Oak: Certified Jade Hater
Bill S. Preston, Esq.
Edgier than Wayne Brady, Harder than Chinese Arithmetic, and Higher than the ratings for Blade: The Series
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Post by Oak: Certified Jade Hater on Oct 17, 2020 11:54:33 GMT -5
It legitimately pains me that Bea might have a big presence in New Japan. Not a fan of her or Ospreay.
In lighter news, glad to see my man SANADA take B Block. Hopefully the match with Ibushi brings out that next level in him and shows that he can be a viable main event talent.
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Post by ANuclearError on Oct 17, 2020 13:07:21 GMT -5
Looks like LiJ have a new logo ready to go: i.redd.it/9ejxf8isant51.jpgJ - Shingo (replacing EVIL's scythe) A - Hiromu P - SANADA O - Naito N - BUSHI
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Oct 17, 2020 13:14:17 GMT -5
NJPW G1 Climax 30 Night Eighteen October 17th, 2020 | Ryogoku Kokugikan Sumo Hall in Tokyo, Japan | Attendance: N/A
After an A Block finale that was quite surprising (Kota going for a third straight year, Willy’s new stable), B Block has a chance to do something similar. Or they could keep things simple. It’ll be interesting to see which route they go.
B Block: Toru Yano [6] vs. YOSHI-HASHI [2] Surprisingly, the CHAOS buddies only met once in singles competition back in the G1 26, which Yano won (**¼). There’s nothing on the line here. Yano was up to his usual antics and found himself taped to YOSHI-HASHI’s bow staff and the guardrail. He squeezed through the railing to beat the countout but now had an illegal object taped to him. Yano got free and went for a low blow but HASHI caught it and rolled through into a win after 6:10. It was fine but it’s hard to really get behind this stuff when it has no impact on the tournament. [**]
B Block: Hirooki Goto [8] vs. Juice Robinson [6] They’re 2-2 against each other. Goto won their two NEVER Openweight Title matches at New Beginning in Sapporo 2017 (***¾) and Road to Wrestling Dontaku 2018 (****). Juice took the two G1 outings in 2018 (***¼) and 2019 (***½). Juice made it clear that he wanted to get to at least 10 points this year. As he has struggled, his demeanor backstage has changed and he’s given less interviews and such. As usual, these two put on some good back and forth. You got the sense that Juice was dying for that win. He’s consistently put on good matches in the G1 but his point totals are low or a guy with such talent. Near the end, Juice had Pulp Friction blocked multiple times, which has happened a bunch in this tournament. I’m thinking he gets a new finisher soon. Still, he weathered the storm here and won with Pulp Friction after 12:08. Quality pro wrestling. [***¼]
B Block: Hiroshi Tanahashi [6] vs. IWGP Tag Team Champion Zack Sabre Jr. [10] Long history here. They’re 4-4 against each other in 8 contests since 2017. ZSJ won in the G1 27 (****¼), 2018 New Japan Cup Finals (****½), G1 Supercard last year (****), and Destruction in Beppu (***¾). Tanahashi won at Destruction in Hiroshima (***¾), 2019 New Japan Cup (****), G1 29 (****¼), and Royal Quest (****). It’s usually really good stuff. The positioning of Tanahashi is interesting. Where does he go now that he’s finished with single digit points for two straight G1 tournaments? You know how Taichi/Ibushi was just two guys kicking each other non-stop? Well, this was just two guys working the mat in terrific fashion for most of it. There were smooth counters galore and you could see them trying to outdo one another. I loved that it played into the finish. Tanahashi hit Ace’s High but Sabre Jr. rolled through into a pin, only for Tanahashi to keep rolling. He secured a pin and won in 12:02, yet he also kept hold of the pin for a count of 7 or 8 just rub it in. Really good stuff here and they got me invested despite the lack of stakes. [***¾]
B Block: KENTA [8] vs. IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental Champion Tetsuya Naito [12] If Naito wins, SANADA is out and only EVIL would have a chance to win the block. Their only prior meeting was at New Beginning in Osaka this year (***½). Obviously, there’s bad blood from that and KENTA’s attack at Wrestle Kingdom. KENTA went for quick pinfalls to start, which is interesting and needs to be attempted more in the G1, even if we don’t bite on the near falls. Other than that though, it was worked at a very slow pace and that meant it was going to last a while. KENTA’s heat segment was rather dull, though it picked up a bit in the back half. They had some good exchanges, like the GTS counter, but again, you don’t bite on that first Destino. It’s like a rule. The finish was quite cool, as KENTA countered Destino into an inside cradle to win in 21:06. More people should have counters like that ready for a move Naito does so often. This was pretty good. Naito is now eliminated. [***]
