Aja Kong vs. Meiko Satomura (12/15/2001, GAEA): Satomura bringing the fight to Kong from beginning to end seems borderline unrealistic, but the strikes and slams are so stiff that it'd be foolish to call it that. Satomura takes an absolute beating but is running on pure adrenaline and this essentially gives her supernatural perseverance. I wish the transitions made more sense, that the selling was more consistent, and that the referee work was not so overdramatic at times, but this is still a blast to watch, relentless action for its near-30-minute runtime. I wasn't at all surprised to read glowing reviews on Cagematch. After taking a few months off from watching much joshi, this was a nice reminder of why I got so into the genre a few years back. (4/5)
Darby Allin vs. Kyle Fletcher (10/06/2026, AEW): This match was for Allin's TNT Championship, a title that Fletcher had never technically lost. As expected, Allin took some insane bumps, Fletcher had some ruthless offense, and the French crowd was super into it. Unfortunately, as this was a TV match, there was a "break" in the action that prevented the TV audience from seeing the full goings-on (the commercial started immediately after Allin took a ridiculous front-face drop onto a table), but what we did get to see was very strong even if it was something of a "greatest hits" match rather than a match that exceeded or subverted expectations. (3.5/5)
Kazuchika Okada vs. Will Ospreay (10/06/2026, AEW): Another match from Dynamite: Grand Slam: Paris, this one for Ospreay's AEW World Championship. They only built this up over a few weeks - making the outcome very predictable - but there were some video packages produced that highlighted Ospreay's 2-9 record against Okada, their history in NJPW, and their mutual associations with Don Callis. Really, though, this was a "good match for good match's sake" affair, a straight-up title match that was only going to end one way and featured no interference from Okada's stablemates (differentiating it quite a bit from Ospreay's title defense against Mox in Chicago a week or two earlier). For what it was, it was another very good match out of Ospreay and arguably one of Okada's best 1-on-1 matches during his AEW run as he laid the shtick on thick in the early minutes but then, as he is wont to do, started delivering some flawless offense and brilliant cut-offs as the match wore on. Similar to the Darby/Fletcher match, this one didn't quite touch "should see/must see" territory for me, but it was close to it and enhanced by a red hot crowd. (3.5/5)
Shinobu Kandori vs. Devil Masami (01/16/1989, JWP): Masami had passed the mandatory retirement age of AJW was still a major heel in Japan and the crowd's engagement in this match is proof of it. Kandori was 5 years removed from capturing the Bronze Medal at the World Judo Championship and had been a pro for about 3 years. The crowd is fully behind her in this match, though I personally prefer Masami in terms of in-ring performance and entertainment. Because Kandori wrestles as a legit shoot fighter, her offense is largely built around submission moves, which don't tend to be super exciting (especially when the match is being captured by one a single camera and we can't see Masami's agonized face). When Masami is in control, the match is more exciting because we finally get some slams and Masami just oozes charisma. I read online that their match in 1988 is way better than this. Not too bad, but not worth investing 27 minutes into. (2/5)
Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk (10/07/1981, AJPW): This is a 2-out-of-3 falls match, shot on "fan came," from a show at the Sumo Hall in Yokohama. Flair was the NWA World Champion. This is listed as their first singles match against each other on Cagematch, but I'm not sure it really was their first match. It starts off with some very snug classic wrestling - bending limbs, headlocks, "basic" stuff done well. Things pick up after Funk takes a great bump to the outside. Flair scores the first pin via the figure four. I didn't love Funk losing so quickly - it happens around minute 12-13? - but the psychology makes sense that he would submit before suffering too much damage. Flair continues his attack after the second bell, but Funk rallies and basically just goes ballistic, eventually locking in the Spinning Toe Hold to tie things up. The match ends back on the outside with a double count-out, which is a letdown but I'm guessing Giant Baba didn't want Funk losing clean (even if it was to the NWA World Champion). Pretty good stuff thanks to the Flair/Funk chemistry, but not essential viewing unless you're a big Flair or Funk fan. (3/5)
