(Almost) 5-Star Match Reviews: A Collection of KEIJI MUTO/GREAT MUTA Matches

Keiji Muto is one of the most influential wrestlers of the past forty years. He’s had such a massive impact on wrestling that I wouldn’t be surprised if wrestling schools all over the world mandated that trainees study tapes of his matches. There are good reasons for this: whether wrestling as himself or as his famous alter-ego The Great Muta, the man is a master of storytelling, reinvention, presentation, and creating unique aesthetics that make him instantly distinguishable from his peers.

However, Muto’s career wasn’t without challenges. Behind the scenes he was a controversial booker for both AJPW and Wrestle-1, contributing to the former’s post-2002 downfall and the latter’s failure to grow and subsequent closure. In the ring he has been accused of being self-centered, constructing matches around himself at times to his opponents’ detriment.

Nevertheless, Muto/Muta remains a wrestling icon, so the point that his matches as both himself and his alter-ego ought to be studied, hence our look at these five random matches of his.

Singles match for the vacant NWA World Television Championship: Sting vs. The Great Muta – WCW Power Hour, September 1, 1989

The Story: Sting and Muta wrestled for the TV title a few months earlier at The Great American Bash but a Dusty finish involving Muta’s shoulder being up caused the title to be declared vacant. Thus this match was scheduled to crown a new champion.

The Match: Sting powers Muta into a corner for an early advantage. We get some quick chain grappling and a quick knuckle lock that ends with Muta striking first. Sting reverses a corner whip and a two-count off a schoolboy roll-up. Sting gets more quick near-falls and then hits a diving crossbody for another. Suddenly out comes Terry Funk to distract the referee and give Muta support. As Sting gets distracted Muta rushes him from behind viciously. Muta distracts the ref so that his manager Gary Hart can choke Sting. They repeat this cheating behind the ref’s back and lands plenty of strikes. Muta attempts a back body drop but Sting kicks him and lands a bulldog. Sting smashes him around ringside and then hits a vertical suplex in the ring for two. They both end up on the apron trading strikes until Sting misses a running attack and hits the post. Muta hits a handspring corner elbow but Sting fires back with a hotshot into the top rope that also hits the referee. Sting hits the Stinger Splash and locks in the Scorpion Deathlock. Hart comes in and hits Sting with some foreign object. Muta covers as the referee regains consciousness. One, two, Sting kicks out. Muta gets a two-count off a vertical suplex so he lands the rib breaker and goes for the Moonsault. He connects…with Sting’s knees. Stinger Splash connects. Sting tries capitalizing but then Gary Hart interferes directly in front of the referee causing the disqualification.

Winner via Disqualification after 13:51: Sting (The title remains vacant)

You can watch the full match here.

Review: This match hasn’t aged well. Despite a hot crowd and a decent story it wasn’t all that captivating. There wasn’t much in terms of in-ring action and the trickery with Gary Hart made for an underwhelming finish. Neither wrestler did anything outwardly bad, it’s just that for all the talk of their great chemistry they didn’t create anything truly outstanding or captivating. It was a TV match through-and-through, cromulent and pedestrian. Decent but not as outstanding as the critics of the time praised it to be.

Final Rating: **3/4

The Great Muta vs. Jinsei Shinzaki – NJPW Battle Formation in Tokyo Dome 1996

The Story: This was presented as a literal battle between good and evil with Shinzaki reprising his Hakushi character from WWF who, as you may recall, portrayed a wandering aruki henro/Shikaku pilgrim whose name literally means “White Angel”. Carrying a shakujo staff and covering his body in shakyo sutras reminiscent of the folk hero Hoichi the Earless, he is as overt a symbol of light and good as it gets. Conversely, Muta was his polar opposite, adorned in black attire with a skull-like good covering his black-and-gold face paint (although the Asiatic Dragon coiled around his shoulders made for a cool image it was a bit of an aesthetic stretch given those dragons more closely associated with unpredictable forces of nature than genuine hellish evil). Shinzaki sought a big match in NJPW to capitalize on his WWF exploits but he’d soon regret his wishes as Muta sought to destroy all that Shinzaki held dear.

