Teflon Turtle
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Posts posted by Teflon Turtle
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Card over-delivered for what it was, I thought. Not the most exciting Sakura Genesis lineup we’ve ever had, but I enjoyed everything.
Match of the night for me was probably the three-way for the Jr. Tag championships. Lots of crazy and unique spots. The antics from Drilla and Connors are growing on me. One particular spot that Moloney did with Kevin Knight had me laughing out loud. Don’t know if it’ll go down as an all-time classic match, but it had everything and I was quite entertained.
Felt terrible for YOH. He’s had a long injury layoff before, and the feeling of possibly staring down another surgery is not an enjoyable one. Especially since he’s had such a goofy persona over the last year, seeing the real frustration and emotional pain come out was tough to watch (and I don’t know what the usually great camera/direction crew was thinking trying to get a shot of the trainers attempting to legit pull YOH’s arm back in to socket). Here’s hoping that it’s something he can rehab and bounce back from quickly.
I liked the main event. It maybe didn’t move at the quickest pace at times, but a story was told. Tsuji has to be considered made after the NJ Cup run and this match; I feel his position at the front of his generation of wrestlers was solidified, even more than previously.
Also, I don’t know if I can talk about this main event without discussing Naito’s matches with SANADA earlier in the year. Lot of folks used those two matches as evidence that Naito was in really rough shape. And honestly, I didn’t entirely disagree with that assessment at the time. But, Naito hit all of his stuff in the match with Tsuji just fine. Between Tsuji and SANADA, Tsuji is the bigger and likely stronger of the two. It has led me to wonder in retrospect whether the problem really was SANADA not knowing how to take Naito’s signature offense/whether he didn’t have enough gas in the tank to do so in those matches, versus Naito being “washed” in the parlance of Reddit take dispensers.
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Exactly. It’s pro wrestling discourse on the internet, so I should know better. But, one of the most consistently tiring opinions to read concerning New Japan is stuff like that.
Fans complain that the matches go too long, are too indulgent, etc. Then when New Japan gives them something on the card that’s the exact opposite, or otherwise tries something different, they complain about that too.
It’s not a perfect promotion, and there are a ton of reasons why they’ve been up against it post-COVID. But my goodness.
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14 hours ago, The Unholy Dragon said:
Without Dragon Ball, there's a real argument about whether or not manga and anime explode in North America the way they did.
One of the most influential creators ever and genuinely a great one.6 hours ago, J.H. said:Arguably one of the most important cartoonists of his generation.
It's funny, I was just having a similar conversation with a friend last weekend. In terms of the popularization of anime in the West (or I guess we could confine ourselves to the US) Gen Fukunaga should get some credit for starting Funimation. But, that company needs things to distribute. Dragonball Z was that anime. Just about every friend I had in Jr. High/High school would rush home from school to get Toonami on for DBZ.
For me, I don't think there's any question that the Dragonball series and Toriyama are responsible for anime taking off in the English-speaking world. I think it's safe to say that the vast majority of people who got in to anime and manga did so through DBZ. It's generational now. That same friend I mentioned earlier has a son: he got the kid interested in DBZ, and the son owns the entire manga series, artbooks, etc.
As for Toriyama himself being one of the most important of his generation: again, for me anyway there is no question or argument. The art for the Dragonball series was drawn between 40-30 years ago, and it absolutely holds up today.
To this day, I can look at something Toriyama drew and it just...makes me feel better, no matter what. I'm sad that he's gone, but that feeling I get when I take in his work won't change so long as I've still got eyes that can see.
He's a worldwide comics GOAT candidate, and he belongs on the Mount Rushmore at the very least.
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I keep forgetting that I need to post in this thread more often.
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When Darby was out with Sting for their part of the press scrum, I thought I heard him say he's leaving for his Everest climb at the end of the month. My guess would be he won't be involved.
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4 minutes ago, Casey said:
I understand the Bucks and Pentagon are pretty well hated around these parts, but the cage match at All Out 2021 remains the best Young Bucks match for my money.
This one sprang to mind for me, too.
This won't win me many friends here, but the Bucks have a pretty decent big match resume, if you ask me. The above-mentioned cage match against the Lucha Bros, vs. Golden Lovers in NJPW, Bucks vs. Omega/Hangman (this one might be my personal favorite in terms of straight match quality).
But, I think it's safe to say the match tonight was probably their highest-profile match in terms of emotional stakes and overall historical relevance.
Ospreay/Takeshita was a crazy athletic spectacle. Though, it felt like someone told them "Okay guys! Go on out there and have a thirty-minute NJPW-style epic spectacle match! But you have fifteen minutes or so."
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4 hours ago, The Natural said:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=C3rmReJVUAE
16:38. Sting video package.
Everybody ought to go watch that. I don't think it's an exaggeration to state that instantly became one of the all-time video packages in pro wrestling. Great stuff.
