Dude deserves it, Jay White is the fuckin man. I'm glad to see him and Juice getting such opportunities to shine
New Japan Pro-Wrestling General Discussion Thread
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I agree the guy has improved since his first showed up and is only getting better. I feel like he will soon fight Okada for the control of Chaos or start a splinter group of it like Bullet Club did and is doing.
I am really glad Juice is getting opportunities to shine especially after his run in the early days of NXT. The guy gets to show what WWE missed out on, and he has improved as well.
If an educated guy like me is a mark for NJPW, that just proves how good NJPW happens to be.
Nah, it just proves you can't see the superiority of WWE and you want to be one of those cool marks that is anti-WWE, while still being WWE, and some other things.
Struggling y'all but four shows in watching all the tourney matches this year, boy I'm really enjoying this so far 
But not totally sure what to write lol. Figure I'll do one long post after catching night 6? idk. suggestions are welcome
But not totally sure what to write lol. Figure I'll do one long post after catching night 6? idk. suggestions are welcome
Snow's Individual Thoughts after Day 6, G1 Climax 2016.
A Block (mostly)
-I guess you can't talk about this tournament without starting with the surprising 3-0 start for Jay White, can you?... Yes, you can, because Big Mike (2-1) has really been the standout performer in my eyes, looking impressive in putting away EVIL and Hangman Page and was on the way to a big W over White before falling to shenanigans. Just based on performances in the tournament, Elgin's my favorite in the A-Block.
-Switchblade's unbelievable record so far with wins over Okada, Tanahashi, and Elgin are really sweet and seeing him hang with the New Japan main eventers is one thing, but in his matches he doesn't feel like he belongs at that level yet (kayfabe or no). While it definitely feels like he's cheating to beat these guys because he has to to win, he's also staying competitive with the standout and 2 all-time greats, so he should absolutely have a shot against the likes of EVIL and Page later in the cushier A-Block. Quality push for this guy, but not the force it seems like on paper
-What is there to say about Hiroshi Tanahashi (2-1)? As someone who hasn't watched much NJPW it's always cool to see how this dude just knows how to put a good match together. If you can get four stars out of Bad Luck Fale and Jay White you're doing something impressive, and while his victories aren't quite as impressive as Elgin's (that match with Suzuki was total bullshit!) even at 90% of what he used to be, dude just has chemistry with everyone.
-But man, is it (kayfabe) sad to watch Kazuchika Okada (1-2), the depressed little tortured soul throwing balloons around and dying his hair in a desperate effort to find himself after 720 glorious days as IWGP Heavyweight Champion. While he lost dirty twice, the story is that this isn't the same Okada and needs to pick up the pieces around him. It's unclear of what to expect for the Rainmaker from this point forward, but even the lost version still seems to be a tough out.
-He's still good enough to beat Hangman Page (1-2) though, and while his performances have been technically sound (had a damn fine showing in his loss to Okada), he won a match by DQ ran into the Elgin buzzsaw and got beat clean by a dude waving balloons around. Hit the showers kid, whenever Kevin Kelly talks up Page on commentary as this up and comer it sounds like Michael Cole putting over the latest NXT callup.
-Speaking of losers, someone has to come in last. And when people groaned when you were announced and your story has been one of "people thought your spot should have went to someone else", it sucks to be Yoshi-Hashi (0-3). Excursion coming soon?
-Rounding out the field of people who aren't losers though, Minoru Suzuki goes down as the guy with the biggest fluke record (1-2) in the tournament so far. Dude was absolutely dominant against Makabe and Tanahashi so far in losing efforts and the terrifying King looks like arguably the shortest straw you can grasp at. EVIL (2-1) and Togi Makabe (2-1) are delivering some really quality hoss action. Little Evil dude seems like NJPW's answer to Sheamus, to where the bigger and stronger the opponent the more at home he is, and Makabe doesn't give the horror movie vibe Suzuki does but that vet will punch the fuck out of you.
