9 Ups & 4 Downs From IMPACT Wrestling & NJPW Multiverse United (Review)

2. Eight-Man Falls Flat

The eight-man tag team match was fine, but not must-see.

It tried to present itself as too much of a thing that nobody sought. The supposed elation that was evidently expected from the bout's competitors for PCO vs. JR Kratos wasn't there. It could've manufactured a potent dynamic had their styles meshed, but it didn't come across on the live feed as enticing in any sense of the word. The crowd popped for the pop-able spots; PCO, a six-foot-one, 300-pound, 55-year-old, is always going to be hallowed when he's doing top-rope Moonsaults and suicide dives, but not when he's indiscriminately brawling with Kratos.

Alex Coughlin materialised as an advancing breakout star, a proclamation that will be articulated countless times this WrestleMania weekend, but he was nothing more than a resplendent footnote on an otherwise bland match. The same goes for Joe Hendry, whose stock has sprouted since his September 2022 IMPACT return. He worked an anomalous heel(ish) character on this night that further got across his variance as a wrestler.

Again, it was a good match, but nothing you need to go out of your way to view.