Queen Aminata vs. Maya World (10/21/2026, AEW): This was a number one contender's match for Persephone's TBS Championship. Unworthy of the "This Is Awesome" chant that sparked up after the commercial break (unless we missed some really great stuff during said break), this match started out a little bit slow and "janky" but the closing stretch - which saw Aminata hit a series of huge, high impact moves including a shotgun dropkick off the apron to a seated Maya World on the floor - was really, really good. This match also benefited from Persephone's work at the commentary table (even overshadowing her manager, Britt Baker, who usually has great repartee with Schiavone and Tazz), though her repeatedly mentioning how many times she has defeated both of the competitors doesn't necessarily help build them up as worthy challengers for her title and reminded me that the TBS Title scene is something of a hamster wheel right now. (2.5/5)
Kyle Fletcher vs. "Jungle Boy" Jack Perry (10/28/2026, AEW): Fletcher always brings the goods, but this match was all about the ridiculous and highly dangerous bumps that Perry took, two of which did not go as planned. The first came when Perry attempted a somersault dive to the outside and was meant to be caught by Fletcher but ended up landing hard on the floor. Fletcher went ahead and pulled him up for the intended follow-up powerbomb on the apron and the combination looked like a career-ender. Perry kept fighting, though, and while I can see the argument that this was an undersell, it sorta made sense that Perry's adrenaline was so high at this point that he could deliver one last flurry offense. Perry kicked out of Fletcher's first Brainbuster - an unnecessary false finish considering all the damage he'd already taken and the fact that every time someone kicks out of Fletcher's finish it de-legitimizes it - but Fletcher got him up for another one in the corner. Doing a Brainbuster on the top turnbuckle is a crazy spot to utilize as much as he's used it over the past few months and Perry missing the buckle and landing head-first on the middle rope instead is exactly why. Just absolutely brutal-looking. The first half of the match wasn't short of good work either, including Fletcher getting whipped gut-first into the barricade. I also really liked Fletcher's post-match promo in which he stated that nobody in the industry can touch him...and I'm not sure he's wrong. I hate to reward a match for featuring so many high-risk spots and at least two that could've led to Perry getting paralyzed, but this was entertaining, if maybe just a tad long with the "extra" false finishes. (3.5/5)
FTR vs. The Motor City Machine Guns (10/28/2026, AEW): This was Match #3 in a Best Of 5 Series. Good back-and-forth for the first part of this match before the commercial break with FTR taking advantage by nefarious means and then the Guns making a comeback. After the break, Dax took control, working on Sabin and setting him up for the Power and the Glory. Shelley cut it off, but FTR hit it on their second attempt for 2. The Guns rebounded, though, attempting a series of quick pins and even connecting on a Shatter Machine. By this point, the referee was allowing everything, not even trying to get anyone into their corner. The confusion and speed of the match led to Shelley scoring a nifty pinfall. This was not as good as the match I saw most of before WrestleDream and was even a bit underwhelming considering my expectations were high. After the match, FTR threw powder into the Guns' eyes and then went after Shelley's knee, which should (hopefully) play into the next match in the series. (2.5/5)
The Ultimate Warrior vs. Rick Rude (07/16/1990, WWE): I was a bit surprised that I had never even heard of this match before it popped up on my YouTube feed. This was the opening contest from an episode of Saturday Night's Main Event was used as a set-up for the SummerSlam 90' cage match between the two. This went 10 minutes and Warrior was made to look really strong, kicking out of the Rude Awakening. Bobby Heenan's interference ends up leading to a bullshitty DQ finish. Rude pulled better stuff out of Warrior, but I can fully see why McMahon put these two together so much; The Ravishing One made him look like a million bucks and was such a ridiculous athlete that he could bump, sell, and feed enough to tell an engaging story within the 10 minutes of action Warrior seemed capable of providing. Not nearly as good as any of their other matches that I've seen, but not an embarrassment or anything. (1.5/5)