-And not to mention Bad Matc... I mean Bad Luck Fale (1-2) and Tama Tonga (1-2, B Block) are doing the Firing Squad angle to a lot of critical reception, I like it. It's a bit too much to have 4 wrestlers in a 20 man tournament relying on bullshit (well, Toro Yano is different, but still.) I'm entertained by their antics and ringside chaos and crowd brawling (Red Shoes is the best babyface LOL), but still watching point numbers being inflated because of all the DQ's these guys are eating is quite ridiculous. Especially with the A-Block being filled with less specialzed ring workers it's good to have some variety on the show, and this is good for that I guess?
B Block:
The easiest place to start on the B Block is at the bottom with Juice Robinson (0-3), who's one of the best underdog characters I've seen in some time. He doesn't seem like a hapless dork, he seems like a headstrong rookie running into a buzzsaw he wasn't prepared for with a broken hand. A charismatic wrestler holding a belt he won from the 3-0 wrestler on the other side, Juice is really easy to get behind and when you're a rookie in a minefield block of, when I first saw who was in this, 6 guys I buy as main eventers in New Japan (now 7, even!), well that's a bad way to go. He's an in over his head injured rookie with more balls than brains but *shrug*
Speaking of in over his head... speaking out of kayfabe as Snow here. Weird saying this after that FREAKING GLORIOUS match with Ishii, but I've really never been a fan of Hirooki Goto (1-2). Am I missing something here? Can't explain it but given he's so close to the top in New Japan I just usually expect more out of his matches than what I get. Hasn't had bad matches with Omega and
But on the other side, one man having a REALLY good tournament is Sanada (2-1), who while I didn't see his IWGP Championship bout with Okada, going back to his days as X-Division Champ, was the dictionary definition of just a guy, but after his damn impressive showings with his defensive counter-counter wrestling so far, he's getting that ball and doing the best he can with it. Actually being surviving the Firing Squad chaos and outwrestling Zach Sabre Jr. is a damn impressive resume to pick up 4 early points.
The most interesting story of the tournament goes to Toru Yano (1-2) in a landslide, because while he's great at playing spoiler, he promised a return to his amateur wrestling roots and actually outwrestled tag partner Tomohiro Ishii for a while, before getting frustrated and resorting to his usual tactics, distracted the ref before getting low-blowed and cradled for the L... Take two against ZSJ, who you already know he ain't outwrestling, so resorting to his tactics just had him outwrestled and flash pinned, I figured that would lead to more mat wrestling for the Thief, but... it was nothing but classic Yano bullshit against Kota Ibushi and he's out of the winless column. Duct tape >> submission holds, my friends!
ZSJ (1-2) seems to grow on you like a wine, doesn't he? Saw some of his stuff in the CWC and random matches here and there and while I didn't like his stuff when he was being spotlighted, as a heel he's fantastic blocking, countering, locking up and PK'ing his opponents to the best of his slenderman abilities... but not this time. While sitting at 1-1 was an okay start, the guy who's by far the best I've seen at mat-based offense just got outwrestled and pinned by Sanada of all people. Don't know if this will be an angle for him, but a frustrated pissed off version of ZSJ sounds like a guy who might finish this tournament with 2 points. Especially in THIS bracket...
...with my boy. Tomohiro Ishii (2-1) still left to come who's having a phenomenal tournament! It's so. SO good to see Ishii out of the deathgrip of that terrible tag team and back to delivering kick-ass hoss matches with either pinpoint selling and babyface fire, or just no-sell everything and turn your face into ground beef type of action. Ishii will fight back on you, dominate you, punch the everloving shit out of you and shave off all your offense while doing it. Can't put him over enough
And it's sweet to see Kota Ibushi back as well (2-1) with the prettiest offense in NJPW today. He's going to be a blast to watch against the rest of the group
...strangely enough though, after that ABSOLUTELY AWESOME MUST-SEE main event night two with Kenny Omega, Tetsuya Naito (2-1) kinda feels like he's sleepwalking a bit. He's obviously one of the greats when he's on his game, but he had a relatively boring match with Juice (though yeah the story of the broken hand was good) after getting rumblewrecked by Ishii a couple of nights before and taking 90% of the offense before a flash Destino.
