G-1 Climax 26

[El-P]

A Block B Block

 

****+ as they say

Elgin vs. Naito

Naito vs. Shibata

 

Quite excellent

 

SANADA vs. Tanahashi Nakajima vs. Shibata
Okada vs. Marufuji Nakajima vs. Nagata
SANADA vs. Okada
Tenzan vs. Marufuji

Ishii vs. Marufuji

 

Damn fine

 

Tenzan vs. Ishii Nagata vs. Naito
Fale vs. Goto Shibata vs. Honma
Ishii vs. Goto YOSHI-HASHI vs. Honma
Fale vs. Marufuji Omega vs. Yano
Goto vs. Okada YOSHI-HASHI vs. Nagata
Fale vs. Tanahashi EVIL vs. Nakajima

EVIL vs. YOSHI-HASHI

 

Good it is indeed

 

Makabe vs. Tenzan Omega vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Elgin vs. EVIL
Honma vs. Omega
Shibata vs. Elgin

Omega vs. Elgin

 

Unoffensive

 

Makabe vs. Tanahashi Yano vs. Nakajima
Ishii vs. Fale EVIL vs. Nagata
SANADA vs. Makabe Naito vs. Yano

Tonga vs. Tanahashi Honma vs. Yano

SANADA vs. Goto

Okada vs. Tonga

 

Not good
Makabe vs. Tonga
Tenzan vs Tonga

[El-P]

A Block - Day 9

 

Tonga vs Ishii

 

Highlight was a good looking woman at ringside wearing a Tonga mask. And camouflage pants. So, this actually exist, a hot Tama Tonga fan. I think she cried when he got teh victory. Lucky girl, he probably won't win much more. I wondered if Tonga ever hit the RKO, until he finally did, after several attemps. Maybe the most enjoyable Tama match too thus far, a cool Road Runner + Will Coyote running around sequence and nice build to Tama finally hitting the RKO. So, it appears Ishii is more than just stuff epics.

SANADA vs Fale

 

Big load of nothing. They didn't click. Both appear to need a strong worker to have a really good match. Their style didn't mesh. Yup. Not actively bad, but...

Makabe vs Marufuji

 

Smart match. Maru sees stiffness doesn't cut it at first, so he chooses the way of quickness, but gets cut off. Finally leads a to final stiffing encounter, whom Maru wins eventually because he's better at it. Good dynamic, good finishing stretch, good match. Best Makabe match. These two both were in J Cups at one time. Crazy when you see Makabe now.

 

Tenzan vs Okada

 

Super veteran underdog vs, kinda more bitchy than usual Okada, which was fitting and made the match even better. Oh yeah, Tenzan worked hard and was fiery. Again, good dynamic and built to a very good match overall, with he crowd really pulling for the older guy. Okada did a super solid job there too.

 

Tanahashi vs Goto

 

Isn't Goto kinda the underachiever of the mid-00's generation ? He kinda looks like it. He lacks something to get to the very next level, but him and Tanahashi probably had so many excellent match together that he shows. In both a good and bad way (as in, it feels like they are having "just another" match, kinda). But mostly in a good way, pretty much all action, with faliliarity playing a part and Tanahashi busting out some really sweet stuff. Excellent match, mostly based on pure action more than strong storytelling.

[El-P]

Day 10 - B Block

 

Nakajima vs. YOSHI-HASHI

 

YH's got a bad shoulder and Nakajima knows it. I have trouble getting a connection with YH. Maybe it's because if some of his offense, which I find too indyffied. Maybe it's because he's ugly. That nose. Wear a mark already. I don't get the baton whirling. Anyway, this is quite good, and YH is damn over especially against that NOAH parasite Nakajima, beating on their New Japan favourite underdog this side of Homna. Maybe a bit of iffy selling toward the end, but this got really good.

