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Post by HMARK Center on Mar 13, 2017 13:56:33 GMT -5
Yeah, I could see Shibata going through SANADA and EVIL to get to Naito, but I also agree that it'd be foolish to ignore Ishii. Maybe Suzuki costs Shibata the final to Ishii? But then do you do Ishii vs. Naito again (they had an IWGP heavyweight title match last year), or do you throw a curveball and have him challenge one of the CHAOS guys?
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Post by BRAINFADE on Mar 13, 2017 14:08:03 GMT -5
Yeah, I could see Shibata going through SANADA and EVIL to get to Naito, but I also agree that it'd be foolish to ignore Ishii. Maybe Suzuki costs Shibata the final to Ishii? But then do you do Ishii vs. Naito again (they had an IWGP heavyweight title match last year), or do you throw a curveball and have him challenge one of the CHAOS guys? I'm still not sure about Shibata winning, because I think he's winning G1 to set up a Shibata/Okada main event at the Dome. I like the idea of Ishii winning and challenging Okada in a rematch of their classic from the G1.
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StuntGranny®
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Post by StuntGranny® on Mar 13, 2017 14:16:23 GMT -5
Yeah, I could see Shibata going through SANADA and EVIL to get to Naito, but I also agree that it'd be foolish to ignore Ishii. Maybe Suzuki costs Shibata the final to Ishii? But then do you do Ishii vs. Naito again (they had an IWGP heavyweight title match last year), or do you throw a curveball and have him challenge one of the CHAOS guys? I'm still not sure about Shibata winning, because I think he's winning G1 to set up a Shibata/Okada main event at the Dome. This is my dream scenario. Shibata winning G1, facing Okada at WK, and winning the title sounds a-okay to me.
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Post by 2coldMack is even more baffled on Mar 13, 2017 14:27:19 GMT -5
Like, on one end of the bracket, the only guy that makes sense for the finals is EVIL. On the other end of the bracket though, the only guy that looks like "for sure not hitting the final" is Juice Robinson.
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Post by BRAINFADE on Mar 13, 2017 14:48:09 GMT -5
I'm still not sure about Shibata winning, because I think he's winning G1 to set up a Shibata/Okada main event at the Dome. This is my dream scenario. Shibata winning G1, facing Okada at WK, and winning the title sounds a-okay to me. Absolutely. It's the right time for Shibata, and it's about time that a G1 winner is finally successful at WK.
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Post by Raskovnik on Mar 13, 2017 15:25:34 GMT -5
I'm just stoked that my boy EVIL is having a nice run so far. He's one my top 5 guys in the company and it's been really satisfying as a fan to see how much he has grown as a talent. His look and entrance are also gloriously corny. I love it.
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chrom
Backup Wench
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Post by chrom on Mar 13, 2017 17:08:41 GMT -5
Kitamura should be worth keeping an eye on through the year, like Oka he's a former amateur champion but he's got issues with doping in the past.
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Post by corndog on Mar 13, 2017 19:55:03 GMT -5
I'm still not sure about Shibata winning, because I think he's winning G1 to set up a Shibata/Okada main event at the Dome. This is my dream scenario. Shibata winning G1, facing Okada at WK, and winning the title sounds a-okay to me. That would be more than good with me if Shibata wins G1. Shibata or Naito and either one actually getting to Wrestle Kingdom with the title shot is what I want to see. Definitely don't want Omega/Okada II, not because it wasn't a great match, but because we know Okada is winning if they do.
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JoDaNa1281
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Post by JoDaNa1281 on Mar 14, 2017 8:26:04 GMT -5
Fale beat Yano with the Grenade & will face EVIL in the semifinals on 3/19.
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Gus Richlen Was Wrong
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Fun while it lasted
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Post by Gus Richlen Was Wrong on Mar 14, 2017 8:48:58 GMT -5
Lost interest after Omega lost.