The Match: Shinzaki takes extra care to protect his sacred sotoba, a wooden grave marker inscribed with sacred Buddhist sutras. The bell rings and precious little happens during the opening minute outside of basic holds. Muta suddenly spits green mist upwards and hits a handspring corner elbow. Muta back kicks Shinzaki to the floor but Shinzaki returns, catches Muta’s arm, and hits his praying ropewalk chop. Shinzaki lands a slam plus a delayed corner press for a one-count. Shinzaki follows with a series of corner attacks and then uses his cash to choke Muta. Shinzaki works a nerve hold but Muta fights out and chokes Shinzaki against the ropes. Muta tackles Shinzaki off the apron, sending him flying into a second-row announce table. Muta follows with a piledriver onto one of those tables and then snaps Shinzaki’s sotoba in half. He uses the jagged broken end to bust Shinzaki open and man, this one’s a gusher. Muta steals Shinzaki’s sash and uses it in a hanging spot. Then Muta takes some of Shinzaki’s blood and writes the kanji for “Death” (死) on the sotoba (the Western equivalent of this would be ripping pages out of the Holy Bible and shoving them into a Christian wrestler’s mouth).

Muta attempts a suplex but Shinzaki counters with a Backdrop. Muta avoids a dropkick and hits a back suplex of his own for two. Shinzaki counters a second back suplex with a midair press. Shinzaki misses a diving head-butt due to exhaustion and blood loss so Muta hits a handspring elbow/bulldog combo. Muta hits the rib breaker but misses the Moonsault so he bites the wound and lands a top-rope Frankensteiner for two. They brawl ringside and then once back in the ring Shinzaki counters with some thrust kicks. Shinzaki ducks the green mist and tries suffocating Muta with a cloth. When that doesn’t work he uses the chair a few times and then hits the Space Flying Tiger Drop. Shinzaki hits a diving shoulderblock from one corner and a diving head-butt from another for two. Shinzaki attempts the Nenbutsu Powerbomb but Muta counters with mist. He quickly fires up with a strike barrage and then lands a Diving Moonsault for a quick and decisive three-count.

Winner after 19:44: The Great Muta

Review: Sadly that was a disappointment despite the heavy narrative premise and the dedication to detail both men put into their characters and presentations. The match was way too long and one-sided with Shinzaki barely getting any offense in. Worse, there was too much stalling and plenty of dead air between spots. For a match that leaned so heavily into the thematic and the supernatural they left a lot to be desired. Shinzaki spent most of the match on defense while Muta stalled and lacked urgency between brief moments of elevated carnage and malice. That wasn’t the epic battle of equal forces it was promoted to be, but at least for a while the spectacle of the whole thing captivated enough. Had there ever been plans to include Japanese wrestlers on a WrestleMania card and make it into a spectacle befitting that event, these two would’ve been first-ballot choices.

Final Rating: ***

Keiji Muto vs. Tetsuya Naito – NOAH Keiji Muto Grand Final Pro-Wrestling Last Love Hold Out, February 21, 2023

The Story: After almost forty full years of in-ring wrestling it was time for Keiji Muto to finally hang up his boots. Sadly his final match wasn’t a full, 100% perfect fairytale encounter, but a Plan B scenario. Muto wanted Shinsuke Nakamura to be his final opponent but WWE’s slow approval process forced Muto’s and NOAH’s hands, to the point that by the time Nakamura was approved he was booked for a lesser show in January that saw the retirement of The Great Muta while Muto still remained. That’s where Naito came in: despite being positioned as a backup pick, this was still more than OK for Naito as he grew up an enormous Keiji Muto superfan. Even when he was heeling it up with LiJ, Naito was heavily influenced by Muto and wanted to give Muto the respectful sendoff he deserved.

The Match: NOAH pulls out all the stops for this Tokyo Dome event, including an absolutely breathtaking special entrance for Muto, which includes a mash-up of all his previous entrance themes. I’ve mentioned before that the Dome has pretty bad acoustics for wrestling yet during Muto’s entrance he gets a monumental response which should tell you just how much the crowd’s behind him. Oh, and as a reminder, Keiji Muto is wrestling this match at SIXTY YEARS OLD with artificial knees and hips and two blown hamstrings.

