10 Best Wrestling Pay-Per-Views Of 2018
1. NJPW Dominion
Kenny Omega Vs. Kazuchika Okada IV, subjectively, was the greatest pro wrestling match of all time. Reviewed in its entirety here, it was flawless. Perfection. Built on the back of an era-defining trilogy, Omega and Okada somehow managed to achieve all of the following:
- The greatest display of athleticism ever. The stamina required to pull all 70 minutes off was astounding.
- The greatest babyface performance ever. It helps that Okada, the most dominant storyline performer of the modern era, entered his most dominant performance ever in the opening fall.
- The greatest dynamic ever, one so revered that it justified the absurd content level and duration. Okada entered the match as a God; Omega, who cosplayed as a God at Wrestle Kingdom, entered Dominion as a humbled, better version of himself, having reunited with Golden Lover Kota Ibushi.
- The greatest match layout ever. Everything was calibrated to direct support towards Omega. Credited with much of it, Okada left no room for a divided reaction. Literally: when he attempted to pin him, he used his entire body. To kick out, Omega literally had to give everything.
- The greatest selling ever. Subverting a key spot in their second match, Okada could only slide down Omega's frame, having failed to deliver the Rainmaker. His everything wasn't enough.
You cannot escape the word "ever" when revisiting or reviewing this match, because it was so definitive in greatness. That extends to the rest of the show.
Chris Jericho slaughtered Tetsuya Naito in a brilliant bastard foreigner throwback; Will Ospreay and Hiromu Takahashi fought to decide who was the better man and not the most unhinged, thank Christ; a crossover event of actual pro wrestling babyface superheroes put over the Bullet Club; that faction excelled throughout their swansong, as the Bucks graduated to the Heavyweight ranks in a psychologically rich thriller: nothing's ever going to top Dominion, surely.
There's that word again.