the position of Chase and Yujiro within the BC Elite to Tanahashi's growing 'hatred' of Kenny Omega and everything he stands for in wrestling. We then have this Jay White and Okada saga that I'm way too invested in. Ever since Jay betrayed Chaos, we've had some great tag matches between the two factions and I think Jay's got even more brutal and sadistic than ever before (if that's possible). It's been a great bit of storytelling with both throwing insults at each other, BC OG with their sneaky tactics and the added tension by Jay saying he's got a mole inside Chaos. Jay White could be one of the purest heels in wrestling at the moment and he's got me hook, line and sinker into this story #TeamSwitchblade. Hopefully, it'll lead to a WK match!

We then have the Jr Tag League itself and, from the first day of the tour, the match ups and the stories have been truly awesome. As I watched each night, I tried to pick a few favourites from the tour but they were all so good that there'd be one from every night. So I decided to be uber critical and only pick the grade A* matches that you should definitely catch if you have the chance. The first night main event match between Roppongi 3k and Los Ingobernables de Japon was an amazing way to show the world what these teams were made of. We had the high flying ability of Yoh and Bushi mixed with the tougher style of Sho and Shingo, it was a great mix of styles and I was on the edge of my seat for the entire thing. This match then seemed to pave the way for some more great matches including Chris Sabin/ Kushida v LIJ, Tagcuchi/ ACH v Roppongi 3k, Volador/ Soberano Jr v Taguchi/ ACH and Chris Sabin/ Kushida v Volador/ Soberano Jr. I mean I could give you a match by match commentary on why they were so amazing, or I could let you have a look and see how you feel. Let's just say that they were all great examples of everything you can love from a jr division from high flying to mat work, humour to brutality and a whole lot of style!

I knew from the start of the tournament that the likes of Roppongi 3k, Chris Sabin/ Kushida (who surpassed my expectations with their tag team skills) and LIJ would all put on amazing matches and Suzuki Gun would be as dastardly as every. But, I was so surprised at well Taguchi and ACH did, I mean they got a win over the tag team champions and put on some amazing matches whilst sticking to the fun Taguchi Japan style (and they didn't finish bottom). I was also so impressed with the CMLL guys Volador and Soberano Jr, who I hadn't really heard of, and I'm definitely excited for Fantastica Mania. So, after all that, with a 3-way match for the final set, the stakes had never been higher in this tournament - it was a fitting way to finish the league and an amazing match for the final day of tour.

The final day of Power Struggle probably saw one of the most jam packed cards for a single show in a long time! We started off some really nice warm up matches between the members of Taguchi Japan which was, as per, hilarious and one between BC OG and Taguchi Japan where the *injured* Ishimori made clear that he's after Kushida's title! We then started getting the tag matches which were heavily story based like Jay and Fale v Okada and Baretta. Even though I was surprised that Baretta pinned Fale (after 4 minutes), the aftermath was way more important and is nicely setting up Okada v Jay, hopefully for Wrestle Kingdom in January. Then, Kenny returned tagging with Ibushi against my boy David Finlay and Tanahashi to set up for Wrestle Kingdom and Kenny's match against Finlay in Anaheim later this month.

However, the second half was probably the most important with the super jr tag tournament final and title or special single matches. As good as the NEVER openweight match (Goto beating Taichii), IC title match (Jericho retaining against Evil) and special singles (Naito finally defeating ZSJ) and that brutal Suzuki v Ishii match was, the 3-way between Roppingi 3k, LIJ and Suzuki Gun to win the Super Jr Tag Finals was by far my favourite match. I always find it weird seeing 3-ways in NJPW but this one was done perfectly. It was perfectly chaotic! We had Shingo and Sho having this battle of power, Yoh and Bushi with their high risk moves and Kanemaru and Despy being the bastards they are with whiskey and all sorts of cheating. Even though I wanted Chris Sabin/ Kushy to win, I was over the moon (and so excited) that Roppingi 3k won (my second choice) after Sho kicked out of Shingo's finisher and hit Despy with his own. It's so awesome to see them regaining this mometum after a bit of a slump and what better way than to be the first back to back super Jr tag league winners! It's definitely a must see match and, honestly, I was so stressed because there were some near falls that had me too on edge!

So, what's next? We've got World Tag League in a few weeks (which I'll write about when the teams are announced) all in the lead up to Wrestle Kingdom and New Years Dash! Who knows what will happen. Will we get Okada v Jay at WK? Will Jericho battle Naito for the IC title? When will Roppongi 3k go after those tag titles? What's the future for Kushida and his title reign? Is the Ace going to win that title off Kenny Omega? The questions are endless and the answers are impossible so you'll all have to watch to find out. I know I'm so excited for the next few months!

Hopefully you enjoyed my little review of the whole Power Struggle tour and here's to the next post.  Like always, let me know in the comments or on social media (@Wrestling_Chat on Twitter and Wrestling Chatter on FB) what you think!

Until next time,

Bye!