 

Nagata vs. Elgin

 

This is one day where Nagata doesn't look good. And Elgin needs someone to wear him in. Elgin's got a bad shoulder and Nagata doesn't go for it. It's goofy like that for the whole match. And sloppy on occasion. And with awful transitions, like Angle-cruising. Yeah, this is bad Nagata, which is too bad. He looked out of it. Elgin has this bad ROH-like instinct of running through big spots, like that stuff on the edge of the canvas which leads to zilch. This was a bad match by two guys who could have a really good one, so it's not excusable.

 

Shibata vs. Yano

 

Yano is one swift motherfucker. Shibata just threw himself without thinking. Hey, what are you gonna do ?

 

Omega vs. EVIL

 

Sorry, but Omega just needs to settle the fuck down. In each of his serious matches, there's a point I don't give a fuck anymore because of his ridiculous acting and tendencies to thrown huge spots around and do nothing with them. So yeah, this is a good match but using a double nelson headdropping suplex as a transition spot and basically forcin EVIL to transition into offense without seeling shit is bad work. Then it's big spots galore, but I couldn't care less. EVIL is a solid worker. Omega has crazy potential, but he sure needs some serious taming.

 

Honma vs. Naito

 

Naito is piling them up at this point. Ace leg work, the stuff on the barricade was brutal. Honma sells. Crazy concept, I know. And Naito always comes back to it. And it tells a story. He doesn't let Honma go into his stupid headrop shit early. Naito is smart as fuck and I love the character. And then we get to the part where Homna is pulling through and we get to the big spots, bit it means something. Did the crowd chant "Hon-ma" for the entire match ? This was excellent. No. This was great. Yeah, Naito is piling them up despite not being the greatest mechanic by a long stretch.

[El-P]

A Block B Block


****+ as they say

Elgin vs. Naito
Naito vs. Shibata

Honma vs. Naito

Quite excellent

 

SANADA vs. Tanahashi Nakajima vs. Shibata
Okada vs. Marufuji Nakajima vs. Nagata
SANADA vs. Okada
Tenzan vs. Marufuji
Ishii vs. Marufuji

Tanahashi vs Goto

 

Damn fine

 

Tenzan vs. Ishii Nagata vs. Naito
Fale vs. Goto Shibata vs. Honma
Ishii vs. Goto YOSHI-HASHI vs. Honma
Fale vs. Marufuji Omega vs. Yano
Goto vs. Okada YOSHI-HASHI vs. Nagata
Fale vs. Tanahashi EVIL vs. Nakajima
Tenzan vs Okada EVIL vs. YOSHI-HASHI

Nakajima vs. YOSHI-HASHI

Good it is indeed

 

Makabe vs. Tenzan Omega vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Tonga vs Ishii Elgin vs. EVIL
Makabe vs Marufuji Honma vs. Omega
Shibata vs. Elgin
Omega vs. Elgin

Omega vs. EVIL

Unoffensive

 

Makabe vs. Tanahashi Yano vs. Nakajima
Ishii vs. Fale EVIL vs. Nagata
SANADA vs. Makabe Naito vs. Yano
Tonga vs. Tanahashi Honma vs. Yano
SANADA vs. Goto Shibata vs. Yano
Okada vs. Tonga

 

Not good

 

Makabe vs. Tonga Nagata vs. Elgin
Tenzan vs Tonga

SANADA vs Fale

[El-P]

It seems I'll never get through this thingy…

 

Day ELEVEN. A-Block.

 

Fale vs. Tenzan

These two are not meant to meat each other and have a good match. This is sluggish and slow and sweaty and not good. Fale can be really fun to watch when he's in with the right guy. Tenzan ain't that guy. Tenzan usually gets a good match with everyone. This isn't working.

 

Tonga vs. Goto

Tonga is a jobber who gets way to much from the other guys. Which make every match of his kind of a chore to watch, as he's not very good and most probably will lose anyway. Goto does a good job though, and the finishing running around sequence works again, with RKO teases and tries. Decent stuff, but Tonga is mostly a waste of time, he should mostly be squashed.

 

Naomichi Marufuji vs. SANADA

SANADA tries to hit harder than Marufuji. He fails. So he tries to run faster than Marufuji. Nice attempts. But fails too. SANADA shows some spunk against stiffy & tricky veteran though and it makes for a good match, although SANADA clearly lacks something on his own, it's pretty clear at this point.