Kris Statlander/Harley Cameron/Alex Windsor/Queen Aminata/Willow Nightingale vs. Megan Bayne/Persephone/Lena Kross/Skye Blue/Julia Hart/Thekla (11/04/2026, AEW): This was the Women's annual Blood and Guts match from Dynamite and was one of the bloodiest matches in recent memory. AEW got criticized for the build-up for this match being insufficient and that lack of build meant that the women had to go the extra mile to create drama and heat, which shouldn't be the case for a Blood and Guts/War Games match. On Cagematch, this one has a very high 8+ score, but I found it to be uneven and even a bit grotesque. I'm not the squeamish type, but Megan Bayne's blood loss within the first 5 minutes was stomach-turning stuff straight out of a horror movie. Statlander was the MVP for her team and arguably the match. Persephone and Thekla, the two best workers for the heels, didn't shine in this match as much as I was hoping, though part of that was because of the lengths that Bayne and, later, Skye Blue went to steal the match. There were fluorescent light tubes, guitars, trash cans, lots of barb wire, and even a net gun used (though it didn't quite work out as planned), but there were also moments where moves were telegraphed or "botched." A match like this is not for everyone, but if you can handle the brutality, they can make for a fun watch and this one delivered enough wild violence to hold my attention. (3/5)
Will Ospreay/Adam Copeland/Darby Allin/The Young Bucks/Steve Borden vs. Kazuchika Okada/Kyle Fletcher/Jake Doyle/Mark Davis/Kevin Knight/Wardlow (11/04/2026, AEW): Unlike the Women's Match, which required a ridiculous amount of blood to be spilled to overcome its lack of real consequence and reason to exist, I thought this match was excellent from beginning to end with, somewhat ironically, some clever subtleties and - shockingly - "little moments" that almost overshadowed the bigger, crazier spots. Fletcher and Darby starting things out was brilliant; not just because they're both incredible workers with great chemistry but because they've been intertwined for the past few months and Fletcher getting to look strong (after losing to Darby a few weeks back on Dynamite) allowed him to get some cred back for his upcoming title match at Ful Gear. As the match wore on, we saw a ton of "call backs," but a few fresh spots too, including Darby Allin getting monkey-flipped while seated on a chair (it looked like something out of a Chaplin movie) and Okada bringing a leaf blower into the ring to clear away thumbtacks (but not before Steve Borden ended up with a back full of them). I would've liked to see Okada connect with the thumbtack arm sleeve Rainmaker, butt I don't blame Copeland for not taking what would've been a very painful move. Speaking of Copeland, his work was a bit uneven (awkwardness with Wardlow but some good-looking spears later on but also a not-so-great one to put Okada through the table but also a great bump and sell of Fletcher's Teardrop Brainbuster), but I absolutely loved the fact that he was the one to surrender in the end and thought it made sense on multiple levels. As the "elder statesmen" of the bunch, he recognized that his team was full of younger, arguably "naive" competitors who wouldn't have ever given up (it was also noticeable that in the final minutes, the Bucks were kept mostly off-screen in order to better drive the point home) despite the potential of their careers being ended. Only Copeland, who lost years of his career from the toll of countless TLC and Last Man Standing matches, could recognize that no single victory - even in a Blood and Guts match - was worth it. I love the fact that this also planted seeds for not just Copeland/Okada (which seems like the direction they've been going in) but also Copeland/Ospreay and what I predict will be Copeland's last match against Fletcher. Speaking of Fletcher, what an amazing performance he put on in this match. Not only did everything he did look vicious and perfectly executed, but I loved the big and little moments of character work he delivered - the "What just happened?" remark when the faces made a comeback, yelling at Wardlow to put down Darby's bag before it exploded, the well-captured staredown with Ospreay, and then the movie villain performance at the end of the match. The MVP on the face side was, of course, Darby Allin, who took some hellacious bumps, including one of the nastiest falls from the top of the cage since Foley's famous bump 28 years ago (no small feat considering how many guys have done similar bumps over the years). I was shocked to read that so many fans felt this match was "too repetitive" or that it somehoe "wasn't violent enough" just because no one needed a blood transfusion after it was over. I thought this was a phenomenal match that exceeded my expectations and will be difficult for the upcoming Anarchy In The Arena to top. (4/5)
