Boss Rock
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Everything posted by Boss Rock
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I like the Nightwing getup.
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Goldberg destroying folks will never not be entertaining to me.
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For a second I thought they were trying to recreate the Hardy-Undertaker thing with Goldberg and Ziggler.
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They could always go back to Bryan, but his heel run from what I've heard has been going very well. And A.J. seems to be in the twilight of his career (also currently a heel). As much as I've never been a fan of Finn because I don't find him particularly interesting or all that great, he's always seemed to be really over with fans and was a proven draw in NXT. They've never really given him a chance.
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There's still a lot of time between now and WK especially considering it's a two-event show, but if they were going to make Naito the ace I think they would have done it already. I still personally think they should give him another title run, but now may be the time for NJPW to go all-in on Ibushi as well as establish SANADA and Ospreay as main-eventer's.
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I would be fine with that too and the time to strike with Ibushi is now, but considering how these tournaments have been booked in the past (champion and challenger never in the same block, not doing a title change before WK), I'm convinced Jay wins.
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Yano-Cobb *** Decent Yano match. Trying to pin Cobb with his hands in his singlet was clever. Glad Yano was more of a spoiler this tournament. Cobb was meh overall but had his moments. Definitely an improvement over Tonga and Makabe. Taichi-Ishii **** These guys just have really good chemistry together. Taichi either needs to turn face or drop the shenanigans altogether because he can deliver in straightforward matches. Hard-hitting match like the Dominion encounter. Juice-Moxley **** Not as good as their first match but still very good. Liked the story of Mox working over Juice's leg and trying to introduce plunder while Juice tried to wrestle by the book. Juice's selling was really good and his win felt like true redemption. Goto-Shingo ****1/4 Expectedly a very good, hard-hitting match. Shingo rivals Ishii as the tournament MVP. Goto was a bit inconsistent this tournament but he did a good job here. Naito-Jay ***3/4 A good match hurt by a flat finish. The dueling neck work was good but this match never really kicked off into another gear.
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Interestingly enough Dave was rather critical (although he agrees it "wasn't bad").
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Even before I knew what a "self-conscious epic" was, I knew that HHH-HBK match was a self-conscious epic.
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Welp, full speed ahead on Jay. Can't say I'm surprised.
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I like to joke that the Progress guys have had too much influence on Triple H, but considering how a lot of those main events go I wouldn't be surprised.
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Andrade getting called up and Ciampa staying screwed a lot of things up. Even still they could've easily given Ciampa something else to do or take him off TV again to let Johnny win the title and do other stuff. If the feud had to continue, they should've given it more time to breathe and not have the second match until Brooklyn.
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Same. I could barely pay attention to the second match but it seemed like way beyond overkill.
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I will say that I thought the first Gargano-Cole match worked in the context that Johnny had basically been a failure for a year and for him to kick out of all those moves and overcome all that interference sort of in a way redeemed his crappy booking.
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Looks like it was 46:41 (I didn't watch the match). This has to be it for Gargano in NXT, right?
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Yikes. I mean if Shayna had to win there was at least still the history with her and Candice.
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I still think they screwed up by not having Bianca beat Shayna, especially with how their match went at Phoenix. Really seemed like they were building up to something there and the crowd was behind it.
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Archer-EVIL ***3/4 Really good clash of powerhouses with Archer dominating early and EVIL never quite being able to fully recover. Push Archer. Fale-SANADA ** This was a match that happened. As clever as I think it is that Fale has been winning matches by relying on his size for all these pin variations, did he REALLY need this? I know SANADA beating Okada is really all that matters, but getting 10 points I think would have helped him break out from the rest of the pack at 8. And Fale gettting more points than Archer, who has smoked him this entire tournament, is garbage. KENTA-Sabre ***1/2 Dragged a bit in the middle and was longer than it needed to be, but this was good. Sabre dominating with submissions but every once in a while would poke the bear and get the shit kicked out of him. KENTA's run in this tournament probably had the most ups-and-downs of everyone. He had some really good performances and some rather meh ones. And even in the really good performances, his presentation as a possible top guy never quite matched his actual output. I think he would fare best as a midcard heel. Ospreay-Tanahashi ****1/2 Will Ospreay could be a top star in NJPW and this match was proof. Not only were his selling and comebacks fantastic, but the crowd was hot for him pretty much the whole time. Tana also did a great job as the finally fading for good former Ace grasping at straws. This win really felt like a changing of the guard and I hope NJPW treats it as such. Okada-Ibushi ****1/2-****3/4 I've been critical of Okada's lack of urgency even if he's been pretty great this whole tournament. But with him only needing a draw to win the block, taking it easy in the beginning really worked. The neck work was also well done and smart. It was only until Ibushi started mounting his comebacks that Okada realized he was going to need a win. This match was 25 minutes but it honestly felt like 15 with how quickly they moved down the stretch. The ending was also a bit of a surprise even if the result was not. Definitely one of the best matches of the tournament.