Not much needs to be said about the champion himself, Kenny Omega (3-0). It'll be interesting to see if the grind of this block gets to him.
It's been a fun ride to follow, y'all, and thanks for really introducing me to all NJPW has to offer!
A Block (mostly)
-I guess you can't talk about this tournament without starting with the surprising 3-0 start for Jay White, can you?... Yes, you can, because Big Mike (2-1) has really been the standout performer in my eyes, looking impressive in putting away EVIL and Hangman Page and was on the way to a big W over White before falling to shenanigans. Just based on performances in the tournament, Elgin's my favorite in the A-Block.
-Switchblade's unbelievable record so far with wins over Okada, Tanahashi, and Elgin are really sweet and seeing him hang with the New Japan main eventers is one thing, but in his matches he doesn't feel like he belongs at that level yet (kayfabe or no). While it definitely feels like he's cheating to beat these guys because he has to to win, he's also staying competitive with the standout and 2 all-time greats, so he should absolutely have a shot against the likes of EVIL and Page later in the cushier A-Block. Quality push for this guy, but not the force it seems like on paper
-What is there to say about Hiroshi Tanahashi (2-1)? As someone who hasn't watched much NJPW it's always cool to see how this dude just knows how to put a good match together. If you can get four stars out of Bad Luck Fale and Jay White you're doing something impressive, and while his victories aren't quite as impressive as Elgin's (that match with Suzuki was total bullshit!) even at 90% of what he used to be, dude just has chemistry with everyone.
-But man, is it (kayfabe) sad to watch Kazuchika Okada (1-2), the depressed little tortured soul throwing balloons around and dying his hair in a desperate effort to find himself after 720 glorious days as IWGP Heavyweight Champion. While he lost dirty twice, the story is that this isn't the same Okada and needs to pick up the pieces around him. It's unclear of what to expect for the Rainmaker from this point forward, but even the lost version still seems to be a tough out.
-He's still good enough to beat Hangman Page (1-2) though, and while his performances have been technically sound (had a damn fine showing in his loss to Okada), he won a match by DQ ran into the Elgin buzzsaw and got beat clean by a dude waving balloons around. Hit the showers kid, whenever Kevin Kelly talks up Page on commentary as this up and comer it sounds like Michael Cole putting over the latest NXT callup.
-Speaking of losers, someone has to come in last. And when people groaned when you were announced and your story has been one of "people thought your spot should have went to someone else", it sucks to be Yoshi-Hashi (0-3). Excursion coming soon?
-Rounding out the field of people who aren't losers though, Minoru Suzuki goes down as the guy with the biggest fluke record (1-2) in the tournament so far. Dude was absolutely dominant against Makabe and Tanahashi so far in losing efforts and the terrifying King looks like arguably the shortest straw you can grasp at. EVIL (2-1) and Togi Makabe (2-1) are delivering some really quality hoss action. Little Evil dude seems like NJPW's answer to Sheamus, to where the bigger and stronger the opponent the more at home he is, and Makabe doesn't give the horror movie vibe Suzuki does but that vet will punch the fuck out of you.
-And not to mention Bad Matc... I mean Bad Luck Fale (1-2) and Tama Tonga (1-2, B Block) are doing the Firing Squad angle to a lot of critical reception, I like it. It's a bit too much to have 4 wrestlers in a 20 man tournament relying on bullshit (well, Toro Yano is different, but still.) I'm entertained by their antics and ringside chaos and crowd brawling (Red Shoes is the best babyface LOL), but still watching point numbers being inflated because of all the DQ's these guys are eating is quite ridiculous. Especially with the A-Block being filled with less specialzed ring workers it's good to have some variety on the show, and this is good for that I guess?
