Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Satoshi Kojima from AJPW 2004

Recap from TJ Hawke:

I have sadly not watched that much Misawa over the years. It’s been a huge shortcoming of mine. As such, I’m probably going to screw up some things in this review. I’m assuming this match was a big deal as Misawa had broken away from AJPW a few years earlier to form NOAH.

Kojima had the initial advantage. He dropped Misawa on his head twice with German suplexes. He then got a nearfall with a Tiger Driver. Kojima followed that up with a pescado. Kojima then hit an Ace Crusher from the apron to the floor. Kojima then went for a powerbomb on the floor, but Misawa reversed it into a hurricanrana that sent Kojima into a barricade. Misawa bumped his head on that one. Misawa was in control after that. They started trading moves fairly quickly though. They no-sold some of them. Misawa hit a Tiger Driver and had control of the match again. Misawa went for a feint dive, but he botched it. Kojima then dropped Misawa on the floor. Misawa got back into the ring. Kojima hit a middle rope Ace Crusher for another nearfall. Misawa blocked another big lariat and took Kojima down with a forearm shot. Misawa then applied an armbar. Kojima escaped, but Misawa took him out with an elbow suicida. And the match went up several notches after Misawa hit a Tiger Driver from the apron to the floor. Back in the ring, Kojima pulled a lariat out of nowhere to slow down Misawa’s momentum. Lariat from Kojima: 1…2…NO! Emerald Frosion: 1…2…NO! Lariat from Kojima: 1…2…NO! ANOTHER LARIAT: 1…2…NO! Ahhhh, Tiger Driver ’91: 1…2…3!

I have to confess that while I appreciate Misawa’s ability to have really successful matches that the crowds really get into, he’s never been a favorite of mine which is probably why I never watch a lot of his matches. There’s a certain amount of repetition and predictability to the structure of his matches that I am a little cynical towards. That being said, he’s an incredibly charismatic/compelling performer , and he managed to suck me in here quite a bit. I went in to the match assuming Misawa would win, but they managed to convince me that Kojima had a shot.

Match Rating: ****