G1 Climax: Block A Breakdown

The 2015 G1 Climax is about two thirds complete, with 1 week of remaining shows scheduled. It’s unpractical to try to give a rundown of everything that has happened so far, so here is a quick blast to get anyone in need up to speed on the stories in play so far. Then you have a few hours to brace yourself for the next show featuring some very important matches in the A Block. Or the beauty of the New Japan World streaming service is that you can let shows accumulate and watch them as you see fit (just don’t complain about spoilers). 

Starting with the tournament’s A Block, here is a very quick look at the participants and their stories so far, with initial emphasis on those most likely to do well in the series:

A BLOCK wrestlers

Tanahashi Hiroshi, AJ Styles (Bullet Club), Kota Ibushi, Katsuyori Shibata, Tetsuya Naito, Togi Makabe (Never Openweight Champion) ‘Bad Luck’ Fale (Bullet Club), Toru Yano (Bullet Club), Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Doc Gallows (Bullet Club, one half of IWGP Heavyweight Champions

This group features a bit more of the dynamic high flyers and smaller agile wrestlers, both on the rise (Ibushi, Naito, Shibata) and at the peak of their careers (Tanahashi, Styles) than the B Block. This is complemented by a few large, imposing figures (Fale, Gallows) and veterans (Makabe, Yano, Tenzan).

Hiroshi Tanahashi: My pick to win the entire tournament has been one of the key players in NJPW for some time, and it is believed that it is a matter of time before he is unseated. He made it clear that one of the other top players in NJPW, Kazuchika OKADA, is far from the point of dethroning him, making a rematch between the two at Wrestle Kingdom an exciting story in itself. Tanahashi had a great tournament the year before, though not winning, including a big win over then Heavyweight champ AJ Styles on the day of the finals, as both had placed 2^nd in their respective blocks, and then going on to defeat him to win the championship. He’s been on a bit of a downswing since Wrestle Kingdom, losing the title back to AJ and being on the receiving end of an upset victory by Toru Yano. Tanahashi has since avenged the loss to Yano and could very well be in the midst of his own come back story leading to Wrestle Kingdom.

Match 1: In an extremely hard fought match against the dynamic Kota Ibushi, Tanahasi won after hitting a number of Dragon Screw Leg Whips and eventually landing the High Fly Flow.

Match 2: Tanahashi powered through the veteran Tenzan Hiroyoshi, hitting the High Fly Flow for the victory.

Match 3: Tanahashi fell to the momentum of a newly reinvented Tetsuya Naito who approached the tournament with a new ruthless persona. Naito sloeed the match down to his own deliberate pace and hit a lot of offense to Tanahashi’s back, including a Neckbreaker on a table outside the ring. After a lot of exhausting looking back and forth, Naito landed his new finishing maneuver, a standing version of Sliced Bread without the aid of the turnbuckle to defeat Tanahashi.

Match 4: Tanahashi would continue to lose, this time falling prey to ‘Bad Luck’ Fale, who received a lot of assistance from Bullet Club allies. At one point the referee was pulled from the ring as Tanahashi went for the pin. Later Fale would connect with a Splash off the top rope and pin Tanahashi.

Match 5:  Tanahashi would regain momentum by defeating Toru Yano in a lengthy main event. Yano, hurting from a head injury endured in a match with Tenzan, would try a lot of hijinx, at one point grabbing referee ‘Red Shoes’ to include in a German Suplex. Eventually Tanahashi landed the High Fly Flow for the win.

Match 6: Tanahashi would continue his winning ways by defeating Bullet Club heavy Doc Gallows. Gallows landed a lot of power moves on Tanahashi, but Hiroshi would hold his own and pull out a Victory Roll (grabbing both legs to form a rectangular prism with his opponent) and getting the pin. This was a nice changeup that shows Tanahashi has more than 1 weapon in his arsenal and that the wrestlers can conserve their best weapons here and there during the tournament.

Total points: 8

AJ Styles:

AJ has been in the company a relatively short time, making an immediate splash by defeating Kazuchika Okada for the IWGP Heavyweight title. He had a very good run in last year’s G1, his first, picking up victories over Minoru Suzuki and Hiroki Goto. He has just taken a big loss, having been defeated by Okada for the Heavyweight title at the Domion event in July. He looks to regain his top status with this year’s tournament.

Match 1: Styles defeated Katsuyori Shibata in a  match filled with intense back and forth offense, and many counters. Styles would hit the Styles Clash for the win.

Match 2:  Styles defeated Toru Yano. Yano started right off trying to incite Styles by spitting water in his face. Styles would catch Yano as he tried to deliver a low blow, and put the trickster in the Calf Killer submission for the win.

Match 3: Styles lost to Kota Ibushi in their second ever match against each other, the first of which Styles won to defend the IWGP Heavyweight Championship at Dontaku. It was an incredibly competitive match, both this time and in their previous battle. Ibushi would counter a top rope Powerbomb attempt by styles and turn it into a Huricanrana. Then, he would hit his top rope Phoenix Splash for the victory.

Match 4: Styles would next take on the emboldened Naito but fail to repeat his victory from last year’s Wrestle Kingdom. Naito slowly took off the suit that had become his signature as Styles taunted him. Naito would spit in Styles’ face mid match getting him to swing wildly at Naito who would prove to be in control, once again landing his new finisher for the win.

Match 5: Styles fought his Bullet Club brother Doc Gallows in a better than average match that Styles would win with the Bloody Sunday, a less difficult move to pull off on a large opponent than the Styles Clash.

Match 6: Styles continued on his streak of victories by defeating Togi Makabe in a very hard-hitting match. On the outside of the ring, Styles leapt the guard rail to evade getting slammed into it, but was pulled headfirst back onto it when he tried to mount an assault. Still, Styles would fight through and use the Styles Clash to gain the victory.

Total Points: 8

Kota Ibushi: The rising star missed last year’s G1 due to injury, a continual threat due to Ibushi’s insistence on keeping ties to the indie DDT promotion and carrying out dazzling feats on the regular. He has had a stellar year thus far, facing Shinsuke Nakamura for the Intercontinental Championship at Wrestle Kingdom and nearly winning, inciting many to consider the bout an early Match Of The Year contender. Ibushi would go on to win the New Japan Cup tournament by defeating the likes of Makabe, Naito, and in the finals, current Intercontinental Champion Hiroki Goto to be granted a title shot at AJ Styles. He lost the match but the result was tainted by slight yet effective interference by Ibushi’s longtime friend Kenny Omega, now a card carrying member of the Bullet Club. The sky is the limit with this soaring talent.

Match 1: Ibushi lost to Hiroshi Tanahashi (see above)

Match 2: Ibushi defeated Doc Gallows, who put the hurt on the far smaller Ibushi with a lot of offense on the outside of the ring. Ibushi would come back, though, and land a roll up victory.

Match 3: Ibushi defeated AJ Styles (see above)   

Match 4: Ibushi lost to Katsuyori in an extremely competitive fast-paced match. The two unleashed a flurry of kicks and strikes on one another til Shibata cinched in a sleeper, bringing Ibushi to a sitting position allowing him to hit the Penalty Kick for the pinfall victory.

Match 5: Ibushi defeated Hiroyoshi Tenzan after a moderate exchange of offense with the veteran, at one point missing a flip onto the outside to allow Tenzan to regain the advantage. Ibushi won with the Phoenix Splash off the top rope.

