5 Ups & 5 Downs From NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 16 (Night 2)

3. House Of Torture vs. CHAOS

EVIL House of Torture
NJPW

House of Torture's EVIL, SHO, and Yujiro Takahashi defeated YOSHI-HASHI, YOH, and Hirooki Goto of CHAOS to defend the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Championships on the midcard, and the match was exactly what you think it was.

HOT relied on Dick Togo's favoured Western heel tropes to get the job down. It was a match rife with interference spots, distractions, double-teams, and other shenanigans, culminating in SHO blasting YOH with his wrench, getting the pin, and scoring a measure of revenge for the previous night.

Lazy in their execution and lacking in intensity, House of Torture's matches remain a blight on New Japan. There's no art in working the same spots over and over for the sake of non-existent heat - and no point in wasting further words on this stuff.

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.