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chrom
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Post by chrom on Mar 15, 2017 10:13:56 GMT -5
Shibata advances to the semis
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Post by HMARK Center on Mar 15, 2017 14:12:04 GMT -5
Yeah, I could see Shibata going through SANADA and EVIL to get to Naito, but I also agree that it'd be foolish to ignore Ishii. Maybe Suzuki costs Shibata the final to Ishii? But then do you do Ishii vs. Naito again (they had an IWGP heavyweight title match last year), or do you throw a curveball and have him challenge one of the CHAOS guys? I'm still not sure about Shibata winning, because I think he's winning G1 to set up a Shibata/Okada main event at the Dome. I like the idea of Ishii winning and challenging Okada in a rematch of their classic from the G1. Hate to say I don't see that happening, as the Meiyu Tag boys are my favorites in NJPW and I'd kill to see either of them walk out of the Dome holding the IWGP title, but one thing that Wrestle Kingdom has in common with WrestleMania is that NJPW isn't likely to book a main event that they're not totally sure could sell upwards of 30,000 tickets, hence why the main and semi-mains of the past few years have just about all featured members of whomever was in the "Big Four" for the company at that given time, with only some minor variation in the IC title spot (e.g. Ibushi getting that spot against Nakamura...though Kota likely was being groomed for a top spot and would have had it if he had just taken a full time contract). I don't want to be a spoilsport, though; it's not like people went into winter of 2016 thinking Kenny Omega would win G1 that year, and Naito's reascension was incredibly quick, as well; he seriously went from "Why is Naito acting so weird", to "Man, Naito has his goobers out to help him and he can't beat Goto at Wrestle Kingdom", to "OH MY GOD STRAP THIS GUY UP YESTERDAY" within a very short timeframe last year, so accomplishing the same with Shibata this year isn't impossible by any stretch of the imagination. Someone's got to take Tanahahi's "Big Four" spot soon, right? Quick thought on Fale/Yano; I know both guys have their detractors, but if this tournament was being done under the old system of having both early rounds booked closer together, I felt like that match was the type that I just get a kick out of given its place within a sea of harder hitting matches surrounding it. I can't help it, the "Fale drags the entire guardrail to the ring with him to beat the count" spot just made me mark out a bit, since this is a company where stuff like that doesn't happen nearly so frequently as to become completely unwelcome.
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Post by BRAINFADE on Mar 15, 2017 14:34:35 GMT -5
I'm still not sure about Shibata winning, because I think he's winning G1 to set up a Shibata/Okada main event at the Dome. I like the idea of Ishii winning and challenging Okada in a rematch of their classic from the G1. Hate to say I don't see that happening, as the Meiyu Tag boys are my favorites in NJPW and I'd kill to see either of them walk out of the Dome holding the IWGP title, but one thing that Wrestle Kingdom has in common in WrestleMania is that NJPW isn't likely to book a main event that they're not totally sure could sell upwards of 30,000 tickets, hence why the main and semi-mains of the past few years have just about all featured members of whomever was in the "Big Four" for the company at that given time, with only some minor variation in the IC title spot (e.g. Ibushi getting that spot against Nakamura...though Kota likely was being groomed for a top spot and would have had it if he had just taken a full time contract). I don't want to be a spoilsport, though; it's not like people went into winter of 2016 thinking Kenny Omega would win G1 that year, and Naito's reascension was incredibly quick, as well; he seriously went from "Why is Naito acting so weird", to "Man, Naito has his goobers out to help him and he can't beat Goto at Wrestle Kingdom", to "OH MY GOD STRAP THIS GUY UP YESTERDAY" within a very short timeframe last year, so accomplishing the same with Shibata this year isn't impossible by any stretch of the imagination. Someone's got to take Tanahahi's "Big Four" spot soon, right? Quick thought on Fale/Yano; I know both guys have their detractors, but if this tournament was being done under the old system of having both early rounds booked closer together, I felt like that match was the type that I just get a kick out of given its place within a sea of harder hitting matches surrounding it. I can't help it, the "Fale drags the entire guardrail to the ring with him to beat the count" spot just made me mark out a bit, since this is a company where stuff like that doesn't happen nearly so frequently as to become completely unwelcome. See, I think a Shibata/Okada main event (supported by a strong undercard) would do the business at the Dome. It's a match that has been well protected, and they've finally started Shibata's push after he signed a contract. Plus, we have ten months until Wrestle Kingdom, I think that's more than enough time to build Shibata up for a main event spot.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Mar 15, 2017 16:01:28 GMT -5
