MID-Tier Match Reviews: KENTA vs. Ricky Marvin in a Two Minute Match

How often does something good happen in a two-minute timespan? Rarely: more often than not short matches are meaningless squashes, bathroom breaks, or bouts that become angles. The idea that you can take a full match story and condense it into a shorter amount without sacrificing match quality seems like a stretch among some fans. As it turns out, KENTA and Ricky Marvin did exactly that in a match so short it seemed completely out of place in competition-driven NOAH.

The Story

This took place during a round-robin tournament similar to NJPW’s G1 Climax. Here, KENTA was the defending champion while Marvin was a regular reliable hand in the division. Part of that reliability came from the fact that he was fluent in Spanish, Japanese, and English, which meant he could communicate with anyone who came through NOAH’s doors.

The slightly more interesting tidbit about this match comes from, of all places, Cagematch. Yes, I know, that site’s reputation is dubious to say the least. But it’s reliable when it comes to data gathering and preservation. Anyways, one of the site’s rules is that they don’t allow ratings and discussions on matches shorter than five minutes long. There have been a few exceptions, though, with exceptionally bad matches like Sting vs. Jeff Hardy, Goldberg vs. The Fiend, and Vince McMahon vs. Pact McAfee. However, rarely is there a match with a positive reputation that gets opened for discussion. But is this match really that good?

The Match

This took place on October 15, 2009.

Marvin comes out first and when he sees KENTA approach the ring he dives onto him from the top rope. He dumps KENTA into the ring and the instant the bell rings he shotgun dropkicks KENTA into a corner. He follows with a Folding Powerbomb for two. KENTA eats a kick to the head but blocks a Fisherman Driver. KENTA attempts a counter lariat but Marvin does a running Matrix duck. Marvin hits another kick but KENTA answers with a discus lariat. KENTA hits a Busaiku Knee into a corner and his own corner basement dropkick. Marvin counters a GTS with a Frankensteiner for two and then counters a lariat with a small package. KENTA escapes and then counters Marvin’s counter to another GTS with a sick Powerbomb for a near-fall. KENTA kicks Marvin’s head and doesn’t need to slap his thigh for noise because the visual impact matters more than the sound. He goes for a third kick but Marvin counters with a sunset flip cover for two. KENTA resists a crucifix cover and counters with one of the best GTS strikes he has ever landed. KENTA follows with a running punt to the head and gets the three-count.

Winner after 1:59: KENTA

You can watch the full match here.

Review

This was the sprint of all sprints, nothing more than the finishing stretch of a normal match. They rushed each other and went at full speed with physical, intense wrestling. They condensed about 6-8 minutes of wrestling into under two minutes, which is no small feat. It wasn’t just random moves either; Marvin’s surprise attack left KENTA struggling from the start and forced him to hit harder than normal (as if that was even possible) to catch up. If there were more matches like this on a weekly basis stateside I think both shows would be more compelling. All too often TV shows structure short matches around their limited broadcast time and as a result a lot of the good stuff gets cut or sterilized. Something like this would make for a welcome surprise: hard-hitting, direct, and to the point, with the story being optional.

Final Rating: ***1/2

While this wasn’t too groundbreaking or revolutionary, it was a refreshing display of wrestling talent. With enough training any wrestler can stretch out a match if they fill empty space with stalling, restholds, slowed pace, and character work. Having to trim things down is harder and, as we’ve all seen countless times, cutting desired match content out of an originally-designed match often leads to a drop in quality or more formulaic seven-step formulas. Here, the wrestlers took the unorthodox path and started with the finishing stretch. It was a refreshing take in a promotion defined by longer, more drawn-out matches befitting their King’s Road origins. But more importantly, they proved that sometimes sprinting is just as effective as walking down the same orthodox path.

Thanks for reading.