Match 6: Ibushi lost to Tetsuya Naito in what felt like a grudge match. Clear dislike emanated between the two, who had an excellent match during the New Japan Cup tournament. Naito goaded Ibushi into attacking recklessly as he slowly took off the suit he wore to the ring. Ibushi would charge in to attack Naito, which the heel would often shrug off by resting against the ropes or guard rail. Eventually Naito landed his new finisher in the middle of the ring to pin his rival Ibushi. 

Total points: 6

Katsuyori Shibata: Shibata is notorious for a stiff style of wrestling, landing kicks that often appear to come very close to inflicting real damage to his opponents. It has landed him in hot water with his peers, but his current run in New Japan has been a strong one. After coming back and trading wins with long time rival of wrestling and words, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Shibata had a successful tag team run with ally Goto, winning the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team straps from Gallows and Anderson at Wrestle Kingdom, before losing the titles in a rematch with the Bullet Club repping team. He had a recent feud with  experienced MMA fighter Kazushi Sakuraba, which he emerged from victorious after their singles match at Dominion.

Match 1: Shibata lost a tough match against AJ Styles (See Above)

Match 2: Shibata defeated Naito despite the heel’s new nasty side, taking him down with the Sleeper Hold, Penalty Kick, and pin.

Match 3: Shibata defeated Makabe, taking plenty of time to wear down the Never title holder with a Sleeper Hold, followed by the Penalty Kick and pin.

Match 4: Shibata defeated Kota Ibushi in an excellent match, using the Penalty Kick for the win (See Above)

Match 5: Shibata defeated the larger ‘Bad Luck’ Fale by jumping on his back and wearing him down with a sleeper hold, followed by the Penalty Kick and vpin.

Match 6: Shibata was foiled by Toru Yano, who goaded Shibata into attacking recklessly. The CHAOS member suffered the consequences, ending up on the receiving end of several hard forearms. A downed Yano would grab Shibata as he bent forward to lock on a submission, and hook him for a surprise three count.

Total points: 8

Tetsuya Naito: Naito has one of the most compelling stories coming into the G1. With no titles or remarkable feuds to speak of in the near past, there is evidence to support many’s belief that the extremely agile Naito has been languishing under his crowd pleasing persona. Although he did take AJ Styles to the limit ast Wrestle Kingdom and scored an impressive win over him in last year’s G1. He recently returned from a run in Mexico’s CMLL promotion where he apparently joined with a heel faction, Los Ingobernables. Prior to the G1, he had 1 high profile match on the Dominion show where he teamed with Tomoaki Honma and displayed an arrogant and uncooperative attitude.  For the G1 he started appearing in the ring with a menacing ‘Doom’ mask and a tear away suit, which he would take off at his leisure, or sometimes not until getting some cheap offense in on his opponent. The G1 could be the place where Naito gains serious traction as a threat to fan favorites holding championship gold in NJPW.

Match 1: Naito defeated the much larger ‘Bad Luck’ Fale, mystifying the big man with low energy escapes to the outside and sudden bursts of offense. He would take the win when he evaded a running assault and cradled an off balance Fale for the pinfall victory.

Match 2: Naito lost to Katsuyori Shibata (See Above).

Match 3: Naito defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi (See Above).

Match 4: Naito defeated AJ Styles (See Above).

Match 5: Naito lost to an enraged Togi Makabe. At the outset an increasingly frustrated referee would call for the match to begin, as Naito still hadn’t shed the suit. Makabe eagerly dived in to land vicious strikes on Naito. Naito would slow things down and hit Makabe with intense Drop Kicks. In a brutal looking spot, Makabe had Naito on the turnbuckle, poised for his Spider Suplex. Naito clasped the ring post desperately til Makabe knocked him against the post, busting Naito’s head open. The Suplex off the top caused more blood to spill, and was followed by Makabe’s King Kong Knee Drop and pin on Naito.

Match 6: Naito defeated Kota Ibushi (See Above).

Total points: 8

Togi Makabe:  There is not a lot of news to put to Togi Makabe’s name, a veteran who embodies strong style, bringing more brawl than finesse to his matches. At Wrestle Kingdom he defeated CHAOS’ Tomohiro Ishii for the Never Openweight title, a belt Ishii had become synonymous with. The rest of the year for Makabe has been about the feud over this title. After his victory, he had to vacate the title due to a severe run of influenza. The title returned to Ishii after defeating Tomoaki Honma, who is loosely affiliated with Makabe under the once more prominently used GBH faction name. Makabe won the title back at the Hinokuni (Fire Country) event and retained it in yet another rematch with Ishii at Dominion. Makabe’s most important days may be behind him, but he poses a serious threat to anyone he steps in the ring with.

Match 1: Makabe defeated Toru Yano. It was a quick match that Yano almost stole with a quick roll up right out of the gate. Makabe dispensed of the jester-like Yano with the King Kong Knee Drop off the top rope.

Match 2:  Makabe lost to ‘Bad Luck’ Fale after being hit with a spear off the ropes, and then taking the Bad Luck Fall (Release Powerbomb) and being pinned.

Match 3: Makabe lost to Katsuyori Shibata (See Above).

Match 4: Makabe defeated Hiroyoshi Tenzan in a match consisting of a very straightforward exchange  of offense, when Makabe hit the King Kong Knee Drop to pick up the pin.

Match 5: Makabe defeated Tetsuya Naito (See Above).

Match 6: Makabe lost to AJ Styles (See Above).

Total points: 6 points

‘Bad Luck’ Fale: Fale, a founding member of the Bullet Club has not had the most triumphant year, but his imposing size makes him a threat to all who cross his path. In last year’s G1, he picked up impressive wins including one over Tanahashi. In the early part of the year, Fale began a program with the crestfallen Okada, often dominating the former Heavyweight champion until his comeback began to pick up. A giant that is always difficult to topple, he has potential to jam up a lot of other competitors in the tournament. 

Match 1: Fale lost to Tetsuya Naito, thrown off guard by the returning Naito’s recent personality change (See Above).

Match 2: Fale defeated Togi Makabe with the Bad Luck Fall (See Above).

Match 3: Fale defeated fellow Bullet Club bruiser Doc Gallows in a cordial fight between the big men.

Match 4: Fale defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi in an interference-filled match, after hitting a splash off the top rope.

Match 5: Fale lost to Katsuyori Shibata, taking the Penalty Kick before being pinned (See Above).

Match 6: Fale defeated Hiroyoshi Tenzan, employing cheating ways as Toma Tonga would knock Tenzan from off the top ropes at one point. Fale hit a huge splash from the top rope to pick up the pin.

Total points: 8

Toru Yano: Yano is another veteran whose most exciting matches are behind him. He is a member of team CHAOS, known for constantly and shamelessly promoting their products before every match. He is also wont to cheat whenever possible. Yano’s biggest claim to fame this year was defeating Tanahashi in an upset during the New Japan Cup tournament. He has gotten the better of the popular top tier wrestler in several confrontations to follow til losing to Tanahashi at Dominion.  Yano always stands to pick up an upset win out of nowhere making him an opponent to be cautious of.

Match 1: Yano lost to Togi Makabe (See Above).

Match 2: Yano lost to AJ Styles (See Above).

Match 3: Yano after the two had a brief, ugly match that quickly spilled onto the outside. The veterans brawled with chair shots, choked each other with tape, and an ill placed Diving Head Butt by Tenzan busted both of their heads open. A bloodied Yano hit a kick to Tenzan’s nether regions as they were locked up facing away from each other, thus allowing Yano to land a back slide and pin Tenzan.

