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NJPW G1 Climax 30.


The Natural

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On 10/2/2020 at 3:31 AM, TheVileOne said:

Man, Juice is really good at the whole off the cuff, from the hip promo thing. Why do more people not talk about this guy? 

I feel like nearly everyone here praises him pretty consistently and Meltzer and Alvarez love him. I can't speak for anywhere else because I don't really frequent anywhere else.

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I kind of feel like if they ever needed a foreigner to be one of their top guys to have a run with, Juice could be that guy. He's been steadily groomed for this going back the last four years if you really look at it. Not to mention, the fans in Japan really embraced him and seem to love him as well.

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I dunno, man. I really don't get it with Juice. He's alright on the stick and he's been very good at working the covid clapping crowds. But, his whole image is just so goofy, and his entrance and ring attire are pretty dire right now. And it's not like he's some kind of super-worker. Other than his very good left hand punches, all of his offense is warmed-over SmackDown Six leftovers, and his bumping and selling are... Fine, I guess? I mean, has he ever had a match where you are all, "Oh yeah, you GOTTA see that amazing Juice Robinson match!"? I hate being a stick in the mud, but he's a solid piece of the middle card at best, right now. (That's not an insult, either. Solid NJPW mid-carder is a pretty good job).

If New Japan has to push a gaijin to the moon, I'd way rather it be ZSJ. His promos are funnier, his work is far more interesting, and his narrow-ass frame and bad soccer hair are still a better look than whatever Juice is trying to pull off in the tournament.

Juice has potential, but I am still waiting to be really impressed by him in the ring. (And as long as I am being a stick in the mud, Jay White's repetitive formula has really started to wear thin on me after seeing so many matches in a short time. That being said, I really enjoyed his match v Cobb last night).

Also: An open letter to almost everyone in New Japan: Maybe give it a rest with the shocked reactions, bellowing, and looking around with a "can you believe this?!?" face every time someone kicks out of a non-finishing-move at two. It's New Japan. You can only win with a finisher or a surprise roll-up... unless you are Yano.

All that being said, I really am enjoying the hell out of the G1 and I loved the CC finals and the little bit of the N1 I got to see. For all of my yelling at clouds, it is a pretty great time to be a fan of Japanese pro wrestling.

Edited by gordi
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Night 10 was okay. Perhaps the first time Block B didn't put on a show that was clearly better than its Block A counterpart. (It may still have been better but not by much.) The crowd / ring didn't seem well mic'ed, so it was hard to tell how into the show the crowd was.

Poor Yano. (But also: makes sense given the story of Goto's bicep / shoulder / whatever injury. More time to heal.)

Liked SANADA v. ZSJ a lot. Wished it was longer, but I appreciated that there wasn't an extended finishing section. I haven't seen much ZSJ in my time, so I'm digging this G1 series of his matches. He's had really good performances against pretty much everyone he's faced thus far. SANADA was good here, too, coming off of his big win over Naito on Night 8.

Juice v. EVIL was okay—fun at times. Getting tired of low blows, but I have to sympathize with whomever has to book all these finishes among top guys.

Naito v. Yoshi-Hashi was a chore to sit through. Crowd got into it at the end and seemed pretty fooled by a very late nearfall (perhaps the first one that I think got an actual gasp), but I just wasn't into it. Too long. Too boring. Would have been just as good if not better if you shaved off 5 minutes or more. If I watched NJPW more regularly, I may have had a very different investment in this match, but I couldn't help but think Naito should have looked much more dominant or aggressive, especially after eating his first loss against SANADA.

Tanahashi v. KENTA was less of a chore but also pretty illustrative of pointless limb work that eats up long stretches of a match. A staple of modern main event wrestling. (Then again, the limb work did kind of factor into the end, even if no one was selling at that point.) A few exchanges were pretty compelling; this match really shows just how much better Tanahashi is / has been than KENTA (whom I practically worshipped 15 or 16 years ago).

Despite all the nitpicking above (and in earlier posts), I am really enjoying this tournament. Every show has been worth watching, and it's pretty great to see live wrestling with a crowd. There's an energy here I've been missing, and it's amazing that I get to see all of this live after all the time and money it used to take to track down Japanese wrestling footage. Incredible stuff.