Hate to say I don't see that happening, as the Meiyu Tag boys are my favorites in NJPW and I'd kill to see either of them walk out of the Dome holding the IWGP title, but one thing that Wrestle Kingdom has in common in WrestleMania is that NJPW isn't likely to book a main event that they're not totally sure could sell upwards of 30,000 tickets, hence why the main and semi-mains of the past few years have just about all featured members of whomever was in the "Big Four" for the company at that given time, with only some minor variation in the IC title spot (e.g. Ibushi getting that spot against Nakamura...though Kota likely was being groomed for a top spot and would have had it if he had just taken a full time contract). I don't want to be a spoilsport, though; it's not like people went into winter of 2016 thinking Kenny Omega would win G1 that year, and Naito's reascension was incredibly quick, as well; he seriously went from "Why is Naito acting so weird", to "Man, Naito has his goobers out to help him and he can't beat Goto at Wrestle Kingdom", to "OH MY GOD STRAP THIS GUY UP YESTERDAY" within a very short timeframe last year, so accomplishing the same with Shibata this year isn't impossible by any stretch of the imagination. Someone's got to take Tanahahi's "Big Four" spot soon, right? Quick thought on Fale/Yano; I know both guys have their detractors, but if this tournament was being done under the old system of having both early rounds booked closer together, I felt like that match was the type that I just get a kick out of given its place within a sea of harder hitting matches surrounding it. I can't help it, the "Fale drags the entire guardrail to the ring with him to beat the count" spot just made me mark out a bit, since this is a company where stuff like that doesn't happen nearly so frequently as to become completely unwelcome. See, I think a Shibata/Okada main event (supported by a strong undercard) would do the business at the Dome. It's a match that has been well protected, and they've finally started Shibata's push after he signed a contract. Plus, we have ten months until Wrestle Kingdom, I think that's more than enough time to build Shibata up for a main event spot. It absolutely is. Hell, they did something similar with Omega last year and they managed to sell more tickets than Tanahashi/OKada at WK10. Though to be fair, neither show cracked 30,000 and both were about 10-11,000 less than WK9.
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Post by Clash, Never a Meter Maid on Mar 15, 2017 19:34:48 GMT -5
I'm just stoked that my boy EVIL is having a nice run so far. He's one my top 5 guys in the company and it's been really satisfying as a fan to see how much he has grown as a talent. His look and entrance are also gloriously corny. I love it. I love EVIL's vibe. It gets near that mid/late 90's style of wrestling camp, a la Undertaker in the Ministry. But his character is still a wrestler, they're not going full "Dungeon of Doom" with him.
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Post by corndog on Mar 16, 2017 11:56:25 GMT -5
See, I think a Shibata/Okada main event (supported by a strong undercard) would do the business at the Dome. It's a match that has been well protected, and they've finally started Shibata's push after he signed a contract. Plus, we have ten months until Wrestle Kingdom, I think that's more than enough time to build Shibata up for a main event spot. It absolutely is. Hell, they did something similar with Omega last year and they managed to sell more tickets than Tanahashi/OKada at WK10. Though to be fair, neither show cracked 30,000 and both were about 10-11,000 less than WK9. Also Omega was a much tougher sell considering he was a Junior the year before and a more comedic act. Shibata had a pretty good last year and has been booked strong since returning, all you need to do now is get him to the next level.
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JoDaNa1281
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Post by JoDaNa1281 on Mar 17, 2017 14:58:34 GMT -5
Ishii beat SANADA with the Brainbuster to advance to the semi-finals against Shibata.
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chrom
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Post by chrom on Mar 17, 2017 20:28:19 GMT -5
Hoping Sanada won so Shibata goes through him and Evil to get to Naito
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Post by 2coldMack is even more baffled on Mar 17, 2017 22:10:03 GMT -5
I'm actually coming around to the idea that a final that's just Shibata THRASHING Fale could be fun, but.....nah, EVIL/Shibata still seems like the best way to go.
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chrom
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Post by chrom on Mar 18, 2017 22:44:11 GMT -5
Semis are starting soon
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