 

Ishii vs. Tanahashi

This had some goofiness elements at some point, and Tanahashi's execution at the end was not as good as it usually is, but what a terrific match for the most part. A bit heavy and strike exchanges, but the slapping part where Tana drops down Ishii was really good thanks to Ishii's selling. Okay, so I guess dragon suplexe are meant to be not sold, but not in an ugly Omega-match way. Tanahashi rising up as the ace that has to be overcomed was really good. Excellent, maybe great match.

 

Okada vs. Makabe

Sometimes, Okada is too much Rockyesque for me in his maneurisms. Good Makabe match though. Nothing special, but Okada does a good job making the old brawler look fine. Not exactly an epic main event though.

 

Apart from the Ishii vs Tana match, this was pretty so-so. The A-Block clearly has some weakness which only appear even more with the wrong combinations. Is this thing ever gonna end anyway ?

[El-P]

Day 12 - B-Block

 

Yano vs. Nagata

If I were Nagata, I'd be pissed at the ref too. Gotta love that total "What the fuck was that supposed to be ?" look when he got counted out. Yano is always entertaining. Fun little tricky match.

 

YOSHI-HASHI vs. Elgin

Well, these two brought the best in each other. Short but intense, with strong sense of purpose (fuck up that shoulder, YOSHI) and selling (really good job by Elgin). Elgin's power spots fought through the pain and YH's quick, stiff offense countering the massive log worked wonders. Very good match and the proof that Elgin can be that good when he doesn't get ROHgoofy.

 

Honma vs. EVIL

Good standart EVIL match, in which Homna played his usual underdog-but-not-so-quite role efficiently. So, the headrropping is something that happens a lot in New Japan I guess, but this led to a finish so no complaint. EVIL has revealed himself as a solid worker through this tournament.

 

Shibata vs. Omega

Holy shit. So, when Omega tons his cooked up shit down, he can be a fucking great worker. Maybe the fact he was trying to upstage shoot-style Shibata played a part, but this is the best he has ever looked to me. Brutal and focused work, beat up each other's injuries until something breaks, superb execution, no stupid no-selling. Damn, this was excellent, bordering on great.

 

Naito vs. Nakajima

Naito's stalling is state of the art, and with stoic hiding a hot temper Nakajima, it works wonder. Great leg work as usual which was followed through, Nakajima still kicking the shit out of Naito once he gets on top. The finishing stretch with counters and shit was pretty wonderful. Great match.

 

Ok, so B Block delivers the goods again in a big way, with Elgin & Omega looking at their best, which was nice to see.

[El-P]

A Block B Block

****+ as they say

Elgin vs. Naito
Naito vs. Shibata
Honma vs. Naito

Naito vs. Nakajima

Quite excellent

SANADA vs. Tanahashi Nakajima vs. Shibata
Okada vs. Marufuji Nakajima vs. Nagata
SANADA vs. Okada Shibata vs. Omega
Tenzan vs. Marufuji
Ishii vs. Marufuji
Tanahashi vs Goto
Ishii vs. Tanahashi

Damn fine

Tenzan vs. Ishii Nagata vs. Naito
Fale vs. Goto Shibata vs. Honma
Ishii vs. Goto YOSHI-HASHI vs. Honma
Fale vs. Marufuji Omega vs. Yano
Goto vs. Okada YOSHI-HASHI vs. Nagata
Fale vs. Tanahashi EVIL vs. Nakajima
Tenzan vs Okada EVIL vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Nakajima vs. YOSHI-HASHI

YOSHI-HASHI vs. Elgin

 

Good it is indeed

Makabe vs. Tenzan Omega vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Tonga vs Ishii Elgin vs. EVIL
Makabe vs Marufuji Honma vs. Omega
Naomichi Marufuji vs. SANADA Shibata vs. Elgin
Okada vs. Makabe Omega vs. Elgin
Omega vs. EVIL