Edited by doctorhbomb
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17 hours ago, TheVileOne said:

I kind of feel like if they ever needed a foreigner to be one of their top guys to have a run with, Juice could be that guy. He's been steadily groomed for this going back the last four years if you really look at it. Not to mention, the fans in Japan really embraced him and seem to love him as well.

Doesn't Jay count?

On another note, is there anyone to stop someone defeating Naito then demanding two separate title shots? Might be quite a dickish thing to do, and a way to separate the belts if they want to do that.

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1 hour ago, doctorhbomb said:

 

Despite all the nitpicking above (and in earlier posts), I am really enjoying this tournament. Every show has been worth watching, and it's pretty great to see live wrestling with a crowd. There's an energy here I've been missing, and it's amazing that I get to see all of this live after all the time and money it used to take to track down Japanese wrestling footage. Incredible stuff.

I hear you. It's like it's just easier and less time-consuming to list the nit-picks. To list everything we liked would take too long. 

Edited by gordi
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2 hours ago, RunningFromAmerica said:

 

Doesn't Jay count?

On another note, is there anyone to stop someone defeating Naito then demanding two separate title shots? Might be quite a dickish thing to do, and a way to separate the belts if they want to do that.

Yes, I would say he counts, but if they ever need someone else in that role.

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Night 11 overdelivered (for me) after two of the less impressive shows of the tournament (Nights 9 and 10). I was also surprised by some results (though in hindsight maybe I shouldn’t have been).

I really don’t like Takahashi at all (bad sliding kicks, awkward reverse DDT, horrible gear), but I was happy with the result of his match against Ishii. There’s a lunging headbutt here that made me jump.

Okada v. Cobb was good. Crowd liked some of Cobb’s strongman stuff. I’m enjoying this new spin on Okada’s matches where he needs to get a bit sneakier / clever in order to pull out wins. The Dropkick / Tombstone / Cobra Clutch combo is. Not. Working. Against. Anyone. Almost everyone also ducks the rolling lariats he has recourse too when his opponents get too counter-y. I think he hit it against Cobb, and Cobb didn’t even drop.

Ospreay v. Suzuki was more fun than I imagined going in. Ospreay tries to go toe-to-toe with Suzuki right away and has his arm destroyed as a result. He did an okay job selling (not much nuance but also never ignored), but I’ll never understand why wrestlers will insist on using a damaged arm to throw forearms rather than just use the other arm. (Which he does at one point but not consistently.) Really think Ospreay’s at a point where he can start cutting out moves that made him popular on the indies. Crowds don’t need to see the standing shooting star anymore, for instance. Just a thought. Almost everyone is doing standing moonsaults and flips and superkicks and blah blah anyway. Start doing something different.

Taichi vs. Jay White might have been my favorite heel v. heel match of the tournament. And my favorite Jay White match of the tournament. From the beginning they start playing (rolling out of the ring on opposite sides at the same time), and they keep it up while also having a pretty decent match. Good and very entertaining match.

Takagi vs. Ibushi. I liked this if only because Ibushi lost. Not a fan. He’s clearly uber-talented, but he’s way more awkward as a top guy than Naito or Tanahashi (who’s untouchable). There’s a back elbow – jab – lariat combo in here that popped me. Fun main event but not  one of my favorite matches of the tournament.

 

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I honestly think that Okada v Cobb might have been Okada's best and most enjoyable match of the tournament so far. I never would have guessed that!

I also think that Cobb is somehow, legitimately, getting a little bit better with every match. I really enjoyed the match v Jay and tonight's match.

I like that he's a modern power wrestler who's more influenced by guys like Gary Albright than guys like Goldberg.

Edited by gordi
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I really liked Night 12.

I caught the final few minutes Goto v. Yoshi-Hashi (thought the show started at 4:30am CST; it started at 4am). What I saw I liked, though I'm struggling to remember any specific details.

ZSJ v. Yano was great. Favorite match of the night. Maybe got a bit too serious at the end, but I was thoroughly entertained.

Happy with SANADA v. KENTA. Result was satisfying, and a dropkick into the briefcase into KENTA's face made me laugh. Great visual (though KENTA didn't sell it nearly long enough).

Quite like Naito vs. Robinson. Might be my favorite Naito match of the tournament . . . but I'm also a bit weird. Naito's matches tend to go on a bit too long for my liking, but I really enjoyed the finishing sequences here. Might watch this again.