Naito gets a clean break and teases attacking Muto’s bad knees. That’s followed by some basic matwork, chain grappling, and trading of holds. Despite being older, Muto has a weight advantage and uses that to out-power Naito. Muto follows with a Flashing Elbow and then locks in an STF as an homage to Masahiro Chono, who is watching from ringside, emotional. Naito breaks free and hits a snapmare/back kick combo and then does the tranquilo pose. They fight onto the entrance ramp and Naito teases Destino on there but Muta resists. Naito follows with a close-range running dropkick to the back and then a big one with a huge running start. Back in the ring Naito applies a neck lock of sorts but Muta gets a ropebreak. Naito follows with his corner sweep/basement dropkick combo and then works the leg at ringside. However, when re-entering the ring Muto dropkicks the knee and lands a Dragon Screw Leg Whip. He lands a second and seamlessly applies a Figure-Four Leglock. Naito gets a ropebreak so Muto lands another DTK. Naito blocks another Dragon Screw by attacking the eyes and then lands an enzuigiri. Naito applies the same submission hold but Muto reaches the ropes again. It’s kinda funny hearing Muto scream “AWW FUCK” as he endures the pain.

Naito hammers him with elbows but Muto suddenly fires up with chops. Then he motions to the Heavens and hits a DDT in homage to the late Shinya Hashimoto. That’s followed by an Emerald Flowsion in tribute to Mitsuharu Misawa for a two-count. A Shining Wizard gets Muto another two-count so he lands the rib breaker and teases the Moonsault. He gets to the top rope but reconsiders it so he hits another Shining Wizard. He goes for a top-rope move but Naito escapes and dropkicks his hamstring and lands a somersault DDT of sorts. Naito charges but rung into another DTK/Dragon Screw/Figure-Four combo. Nato spits on Muto while locked in the hold. Naito gets a ropebreak so Muto hits a Dragon Screw and a triple Shining Wizard combo for two. Muto teases the Moonsault again but doesn’t follow through so Naito capitalizes by stealing his moves, including the Shining Wizard, for two. Naito puts Muto in the Figure-Four, lets go, and hits Muto with two more Shining Wizards for another near-fall. Naito tries Destino once but it doesn’t follow through so he tries again and covers for the three-count. So ends the in-ring career of Keiji Muto (not including his surprise one-minute exhibition with Chono moments afterwards).

Winner after 28:58: Tetsuya Naito

You can watch the full match here.

Review: Let’s get one thing out of the way first: Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania XXIV that was not, despite the many similarities between them. Muto did everything possible to mask his limitations and played the hits as best he could. Yet Naito didn’t really give off the impression that he was living his childhood dream and doing the best he could to give Muto the most emotional sendoff possible. Although being emotionally detached was part of his gimmick, in this case that translated into a more subdued outing that needed more emotional peaks to compensate for Muto’s lack of mobility and narrow movepool. While it was more athletic and less melodramatic than its American counterpart, the match dragged at times and was plagued by unnecessary repetition. They could’ve shaved off a good 7-10 minutes and would’ve had a better-flowing match. Though no one was expecting anything close to a flawless epic, Muto moved well for a sixty-year-old man with the body of someone much older who must’ve been in indescribable pain. So if you want to see a grey-bearded grandfather defy Father Time for thirty minutes, this is the match for you.

Final Rating: ***3/4

Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship Match: Jun Akiyama [c] vs. Keiji Muto – Pro-Wrestling Love in Ryogoku 2012

The Story: This came about due to a real-world occurrences and wrestling storylines following therefrom. In 2011 AJPW suffered a major scandal when a wrestler named Nobukazu Hirai was assaulted by another wrestler named TARU which caused the former to suffer a stroke. When news broke out about this Muto resigned from his post as the company’s then-president. Other companies took advantage of this internal chaos and invaded to capture the company’s top titles. This included NOAH’s Jun Akiyama, who defeated SUWAMA to win the Triple Crown, achieving something he failed to during his first run pre-NOAH. Akiyama successfully defended the title against mainstays Taiyo Kea and Takao Omori which forced Muto to try saving AJPW himself. Ironically, it was Akiyama who claimed to be AJPWs ultimate savior since he was more closely aligned with AJPW’s style than Muto.

