dragonzombie Posted April 8, 2023 Share Posted April 8, 2023 Spoiler BC turned on ELP. They announced the G-1 Climax 2023 schedule Surprised AZM took the pin, she is the high speed champ. Oh well. For the IWGP World HW Sanada (c) vs Hiromu is next. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horangi Posted April 8, 2023 Share Posted April 8, 2023 Many many whiskeys in, but a hell of a show, possibly the best show since pre-COVID times. Some great stories told, I think every title match delivered. For me, my favourite match... Spoiler Obviously tag title match from an emotional stand point. Have followed Aussie Open for many years, was there at their Japan debut in Osaka last year, and to see them finally win the big one...incredible! Fletcher busting himself up on that moonsault to the outside, getting wrapped up due to the blood and fighting on is an incredible image. Hiromu/Eagles delivered as usual. Hiromu is an amazing 'fighting from under' Wrestler, Robbie looked like an absolute force. Robbie looks like a real threat for the BoSJ. Women's match was a great sprint, I hope Mercedes does stick around for a while. Zack/Shota was a blast. Really enjoyed the main...I guess SANADA finally finished the story! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elsalvajeloco Posted April 8, 2023 Share Posted April 8, 2023 Spoiler SANADA is...IWGP champion? Also Spoiler 6 minutes ago, Red King said: Surprised AZM took the pin, she is the high speed champ. And? You have champs dropping falls in Stardom every now and then. She can't lose to the IWGP Women's champ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted April 8, 2023 Author Share Posted April 8, 2023 Spoiler Fancied SANADA to win for the reasons in my OP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted April 8, 2023 Author Share Posted April 8, 2023 My mate, Craig H will be happy. Not tagging him as I don't want to play spoiler. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Posted April 8, 2023 Share Posted April 8, 2023 Spoiler Interesting to see where ELP goes now that he's out of BC. Face turn with Sekigun? AEW with Switch and Juice? One of the other factions? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Niners Fan in CT Posted April 8, 2023 Share Posted April 8, 2023 (edited) Spoiler Great show top to bottom! I finally got my NJPW World situation worked out so I subbed this morning. I was in and out of the room for the first couple matches but once the title matches started up the show started off with a bang and didn't let up. Mercedes (c) vs. AZM vs. Hazuki for the IWGP Women's Championship was really fun. They went about 14 minutes and they used every bit of that time to great use. Mercedes blended really well with AZM and Hazuki flying around. She took some crazy bumps but it was all safe, it just looked brutal which is what you want. The T.V. title match was dope. Sabre Jr. has already had some spectacular finishing stretches with the belt. William Regal smiling somewhere at this run. Feel good ending for Aussie Open. I liked that match too, hope Fletcher is ok. Speaking of feel good moments and finishing stretches MAN! Okada and SANADA. First of all, congrats to SANADA because I didn't think he'd ever get to this level after a while. I kept waiting. Then he wins the Cup and I'm still like, cool. He changes his look, more business like. Ok, Cool. I still didn't buy it. I didn't buy it until it happened. That finishing stretch was really different to what I've seen recently from Okada, tons of cool little reversals. I was loving surly, veteran Okada beating the shit out of people lately but I'm not mad at SANADA winning, again I had waited years for this. SANADA vs. Hiromu is gonna be really fucking fun too and it's a fresh match up for the world title scene. Looking forward to it. Edited April 8, 2023 by Niners Fan in CT 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig H Posted April 8, 2023 Share Posted April 8, 2023 (edited) Eh, better to spoiler this… Spoiler WOOOOOO!!!! My boy finally did it! Edited April 8, 2023 by Craig H Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notoriusvig Posted April 8, 2023 Share Posted April 8, 2023 In general, was this worth re-subbing to see? I want to see SANADA win and want to see the Mercedes match but is it worth $7 for a subscription? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SturmCRF Posted April 8, 2023 Share Posted April 8, 2023 44 minutes ago, notoriusvig said: In general, was this worth re-subbing to see? I want to see SANADA win and want to see the Mercedes match but is it worth $7 for a subscription? I'd say so. Those matches were both excellent, and ZSJ vs Shota, Aussie Open vs Bishomon, Hiromu vs Eagles werent far off. Maybe not worth a full PPV price if you know the results, but $7, sure. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matwarz Posted April 8, 2023 Share Posted April 8, 2023 1 hour ago, notoriusvig said: In general, was this worth re-subbing to see? I want to see SANADA win and want to see the Mercedes match but is it worth $7 for a subscription? I’d find 5 four star or better matches in a row quite tempting personally 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teflon Turtle Posted April 9, 2023 Share Posted April 9, 2023 (edited) 2 hours ago, matwarz said: 4 hours ago, notoriusvig said: In general, was this worth re-subbing to see? I want to see SANADA win and want to see the Mercedes match but is it worth $7 for a subscription? I’d find 5 four star or better matches in a row quite tempting personally This is a good lead-in to something I really wanted to say about this show, and I suppose wrestling in general. Versus implementing a rating system, I typically find I have more enjoyment with wrestling if I can address a match with a simple yes or no question: "did I have fun watching the match?" Rather than spend a bunch of time ranking one thing over the other and getting lost in minutiae, it's just "did I enjoy this thing that is one of my hobbies today?" However...if I were to use the infamous "five star" match rating system...honestly, I'd be comfortable giving Bishamon vs. Aussie Open from this show the full five. The match didn't overstay its welcome but had tons of great action, some unintended (but effective) dialing-up of the drama with an accidental cut to one of the participants, and a really hot crowd. Pro-wrestling perfection. I don't think I could've asked more of those wrestlers or that match. Just great stuff. I'll spoiler the rest of my thoughts: Spoiler - That opening tag was ridiculous fun. I like how Japanese audiences do not essentially do chants for themselves, but the cheer that went up after everyone was finally able to do the "Kaze Ni Nare" chant for Minoru Suzuki in a large setting felt joyful in a way that I can barely explain. Just..."we are so happy that we can do this again!" Beyond that, I am a sucker for tag matches where mismatched teams just paste each other to tag their partner in. El Desperado in particular is very entertaining in matches like this. Lots of amusing moments and a great start to the card. - The same "we will strike each other to tag out" thing happened in the Bullet Club tag, but it wasn't played for laughs. I know that usually we would criticize a show relying on the same storytelling beat for multiple matches close to each other on the card, but credit goes to the wrestlers in this match for making it feel different. Of course, the eventual outcome of El Phantasmo being booted out of BC in Japan eventually made it clear that the stakes over these aggressive tags were in fact quite different. I was a little disappointed in Ishimori sticking with Finlay's side. I can't help it, but I just don't find him all that interesting despite his obvious skill and athleticism. I thought a turn here would finally separate him from the pack a little, but I guess not. - To go back to my "fun or not fun" rating system, the IWGP Women's Championship match gets "fun." So many cool pinning and submission attempt sequences with the third participant rushing to break things up or otherwise get themselves involved to try to steal the win. This was another one were it felt like the match was just the right length of time. My only criticism, such as it is, is that it still seems like nobody quite knows how to take Mercedes' new finisher on the first try. I'm not sure that's how the end of the match was really supposed to look...? Sure, bodies crashed in to one another but it didn't look like the move as it has been done previously. - I've always found SANADA to be much more watchable when he leaves the Paradise Lock at home and doesn't build his matches around multiple attempts at the Skull End. I could still do with a little less Skull End, but he did well here. Honestly, I have reservations about him being the guy to have unseated this version of Okada. I know most people don't want or need another endless Okada reign, or story where Okada wins the G1 again to regain the belt at WK. But, Okada in this incarnation is, in my opinion, more interesting than he has been since Kenny Omega left Japan. It felt to me a bit too soon to have a title change given how Okada has been built back up over the start of this year. That said, he doesn't necessarily have to change his attitude having lost the belt, like he's done in the past. Given that we have Forbidden Door 2 coming up, there are probably more interesting options on the table for him in the back half of the year now that he isn't the champ, in terms of inter-promotional matches. However...unless Okada wins a rematch with SANADA before the year is out, this does derail where I thought things were headed - Ospreay/Okada for all the marbles in the Tokyo Dome, unless the twist is Ospreay winning the belt sometime this year and he has to finally beat Okada as the defending champ. Speaking of: I still have a hard time seeing SANADA main-event WK. It'll be interesting to see where all of this winds up, at least. Edited April 9, 2023 by Teflon Turtle 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evil Otto Posted April 9, 2023 Share Posted April 9, 2023 I guess we're now in the spoiler "gray area" but, oh well... Spoiler It was really cool hearing the sumo hall crowd chant for ELP, but of course the angle lead them