B Block: EVIL [12] vs. SANADA [10] Winner takes the block. EVIL holds a 2-1 advantage in their head-to-head history. SANADA won in the G1 27 (****) but EVIL won in the G1 29 (***¾) and this year’s New Japan Cup (***½). This is really cool on paper. LIJ worked as a stable as it set up Naito’s #2 and #3 as future stars who a G1 block can come down to. Plus, they’re former tag champions. Unfortunately, neither guy has been killing it in the ring lately and have regressed since the early LIJ days. Unfortunately, this featured a lot of the stuff from their recent work that I don’t enjoy. EVIL had a lot of help and is not really the guy who should be working these long matches. Remember when he used to look awesome in 12-15 minute sprints? He did plenty of stalling to pad out the runtime and SANADA isn’t the guy to get me invested in his work against that. EVIL’s offense was sluggish as hell. SANADA’s was better and I did get a kick out of the Paradise Lock getting put on both guys. When Togo got involved again, Hiromu Takahashi, who was a guest on commentary, hopped in to even the odds. After a LONG 27:01, SANADA won with a surprising Japanese leg clutch. It had a few shining moments and SANADA was solid on offense. That said, it went way too long, lacked drama, was dull, and not even Hiromu could make it much better. [**½]
SANADA vs. Kota Ibushi is your finals.
Overall: 6/10. That was a show that happened. Until the main event, it moved along relatively quickly and didn’t feature anything that was outwardly bad. However, it lacked a lot of what made yesterday’s show so strong and ended on a whimper. Gedo’s love for overly long main events has been a problem for YEARS in NJPW even if some are only noticing it now.
A BLOCK | POINTS | B BLOCK | POINTS | Kota Ibushi *WINNER* | 14 (7-2) | SANADA *WINNER* | 12 (6-3) | Will Ospreay | 12 (6-3) | EVIL | 12 (6-3) | Jay White | 12 (6-3) | Tetsuya Naito | 12 (6-3) | Kazuchika Okada | 12 (6-3) | Zack Sabre Jr. | 10 (5-4) | Taichi
| 8 (4-5) | KENTA | 10 (5-4) | Jeff Cobb | 8 (4-5) | Hiroshi Tanahashi | 8 (4-5) | Shingo Takagi | 8 (4-5) | Juice Robinson | 8 (4-5) | Tomohiro Ishii | 8 (4-5) | Hirooki Goto | 8 (4-5) | Minoru Suzuki | 6 (3-6) | Toru Yano | 6 (3-6) | Yujiro Takahashi | 2 (1-8) | YOSHI-HASHI | 4 (2-7) |
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Allie Kitsune
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Post by Allie Kitsune on Oct 17, 2020 14:13:23 GMT -5
Can I just say I love how anti-Ospreay this board is. f*** that dude. Even before all of this, was just never a fan. Everything about him screamed (and still screams) absolute d-bag.
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Dub H
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Post by Dub H on Oct 17, 2020 14:18:36 GMT -5
Kinda sad I couldnt go watch it ,this is the finals I would have chosen,f***ing amazing
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Dub H
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Post by Dub H on Oct 17, 2020 14:19:57 GMT -5
Can I just say I love how anti-Ospreay this board is. f*** that dude. Even before all of this, was just never a fan. Everything about him screamed (and still screams) absolute d-bag. Wasnt there some news recently of a guy admiting he is the one that spoke with the promotion to blackmail,and the promotion just went with it because they assumed thats what Will wanted? I didnt pay much attention to it but it seemed worthy considering.
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clifford
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Post by clifford on Oct 17, 2020 14:58:01 GMT -5
Ibushi/SANADA is going to deliver. Ibushi has absolutely brought it this G1
Can't wait to see the rest of the card. I'm expecting some Jay/EVIL development, Ospreay's unit getting another member or two and matches for Power Struggle being set up.
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Mozenrath
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Post by Mozenrath on Oct 17, 2020 16:42:42 GMT -5
I hope that EVIL, after the G1 has established him and everything, and I'd say it helped legitimize him further, that he'll dial back the cheating a little bit. I think he's a compelling character and doesn't need to cheat quite this much. Though, I guess with LIJ as faces and Suzuki-Gun as kinda tweener-ish, Bullet Club need to lay it on thick to keep it clear which band of rough misfits are the bad guys.