Match 4: Yano lost to Doc Gallows in a match involving a lot of outside interference and bullying from Gallows’ Bulet Club buddies.  Yano avoided several attacks causing Cody Hall and Toma Tonga to be knocked off the apron. With the referee knocked out of position, a low blow attempt by Yano was thwarted by Gallows’ tag team partner, Karl Anderson who then executed the Magic Killer finisher with Gallows, allowing Doc to get the pin.

Match 5: Yano lost to Hiroshi Tanahashi (See Above).

Match 6: Yano defeated Katsuyori Shibata (See Above).

Total Points: 4

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A very close race is in effect between the favorites in this Block of the tournament. The way I see things going, inspired by a poster I saw of Tanahashi, Okada, and Nakamura as the big 3 of the company, is Tanahashi winning the A Block, having to score at least or maybe 2 of the high profile matches he has ahead. All of his next 3 opponents have the potential to defeat him, so the Air Guitar playing former champion would have to put on a very impressive showing to achieve this goal.

I see a victory in the tournament over Nakamura as a way of setting up a rematch at Wrestle Kingdom between him and Okada. It lacks originality, but I see a big draw in the rematch that might not be there if it was put off another year, especially after many international fans got their first big taste of New Japan with the Wrestle Kingdom PPV this year and that excellent showdown between Tanahashi and Okada. This would give Okada a chance to avenge the heart-wrenching loss  and secure his place as the top player in New Japan.

The next main event pits Tanahashi against Shibata, a matchup with history built right into it. Shibata has been on quite a roll. Takahashi's loss here could mean a far smaller chance of winning the tournament so this is a crucial match to watch. 

G1 Deconstruction

G1 Fever. A particularly strong strain of virus originating in Japan, afflicting people, particularly pro wrestling fans, between the summer months of July and August, and this year prone rapid spread to international carriers.

You have either noticed the activity of those it has taken hold of, if on the east coast, in the waking hours between 6 and 8:30. However others in different parts of the globe show signs of symptoms in the afternoon, at night, and while there tend to be large clusters of activity at certain times, others react in isolated bursts. You may also be right in the throes of G1 Fever yourself.

So for whatever your relation to this growing phenomenon, here’s a look at what it is, how it compares to last year’s powerful but somewhat less potent outbreak, and where it may all be heading.

What is the G1?

The G1, or G1 Climax as it is known more formally is an important tournament in the New Japan Pro Wrestling promotion that pits those perceived to be the best wrestlers in the heavyweight division against each other. The winner of this multi day event gets the important prize of choosing a champion to challenge at a future date; presumably it will be the IWGP Heavyweight champion who is challenged, though there have been exceptions, and the date of the match is the prestigious Wrestle Kingdom show, also known as the Dome show since it takes place in the Tokyo Dome on January 4 of the following year.

The tournament is organized in such a way that wrestlers placed in 2 blocks – an A and a B, wrestle every other combatant in the same block. After each match they earn points – 2 for a victory and 1 for a draw, and then the winner of the A and B blocks face each other in the finals.

Changes from the Previous tournament

This year marked a significant departure from the previous year’s tournament. perhaps having the most pronounced effect is the fact that we are now in the New Japan World era, and the tournament is that much more accessible to viewers. It’s quite a change in landscape to consider: a year ago, each day of the tournament was available through an iPPV service called UStream for around ten dollars. This would cause a tournament consisting of, say 11 dates to cost a viewer 110 dollars to watch the whole tournament, as opposed to now where a viewer subscribing to the New Japan World service in August and July, at the least, would pay around 8 American dollars for each month totaling 16 dollars, and that’s for an expanded number of shows.  Wow.

On the other hand one might compare the modest cost of a few months of subscribing to NJPW World this year to a sum of zero last year; a handful of individuals were posting footage of the shows from native Japanese broadcasts to slightly less well-known video sharing sights. It was a bit of a crap shoot; sometimes the day’s shows would appear hours after they happened. Other times hold ups occurred.

While I like the idea of a wrestling promotion’s output being obtained legitimately and in a way that supports the talent involved, it seemed that the people posting these shows had NJPW’s interests in mind. At that time, New Japan stood to benefit greatly from increased international exposure. And opportunities for fans to do so were limited or pricey. Now that the ‘World streaming service is up and running, the illegal content streamers have curtailed their activity.

A year ago I found myself adopting a hybrid strategy of downloading a few shows from UStream while checking the video sites for more nefariously added content. It being a fairly new product to me, I felt that purchasing every show was excessive and quite a strain on my resources. I don’t mind saying this now as a loyal World subscriber. It was also fun going through the show cards and strategizing: which shows were going to hold the best all around combination of matches from the pro wrestlers most exciting to watch. Of course now, being able to instantly access all of the shows online as they happen, and easily return to them in World’s archives is preferable overall.

With World now in effect, a change in the tournament format also made sense. SLast year there were 10 shows featuring matches between all participants in each Block (minus 2 performers each time, who rotated among each other to get a day off from the tournament) making up a show. This year, the number of shows was expanded to something like 19, with 5 tournament matches on each of the shows, alternating between the A and B Blocks. When the A Block wrestlers had their tournament matches in the second half of each night’s card, the wrestlers in the B block would work together with Junior Heavyweights, young lions (rookies), and other wrestlers not participating in the tournament to fight in tag team matches. And vise vera the following day.

This format had a few advantages. It has become much easier to keep track of which wrestlers are in the A Block and which in B, whereas the year before it took a lot of work to sort out which wrestlers were in each block and were therefore destined to battle each other. There is also something to be said for the wrestlers not in tournament matches being tag matches on the undercard, as previews of the matches on the next show were often incorporated. For instance if Okada and Karl Anderson were to have a tournament match coming up, they would likely be teamed up with their CHAOS and Bullet Club affiliates respectively in tag team action on prior show.

A possible drawback is the sheer amount of wrestling that can be overwhelming to take in. I myself am trying to keep up with the tournament matches while leaving the undercard matches for later days, occasionally dipping in when time allows.

The last big changeup to discuss here is the participants in the tournament, which is fewer in number this time. For the most part, the lineup is the same. Tomoaki Honma is in the mix again, but it is worth noting that last year his entry came about fortuitously as a result of Kota Ibushi being injured and unable to take assigned spot. Honma has continued to be on a roll since his run in last yeare’s G1. Kota Ibushi is in good health and on this year’s card, making for some very exciting matches added to this year’s card involving him. Another participant new to this year’s tournament is Michael Elgin, a former Heavyweight Champion of the US promotion Ring of Honor. Elgin brings a bit of unpredictability to the proceedings, working as a powerhouse with a good amount of agility to boot. The other changes are all subtractions from the roster – namely the removal of the Suzuki Gun faction as they continue to work in NOAH. This meant the absence of Suzuki Gun leader, Minoru Suzuki, Shelton X Benjamin, and the tag team of Davey Boy Smith Junior and Lance Archer. This group has been involved in an angle that finds them invading the smaller NOAH wrestling promotion, started in January after Wrestle Kingdom. Some held expectations of them returning in time for the tournament, or maybe at least Minoru. But now I wouldn’t hold my breath til at least the next Wrestle Kingdom show for a possible drop in. It seems they too far gone, under deep cover!

The result is actually good in some ways. Although all 4 of those Suzuki Gun members are excellent workers, and Minoru especially can really bring a perceived legitimate threat into his matches, there is often a predictable pattern of cheating and roughing up the outside of the ring personell up that I won’t necessarily miss. It also makes following the progression of stories simpler less cluttered to have 1 less faction to keep track of: For the past several months, and in the tournament, it has basically been about CHAOS, the Bullet Club, and unaffiliated NJPW wrestlers.