to go there, but in Aussie Open's case, their chants were simply because of their undeniable awesomeness. I have to shout out Bishamon, those two were worthy champions and can really deliver a breathtaking match, and I hope they keep them active in the division. Kyle's injury was gruesome, and I'm sure he didn't wish it to happen, but it made the match even crazier to watch. Incredible match. I loved Shota and Zack as well. I've gotta say, Umino may in fact have the goods. He has always looked a little clunky before, but he's far more fluid now and we're starting to see his creativity as well. I loved Zack's pre-match interview mocking him with a "shiny jacket", as it was a subtle dig but also some sound advice, something like "mate, you need to drop that unnecessary crap" (my words, not his). Heed ZSJ's words, Shota. The Mercedes 3-way match was also fucking great, and you can tell just how much it meant to her to be in sumo hall. I think this was a recurring theme for this show: people happy to be there, and/or people being shown much-deserved love. Great advertising for Stardom, too, by AZM and Hazuki. I realize people were pondering who takes the loss in the match, but in the end, nobody loses in a a match like that. Hiromu and Robbie? Also insanely good. TMDK is a wonderful fit for Eagles. He gets to lean into heel stuff, but like UE, I think the fans appreciate everyone in the group, which is strangely the perfect mix. I didn't expect him to win, and he didn't, but if he did, it certainly would have been justified given his performance. When it comes to the main, I'll just say this: I don't get Sanada. But if you do for some reason, more power to you. I'm happy if you're happy, dig? No need for a rant. That's wrestling. Carry on. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notoriusvig Posted April 9, 2023 Share Posted April 9, 2023 I went for it, and I don't regret it. I only watched until the women's match so far, and I liked that a lot. Mercedes can definitely hang pretty well, and it just makes me want to subscribe to Stardom World now, lol! I'll watch the rest tomorrow and Monday. Thanks guys. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matwarz Posted April 9, 2023 Share Posted April 9, 2023 What I loved about the ladies was they did a legit 3 way with no powdering until the very last near falls. Zack v Shota was a masterful 14 minutes. Perfect dance partners and convincing near falls. Absolutely adored this match. Tag titles was heated, stiff and built to a crescendo. Perfect time for a switch and a very deserving team who were clearly overcome with how far they have come. Just a tremendous main event. Nothing overdone, perfectly sold, rabid crowd and blinding home stretch. NJPW needed to pull the trigger on a new top guy and it couldn’t have been done better. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted April 9, 2023 Author Share Posted April 9, 2023 (edited) Yes, please. Edited April 9, 2023 by The Natural 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarryArchieGus Posted April 9, 2023 Share Posted April 9, 2023 (edited) Absolutely loved seeing the Aussies take the gold. Very exciting and fun bout with the Yoshi-Hashi/Goto team. Also dug the Main Event. Neat seeing the title switch. I don't know Sanada that well to make to grand a judgment, but totally get the annoyance on his ridiculous Paradise Lock. Here he was solid. I've only seen these two bouts thus far, but I wanted to mention that this is the first time since 2019 that New Japan has felt fresh and exciting. Yeah, let's do the Aussies and FTR at the Forbidden Door! That'd easily be my Main Event. Edited April 9, 2023 by HarryArchieGus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Niners Fan in CT Posted April 9, 2023 Share Posted April 9, 2023 I think one of the coolest things about SANADA winning the gold is the sense of danger he's going to bring to every match now. He could lose it in a month or hold it a year. That's not typical in NJPW, it's something different. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted April 10, 2023 Author Share Posted April 10, 2023 (edited) Edited April 10, 2023 by The Natural 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lostinube Posted April 11, 2023 Share Posted April 11, 2023 The shot of the match is right before that clip starts when Okada is visibly struggling to complete the move he was going for. He really sold that SANADA took everything out of him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted April 11, 2023 Author Share Posted April 11, 2023 (edited) https://twitter.com/ayowrestleclips/status/1645091999861600256 Edited April 11, 2023 by The Natural Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted April 14, 2023 Author Share Posted April 14, 2023 (edited) Interesting how the IWGP Women's World Champion Mercedes Mone and IWGP World Heavyweight Champion SANADA started using a DDT as a finisher. Mone first with the Mone Maker in January and SANADA last month with Dead Fall. Edited April 14, 2023 by The Natural 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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