The show opens with a man talking in the ring. If you don't already know, BJW is Big Japan Wrestling and as such I'm once again broken by the language barrier. It is funny though that a man sits in the crowd directly behind the man in the ring and he has his cell phone pointed at the man. If he's taking pictures or videos he'd just be getting the man speaking's back so I feel like he might be texting or live tweeting or playing Angry Birds until the action starts. Who knows. Not that it matters, but he does put his phone down after a short bit.
Music begins playing and it sounds like the old White Zombie song that used to open ECW Hardcore TV only something else is mixed in with it as well. So this show doesn't actually have an opening package so much as it just kind of begins in the ring. Fair enough.
A man is speaking over the loudspeaker system now and I believe he's running down the card for tonight but he might be telling people who are having their cars towed for parking in fire lanes.
Match One: Atsushi Maruyama / Tosiyuki Sakuta vs. Isamu Oshita / Kot Sekifuda
Oshita and Sekifuda are out first. Sekifuda is in yellow trunks and Oshita is in dark blue trunks but they have the same sort of haircut and look otherwise that I'm kind of surprised they're not Maruyama is wearing pants ala 3MB (loose but not too loose) while Sakuta wears a baby blue singlet that might make him a Japanese Body Donna. Sakuta and Oshita start thngs off. After some exchanges of power, Oshita tags in Sekifuda. Maruyama also comes in and takes down Sekifuda with some submission holds. Thus far this match has felt more like I was watching MMA than professional wrestling. Sekifuda gets up and backs Maruyama into his corner as he makes the tag to bring Oshita back in. Rest holds from Oshita, or perhaps strong style. Sakuta tags himself into the match as Oshita backs Maruyama into the ropes on their side of the ring. Double team move by Maruyama and Sakuta on Oshita. Maruyama has a leg lock on Oshita but Oshita reaches the ropes to break it. Sakuta and Oshita trade blows in the middle of the ring and Sakuta goes down first. Sakuta gets worked over the opposite corner now by both men. I want to say that Oshita and Sekifuda are the heels in this match but I'm not certain. I just know Maruyama got one heck of a reception in the ring during introductions. A number of double team moves show how well Oshita and Sekifuda work together as a tag team. As they go back to the other corner, Maruyama hits Oshita with a huge kick to the head. Sakuta shows that there are no tag ropes in BJW. Oshita has to tag Seifuda back in. Sekifuda begins to work over Maruyama now. Maruyama makes the tag and Sakuta is in without any double teaming. Sakuta hits a series of running shoulder blocks while Sekifuda is in the corner. Sakuta hits a spear. Now Sakuta and Sekifuda are trading blows in the middle of the ring. Impressive dropkick by Sekifuda. Oshita is back in now. Oshita takes the boots to Sakuta. Oshita hits a suplex that resembles the Perfectplex on Sakuta for a near fall. Sakuta finally get Maruyama back in. Now Maruyama and Oshita trade blows in the middle of the ring. Maruyama with big kciks to the head of Oshita. That could have been it but it was broken up by Sekifuda. Maruyama locks on a single leg Boston crab and Oshida taps to end the match.