The Match: They lock-up and – BACKDROP! Akiyama follows with a running knee and an Exploder Suplex, all for a close 2.5-count. Akiyama attempts an apron Exploder but Muto counters with a Dragon Screw leg whip to the floor. Muto follows with a Shining Wizard against the barricade and a second Dragon Screw, followed by a third as Akiyama re-enters the ring. This works as Akiyama can’t even take five steps on a corner whip without losing his footing. Muto follows with dropkicks to the knee (DTK), a third Dragon Screw, and a Figure-Four Leglock. Akiyama gets a ropebreak so Muto lands a fourth Dragon Screw and attempts a second Figure-Four, only for Akiyama to lock him in a guillotine choke. Muto rolls to the ropes to escape and Akiyama keeps him grounded while regaining feeling in his leg. Akiyama recovers enough to land an apron enzui kneedrop followed by a DDT on the exposed floor.

Muto makes it back into the ring where he eats an awkward clothesline that hits him hard in the ear as Akiyama peppers him with knees to the head and neck. Akiyama attempts a high kick but Muto ducks and hits a big dropkick of his own. Muto misses a Flashing Elbow so Akiyama lands more knees to the head and a piledriver for two. Akiyama applies a deep facelock for two and attempts a jumping knee attack but Muto dropkicks that knee in midair. Akiyama counters another Dragon Screw attempt with a knee strike and a second Exploder. Muto no-sells and hits a Shining Wizard. Another Exploder and another Shining Wizard. Both men collapse. Muto hits a corner Shining Wizard and another Dragon Screw, and then begins a triple Shining Wizard combo. He gets two out of three as Akiyama blocks one, only to walk into yet another Dragon Screw. Muto lands two more Shining Wizards but only manages a two-count. Muto follows with the rib breaker and the Moonsault but can’t get the three. Akiyama locks in another guillotine choke and covers for two. Akiyama fires off a barrage of knees and Exploders but Muto keeps getting up. Wrist-Clutch Exploder. Another two-count. Akiyama charges but runs into a standing Frankensteiner. One, two, Akiyama kicks out. Akiyama pulls down his kneepad and drills Muto with knees to the face. Akiyama follows with the Sternness Dust Gamma for the pin and the win to retain his title!

Winner and STILL AJPW Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion after 18:21: Jun Akiyama

You can watch the full match here.

Review: Few matches illustrate Muto’s genius and mastery of the Five Moves of Doom concept better than this. He was fully aware of his physical limitations and he was wrestling against a younger, healthier, and more technically adept opponent. To work around his shortcomings, Muto stuck to his formula yet made minor permutations to keep Akiyama guessing. He zeroed in on a specific limb and kept attacking it persistently. It was smart wrestling but it also made him predictable, which made it easier for Akiyama to find his own opening since he was more naturally unpredictable and untethered to specific formulas. While both men simplified their wrestling and did wrestled more of a Brock Lesnar-style match – one with limited but repeated techniques meant to dish out destructive power quickly – they worked incredibly well and created a fun match that’s really worth watching.

Final Rating: ****1/4

Genichiro Tenryu vs. The Great Muta – WAR Osaka Crush Night, October 10, 1996

The Story: This was another veritable dream encounter between two of Japan’s biggest stars. Muto was in his prime while Tenryu was the founder and focal star of Wrestling and Romance/Wrestling Association R (WAR) following the closer of Super World of Sports. Tenryu being able to wrestle more freely and have big crosspromotional encounters was something he couldn’t achieve under Baba’s All Japan, and was one of many reasons behind his 1990 departure. Here, Tenryu played a common enough role as the company stalwart defending against outside invaders and having already faced Muto in tag action during the bigger NJPW vs. WAR feud. However, Muto decided to raise the stakes and granting Tenryu’s wish for a big crosspromotinal match in his own perverse way by wrestling as not himself but his alter-ego Muta. This pissed Tenryu off since he viewed Muta’s theatrical elements with disdain. Yet he’d soon come to regret letting himself get riled up since Muta thrived on chaos and had few limitations or compunctions over causing genuine harm.