B Block:
The easiest place to start on the B Block is at the bottom with Juice Robinson (0-3), who's one of the best underdog characters I've seen in some time. He doesn't seem like a hapless dork, he seems like a headstrong rookie running into a buzzsaw he wasn't prepared for with a broken hand. A charismatic wrestler holding a belt he won from the 3-0 wrestler on the other side, Juice is really easy to get behind and when you're a rookie in a minefield block of, when I first saw who was in this, 6 guys I buy as main eventers in New Japan (now 7, even!), well that's a bad way to go. He's an in over his head injured rookie with more balls than brains but *shrug*
Speaking of in over his head... speaking out of kayfabe as Snow here. Weird saying this after that FREAKING GLORIOUS match with Ishii, but I've really never been a fan of Hirooki Goto (1-2). Am I missing something here? Can't explain it but given he's so close to the top in New Japan I just usually expect more out of his matches than what I get. Hasn't had bad matches with Omega and
But on the other side, one man having a REALLY good tournament is Sanada (2-1), who while I didn't see his IWGP Championship bout with Okada, going back to his days as X-Division Champ, was the dictionary definition of just a guy, but after his damn impressive showings with his defensive counter-counter wrestling so far, he's getting that ball and doing the best he can with it. Actually being surviving the Firing Squad chaos and outwrestling Zach Sabre Jr. is a damn impressive resume to pick up 4 early points.
The most interesting story of the tournament goes to Toru Yano (1-2) in a landslide, because while he's great at playing spoiler, he promised a return to his amateur wrestling roots and actually outwrestled tag partner Tomohiro Ishii for a while, before getting frustrated and resorting to his usual tactics, distracted the ref before getting low-blowed and cradled for the L... Take two against ZSJ, who you already know he ain't outwrestling, so resorting to his tactics just had him outwrestled and flash pinned, I figured that would lead to more mat wrestling for the Thief, but... it was nothing but classic Yano bullshit against Kota Ibushi and he's out of the winless column. Duct tape >> submission holds, my friends!
ZSJ (1-2) seems to grow on you like a wine, doesn't he? Saw some of his stuff in the CWC and random matches here and there and while I didn't like his stuff when he was being spotlighted, as a heel he's fantastic blocking, countering, locking up and PK'ing his opponents to the best of his slenderman abilities... but not this time. While sitting at 1-1 was an okay start, the guy who's by far the best I've seen at mat-based offense just got outwrestled and pinned by Sanada of all people. Don't know if this will be an angle for him, but a frustrated pissed off version of ZSJ sounds like a guy who might finish this tournament with 2 points. Especially in THIS bracket...
...with my boy. Tomohiro Ishii (2-1) still left to come who's having a phenomenal tournament! It's so. SO good to see Ishii out of the deathgrip of that terrible tag team and back to delivering kick-ass hoss matches with either pinpoint selling and babyface fire, or just no-sell everything and turn your face into ground beef type of action. Ishii will fight back on you, dominate you, punch the everloving shit out of you and shave off all your offense while doing it. Can't put him over enough
And it's sweet to see Kota Ibushi back as well (2-1) with the prettiest offense in NJPW today. He's going to be a blast to watch against the rest of the group
...strangely enough though, after that ABSOLUTELY AWESOME MUST-SEE main event night two with Kenny Omega, Tetsuya Naito (2-1) kinda feels like he's sleepwalking a bit. He's obviously one of the greats when he's on his game, but he had a relatively boring match with Juice (though yeah the story of the broken hand was good) after getting rumblewrecked by Ishii a couple of nights before and taking 90% of the offense before a flash Destino.
Not much needs to be said about the champion himself, Kenny Omega (3-0). It'll be interesting to see if the grind of this block gets to him.
It's been a fun ride to follow, y'all, and thanks for really introducing me to all NJPW has to offer!
If you are enjoying what NJPW is offering right now, try to find a lot of their older items and trust me you will fall in love especially the Junior Heavyweights.
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Daryl maybe the Jr. Heavyweight now, but it will always belong to Tiger Mask(s).
Does anyone else they are building to either a Chaos split with one side being Jay White and the other Okada or an Okada and Jay White feud? I am fine either way with it as Jay has been improving and I think it will be fun to watch.
Alos, what is with Okada and the ballons now, lol?
Alos, what is with Okada and the ballons now, lol?