The Logistics

The tournament is long and it involves an incredible balancing act of booking, so that there is suspense throughout the tournament over who will reach the finals. For one wrestler to run through with far more points than everyone else would not be all that…climactic. Some wrestlers are obviously far more likely to win than others, and matches mostly follow the logic of who is most dominant, with room for some surprise upsets.

Aside from the drama crafted within the story there is the more real life drama of wrestlers sustaining injuries, in this series of matches that fall in short succession and feature the combatants working their hardest. It also goes without saying, if someone is too injured to wrestle all of their matches, the conceived of plan can be compromised drastically, leading to necessary overwrites on the fly or contingency plans to go in effect. It makes for a very suspenseful series of some of the best matches one will find in a year.

Last year the finals found Kazuchika Okada defeating Shinsuke Nakamura, then IWGP Intercontinental champion, to win the tournament and challenge for the IWGP Heavyweight title at Wrestle Kingdom. He went on to face Hiroshi Tanahashi, who defeated AJ Styles, who held the IWGP Heayweight title during the G1, both during the tournament and after it ended to take his championship. He then defended the title successfully at Wrestle Kingdom but would go on to lose it to AJ, who would lose the belt to Okada, once again the reigning champion.

So, there’s a quick overview of the common causes of G1 Fever. With two thirds of the tournament finished I’ll leave off with a quick projection of the tournament’s outcome and leave next time for a look at how things have progressed so far: I see Hiroshi Tanahashi winning the A Block after squeaking by AJ Styles, and going on to face Shinsuke Nakamura, who I see defeating Kazuchika Okada to win the B Block. I then picture Tanhashi winning the tournament and going on to face Okada for the title in a rematch of the last Wrestle Kingdom event.

What do you think?

The (not so) Big Gun Down: We Are Suzuki-Gun

Here is another very quick look at a unique New Japan World offering that appeared in the viewing library following close on the heels of the Best of the Super Juniors. And it's a curious one. While not an all around knock out of a show, I'm all for the inclusion of more than less. Give people lots of options and let them watch what they want. So I wouldn't consider 'We Are The Suzuki Gun' as essential viewing, it is interesting to make note of.

If you are new to the world of New Japan Pro Wrestling in the past few months, you might be asking who, or what, is a Suzuki Gun? Those rabid NJPW fans out there are familiar with the nasty heel group, led by Minoru Suzuki, as a group of wrestlers donned mostly in black, with little charm - far less than even the Bullet Club - and a tendency to use illegal objects to batter and choke their opponents outside of the ring, both during and after matches. There is a fairly large gaijin presence in the group, including Shelton X Benjamin and KES (Killer Elite Squad), the tag team of Davey Boy Smith Jr. and Lance Archer. A few smaller Junior Heavyweight wrestlers are on the team: Taka Michinoku, TAICHI, and most recently Desperado, although in NJPW, I rarely see Michinoku or TAICHI in more than a periphery role. The surly group is rounded out by Iizuka Takashi, an older wrestler with a George 'The Animal' Steel-ish demeanor, who mainly stomps around and chokes people out with whatever pliable objects are in the vicinity.

The leader Suzuki himself has developed a bit of a charm about him. Maybe it's a combination of his cheesy but easy to sing along to 80's rock-like entrance theme, and his 'i just don't give a fuck' attitude.' Oh, and the fact that he is a legitimate threat of a grappler when it comes to in-ring action is important too.

After this year's Wrestle Kingdom, where Suzuki successfully defeated Sakuraba in an MMA shoot-style match, and the rest of Suzuki-Gun fared less successfully in a bout against a team of the strugglingNOAH promotion's wrestlers, the Gun up and split from NJPW, for an undetermined amount of time, to stage a takeover of NOAH. Of course, in the fake sport imitating life world of pro wrestling, NOAH itself was experiencing a takeover of sorts, or maybe more of a life preserver tossed their way, as NJPW took on a considerable amount of the company's expenses (I don't know the details nor do I know if any certifiable factual data is truly out there) and Jado, who with brother Gedo has been successfully booking NJPW of late, went to ply his trade behind the NOAH curtain.

While some fans speculated on a back and forth with NJPW, which would include the coming over of NOAH stars like Marufuji to NJPW events, Suzuki Gun has pretty much been all up in NOAH's business with no movement the other way. Suzuki Gun is not scheduled to be any part of the G1-Climax Tournament either so I would not hold my breath waiting for their return to an NJPW ring any time soon; maybe for some matches at the January, 2016 Tokyo Dome show.

I am tempted to go off on a strange tangent at this point, which will be shelved for maybe another time down the line, about how the NJPW brand could very well be undergoing conscious molding to gear it toward a female audience. An interesting, to say the least, move in an industry that has always attracted a predominantly male audience and has been leveled with many claims of chauvinism, probably more so in Japan than elsewhere. And, it would seem that having Suzuki-Gun elsewhere kind of sort of helps to achieve that end. In this group is a high concentration of talent that one would be hard pressed to describe as cuddly or cute or even 'hunky.' Meanwhile, we are left with a number of 'baby faces' both in the wrestling style and attractiveness sense. But again, going down this road and considering its implications is a trip best saved for another time.

So, with Suzuki Gun fully integrated into the NOAH shows, generating intrigue by shaking things up and claiming all of the company's championships for themselves, with Suzuki Minoru winning the Heavyweight Championship from Naomichi Marufuji, we get a show from what seems to be NOAH soil, shown on the NJPW World service, and seemingly put together or produced by Suzuki himself. It reminds me of those amazing All Tomorrow's Parties events where a band or artist headlines and curates the other acts on the show. Indeed it started out with Suzuki on the mic for a good 15 minutes in what could have been him doing a standup comedy routine. I certainly could not tell what the content was, but it generated plenty of laughter from among the audience.

The first match was the definite highlight for me: former NOAH champ Marufuji VS the anti aging superstar Yuji Nagata. This match really made it clear who is in control of the landscape, as the top NOAH star was unable to defeat the fading but still very capable NJPW representative. The two had a very physical, very technically sound fight to a draw due to time expiring.

A strange tag team match featuring all NOAH talent found two foreigners, John Webb and Jack Gamble, more or less battling among themselves, which their opponents, Genba Hirayangi and Hitoshi Kumano capitalized on to take the win.

Shelton X Benjamin and Taka Michinoku fought with a heavyweight and junior heavyweight alike, Takashi Sugiura and Daisuke Harada. There was some good back and forth action, with Benjamin getting into some heated exchanges with both opponents on the other team. In one pretty intimidating looking expression, an attempt was made to knock Shelton off the apron, to which e responded by extending his arms and pulling himself right back to the ropes with a dead-eyed stare. He and Taka were sent packing though as the other team picked up the win.

There was more tag team awkwardness as Gedo and gainjin wrestler Zack Sabre Jr. took on Captains New Japan and NOAH, who is in fact Jado. Attention was drawn to this, as Jado turned midway through the match to trip up Captain New Japan, leading to Gedo and his partner to be the winners...and in effect Captain NOAH too? Or not really. While it was amusing, it kinda made me feel sorry for Captain New Japan, the big galoot. Not my idea of prime entertainment.