The Match: Muta’s in full costume while Tenryu’s in his stately kimono conjuring images of Inoki. He’s so pissed at Muta’s superfluous accoutrements he throws his customary pre-match bouquet of flowers at him. The bell rings and Muta spits mist into their twice, once greed and once red. Muta bails and stalls, further angering an already-fuming Tenryu. More stalling and then Tenryu finally gets contact with chops. Muta hits back with a spinkick and a dropkick which brings both wrestlers to ringside. Muta hits Tenryu with an ordinary chair and runs up the ramp for a clothesline, only for Tenryu to hit him at the same time and only Muta goes down. Tenryu lands a vertical suplex in the ring but Muta escapes almost immediately. He pulls out a real bottle of what I suspect is sake and smashes that bottle against the post, creating a very real and dangerous weapon which he uses to cut Tenryu’s head open. Doctors check on Tenryu and one of his seconds is thrown out of the ring by Muta. Tenryu sits up with blood pouring down his head and then Muta hits a Flashing Elbow. Muta dumps Tenryu ringside as seconds literally sweep broken glass out of the ring for everyone’s safety. Muta, meanwhile, piledrives Tenryu through a ringside announce table and then hits him with a metal pole.

Back in the ring Muta hits with another foreign object and spikes the wound much more. Tenryu starts fighting back with chops and then lands two Backdrops, only for Muta to bounce back up and hit a chop. Muta chokes Tenryu against the ropes but then Tenryu begins a comeback with chops. A diving back elbow gets Tenryu a two-count and follows with right hands. Tenryu snaps, smashes Muta with a chair, and tosses several weapons into the ring. He goes for a chairshot but Muta sprays mist in Tenryu’s eyes. Muta returns fire and just BLASTS Tenryu with a chairshot to the head. Muta follows with a handspring elbow into a table setup in a corner and fights violently to keep Tenryu there. Muta fights Tenryu onto a table and then hits a Moonsault onto said table, which doesn’t break. The ref admonishes Muta for using the table so Muta finds a replacement weapon in the form of a ringside second’s shirt. Muta writes some kanji on that shirt using Tenryu’s blood and then chokes him with it. He lands a rib breaker and goes for another Moonsault but Tenryu gets up and powerbombs him for two. Tenryu follows with an enzuigiri and another powerbomb but Muta spits more mist to break up a pin. Muta disappears under the ring and re-emerges with something in his hand (it’s hard to tell due to Muta’s quick movements and the subpar video quality) and goes for another mist spray but Tenryu blocks his mouth. What an ingenious counter. Tenryu capitalizes with two running lariats for a near-fall. Muta lands a sudden small package but Tenryu kicks out. Tenryu capitalizes with a third powerbomb that gets the three-count and Muta disappears from the ring lightning-fast.

Winner after 17:19: Genichiro Tenryu

You can watch the full match here.

Review: That has to be one of the most spectacular match you’ll ever see out of Japan. In a country largely defined by more athletic, realistic, and sports-based products, something more gimmick and theatrics-heavy like this stands out – and in a good way. Muta was absolutely captivating as the unpredictable demon that left everyone watching tensely, from the fans, to the officials, to Tenryu himself. There was just no way of knowing what Muta would do, which put immense psychological pressure on Tenryu. Through his careful and detailed heel work, Muta was able to create an emotion not often seen in professional wrestling: outright fear. Bit by bit he showed he wasn’t bound by convention, rules, or morality as he attacked Tenryu with anything and everything he could find. This made his heat segment absolutely outstanding; alas Tenryu’s babyface comeback didn’t hit those same emotional peaks. Don’t get me wrong; Tenryu worked like a great babyface who knew the only way to beat Muta was to fight fire with fire, but the speed and relatively low-impact nature of Tenryu’s comeback made it less emotionally compelling as Muta’s villainy. Muta carried more than his fair share here and Tenryu, despite being an excellent wrestler, was a tad underwhelming here. Nevertheless, this was an excellent match and makes me wish there was some kind of magical way this Muta could’ve faced The Undertaker at some point. What a monster mash that would’ve been.

Final Rating: ****1/2

As always, thanks for reading.