The dream match of all dream matches. Something that none of us could’ve thought would be possible at the start of the decade. But it happened, and it was kind of disappointing last year, to be honest. However, Bryan and Okada would get another go at the most iconic venue in the history of NJPW. Okada’s den with Bryan being the visitor this time promising to break Okada’s arm. And there was just something different in the air this time. From the amazing entrances to the Dome greeting Bryan with YES chants, it felt like something special was on the way.
The secret for this dream match, as it turns out, was to escalate it into a grudge match. There’s a real spite to everything here right down to the feeling out process. The Greco-Roman knuckle lock elbow exchange is so sick. It’s not as much of a feeling out process as much as it’s Okada trying to piss off Dragon and my god, he succeeds. His attempts to bait Bryan in by mocking his injured eye rules. That is just the first part of a masterful expressing performance of Okada.
Bryan turns into an absolute killer and starts slapping the shit out of him on the floor and slamming the barricade shut on his right arm. The American Dragon starts torturing Okada, twisting his arm in different ways, making it look like the most painful thing in the world. But it’s as detailed as it is brutal. Bryan held on to the hammerlock during the northern lights suplex bridge to make Okada put in effort with his injured arm to kick out. His control segments here are control incredible. He drives the match with his offence. But Okada’s performance in this be it vocal, facial, or even just the selling of his arm, is just as good if not better. Almost Tanahashi-esque, in a sense where he milks the shit out of every single hold to get the dome behind him.
A real flaw of Okada’s character is when he gets in his own way, doing things he shouldn’t when he’s in a tough predicament. Attempting an elbow drop when he just started his comeback and ends up giving the advantage back to Bryan whose strikes sound like gunshots. It’s just as incredible when it’s Bryan’s turn to sell, which, regardless of the offence, is the biggest quality of this match. It’s because the selling is so good that it adds the gravitas to moments of defiance from both men. They let everything breathe while not dragging it at all. I absolutely adore when Okada starts stomping on Bryan’s left eye to take out his frustration. He’s so sensational at reacting in this match.
The best stretch of the match comes when Bryan locks in the same hold that made him tap out at Forbidden Door and this is the part where Okada is at his absolute best here with the facial expressions, getting the Dome chanting for him as he absolutely makes them believe he might pass out. The best babyface performance of his career. It’s almost like Okada’s All Might finally meeting his All For One in Bryan.
Bryan’s almost happy that Okada survives the hold as he mentioned he was disappointed in him when he tapped in Toronto. Okada passes his test. The finishing stretch is sensational. Bryan soaking in the dome’s atmosphere with the YES chants is one of the most emotionally fulfilling moments ever for me, which makes Okada using a goddamn ATTITUDE ADJUSTMENT as a symbolic “fuck you!” to him before finishing it off even funnier. The best dickhead. A match that lived up to all my expectations. Bryan Danielson vs Kazuchika Okada at the Tokyo Dome was everything I could’ve hoped for and so much more. It was perfect.