After a presumed intermission, can't be sure since the event was delivered as individual segments, a J-pop girl group came out, all dressed in red, to sing along, or maybe they were lip-synching (doesn't seem to matter) and perform a choreographed dance to some music blaring over the PA. As fans clapped along, it reminded me of my earlier sidetrack, and if NJPW is skewing toward pleasing its female audience, then this NOAH brand was definitely remaining a true to a stronghold of male fans. I could go off further on the weird lolita-complex attributed to adulr males that seems to be treated as completely acceptable running through Japanese pop entertainment, but here's probably not the time. In what I felt was the most true heel move of the show, the girls were joined by TAICHI and El Desperado, who posed and made a gesture of singing along with the group. They took on Jushin 'Thunder' Liger and Yoshinari Ogawa. The baby face heroes took the win, but were beaten viciously afterwards by Suzuki-Gun's TAICHI and Desperado. This is a trope that has been increasingly getting on my nerves: one team or single wrestler wins, but the other attacks afterwards. Then, who cares who won? I understand how it's a nice card to play ONCE IN A WHILE, to show how dastardly someone can be. When Owens attacked Cena after their rematch at the WWE Money in the Bank special, that was a good example of using this story telling convention to good effect. With Suzuki-Gun, it happens far too often, and in the case of the guys of lesser importance, it gets to be a bore.

A high point of the show ended up being a tried and true confrontation: KES (Smith Junior and Archer), who are in possession of the NOAH Heayweight Tagteam belts, against Tencozy (Tenzan and Kojima). It was a good match, nothing shocking or out of the ordinary, with KES picking up the win.

The main event was a strange one: Mr. Minoru Suzuki himself, teamed with Iizuka against the masked Maybach Taniguchi and Yoshihiro Takayama, the long blonde haired veteran, who I should now say is the "featured in the Sono Sion movie TOKYO TRIBE" Yoshihiro Takayama. This movie has been released in Japan some time ago, and for New Yorkers, it will be playing at the annual New York Asian Film Festival, and is a crazy feast of hip hop storytelling, crazy neon set pieces, and violence galore. That aside, this is far from a main event that can be said to be compelling. Heel/Face dynamics are out the window. I admire Suzuki-Gun for sticking to their heel identities, but they are clearly over with fans, so it was kinda like they needed to find wrestlers who have a similar shtick and are not as cool or likable, and could therefore get the fans cheering for the Gun. It is very hard for me to rally behind a guy who does a 'crazy man' gimmick and just runs around the ring and brawls. So Iizuka's inclusion in this main event at all brought the sudden realization that this show was not a very big deal; setting up for other thins down the line, I guess, but I'm not even sure how big a deal that could be.

Suzuki-Gun cheated blatantly. Minoru ripped Maybach's mask off, which basically pissed the fellow old and grizzled old Japanese wrestler off, after which he started gnawing away at Minoru Suzuki's head. At one point the masked wrestler had used a staff with a curved end to drive Iizuka into the corner before he could strike Takayama with his chain, or some other illegal object. Takayama and Maybach won. Did fans ]get excited for their victory? Was any sympathy generated over Suzuki-Gun's loss?? I couldn't say.

Again, I am glad for the variety and want more material on my NJPW World than less, but I do hope the powers that be realize that Suzuki-Gun's takeover will only be as compelling as long as there are dynamic a baby faces to have a rivalry with them. It will make these brand offshoots that much more enjoyable.

twitter: @mondocurrymark

Best of the Soup Junes

Going into The War Of The Worlds night 2 taping, I was aware that my pro wrestling viewing was going to take a drastic decline going into the summer, from the very next day even. But I've been finding ways to sneak it in. Not ideal viewing conditions and definitely not conducive to detailed reports, but enough to throw together some thoughts on recent New Japan Pro Wrestling programs. First, it is super cool that the New Japan World online streaming service has provided access to all of the Best Of The Super Juniors bouts, with big shows broadcast live and smaller road shows being chopped up so that only each match in the tournament itself are made available.

While I usually bang the koto drums for NJPW loud and hard over almost everything I take in, I was lukewarm about the tournament going into it and remained that way throughout most of it, until a fantastic final 2 shows, particularly the last day, which had incredible action from start to finish. I guess I associate Super Juniors, otherwise known as cruiserweights, with high levels of acrobatic ability. While not everyone needs to have an aerial based assault, it should be a prominent feature of the bulk of the matches. This distinguishes the division from the Heavyweights, in my view, rather than just putting them in one category for being 'smaller guys.'  KUSHIDA and Alex Shelley definitely count as two who can bring the high flying and grounded assault styles, but in an unfortunate turn, Shelley was injured in day 1, round 1 of the tournament, taking away a lot of the intrigue from the event on the whole.

Chase Owens represented NWA with his presence, and though lacking charisma, he did bring some interesting maneuvers. Though I can't say there was all that much variation throughout his matches. Ryusuke Taguchi seems a stalwart on the current NJPW 'Juniors scene. While he's had some impressive matches in the past, his recent comedy based oeuvre has failed to excite me all that much. David Finley and Yohei Komatsu represented rookies in the match who would not score any wins. In the case of Komatsu, it was a bit hard to perceive him as a Junior as he has been holding his own in the Heavyweight style of combat with young boy peer Sho Tanaka. Gedo was entered into the tournament after spending more time on the sidelines of Okada and behind the scenes of NJPW booking, perhaps feeling reinvigorated by his recent stint at the North American East Coast ROH shows, but his flexibility is limited, giving us spots involving sneaky tactics and punches and kicks, but few feats of agility. The Lucha style, probably the element I would consider most crucial to shaping a strong Super Junior competition, was represented by recent NJPW homestayer Mascara Dorada and visitor Barbaro Carvenario. Dorada's been solid throughout his stay but Cavernario's chemistry with others in the tournament was hit or miss.

Then there is the masked superhero veteran contingent - Liger and Tiger Mask, whose place in NJPW in general I am increasingly questioning. I am not sure what I see them adding to mix, as their abilities in the ring are diminishing and they really don't gel with stories being built around hip, modern characters in CHAOS or The Bullet Club. Liger is a legend and gets a pass to appear as long as he is able, but Tiger Mask...this being an incarnation of the original, and one who does not put much apparent effort into selling the staged combat between himself and who he is in the ring with, I don't see what he is adding to the promotion, and definitely did not see him bring any value to this tournament.  

Finally there were members of tag teams: RPG's Rocky Romero and Baretta, reDRagon's Fish and O'Reilly, and one Young Buck Nick Jackson. While all are very capable in the ring as a singles or tag team wrestler, being associated with a tag team would seem to automatically place one on a lower run than singles wrestlers. This in effect made the matches these guys were involved with feel as though they had far lesser stakes, even though these wrestlers were the one who, in many cases, led the way to entertaining matches. In the case of reDRagon, there was a break from this unwritten rule, as Kyle O'Reilly ended up being in the finals against shoe-in KUSHIDA. This came as a bit of a surprise, as many would've expected established singles wrestler Ryusuke Taguchi to be the other fighter in the finals. It was definitely the right move by many a fan's estimation, as O'Reilly is a lot more technically sound and can take the physicality of a match to the outer limits. Overall, reDRagon's involvement in the tournament was a huge boon. Fish also has a dynamic, versatile style that makes him a credible threat to anyone he is in the ring with. I very much hope the pair's performance in the 2015 BOSJ pushes them to bigger things.

As stated before, the final day of the tournament brought about the best in all of the combatants and seemed to be where the best potential matches were booked among the pack. Chase Owens generated some better than average heel heat by attacking Tiger Mask after their match. Cabernerio and Mascara Dorada seemed at complete ease with each other working a Lucha style match that had no lack in aggression whatsoever. Rocky Romero had a great match with Nick Jackson, which served to advance both an RPG-Young Bucks feud as well as a CHAOS-Bullet Club program. There is a spot where Romero hits Sliced Bread on Nick outside of the ring that needs to be witnessed.