EVIL v. Tanahashi. Tanahashi is a master, and I really dug some of the Club's heel-ish antics here (and subsequent drama)—except at the end. No reason for the ref to walk a chair all the way across the ring and just stand there with his back turned after dropping it. Not well timed. I've always been a fan of the STO, though, so it's nice that it's treated like such a strong move.

Edited by doctorhbomb
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I'm firmly convinced that Ishii is 100 percent a Hall of Famer now. I was on the fence but seeing how good he is no matter the setting even when other elite wrestlers are struggling with the clap crowds is showing that he's an all-time great. 

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The young lions match was excellent tonight.

Cobb v Stone Pitbull was exactly the kind of match I love. Stiff strikes. Big bombs. Power v toughness, but Cobb is also pretty tough and Ishii is also pretty powerful. Loved this match. It might just be the best of Cobb's career so far. I mean, he's had a ton of matches I haven't seen, but this one won't be easy to top. 

Tokyo Pimp Without Pieter v Jay was a lot of fun! A really good idea very well executed. Most I have ever enjoyed a Jay White match, and that's a shoot, brother! Long term story telling.

Good Lord this show has been my cup of tea thus far!

I get the feeling that two of the last three matches are going to go over 20 minutes, though. That could be good or bad.

Edited by gordi
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So, maybe I'm just in a good mood... because I enjoyed every minute of Ospreay v Taichi Without Miho Abe and I don't generally enjoy Taichi Without Abe. I think this was the most I have ever enjoyed him... so, yeah, good mood. Probably also good wrestling, too. And now they are playing "Kaze Ni Nare" so it's not like I won't enjoy what's coming next. Man, autocorrect really didn't want to help me write Kaze Ni Nare.

And apparently now Ibushi can credibly go toe-to-toe with both Ishii and MiSu. Pretty tough choice between the more concise Cobb v Ishii and the more epic MiSu v Ibushi for MOTN so far.

Shingo and Okada definitely put in the work to try and top everything that came before their match tonight. I imagine the Meltzers and Kellers of the world will rank it #1. I have it in 3rd place because of the finish (you'll understand when you see it) but the match was a strong conclusion to a really excellent night of pro wrestling. I genuinely enjoyed every match on the card.

The Osaka crowd was white hot all night, and well-miked as well.

Best night of the tournament so far, for me.

 

Edited by gordi
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2 hours ago, gordi said:

Best night of the tournament so far, for me.

 

Agreed, what a medley of awesome matches. Was into Cobb the most I’ve been so far in the tournament, I guess that’s Ishii’s magic G1 dust. I get what you mean about the ending of the main event, but the journey there, plus the Osaka crowd reaction, and loving all things Shingo took this one to the top for me.

And evil Suzuki giving and taking the ever increasing brutality was fantastic.  And Yuya with the big W in a great match to start, the show had everything.
Puerile chuckle of the night goes to the Japanese announcer call of ‘Cheekee Nandos Kiku!!!’, I don’t know why it tickles me so much.

And since I hadn’t commented on the previous couple of nights, ZSJ/Yano takes the top spot for Yano matches so far, between the match itself and Zack’s priceless ad-libs along the way (‘Why would I do this to myself, ref?’ as he sits there with a chair taped to his wrist) topped off by the piss-take of the cliche-riddled sports interview trope linked by @The Natural above. Sublime. 

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Agree with @gordi and @Custos. Night 13 was great. Loved every match for different reasons. Almost the perfect wrestling show (entertainment-wise).

Hell, I even popped during the late arm bar sequence in the preliminary match . . . so good.

EDIT (additional thoughts, though I wish I could recall more specific details):

Cobb v. Ishii matched up SO well. Finishing spot was executed beautifully.

White v. Takahashi was brilliant. Loved the premise of the match, which didn't click at first until I noticed that White wasn't wearing boots . . .

Taichi v. Ospreay went better than I expected. Commentators went nuts for Ospreay. (I'm out of the loop on the backstory here, if there is one). Very entertaining.

Suzuki is amazing. The match v. Ibushi is worth watching if only for the look on his face (pictured above) and his laughs. Still not a fan of Ibushi, but he's clearly super talented. I'd just rather see other folks in his place.

Main event was my favorite Okada match of the tournament (though this isn't saying much). I've liked Takagi's top card matches. It's a bit unreal how the Cobra Clutch immediately deflates a hot crowd's excitement.

 

Edited by doctorhbomb
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