10 Match Star Ratings For AEW All Out 2023
3. Kenny Omega Vs. Konosuke Takeshita
Kenny Omega and Konosuke Takeshita worked what was an excellent wrestling match that didn't quite reach its ceiling.
That's not to say it wasn't outstanding, because it was - it just wasn't a fiver. It was heated, and fans clearly bought into Takeshita as a threat - otherwise those awesome, dramatic last five minutes don't happen - but since the build was so unfocused over the prior month, it didn't feel like the match that could write Kenny Omega off for good. They certainly tried to tell that story early, to scary effect.
With an insane bump, as directed by Callis, Take drilled Omega with a backdrop suplex right on his head before focusing his assault on the area from which Kenny underwent hernia surgery. The storytelling was strong, the action physical to an unfathomable degree, but a certain emotion was lacking. The action though, Jesus Christ. It was almost horrifying on an aural level.
Every V-Trigger and knee strike connected with a vile, concussive-sounding thud. Deeper into the match, after a drawn-out struggle on the top turnbuckle, Take destroyed Omega with an incredible avalanche blue thunder bomb. The execution of the move was unreal, as was the near-fall, but again, because Take spent too long in the background since Double Or Nothing, the all-important harrowing suspense just wasn't there. It did not feel like Take was going to badly injure him.
The last few minutes were driven by the power of the action: the work was so explosive and snug, and Omega's glazed-eyes selling was so expert, that the finishing stretch reached the ceiling.
The rematch could and should be even better, and really, only Omega is capable of working a ****1/2 match with the most pedantic twinge of slight disappointment.
Star Rating: ★★★★½