The finale between KUSHIDA and O'Reilly, which KUSHIDA emerged from victorious, is instant end of the year top 10 New Japan match material. They had a lengthy battle in which limbs were put through the wringer. KUSHIDA executed a top rope maneuver to damage O'Reilly's arm, which seemed impossible to walk away from unscathed. O'Reilly dished out an onslaught that made KUSHIDA's victory seem like a distant possibility til he returned fire toward the end of the match. Only toward the end did Fish make his presence a factor, yelling at the referee over numerous calls in support of his tag team partner. The stage is set for KUSHIDA to bring a lot of momentum into his bout with Kenny Omega for the Junior Heavyweight Championship at Dominion on July 5th.

Another component of the big shows along the Best Of circuit was the continued battle between the NJPW brigade and CHAOS. On this run, the matches had a pretty consistent roster of  Goto, Makabe, Shibata, Tanahashi and Captain New Japan on one side against Nakamura, Ishii, Sakuraba, Yano, and YOSHI-HASHI on the other. The one twist on these bouts since the last go around was the shift in titles, and in a sense power, to team NJPW with both Goto and Makabe holding the Intercontinental and Never titles respectively. Captain New Japan's inclusion in the matches added a bit of levity to the mix and also gave an easy out for a fall guy, leading to CHAOS dominating for the most part.

While the other takeaway from this is that this continual booking of the same basic match is wearing its welcome rather thin, it looks to be inching toward a conclusion with each of the feuds contained within getting its own singles match on the extremely impressive looking Dominion card.

More to come with a preview of Dominion and an outlook on how things may very well shape up coming out of that and heading all the way into next January's Tokyo Dome soon.

twitter: @mondocurrymark

Fight for the Future: Kevin Owens VS Finn Balor

At the beginning of 2015 I would've expressed some trepidation over NXT's course. A run of remarkably bland RAW episodes combined with an utter absence of acknowledgment of NXT's operation during that program had me believing that politics was going to get in the way of the exciting fledgling brand continuing to flourish. I had even at one point made note of NXT's place on the In Ring section of the WWE Network listings being shunted toward the end, almost out of sight. Fortunately, a reversal has taken place, NXT has been getting plenty of opportunities to shine with the party line touted around town being it is no longer a developmental program, but a full fledged brand unto itself. While the rapidly heating up show still squarely falls under the WWE flagship, it has made giant strides by way of developing its own unique identity, taking the show on the road for highly sought after tour dates, and in its most recent step forward, integrating its characters and storylines within the action on the WWE main roster. Not only does this mark a realization that WWE proper should be finding ways to put over its new, hip show, but has shown that with the right storytelling, the connection between the two rosters can generate buzz that affects the WWE's main product positively as well. Those that have been following this unfolding scene can easily connect the dots and form the burly outline of one Kevin Owens.

Owens has been like bottled lightning since debuting in NXT last year, bringing a quiet storm presentation to his few but impressionable confrontations. It helped that a ready made rivalry between him and Sami Zayn, hearkening back to their days in the indies and in Ring Of Honor, was lying in wait of his arrival. He does not only present himself as a compelling and unique heel during promos and interviews, he has an amazing move set. During his match with John Cena at the Elimination Chamber special, he pulled off acrobatic maneuvers that seem impossible for a man of his size and build, not to mention an offensive that looks devastating to anyone on the receiving end.

I wonder if original intentions were to just have Owens come out on Raw during Cena's US Championship open challenge, blindside him, and build some buzz around the then upcoming NXT special while teasing a confrontation between the champions down the line. No matter, the decision to move Owens into the picture on Raw was an excellent one. He presents a fresh and credible threat to others on the main WWE roster, and those savvy fans who have grown tired of WWE's repetitiveness but are tuned into NXT's competition-centric presentation will be more likely to check WWE's main programs to see Owens in action. Owens' increased presence on WWE proper can also do great things for NXT in return, and arguably already has. With the NXT title still in Owens' possession as he defeats top level stars like John Cena, the belt looks that much more valuable and will cause eyeballs to turn toward NXT, and possibly the WWE Network, for those not already subscribing, to see what happens to the championship. Anyone associated with Owens also stands to benefit from the increased exposure, and those names are numerous. Sami Zayn, whose feud with Owens is stll unresolved, would appear to have the potential to move up to the main roster any time to continue unfinished business with the now main roster-cized Owens. Finn Balor, current number one contender to the NXT championship can also get to be more well known, and that much closer to appearing on the WWE's bigger stage. Hideo Itami was last seen expressing his desire to fight Kevin Owens for the NXT championship, before he was sidelined by an injury, and was shown on screen as the victim of a storyline attack, with a suggestion of Owens' possible involvement. Then there is Samoa Joe, who also seems to have immediately gained from NXT's increased prominence, as well as stare-down confrontation with the current NXT champ that went down with an atmosphere slicing tension. His initial contract with pro wrestling's dominant company quickly received an upgrade to main roster status.

Right on the horizon is an intriguing viewing opportunity scheduled for July 4th on the WWE Network that I feel is the perfect moment for the company to shake things up on NXT. Finn Balor is scheduled to make good on his number one contender status and face Owens in a title match at a house show in Tokyo, Japan's Sumo Hall, and it will be broadcast via the Network. From this vantage point, it makes complete and utter sense for them to not only put on a fantastic match, but for the NXT championship to change hands and go from Kevin Owens to Finn Balor, with the man with the demon within picking up the win.

I'm sure whatever this pair does in the ring will make for excellent viewing, but the title change would work for so many reasons. First, Owens is becoming a bigger and bigger part of the main roster activity, and the more he achieves over there the less he needs the NXT title to bolster his image. In fact, midway through slogging through this post, he has just issued a challenge for Cena's US Title after the two have exchanged victories. Second, Finn Balor has amazing potential to be the focal point of NXT, with little more that can be done to help him reach the next plateau other than winning a championship. From there, his eventual elevation to WWE proper seems inevitable. This kind of newsworthy occurrence might seem better saved for a more high profile event and one that is not competing with a major holiday like Independence Day. However, it is the perfect sort of buzz generator to get more eyes and as a result sign-ups for WWE's much touted online streaming subscription service. With the time difference, an evening event in Tokyo would be taking place around 7:30 AM Eastern Standard Time, presuming the whole show will be broadcast, with the main event probably occurring a bit after that; that's not interfering as much with fireworks and other people's holiday plans, and once the diehard fans start tweeting about it, news will spread over a must-see match even more-so if it had some drastic consequences.

What's most poignant about the circumstance is how its location dovetails with Balor's history. It is well known to Japanese wrestling fans that before becoming Finn Balor, Prince Devitt made his bones as a dominant Super Junior Heavyweight and went on to become a core member of the widely known heel faction, The Bullet Club. If facts around Balor's wrestling career in Japan were mentoned, regardless of whether the company NJPW were acknowledged or not, it could make for a very plausible stage on which Balor was victorious. I think it's a near sure thing that fans in attendance of the show will all be rallying behind him, something akin to giving him a home field advantage. And, I am pleased to say that during the time this was being drafted, a video package did in fact bring up Balor's extensive career in Japan.

For a video presentation epitomizing brief, effective marketing of a star on the rise in this era, seek out an ad for the July 4 special - it has been shown on the Network during recent NXT episodes, showing Balor transforming into something otherworldly against a stark white background. A quick, cutting edge looking  thrill ride for the eyes.