Then, if you've got another eight hours to kill, you can go watch the Timelines video of Sting's AEW run.
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On 2/24/2024 at 11:33 AM, S.K.o.S. said:
New wrestling crossword!
I gotta be honest, I don't always get through these without needing to reveal a letter or a word. This time though, whole thing done in 11:53. My best showing yet, I think.
Thanks for putting these together. Even if I don't always get through them, I try every one.
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Since this doesn’t really spoil any event results, I’m not spoiler tagging this:
Apparently, during the show Minoru Suzuki took to social media to state that he’s “giving back” the Strong Style name. As is probably evident, the translations I’ve seen are a bit spotty, but he basically seemed to say the name isn’t needed by him or Despe any longer. On his Instagram, the post starts with the translation “departing on a new journey” and he reiterates his status as a freelance wrestler.
One would think if he was leaving New Japan for good, he’d get a larger send-off. But…also kinda seems like he’s not going to be around for a while. Personally…you could see his involvement dwindle after Suzukigun disbanded, but it’s still jarring to have him potentially on the departure list with Okada, Ospreay, and Tama.
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...buckle up, I'm an American who has just watched a Significant American Football Game and am under the influence of whiskey/whisky (yes, I had both). I will probably ramble on but will at least try to spell correctly.
First, add me to those who think ZSJ/Danielson 2 was amazing. Run, don't walk, to find a way to watch that match. If Danielson is getting ready to hang it up as a full-timer, he's doing his level-best to put on the all of the dream matches he possibly can before he reduces his schedule. I didn't post in the Wrestle Kingdom thread, but I kept trying to find a creative way to describe Okada/Danielson 2, and the phrase I kept coming up with was "museum-quality." As in: if I wanted someone to see how pro wrestling should be defined, that's the match I'd want them to watch, next to stuff like Guerrero/Mysterio from Halloween Havoc '97. But with these ZSJ/Danielson matches...I don't know that we have seen in-ring chemistry and overall match quality like this since the Okada/Omega series. It is mind-boggling how good the WrestleDream and now the New Beginning matches have been. We don't get to see perfectly paired wrestlers put on matches like this every day, and as alluded to above, when ZSJ is done, this style may largely go with him.
Also: I don't think this will require spoilers, but man...that Osaka crowd knew they were in for some special stuff at this event and acted accordingly. Part of me wonders if some folks made the trip from the UK to see ZSJ/Danielson, and Ospreay's final match, hence some of the chants in English that we don't usually hear from Japanese audiences. I could feel the atmosphere through the screen, which doesn't happen for me too much any longer. More on that below.
SpoilerOverall...this event was special. Outside of the (to me, anyway) baffling tag title match, everything was absolutely great.
Okada and Tanahashi facing off for what is likely the last time in a NJPW ring...part of me thinks they should have saved this for Okada's true final New Japan match, but since they are building around the question of what his two final matches will be, I understand why they did this now. Beyond the matchup itself, the match contained a few things we likely won't be seeing much of in the future. I can't imagine we see Tana go up for that crossbody to the floor too many times ever again, for example. After the match, seeing Okada weep openly and wipe his tears on the Lion Mark logo broke me. After every classic match Okada has given to that promotion over the last decade, that moment should be regarded as a landmark on the puroresu timeline.
I like how the end result of ZSJ/Danielson was not what the wrestlers said they would shoot for: a submission. It leaves the door open for one more, but the thing is...if they do it at Wembley on an AEW show, I don't know that we'd get the result that should happen. While Danielson is a GOAT candidate, at this point ZSJ should be set up for big things and ought to win the next match in the series, if there is one.
I can see where the comments above about the cage match being divisive have merit. Personally, I feel a combination of both: it was a match that was jam-packed with moments, fit in everything they could think of, but also did go on a bit long. I also have qualms with the ring being torn apart, which I haven't seen discussed in detail yet. That caused the match to drag and also upped the danger quotient beyond what it really should be. I get that it's Ospreay's last match, I get that it needed to be a spectacle. But...you have young guys in the match that New Japan should really have high hopes for. Francesco Akira showed what he was capable of in what may the most underrated match of 2023 with his BOSJ encounter against El Desperado. The crowd was invested in every move he made in this match. He's also just 24. There's no need to have young wrestlers like him and Gabe Kidd risk all of their future potential by wrestling on bare boards that are collapsing through the metal frame of the ring. I counted at least three visible instances where a wrestler came close to falling through the boards. In a time where big names are leaving the promotion and there's a lot riding on the young guys, I feel those are risks that ought not to be taken right now.