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I'm not sure if it's a testament to NJPW being able to build new stars or just by sheer luck that screwing up with Naito didn't hurt them one iota and that they're actually doing better than ever. And I'd honestly be fine with Ibushi getting the shot even if I'm still convinced it'll be someone from the B block (Jay, sigh).
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As good as Okada has been in this tournament and really this year as a whole, I've been rather critical of his lack of urgency in the beginning of these big main event matches. However, with the story being that Okada only needed a draw to win the block, the slower build was logical. His repeated targeting of the neck also made sense due to Ibushi's history of neck issues. And not just with the DDT's, but with how Okada really cranked on the chin lock (which he normally isn't very good at). It was only once Ibushi started mounting his comebacks that Okada knew he had to finish him off. Really, the whole match felt like 15 minutes as opposed to 25 as they stepped on the gas rather quickly with both guys dishing out their heaviest shots and selling this as a war. The finish seemed to come a bit out of nowhere, but maybe I'm just so used to these long reversal sequences that it caught me a bit more by surprise. And it honestly worked. I'm not quite sure if this is a MOTYC, but it's still one of the best matches of the tournament. ****1/2-****3/4 -
Excellent match. The fading former ace out to prove he can get one last win in a tournament he's already been eliminated from against the junior heavyweight out to prove he can beat the best heavyweights. Fantastic limbwork with Ospreay selling the leg so well. For a guy long criticized for having too much of a go-go-go style and being a bad seller, Ospreay's growth over the last two years has been rather remarkable. It all fit the narrative with Tanahashi being crafty in his limb work and Ospreay just having more gas in the tank. It made Ospreay's victory that more meaningful and feel like a real changing of the guard. Hopefully NJPW can capitalize on it. ****1/2
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Thank YOU Cap.
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SANADA-Archer ***3/4 Really fun sprint. Archer can do very little wrong in my book and his banter and mannerisms were just as good as his big power moves. Liked SANADA attacking the leg and finding ways to counter Archer with his athleticism. Fale-Tanhashi **1/4 I mean, I guess this wasn't terrible. Usual Fale plodding and Bullet Club BS, but the finish was actually kinda clever and rather surprising (even if I disagree with the booking). Ospreay-KENTA ****1/4 As mentioned above this was definitely KENTA's best G1 match although I think he's done a fine job overall. Ospreay is just that good in bringing the best out of his opponents. Great clash of striker vs. high-flier. Ibushi-Zack ****1/4 If you've seen their other matches you know what to expect. Great stuff and even if Ibushi's leg selling still isn't great, I felt it was better here. Okada-EVIL **** Very much like Okada's last match where they took too long to step on the gas pedal but once they did, it was pretty great. I felt like Okada was selling too much in this match. Like once he hit his turnbuckle dropkick, he laid for a good 10 seconds before following-up. I guess if he wanted to drive home how grueling the tournament is then that's fine, but it came off more as a lack of urgency which is probably the biggest criticism I have for my dude. Still, standout performance from both guys in the finishing stretch. Like Cap said in the Okada-SANADA thread, it "willed itself" into being good. Yano-Taichi **1/2 Probably the worst Yano match this tournament. The pants spot was funny but you could clearly see Taichi assisting in ripping them off. Awkward spots like that hurt this match but the finish was the sort of Yano gloriousness I live for in this tournament. Naito-Cobb ***1/4 The last few minutes of this were really good but everything before it was just "fine". Not much chemistry although Cobb throwing dudes around is still entertaining even if everything else about him leaves a lot to be desired. Moxley-Goto ****1/4 Biggest surprise of the tournament. Under 10 minutes and they had an absolute banger. Not a single down moment and the finish was pretty awesome. Jay-Juice **** Started off a tad too slow but the leg work by Jay was really good and Juice sold it like a champ. The shenanigans at the end were a bit eye roll worthy but these guys have really good chemistry. It actually makes a ton of sense considering Juice is such a likable babyface. Ishii-Shingo ****1/2 I mean, you already knew this was gonna be awesome didn't you? I can't really put into words how great this was. Just go watch it right now.
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I usually think Kevin Kelly does a fine job, but him screwing up the point standings and never knowing who's eliminated or who's in contention has been awful.
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It's tough because both are my all-time favorites and they both encapsulate so much of what I love in wrestling: action, drama, escalation, and ambition. Their series is probably my favorite in-ring feud ever. I just give Kobashi the slightest of edges in offense, not necessarily because his looked better than Misawa's, but his ability to utilize so many moves and know when to use them is pretty outstanding. And when doing the GME project, Kobashi had the most matches of anyone that made my list (Misawa was second). But I can absolutely see the argument for Misawa.