With Kevin Owens changing the WWE landscape, and Balor not far behind in his own rise to prominence, I would keep a close on this rare opportunity to see an overseas event broadcast online only, between two wrestlers who, between them, hold some of the greatest potential influence in the industry.

twitter: MondoCurryMark

Wednesday

Two weeks ago, there was a flurry of excitement over Ring of Honor's television show being broadcast on Destination America, an outlet with far more reach than their already existing home of Sinclair, and already host to rival pro wrestling promotion TNA. Last week, the Ring of Honor did in fact precede TNA's Impact. People watched, tweeted, cheered, moaned, and now things are moving along like it's business as usual.

As someone with a lot of excitement over ROH's arrival on a television station I can actually view, I will make no bones about receiving last week's show with a bit of disappointment. This reaction is tempered, though, by factors that not all may be aware of, but should keep in mind, and overall optimistic for some very good things to come. That is, if the forces behind Ring of Honor gives some careful consideration to how they hope to be perceived and act on them in a hurry,

There was very solid wrestling on the program, kicking off with Kushida taking on Will Ferrara in a match from the final night of the Global Wars series. Once again, I can't resist taking the opportunity to point out how much Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro Wrestling can benefit from continuing to highlight their connection. Case in point here, it should be made widely known that Kushida just emerged as the winner of NJPW's annual Best Of The Super Jr's tournament built around smaller and extremely agile wrestlers, thus adding a lot of prestige to having such a wrestler appear on their show. While we're at it, lets also note that ROH regular and one half of the tag team reDRagon was the other competitor in the finals against Kushida, an incredible match available to view via NJPW World. The transition sequences and opening credits seemed a bit more spiffed up from what I am used to seeing on ROH's website, made available 1 week after the Sinclair tv airing. There was a throw away match emphasizing Moose's rise in the ranks, which featured something that actually put the segment in the negative column (I'll get into that afterwards), and a tag team match essentially adding to the build to the next PPV main event match between Heavyweight champion Jay Briscoe and Television  champion Jay Lethal. The show was also marked by the inclusion of promos that were a bit more colorful than usual - getting outside the building indeed helps - also banging the drum for the upcoming champion vs champion match and effectively making it out to be a big deal.

The disappointment I had with the program was not over this being a bad show. Rather it was a 'just ok' show. This is fine, but not what you hope to see as a program makes what is in effect a 'debut.' Expectation levels for me and others were very high, though, and sitting back and watching the show broadcast on television, suddenly I found myself realizing the types of things that seem indispensable wrestling program in a prime time television slot: A clearly defined roster. As a casual viewer, I had no qualms about tuning in to see impressive matches between wrestlers from around the indies and ROH regulars. For a program to be followed routinely, I want to know who is an important focus of the show, who will be there from week to week, and what is their place in the scheme of things. Part timers are welcome, but a large degree of continuity is important, and for first time viewers, I would hope for a large number of characters to be established or even just partially introduced through quick vignettes, promo cutting, interviews as well as matches. The show was very thin in this department.

While we did see the Briscoes in actions, whose names have come to be synonymous with Ring of Honor, their opponents lacked character. They are up and comers, and their association with Lethal and the House of Truth roster makes them logical opponents for Jay and Mark. But, this being a debut show for many, vivid personalities on both sides of the main event would make for a stronger... errr, what's the word I'm looking for...im....pression, impression, yeah that's it.

In regard to these stumbling blocks, there are some reasonable defenses to keep in mind. Namely, numerous sources have reported that the deal between ROH and Destination America came together very quickly, and it was an impromptu scheduling of the premiere. Rather than plan a relaunch, Ring of Honor has probably simply taken a show that was already plotted in the course of its run on Sinclair, perhaps already produced even, and dressed it up a tad bit before putting it out on its new cable home. The move may have caught Ring Of Honor by surprise, but they now have a chance to gear up and if they do it quickly, they stand to impress and pull in a much wider audience.

I eluded to another issue I had, one that does not concern the fact that this was its debut. During a match that was supposed to be between the leader of The Decade, BJ Whitmere and Moose, Whitmere dodged his would be opponent and put young boy (wrestle speak for an apprentice who is treated like an indentured servant) Colby Corino, son of veteran wrestler and current commentator Steve Corino, into the unenviable position of facing off against the physically dominant Moose. During what could only be considered a match in the loosest sense of the word,the younger Corino was dismantled with extra physical abuse heaped on, including being repeatedly Power Bombed into the ring apron on the outside of the ring. Anyone seeing this would think TNA was not the only wrestling program on Wednesday night whose repercussions should have included an obituary.

It was peculiar not only in that CC was not collected on a stretcher, but that papa Steve, sitting right there on commentary, showed hardly a bit of concern. One would think at the least he would stand up, hold his head. I would've found it most appropriate if he came running to the scene of the crime to plead with Moose and his associates to call off the attack. How confusing it must've been for a new viewer, accustomed to serial pro wrestling where all or most characters on the scene participate in the story being told.

I feel like this does a huge disservice to the suspension of disbelief while watching pro wresting, and undercuts all of the stories told during match. It's important to keep in mind, although Colby is supposed to be portraying a wrestler in trainer, he does not have a wrestler's build in the slightest. He looks like a typical guy....no, a kid sitting in the audience, and a scrawny one at that. Before this show, I'd seen a similar scenario go down during the second War of the Worlds show in Philadelphia. After interference from Corino during a match between The Decade's Adam Page and Watanabe, the Japanese wrestler hit a German Suplex to the kid on the floor and after the match, floored him with a lariat. Even that seemed like it ought to have incapacitated him. What can come of this is that moves that are supposed to devastating will feel trivial down the line. In both cases, these were spots that were meant to elicit a pop from the audience, but they should be reserved for special occasions and the after-effects should keep with the perpetrator of the attack as well as its victim.    

So, there was some good wrestling but room to improve and some aspects of telling a credible story, at least in terms of the pro wrestling realm, that should be considered as ROH pushes onward. Meanwhile, as far as the potential war between the two brands sharing a cramped home, no shots were fired. At least, not really. Matt Hardy took to his own forum to declare TNA the victor in the eye of public perception. I don't know about that. I think if you searched enough, you could find fans shouting out ROH and some continuing to wave the TNA flag. While I did not watch it, I did hear on the Review-An-Impact podcast hosted by Brothers Nate Milton and Brian Mann, on the LAW Network of combat sport related shows, an account of a largely disappointing show. While not your typical TNApologists, I feel they are fairly easygoing in their assessment of Impact. Hearing them in critical doesn't bode well for the show in my estimation. What they and plenty of others discussed is the once entertaining angle in which part time deranged cult leader James Storm has been cunningly making a play for Magnus' wife Mickey James, being abruptly fast forwarded by an off set depiction of Storm pushing James off a high up ledge onto train tracks...Talk about killing a story. If this kind of overkill is what's to be expected from the competing cable pro wrestling options on Wednesdays, I may be spending my evening with NXT.

Here's hoping Ring of Honor continues to ramp up the action in some areas while showing a bit of restraint, the kind that TNA never manages, in others.

Twitter: @Mondocurrymark

Let's discuss! Leave your comments, questions, disagreements, threats in the box below
 
  

The Destination Game

A while ago, I would take to this forum to riff, free form, with my takes on goings ons in a few different companies. This was not a sustainable path to follow, unweildy and almost impossible to stay on point. Things shifted to more conventional reviews of my favorite organizations' shows. That has had to go on the back burner as well. And while taking stock of the various promotions out there is no easier a task, events of this past week make it a good time to weigh in on a couple things.

