The Misunderstood Genius Of AEW's Kenny Omega

When he lulled Ospreay by the exposed top turnbuckle and dropped him head first onto it, the match turned. Ospreay was busted open, following which Omega controlled the pace and annihilated Ospreay, playing the Final Boss with an energy bar that could not be drained.

A lesser wrestler might have said, over and over again, that he was living rent free in Ospreay's head. Omega does not rely on exposition to tell his stories.

Instead, mirroring the effect he had on Ospreay's mind throughout the build, he smashed his head through the remnants of a table. An instantly iconic, violent image, it told the story through imagery and adhered to the old promoter's principle. The tone of brutality had been set so expertly that it was easy to overlook that, in reality, he was only hitting Ospreay's head against compressed sawdust. It can't have been particularly pleasant to receive, obviously, but he was hardly bashing Ospreay's brains in - although, lost in the magic, that's what it felt like.

Omega toyed with Ospreay in the gruesome, unsettling final third.

Omega's presence towered over Ospreay like a Dark Souls boss occupying the entire frame as he lunged into the foreground with multiple V-Triggers and a Terminator dive captured to perfection by NJPW's best-in-class production. In an unreal spot, Omega hoisted a barely conscious Ospreay onto the top turnbuckle, and, exerting total control, folded him in half with a spectacular, terrifying avalanche Croyt's Wrath. The core strength required to pull this off was astounding, the execution of an insanely risky spot impeccably timed, and it was inserted into the match to convey that Omega had used the elite sporting mentality to put away his opponent. Ospreay, mentally broken, was at his mercy.

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