Match Two: Brahman Kei / Brahman Shu / Entertainer Atsushi vs. Hercules Senga / MEN's Teioh / Tsutomu Oosugi
A six man tag is my real test of remembering everyone's name and being able to tell them apart so this might have a quicker summary, haha. The tag matches aren't so bad because when I figure out who one guy is I just think of the other guy as being not him but when you add in that third person it can get a bit confusing for me at least. More talking in the ring and here come the Brahmen. The Brahmen both have similar facial hair (fu man chu?) with long hair going down the back of their heads but the top of their heads is shaved. They're both wearing red pants and so I'm probably not going to be able to tell them apart even if I understood Japanese. Entertainer Atsushi is wearing tights and a t-shirt while strumming an acoustic guitar. Well, he is an entertainer. MEN's Teioh is the first name I recognize on this card. MEN's Teioh is in red but the other two members of his team wear matching green and yellow outfits. There is commentary for this match and there wasn't for the first, which is somewhat odd. Atsushi is playing his guitar to start things off and I'm pretty sure that thing is going to be Jeff Jarretted before this match is over. Atsushi starts things off with Oosugi and Oosugi avoids some guitar shots. This has just broken down and everyone has left the ring and gone into the crowd on the hard camera side. MEN's Teioh and one of the Brahman dumped a bucket of water over the other Brahman while he was standing on top of some chairs. Teioh is in the ring now with Atsushi and this seems to be finally getting under way. Teioh has a leg lock on, kind of like a figure four, and Atsushi is playing his acoustic guitar still. Oosugi locks a sleeper on Atsushi and as the ref checks on him he hulks up by strumming his guitar. One of the Brahmen hits Senga with the bucket and then chokes him with clothing behind the ref's back. The crowd does laugh at some of these Atsushi spots so I wonder if this is comedy mixed with the hardcore style that is forthcoming. One of the Brahmen goes for the spit move but Senga blocks it with that entrance poncho the Brahmen came out wearing. The Brahmen put a suitcase in between the legs of Senga while he was seated in the corner and then rolled a bowling ball into the suitcase from the opposite corner. This is some New Jack tomfoolery right here. Senga reverses a suplex but gets bit in the butt by one of the Brahmen. Oosugi seems to be looking for the tag but Senga tags in Teioh instead. Teioh and Oosugi hit some moves on both Brahmen. They are now double teaming Atsushi. Once again it has become the Brahmen versus Senga. The Brahmen tried using powder but Senga blocked it with their clothes again and now he's pouring water on their stuff. Apparently the Brahmen really hate water. Atsushi is in the ring playing his guitar and singing. I'm pretty sure he has not let go of that guitar the entire match. Senga is just watching him for some reason. Atsushi turns around and hands Senga the guitar for some odd reason. After playing to the crowd, Atsushi turns around again and this time is nailed over the head with that acoustic guitar. Senga puts a single foot onto the chest of Atsushi for the pin and win. So basically Entertainer Atsushi was fine the whole match until he gave up his guitar, which must be where his power is kept.
The guy from the beginning is in the ring talking again while others are sweeping, cleaning up the mess which just happened and rightfully so. The powder and water were the mess, I mean, not the match itself. The match itself was all right. Sometimes I feel like this guy in the ring is doing stand up comedy, but really how weird would it be if the owner of a promotion or their spokesperson came out in between matches to talk? Think of Gabe doing this during an Evolve event and that's kind of how this feels. Except this has the hardcore aspect of it, so imagine if Paul Heyman was doing this back in the ECW days. It's just weird no matter who you put into the scenario. Plus it just seems like it's wasting time, regardless of whether or not I know what he's talking about.
Match Three: Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Hideyoshi Kamitani
