WingedEagle

Hope you have an amazing time! If the Nets didn't have a game tonight I'd definitely try to watch live, but alas playoffs take precedence.

The company will likely be sold long before then.

This. Not to mention that NJPW has been featured in AEW since these talks commenced. There's no reason to assume that any discussions have or will amount to anything substantive. For all we know either party may have leaked this for other purposes.

A confluence of factors makes a lot more sense. If it was simply burn out, frustration and/or personal issues I can't imagine NJPW would've taken the belt off of him so suddenly. Would imagine that in such a situation they'd at least play it week to week for a while and wait to get a read on things before taking such a drastic move, but an injury would certainly compound that. But what do I know?

Hey now, please do not besmirch the name of our lord and savior Kevin Durant.

Leaving aside any creative or storytelling efforts, this was probably the best in-ring raw in ages. Drew vs. Kofi, Charlotte vs. Asuka and Riddle vs. Woods were all solid matches given real time.

Excuse me? What's the word here?

I've been a fan of just about everything Cody has done in AEW and think he's been a consistent high for the promotion feud in and feud out. But as I believe @El-P succinctly put it, this promo was cringeworthy at best. A big miss. Go crush it at the PPV, get your trademark or whatever is important, and never, ever revisit this approach.

Where's Shota Umino these days? According to Cagematch he hasn't had a match in 14 months.

This match was indeed phenomenal and Kid was the highlight between his uphill fight at the end and how they used the mask. I'm not sure how highly it would rate for people watching in a vacuum as opposed to having followed the path there, but the drama and work would probably stand out even without context.

As I make my way through Toryumon and Dragon Gate, Kid stands out as someone who basically never has a bad match. He's always solidly entertaining at worst. I'm not sure I'll find many, if any, classics on his resume which will certainly limit how he ranks for me but I can't rule out someone who's that good for that long.

Akiyama has had an incredibly long career working various roles, whether singles or tag, and with an incredible array of opponents given the generations and promotions he's crossed. I was trying to pinpoint just why I don't regard him as highly as his peers from AJPW/NOAH and other GOAT candidates and think its because he rarely, if ever, made me feel the way they did. And I mean literally feel. Kobashi, Misawa, Kawada, Tanahashi, Bryan, even Flair -- whether through their fiery comebacks or the way they'll work the crowd, wrestlers of that level can get me can get me invested in a match at a level that others simply can't. I won't just enjoy what I'm watching but will actually care about what's happening -- whether for a fleeting moment or more. Akiyama has been great at this for nearly 30 years. He's probably no worse than a top 20-25 candidate. But he didn't make me feel the way those I'd consider at #1 ever did and that's why I can't look at him as a top 10 candidate.

I haven't looked into it deeply but thought I saw something that Japan has rules about only administering vaccines manufactured in Japan. If accurate it would certainly contribute to a slow rollout. Regardless, its certainly an unfortunate situation.

I don't see how its remotely outlandish to suggest Shawn & Marty's best matches, specifically vs. Rose & Somers, are better than anything those teams did.

Where is this current comedy Fuchi?

He'd probably insist that we ignore the years he wore a mask, in which case his candidacy holds no water.

Just wanted to add that Yasuda vs. Nagata is a series worth checking out whether or not you're interested in either as a GWE candidate.

Someone I've seen praised heavily enough in enough circles that I want to make a point to look into. That's all I can say, so hopefully this serves as a reminder at some point.

Thanks, will definitely check it out. I've heard of the promotion but never gone out of my way to watch one of their shows. Good to have some names/matches to start with.

Is there any match or promo worth checking out from last night?

How much Wahoo is available? I feel like I've heard about a few matches arising from the Houston footage along with bits & pieces from the AWA but do we have anything extensive beyond clips from elsewhere?

A list of Inoki matches to check out from the 70s would be much appreciated. This sounds awesome and reads like Okada/Shibata.

This is correct. I'm sure if people search far and wide on this vast world wide web of ours some other options may be out there, but DG's site is the easiest and direct way.

Where do any wrestlers have personal belongings? There's no clubhouse or arena/stadium like there is for a sports team and I didn't think anyone who wasn't in training at the PC had any kind of residence there.

They've been mixing in a few rookies at the top of the card and in their units, while Shun Skywalker came back from excursion, won their top belt in his return match and has looked great along the way in tags and his defenses. Their shows are generally quick watches where little overstays its welcome and they've mixed up the programs/units enough to keep things interesting. They've been running a few too many DQ/gimmick finishes of late building to a mask/hair stipulation match at Dead or Alive but I'm counting on that to deliver with SB Kento, one of the fresh faces, likely getting his head shaved. Another, Hip Hop Kikuta, is challenging Skywalker on that show. I don't buy a title change for a moment but it should be a good match as Kikuta has looked great thus far for a rookie and even losing a title match should benefit him going forward. Even Cyber Kong is proving himself useful as a babyface on the twin gate scene with Mochizuki. Don't go in expecting a match that even approaches what NJPW's big matches deliver, but its enjoyable as hell.