Hearing the Japanese fans do the "Ospreay, Ospreay!" chants at the start and end of the match was also emotional. You could see Will having a tough time keeping it together when the chants happened during his entrance; I don't think he expected that. He's stressed multiple times how the fans there have seen him grow up, and the send-off he got from them reflected that. I don't know that any wrestling fanbase the world over would have been better suited for that moment. It's moments like that which keep me coming back to New Japan, and I'm glad I got to see that and feel it with those fans, even half a planet away.
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Not a usual WWE follower, but I watched the press conference.
I'm wondering if they're going to use all of the bickering and uncertainty in the storyline to mooch New Japan's "Double Gold Dash" from a few years back. I say that having no idea what they're trying to accomplish by having Seth Rollins be a world title holder besides one of the brands needing a belt to fight over without stripping Roman of the two titles he's already got.
Rock tries to relegate Cody to the backseat, using his newfound power to make Rock/Roman happen on night one. Cody agrees to a match with Rollins on night one only on the condition that, since it wasn't his choice, he can put his Rumble win up to face the winner of Rock/Roman on night two.
The end result would very well be about as telegraphed as when New Japan did it, but weirder things have happened.
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My PS4 backlog is significant, and so far there hasn't been a whole lot to get me excited enough to buy a PS5.
Pretty much the only thing that has my attention is Death Stranding 2 and the other Kojima...thing? It's stating the obvious, but the comments in State of Play concerning how the project will blur the lines between film and gaming were quite funny. He has been trying to do that since the first Metal Gear Solid. I don't mean that as an insult. My attitude towards Kojima craziness in gaming has always very much been "I will take everything you have in the store."
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The more I think about it, I’m not sure that Triple H is one of the “Corporate Officials” alluded to in the legal document.
But, I can’t shake from my head the idea that there’s a non-zero chance that Triple H hasn’t read the complaint because he already knows what’s in it. And not even because he was directly involved. But…I’m supposed to believe that an investigation was done into the payments Vince made, but that his kids and son-in-law have no idea as to the specifics of why the payments were made in the first place?
Hindsight is 20/20, but given the stuff Vince put on TV over the years, I’m also having trouble believing he’d be able to keep secrets if he was called out on the particulars of why it was so important to use millions in company funds in order to keep women silent about their affairs with him.
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I watched this last night to get my mind off of the Vince stuff. Slo-mo, high def footage. The NJPW/TV Asahi camera crew has done it again. Watch on the biggest screen you can find.
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Yeah, in all probability out of the question if he goes to WWE, unless he gets an absolute landmark deal with them. AEW, maybe he could come back for one down the line? But I'd assume they'd want him regularly in the mix Stateside as soon as they could get him.
So now that the workday is done, I have a smattering of other thoughts. And actually, part of it verges on a confession.
We'll lead with that. So when Jay White first turned up in AEW full-time, a big part of me thought all of the "expelled from Japan and NJPW shows" thing going on at the time was an angle, due to the fact that he was able to keep the Switchblade name, his New Japan entrance music, and Bullet Club gear. It took me an embarrassing amount of time to reach the conclusion that the NJPW/AEW relationship was friendly enough that TK must have agreed to pay New Japan for use of the Switchblade name/entrance music, along with NJPW getting a cut of whatever BC Gold merchandise gets sold. Esp. since the main BC Gold shirt also has the Lion Mark logo on it. Ever since, I've always wondered what the terms of that deal are, since I don't think that has ever come out.
Which leads me to the following: with that precedent set, if Okada signs with AEW, he still gets to be Okada. The final boss. If he goes to WWE, the stuff like the coin drop, The Rainmaker nickname, the Okada bucks, maybe even the zoom out with the Rainmaker pose all goes away. Unless, of course, a changing WWE makes an unheard of overture to NJPW for all of that, like AEW must have done for Jay.
Also...what a strange feeling to combine all of that with him giving Ospreay an emotional sendoff when he could very well wind up in the same promotion with him by March. Oof.
One more thing: there was an article posed on Tokyo Sports about this news (https://www.tokyo-sports.co.jp/articles/-/289477?page=1) where Tanahashi had an all-timer of a line:
"Okada's departure also marks the beginning of a new era. Tanahashi said, 'I think it's going to get interesting from now on. We have a lot of talent now, and there are a lot of young athletes in the dojo. When the rain stops, there will be a rainbow.'"
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I like the idea of seeing whether Kento would want to work with New Japan.
Also, I don’t know if he’s “the guy” as much as Kento may be, but Kaito Kiyomiya has been working in NJPW an awful lot and the company has - at least to my eyes - gone out of their way to give him storylines with multiple wrestlers on the New Japan roster. I’ve enjoyed his New Japan stuff quite a bit, and the live crowds seem to react well to him. I say try to make it official. Snap up Kaito, get him in the mix with War Dogs and the Musketeers for real, long-term. Treat him like a big deal and see where it goes.