Kamitani is out first in red and black shorts. He's running the ropes during Sekimoto's entrance. Sekimoto is wearing a robe and is in all black. The way his hair and facial hair is kept reminds me of KENTA aka Hideo Itami. This looks like it could be a slow, strong style match but we shall see. Both men seem methodical rather than coming out swinging. Regardless of what I said about Sekimoto before resembling KENTA, Sekimoto is a large man, I imagine much bigger than KENTA. Sekimoto is working Kamitani over with a standing arm bar. He's just wrenching the shoulder and as I suspected this is pretty slow moving thus far. There are a lot of coffee grounds in my coffee for some reason today so I'm trying to avoid drinking them. Kamitani comes back with some stomps on Sekimoto and the two men are now grappling on the ring mat. This has become slow and mat based, like an MMA match. Kamitani breaks a hold by grabbing the ropes and we reset in the middle of the ring, just like in MMA somehow. Off the ropes, Kamitani manages to shoulder block Sekimoto down. Both of these men are rather large and powerful. Sekimoto no-sells some chops and then hits Kamitani with some forearms of his own. The two men trade blows in the middle of the ring and there is just no comparison for this. Kamitani takes the worst of it and goes down as if he's knocked out. No cover by Sekimoto but instead he picks him up. Scoop and a slam by Sekimoto is good for a near fall. Sekimoto applies a single leg Boston crab and Kamitani is a long way from the ropes. Kamitani is pulling himself there though. Kamitani makes it to the ropes to break the hold. Sekimoto hits Kamitani with a chop that knocks him off his feet. Sekimoto no-sells a flurry of chops now. The two men collide running but neither goes down, so Kamitani goes off the ropes again and shoulder blocks Sekimoto down. Kamitani has a series of near falls. I just noticed that the referee is a woman. Kamitani starts with a headlock but takes Sekimoto down and locks in what was once called the Tazmission. Sekimoto rolls to the ropes to break the hold though. A big clothesline into the corner by Sekimoto followed by a sit down neckbreaker is good for only two. Another submission hold broken up by the ropes. Another collision in the middle of the ring. A dropkick attempt by Kamitani is swatted away by Sekimoto. The two men trade blows in the middle of the ring but after a headbutt and series of chops it takes a running clothesline by Sekimoto to take Kamitani down. A belly to back bridge suplex by Sekimoto into the pin is good for the three and this was a really good, hard-hitting match between two big men. And hey, why wouldn't there be big men in Big Japan? After the match the two men shake hands as a sign of respect.
That guy is in the ring talking again, but I'm over it now. I'm using the time to study reference photos so I can remember who is who in this next match. Yes, really.
Match Four: Ryuichi Sekine / Saburo Inematsu vs. Ryuji Ito / SAGAT *Hardcore Match*
None of these names are familiar but Sekine and SAGAT look like legitimate tough guys in their Cage Match dot net photos. Sekine and Inematsu are out first. The way I tell them apart is because Sekine has hair. SAGAT has really long hair and interestingly enough everyone came out with a weapon except for him. Sekine starts the match by hitting Ito with a singapore cane. They're outside the ring and cane shots are being blocked with a chair. Inematsu and SAGAT are in the ring now. SAGAT blocks a chair shot and then hits one of his own. Scoop and a slam onto the chair by SAGAT. Inematsu is back up and he nails SAGAT with the chair this time. Sekine is tagged in and he begins going to work on SAGAT now. Sekine and SAGAT have some nice exchanges but nothing hardcore. Sekine tags Inematsu back in. Inematsu begins working SAGAT over with a chair. Sekine is tagged in and tries to clear the apron of Ito but struggles with it at first. Quick tag to bring Inematsu back in. SAGAT is playing the victim role in every single tag team match I have ever seen but didn't enjoy. Inematsu goes for a running chairshot in the corner but SAGAT moves and so Inematsu hits himself in the face with the chair. A flying shoulder block gives SAGAT the chance to tag Ito in, who lights both Inematsu and Sekine up with singapore cane shots. Chair shots for Inematsu now. Ito hits a top rope moonsault onto Inematsu for a two count. Nothing hardcore about that. Sekine is tagged in now. Sekine puts the chair on the face of Ito in the corner and hits a running knee into the chair. Ito comes back and breaks the chair over the head of Sekine. Ito tags in SAGAT and he is going to work on Sekine now. Cannonball onto Sekine by SAGAT with a chair in place. Sekine hits a Samoan roll and tags in Inematsu. They're trying to double team SAGAT but he takes them both down with spears. Ito and SAGAT go to work on Inematsu now. Ito sets up some chairs while SAGAT holds Inematsu. SAGAT looks to try a slam of some sort on Inematsu but SAGAT ends up taking the worst of it on the chairs. I can vaguely see Sekine fighting Ito on the outside. Inematsu ends up scoring the pin on SAGAT without the use of any final sequence of weapons. What kind of hardcore match was that? Sekine gets on the mic and is probably complaining that his favorite chair got broken. Ito comes in with the singapore cane again and clears them both from the ring. And now Ito has something to say. And Ito uses that other custom chair to beat up the ring post. So a lot of this match just seemed to be about those chairs Sekine and Inematsu seemed to have custom made for them because of the design on their seats. Still, an okay match: Not bad but not great.