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Post by HMARK Center on Oct 17, 2020 18:13:35 GMT -5
I hope that EVIL, after the G1 has established him and everything, and I'd say it helped legitimize him further, that he'll dial back the cheating a little bit. I think he's a compelling character and doesn't need to cheat quite this much. Though, I guess with LIJ as faces and Suzuki-Gun as kinda tweener-ish, Bullet Club need to lay it on thick to keep it clear which band of rough misfits are the bad guys. I think they're also driving home that the big reason EVIL joined BC is that he wants to take the easy way to the top after feeling stuck behind Naito and, increasingly, SANADA. Still, now that how he cheats is established I'd like to see him either scale it back a bit or vary up how they do it, so I'm board with that. Final pre-final thoughts now that I'm all caught up: A Block-I'm cool with Yujiro beating Cobb; he showed up this year, and even with just one win for the tournament it makes him feel a little more legitimate, even if his role continues to be lower midcard heavyweight gatekeepers (ala how he put over Baretta when Trent first moved to heavyweight). He's no main eventer, but he brought more effort than we've seen in awhile and showed he can go. Cobb absolutely had a better G1 this year than last, feels like he's a lot more comfortable and not wrestling as if he's auditioning for a spot, which makes sense given he's now under contract. Hope he firmly establishes his spot shortly, as he's a lot more likable than Elgin in the "super strong gaijin heavyweight babyface" spot, but the main thing I'd like to see is him proving he's got NJPW main event style in him, too. -Shingo's rise continues slowly but steadily; looks like he and Suzuki will be back at it for the NEVER belt, though I hope they save their rematch for Wrestle Kingdom. I'm not worried about Shingo, but it might be time to (kayfabe) start wondering if things are going to be changing soon for Suzuki; he was great in this tournament, one of its MVPs, and most of his losses were of the "frustrated by blindsiding and/or quick pins" variety, but he still went 3-6 and lost to his own underling, so the question of "when does Father Time finally toughen up and challenge the King?" is starting to get louder. -Ospreay ditching CHAOS and turning heel is a welcomed development, and Okada clearly wants more things to do outside the heavyweight title scene, so this will help on that front. Great to see Oka back, but curious what his overall role will be in this; is he mostly a heater, or will he be built up stronger than that, given how Ospreay put over Oka being undefeated in the UK? I was honestly hoping this could mean a splintering of CHAOS, something a lot of us have been waiting for over the past couple of years, but it's still some kind of shake up to the faction scene, which is the most welcomed development in all of this. I see some people predicting Robbie Eagles will join Will, but I doubt that: the reason they booked Robbie out of Bullet Club and into CHAOS in the first place was because his look and style were getting over with younger fans, so they turned him face...and let's face it, it's incredibly rare for somebody to be booked to leave Bullet Club unless they're leaving the entire promotion. But, hey, I've been wrong before; trying to predict Gedo booking is often a fool's errand. -Taichi and Ibushi's match was incredible for what it was. Taichi just gets it; I remember people hating on his match with TAKA a few years ago in BoSJ where they literally didn't do any moves to each other, but the fact is the guy knows how to draw reactions with either minimal output or by even doing something like just spending an entire match trading kicks with someone trained in kickboxing. Ibushi winning is cool in my book, and I like him getting the three-peat, because all hail our immortal elven prince Kota. -Loved how the Jay/Ishii match ended, and not just because I'm an Ishii mark. Just love how Jay's comeuppance so often comes from the CHAOS guys he betrayed, love how this complicates his relationship with EVIL (and Gedo?) likely even more, and how after a somewhat disappointing record this year Ishii still walks away a badass winner in the main event of the first night of the finals. Awesome. B Block-Rocky's not wrong that YOSHI-HASHI probably wins this year's "Most Improved" award. There was just a tangible difference in the way he carried himself and executed his offense, and even with just a 2-7 record he felt like he accomplished a lot more than that this year; what he lacked in wins, he gained in dignity. Seeing him nearly beat Yano at his own game kind of drove that home. Don't know if it was just him overcoming his bum shoulder the past couple years or what, but kudos to the guy. -Juice vs. Goto is probably the most underrated series of matches in NJPW over the past couple of years. Love when these two fight, they have excellent chemistry, and you could tell by their enthusiasm and body language in this match that they absolutely dig working together. Hope Juice gets Finlay back for World Tag League, that Goto finally teams with Ishii again for it (GIVE US TEAM 651), and they get to go ham on each other once again. -Speaking of great chemistry, would anybody feel bad if Zack and Tana just mat wrestled for the entire day? Because I'd be perfectly happy with a show that's just that for a few hours. Tana keeping the flash pin held for at least double the length of the actual three count was next level trolling, Zack being a sore loser is one of his best character traits, and glad to see Tana go so many matches wrestling with a perfect game plan only to slip up in the end and lose to a quick pin or reversal and turn that around to beat one of his biggest current rivals that way. -Naito and KENTA...I can't say they wrestle five star matches, but they're two of the most fully realized characters and personalities both in and out of the ring in NJPW, so I'm happy to have had this match, and to have KENTA once again ruin everybody's day and become the most hated man anywhere by screwing up Naito's happy ending. Don't have a ton else to say about the match in particular, but it'll be interesting to see if they save KENTA vs. Moxley for Wrestle Kingdom and if Naito might grant KENTA a shot at one of the belts in the interim. -I admit that I was getting kind of tired while watching EVIL vs. SANADA, so I didn't really take it in as well as I wanted to, but it definitely got the job done. As mentioned above I do hope that EVIL now transitions his and Togo's game a bit to vary up how they go about cheating, but it was nice to see LIJ has each other's backs, see Hiromu get a measure of revenge against his former dojo-mate and stable-big brother, and as soon as the match ended SANADA did a good match coming across as the coolest guy in the room, which is pretty much his job. I don't get as pumped for his matches as I do for a lot of the other top guys', but I'm interested in seeing what he and Ibushi put together. Ok, all that said...I might not be able to get to watch the show until like 7pm EST tomorrow, so I have to hope like hell I can go the whole day avoiding any possible spoilers, which per tradition I anticipate being incredibly, incredibly difficult to do. Ugh.