That said, the rest of you had some great thoughts. I’m all for ZSJ or Shingo finally getting a G1 win. (Speaking of…a G1 without Okada is gonna feel really weird, yet it’s exciting. For the first time in a long time, there will be a real air of unpredictability.)
All that said…the skeptic in me says New Japan might not pursue any other talent on a committed basis yet. Without needing to pay Okada any longer, they may need to still save the money in the post-COVID environment as business (hopefully…) recovers.
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Pestering wrestlers shouldn't be based on size or gender, but even the folks who aren't thought of as big wrestlers are still larger and more athletic than your average human.
As far as seeing wrestlers in the wild...one thing that I still ponder to this day is whether or not it was Rey Mysterio I walked by in an airport once. It was years after he briefly wrestled in WCW without his mask, so I didn't remember what he really looked like or have an understanding of how his appearance would've changed with age. So I was walking through I think O'Hare or JFK, and all of a sudden I see this shorter guy in SPLX apparel (this would've been shortly after he started a sponsorship with them) with a telltale goatee similar to Rey's walking towards me. I was definitely much taller, but whoever this person was, their shoulders were at least twice as wide as mine.
My first takeaway was "Hey, I think that's Rey Jr...but I'm not sure so I should leave them alone." My second was "If Rey's shoulders are that huge, imagine how big the actual 'big' wrestlers are."
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Me posting in September: "Somebody hurry up and book Eddie to win another championship so he can kinda sorta have his own version of the Triple Crown."
To whoever from AEW reads the board: thank you for A) doing this, and B) helping me realize that my house is getting pretty dusty. After I read MJF's article on The Player's Tribune this week, I went back and re-read Eddie's. This journey Kingston has been on these past few years might be one of my all-time favorite things in wrestling. Crazy thing is I never followed Eddie on the indies, but he's done a great job at getting me invested after debuting in AEW. Pulling from the article he wrote, it's also crazy that he was down-and-out and so close to quitting the business, but is now where he is. Within a little over the last year's time, he's wrestled Jun Akiyama, Minoru Suzuki, competed in the G1 + wrestled in Korakuen, met Toshiaki Kawada, and now has a Triple Crown. He's living a puroresu dream and I'm happy for his success and glad that we get to see it.
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I think Tom Wilkinson's performance in Michael Clayton still stands as one of the better acting performances in film history. That movie as a whole is a bit underrated and the cast has other legendary performers, but he was absolutely captivating.
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I didn't think we'd see this happen, but MJF has penned an article for The Player's Tribune and it's worth a read.
https://www.theplayerstribune.com/posts/maxwell-jacob-friedman-aew-wrestling
I feel like a significant part of it is well further outside of kayfabe than MJF usually goes. But it's him, so of course he says some things that might rub some people the wrong way. I also think there are some passages in there that could be hinting at the outcome of his upcoming match with Joe. But hey, maybe we're being worked. It's the end of the year, I'm just gonna enjoy the ride, I think.
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Maybe the AEW media thread is more appropriate for this, but if you’re like me and need to catch up on this tournament…AEW just put seemingly the whole thing up on YouTube. Nearly 5 and a half hours of wrestling content in this video.
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Don't give up hope. If EVIL & Co. go with the latter option I presented, Tana can do that when they start wrestling as "Abode of Agony" or "Domicile of Doom" or whatever.
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2 hours ago, Octopus said:
I like the idea of Tanahashi becoming Vince to Stone Cold Okada.
I think what I want instead is a callback to when Keiji Muto wrestled as both himself and Great Muta in the same match.
Tanahashi in a multi-man tag vs. House of Torture. Tana gets frustrated with their antics and walks to the back. He returns in a suit, grabs a microphone, and officially abolishes HOT mid-match under pain of all of them being fired. Tana’s team thus wins by forfeit and all HOT members either find new factions or troll him by re-incorporating under a new name.
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President Tanahashi cleaning house like it's The Godfather.
Trying to think of anybody else who has irritated him over the years...
UFC 300: Pereira vs. Hill (04/13/2024) - Las Vegas, NV (T-Mobile Arena)
in BOXING & MMA
Posted
I am not usually one to trash commentary, but I had to cringe a bit when the commentators said that Max's turn side kick is a newly-acquired skill. I don't think that's true. He threw that kick well in some of his earliest fights in the UFC (I think he threw at least one in a losing effort against Dennis Bermudez).
I only bring this up because I can remember thinking at the start of Holloway's career - even if he had some early losses against Bermudez, McGregor, and Poirier at 145 - that he was so good at such a young age that he had the potential to be something very special. For sure a champion.
To see him grow up in the game and accomplish everything he has, with the style and fighting spirit he has, has been really cool as a fight fan. MMA fans are lucky to have a fighter like him. Also, I just checked Wikipedia - he's still only 32.
And yeah that was insane.