Yes, he's back in the ring talking as they set up the barbed wire boards for the next match. I know who Abdullah Kobayashi is going into the next match so I'm not as worried about figuring out who is who and all that as I have been.
Match Five: Abdullah Kobayashi / Masato Inaba vs. Masaya Takahashi / Takayuki Ueki *Barbed Wire Board Death Match*
Takahashi comes out in jean shorts while Ueki has army green ones. Ah, the various years of John Cena come to life before my eyes in a single match. Inaba has Hayabusa/Sabu pants and of course Kobayashi resembles Abdullah the Butcher only Japanese. Takahashi and Kobayashi start things off. I might only really write about when someone goes through one of these two barbed wire boards but we'll see. The referee is a woman again, possibly the same woman ref as earlier on the card. Kobayashi tags in Inaba. Takahashi tags in Ueki as well. They trade blows as Inaba slightly touches one of the boards but stops before he can run into the other one after an Irish whip from Ueki. The fight is breaking down outside the ring now, where the barbed wire boards are not. Ueki and Inaba are back in the ring fighting over a chair. Ueki gets the better of that exchange and after a reversal Inaba sends Ueki into one of the barbed wire boards, breaking it in half. Ouch. Inaba and Kobayashi together just sent Ueki into the other barbed wire board as well. Inaba rakes the board across the back of Ueki. Kobayashi steps on the barbed wire board while Ueki is underneath it. If Ueki wasn't face down that could have been the pin and win. Inaba knocks Takahashi off the ring apron as he enters the match. Inaba hits a suplex on Ueki onto the barbed wire board but somehow Ueki kicks out before three. Kobayashi is wrapping his fist in barbed wire now and using it while punching Ueki in the corner. While Kobayashi is holding up the barbed wire board, Ueki hits a splash off the top rope which should hurt both men but Ueki took the barbed wire side of it. This helped Takahashi to get back into the match. Takahashi cannot move Kobayashi though. He finally does but nothing really seems to come of it. Takahashi puts the barbed wire board onto Kobayashi (barbed wire side down) and hits a 450 splash off the top rope onto it for a pin attempt that is broken up because Kobayashi was under the ropes. Kobayashi comes back and tags in Inaba. Inaba has some nice moves but this isn't ending without barbed wire being involved in the finish, is it? Takahashi rams Inaba into his corner and tags in Ueki. Double team moves on Inaba now. A spear by Ueki and Kobayashi breaks up a three count. Kobayashi goes to work on both men now. Shining Wizard by Kobayashi followed by a double foot stomp onto Ueki by Inaba but Takahashi is there to break up the pin. This match is trying to end but I don't know where all the barbed wire went. Inaba hits a hook leg suplex of some kind on Ueki sending him onto the barbed wire board for the pin and win. It makes sense since Ueki took most of the beating in this match and felt the wrath of the barbed wire the most. A decent match, but I did want more barbed wire. Post match, Ueki has something to say. I also just noticed that the Cage Match dot net page for Masato Inaba has him wearing a mask and in this match he is unmasked. Kobayashi and Ueki hug after they talk it out.
The ring is now being cleaned up without that guy coming in to talk. Huzzah! The commentators just talk instead as we watch the ring being cleaned. Seems like something they could have edited out in post production. Oh, and guess what happens when the ring is cleaned? That guy's in it talking again!!