One thing that my rants almost always included, which cannot continue to be, is a complaint about the scope of Ring of Honor's television show being limited to areas receiving Sinclair broadcasts with online viewing opportunities 1 week behind. I suppose I should pat myself on the back for my campaign of frustration paying off because last week, ROH and Destination America announced the unlikely alliance that has ROH's show, now syndicated, appearing on the more widely accessible cable channel Wednesday nights right before TNA Impact. While I may be exaggerating my role in this game changing turn of events, I'm celebrating all the same.

The most notable aspect of the announcement was how soon things would go into effect. Just 1 week from the announcement, tomorrow night! This is especially awesome timing coming from the point of view of a proponent of New Japan Pro Wrestling like myself, as the ROH/NJPW joint shows happened a scant few weeks ago - I am still shaking off the effects of a trip to Philadelphia to see War Of The Worlds night 2 (I hope to put together some kind of account of it soon) - and the final day, presented as Global Wars night 2, was a TV taping. In the near future, Destination America could very well be bringing us a dream match like Roderick Strong  (who had an extremely impressionable match against Hiroshi Tanahashi at War of the Worlds night 2) VS Shinsuke Nakamura, a one of a kind curiosity like Jushin 'Thunder' Liger VS buzz worthy Dalton Castle, and maybe even a match straight off of a typical Korakuen Hall card like Bullet Club members AJ Styles and the New Bucks taking on CHAOS' Kazuchika Okada and RPG Vice. It's a match that plays directly into the upcoming Dominion Show with a main event pitting Styles against Okada with the IWGP Heavyweight title on the line (available to overseas viewers via the NJWP World streaming service). ROH's continued connection to New Japan is, to me, a serious sign of the US upstart company's legitimacy. NJPW has come to be known as a symbol of wrestling excellence internationally, and the ROH talent keeps up, the exchanges going both ways. While this deal is great, it brings up questions over whether it will lead to wrestlers in the ROH camp that have already featured prominently in the Destination America campaign, like Styles, the Bucks, Rocky Romero, and reDRagon will be asked to spend more time stateside to double down on their Ring of Honor presence and diminish NJPW's star a bit. There is,  after all, have a program on another cable channel AXS, showing somewhat older recorded NJPW matches, and another cable network is kinda the competition....

On the other hand, they may let things play out naturally. The popularity of the Bullet Club has certainly flourished organically, and has been benefiting both ROH and NJPW by letting the talents involved in the name do their thing so to speak, not by trying to bottle it and shove it down people's throats. Letting that continue seems logical, and hey, if that generous spirit adds a little luster to Jeff Jarret's somewhat underwhelming Global Force Wrestling venture, by way its inclusion of Anderson and Gallows on some of the tapings they have scheduled, then what's the harm?

Having looked at the positive potential of Ring of Honor's relocation to Destination America, let's talk about the other side of the coin: the curious case of the other company who's been crashing on the Destination America floor, if not moving all the way into the master suite, TNA. It's a strange turn of events to say the least, if for nothing else, the way it went down with most if not all at TNA seemingly in the dark til the rest of us were. Even though some would like to look at as nothing but roses at their favorite hanger on of a promotion (TNA fans, I tell you, they seem to me as blindly devoted as the most toxic doomsday cult's followers). Here's a few things to keep in mind, though...

There is a reason we have rarely, if ever, seen two wrestling promotions share the same broadcast network as their primary outlet: such companies are competition. While some mutual gain can sometimes be achieved, as in the aforementioned case of ROH and NJPW, being on the widely received platform of television is where brands try to establish themselves, and when they do that, they are asking for your time and resources, and that is time and resources that other brands by their nature are asking for the same.

Sure, Destination America is trying to play the mutual gain card, let's all get along and make lots of money, and promoting Wednesday as pro wrestling night in their neck of the television woods. And while it makes a bit of sense that people who already check out one company would stick around to see a bit of the other, there are some things about the companies' past crossing of paths that may suggest a bit of a less sunny disposition on the part of all parties. For instance, and I should say my source for this were the excellent MLW and Bauer and Pollock podcasts, there was a time when TNA had decided to abandon all code of honor, and legal business conduct, and pursue business with contracted TNA talent. There is also the fact that these promotions would seem to be on polar opposite trajectories. Ring of Honor is clearly on the rise, while TNA is well... It stands to reason that ROH is going to approach the new move with a bit of swagger, while the Impact Zone is likely to be riddled with insecurities. Already the reactions among those on the TNA roster have ranged from criticizing their leadership and taking other bookings to welcoming the new addition to the 'family' and engaging the other company in in-character banter. Meanwhile, on the ROH side there has been a united front, a singular focus on acknowledging only themselves and their new opportunity.

Any manner of excuses could be made, but when it comes down to it, for team TNA to not know about this move beforehand is a pretty crappy way to treat a friend, if that's what you want to consider what they are to the network that welcomed them so heartily some months ago. A heads up could've easily been given. I suppose this could've left a liability of details getting out too early because well, when it comes to TNA, discretion and shrewd business moves haven't really been part of the vocabulary.   While people can cast aspersions on those who have a reputation for reporting professionally for years and years, or write things off as rumor, I don't think you can reasonably ignore the general lack of harmony between Destination America and TNA that's been hinted at throughout the bulk of them. Basically, it's a bit reactionary to think that the Discovery subsidiary made the move to bring in ROH purely as a 'suck it' gesture to Dixie Carter and her show, but their way of handling it certainly suggests a bit more than passive aggression. It does not seem all that implausible that TNA's days could be numbered.

I suppose it could sound as though there is some negativity being expressed here toward TNA. Maybe just a bit. Watching fumble after fumble from this company, I am a bit mystified by its ability to stumble forward. I find it difficult to look away completely, with its almost car crash like cringeworthy embodiment of disaster. The company has shown a lack of ability to properly promote events or talent, it's put together shoddy matches that fail to showcase its' talent roster's talent, and has dropped the ball on so many of its impact players...many of whom Ring of Honor or New Japan have gladly scooped up. The only thing I find more incredible is the way a dedicated segment of TNA viewers just continue to pump their support into the product, at least vocally, while in lockstep, bashing whatever comes on WWE programming. In fact these same wrestling fans seem to take to ROH, looking forward to some synergy on Wednesday nights. I suppose that's a plus, but I just don't get it and feel a need to challenge it. If anything TNA seems like WWE, or at least trying to be, with long drawn out stories and dissatisfying inconclusive match finishes. To me, TNA and ROH have nearly diametrically opposed philosophies on presenting pro wrestling. It is hard for me to imagine someone thrilling to the in ring storytelling presented by those ROH and NJPW stars mentioned above and then taking the 4-5 minute rush jobs on TNA seriously. Sure there are exceptions, but it seems like that is the wrestlers, whom i acknowledge in many cases are very good, getting themselves over in spite of the creative and booking agents' direction, not as a result of it.

Only a few things are certain in the realm of pro wrestling, and I'd assert that here too. One of them is it will be very interesting to tune into Destination America Wednesday nights to see how this rocky relationship starts off. The other is that there will be 'F-ck TNA' chants. I wasn't at the taping, but I almost 100 percent guarantee it. With shows that could on any given episode include excellent wrestlers like Franky Kazarian and Christpher Daniels (as The Addiction), AJ Styles, and Samoa Joe (though his recent signing with WWE may put the kybosh on his tv time), all of which TNA unceremoniously dropped the ball on or undervalued, fans in attendance  of the strong brand's shows will more than likely shout out their show of solidarity. It will be interesting to see if the chants grow louder and more frequent due to shared telivision stage.

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