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Dub H
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Post by Dub H on Oct 17, 2020 18:59:27 GMT -5
A fun note:
Every single Stable in NJPW is suffering issues due to to leadership
Ingorbenables lost EVIL due to being feeling stuck behind Naito
And because of it ,EVIL and Jay are having a "BULLET CLUB IS FINE" moment over it
Ospreay branched off into his way due to Okada and it is very possible he steals someone from CHAOS
And Taichi is just counting the days until he gets to make Taichi-Gun
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El Pollo Guerrera
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Post by El Pollo Guerrera on Oct 17, 2020 19:38:27 GMT -5
Can someone explain why SANADA won while there's a three-day tie in points? Did he have victories over the others and that figures in?
(I admit my lack of knowledge, please forgive)
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Captain Stud Muffin (BLM)
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Post by Captain Stud Muffin (BLM) on Oct 17, 2020 19:43:51 GMT -5
Can someone explain why SANADA won while there's a three-day tie in points? Did he have victories over the others and that figures in? (I admit my lack of knowledge, please forgive) SANADA had beaten Naito already and EVIL also beat Naito Naito needed a draw from EVIL/SANADA and a win against KENTA to advance Since both of them beat Naito in the tournament and with Naito taking a loss to KENTA, they just needed to beat each other to advance which is what SANADA did He gets the win and finals birth vs Ibushi
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El Pollo Guerrera
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Post by El Pollo Guerrera on Oct 17, 2020 20:12:58 GMT -5
So is it possible to have aa situation where there'd be two 'win' a block and have to face off before the finals?
My mind is trailing back to the All Japan three-way final with Misawa-Kanada, Misawa-Kobashi, Kanada-Kobashi... (96? 97? Forgot what year that was)
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chrom
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Post by chrom on Oct 17, 2020 20:20:51 GMT -5
Full card is out
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Allie Kitsune
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Post by Allie Kitsune on Oct 17, 2020 20:40:11 GMT -5
The G1 had done a good job of making me forget that Master Wato was a thing... Thanks, now I'm depressed.
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chrom
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Post by chrom on Oct 17, 2020 20:47:48 GMT -5
Ospreay/Kharn vs Okada/Sho should be fun
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chrom
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Post by chrom on Oct 17, 2020 21:04:51 GMT -5
Rampage Brown, Kharn's partner in RPW maybe part of Ospreay's faction
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chrom
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Post by chrom on Oct 17, 2020 21:09:53 GMT -5
Tanahashi claims he could've pinned Sabre for a five count
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Dub H
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Post by Dub H on Oct 17, 2020 22:24:39 GMT -5
Can someone explain why SANADA won while there's a three-day tie in points? Did he have victories over the others and that figures in? (I admit my lack of knowledge, please forgive) Yeh that is basically the simple way. A tie between two wrestlers is broken based on the result in their 1-on-1 match. If 2 or more wrestlers are tied at the end of round-robin the winner is determined based on which wrestler has the most points in only the matches against the other wrestlers they are tied with.
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Mochi Lone Wolf
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Post by Mochi Lone Wolf on Oct 17, 2020 22:25:56 GMT -5
Galaxy brain prediction for the G1 Final card: SHO turns on Okada and joins Ospreay's stable.
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