Match Six: Kazuki Hashimoto / Ryuichi Kawakami vs. Yuji Hino / Yuji Okabayashi
A non-hardcore themed match to lighten the mood I would assume before we get to the main event. To make things easier for me in this match I'm just going to call Okabayashi "Ok". All four men are in the ring for introductions. Okabayashi is the bald Yuji but both men come out in black trunks. Hashimoto has blonde hair and Kawakami has red hair, which makes telling them apart rather easy. Kawakami and Ok are starting the match. Ok backs Kawakami into the ropes, calls for a clean break and gets it. These are both big men but Ok seems to have a weight advantage. Ok manages to knock Kawakami off his feet. Hino is tagged in now. Hino wins a feats of strength challenge. This appears to be strong style again. Hino overpowers Kawakami so he tags in Hashimoto. Hashimoto kicks Hino and then calls his next spot. I think he was expecting a kick but got a slap. This goes on back and forth until Hino takes Hashimoto down. Ok is back in and he trades blows with Hashimoto. Another tag to bring Hino back in again. Hashimoto has been worked over by both men now, but Kawakami does come in to break up a pin fall. Hino and Ok take turns chopping Hashimoto. Hashimoto eventually comes back with some kicks and a jumping/running clothesline. Kawakami is back in and he goes to work on Ok. Scoop and a slam allows Ok to tag out. Hino begins chopping Kawakami. Big suplex by Hino but Hashimoto breaks up the pin. Hashimoto and Kawakami work over Hino now. Some combinations and two counts. Hino reverses an Irish whip and hits a big clothesline. Both Yujis go to work on Hashimoto now. Kawakami comes in and gets double teamed for his troubles as well. Razor's Edge like powerbomb by Hino into big body splash off the top rope from Okabayashi gets the three count on Hashimoto. Hino is on the mic post match. The two tag team partners talk back and forth and I'm not sure what's happening but the crowd is laughing and applauding.
Light tubes are put in the ring now, as the referee is once again female. They're putting them across the ring ropes, so from one set of turnbuckles to the next. Only two sides opposite of each other are being done though, so the entrance ramp side and hard camera side are "safe". I don't know how many light tubes they put up on each side but they don't quite go all the way from turnbuckle to turnbuckle. Time to figure out who is who by ring introductions.
Match Seven: Jaki Numazawa / Masashi Takeda / Takumi Tsukamoto vs. Isami Kodaka / Yuko Miyamoto / Kankuro Hoshino *BFJ-Style Fluorescent Light Tubes Match*
All six men will enter the ring before introductions it would seem. Takeda is in black shorts, Tsukamoto in green shorts and Numazawa is masked. The fight spills to the floor quick enough. Kodaka sends Numazawa into the light tubes first. Kodaka and Miyamoto try for a double team smash on Numazawa but he moves. Takeda smashes Kodaka with a barbed wire bat as Hoshino holds him down with a light tube. I believe Kodaka is in the black Sabu pants where as Hoshino is wearing black shorts, which puts Miyamoto in the red pants, but I'm not 100% certain so it's just what I'm going with here. Tsukamoto slams Takeda down onto Kodaka and light tubes but the first time they don't break. Kodaka gets the tag to Miyamoto. Flying knees smash light tubes onto Tsukamoto. There haven't been too many light tubes broken yet but Numazawa is an interesting character to say the least. I'm not doing play by play as I'm just watching this, waiting for light tubes to break. Takeda breaks light tubes into the back of Miyamoto and as I type that I hear the commentator say "Miyamoto" so I think I have the names right. Miyamoto tags in Hoshino. A leg sweep sends Takeda onto some light tubes. Takeda spears Hoshino as he's holding light tubes for a cool spot. All three men hit moves and tried for the pin but it was able to be broken up because I'm not sure what Takeda was doing walking around inside the ring and not watching his opponents. Kodaka, I believe, was just shown running up the entrance ramp and left through the curtain. The action is outside the ring and the camera is having a particularly hard time following it. A huge garage style door is opening on one side of the arena while most of the competitors in this match fight on the other side. A truck is being backed into the arena near ringside. Kodaka comes flying off of it and lands on at least three men in the ring. Hoshino drops Numazawa onto some light tubes for a two count. Razor's Edge into sit down powerbomb by Numazawa and the count is broken up. Numazawa makes Hoshino eat glass and hits him over the head with some light tubes as well. Numazawa gets the pin and win here and as they seem to have done the most damage in the match it seems only fitting. Post match, Numazawa gets on the mic.
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