Honma vs. EVIL

Unoffensive

Makabe vs. Tanahashi Yano vs. Nakajima
Ishii vs. Fale EVIL vs. Nagata
SANADA vs. Makabe Naito vs. Yano
Tonga vs. Tanahashi Honma vs. Yano
SANADA vs. Goto Shibata vs. Yano
Okada vs. Tonga Yano vs. Nagata

Tonga vs. Goto

Not good

Makabe vs. Tonga Nagata vs. Elgin
Tenzan vs Tonga
SANADA vs Fale

Fale vs. Tenzan

[El-P]

I'm gonna finish this if that's the last thing I do here.

 

Day 13 A-Block

 

Tonga vs. SANADA

What the hell happened here ? This is actually a good match ! And Tama is more than game. Finally he puts together something playing into his strenghts (the fakes and quick counters). SANADA was also on fire. In a way, Tama is totally ready for WWE. But then again, since he's using the RKO, not really.

 

Fale vs. Makabe

Doesn't work on paper. Works in actuality. Two big, lumbering bull charging into each others until one finally falls on the ground. Rather stiff, big man wrestling. Fale's finisher is still lame though. Good stuff again when it shouldn't have been.

 

Tenzan vs. Goto

So, Goto effectively killed Tenzan's G1. And it felt like it too. Great sense of a very last ride from Tenzan, and what is probably his best match of the G1. This was the most purposefull Goto ever looked too. Very very good stuff.

 

Ishii vs. Okada

MOTYC. MOTY maybe. Ishii pulling out all the stops, right from the get-go, to upset his boss and IWGP champion. Both are great here, but Ishii was the best. The chop during Okada's little Rockyesque routine was so cool. Well, he did got up a bit early after that outside DDT, but still, his selling and facials made it believable. Terrific work. Is that Ishii's biggest victory ever ? (I know, no one is gonna answer me)

 

Marufuji vs. Tanahashi

They had no chance of following the previous match at the same pace, so they didn't even try. Smart approach. And they still built into a great match. Maru really went from a running around high flyer to a guy who's chopping his opponent's chests into raw meat. Must be a pain to take those chops, some of the most brutal ever, really. Tana is still the Ace, it's obvious.

 

Damn. That show. Two matches that overdelivered, the best Tenzan match of the tournament with an emotional response, and two great matches. The A Block was getting murdered by the B Block until then, but this changes the balance. Right pairings in the final two matches helped a lot I guess.

[WingedEagle]

 

Ishii vs. Okada

MOTYC. MOTY maybe. Ishii pulling out all the stops, right from the get-go, to upset his boss and IWGP champion. Both are great here, but Ishii was the best. The chop during Okada's little Rockyesque routine was so cool. Well, he did got up a bit early after that outside DDT, but still, his selling and facials made it believable. Terrific work. Is that Ishii's biggest victory ever ? (I know, no one is gonna answer me)

 

 

Arguably. Its either this or the Tanahashi G1 win in 2013. That match and win really cemented him as a player who could be taken seriously at the level needed to get here, but this was the IWGP champion and head of his stable. Can't go wrong calling it for either.

[El-P]

THANKS FOR THE ANSWER !!!

 

Well, it had all the aura of a huge win.

 

D14. BBlock

 

Yano vs. Elgin

Elgin apparently knows how to work the ga-ga too. Which is fun. There's something unsettling about Yano's demeanor. This guy is more creepy than funny. Or maybe he's freepny. He's an odd cat, but he can work comedy around anyone, with some good actual serious work, and it makes his character a spoiler of sorts. I like the fact his bullshits get him wins. Upper tier of Yanoism.

 

Shibata vs. YOSHI-HASHI

They go straight into sprint mode. Nice work, kinda auto-pilot though, not much in term of dynamic established here, and YH doesn't work as an underdog. If anything, it's Shibata who looks banged up. Good stuff. Small town match.

 

Nakajima vs. Honma

Small town or not, Hona is fucking over everywhere. Nakajima really grew into a dick more and more as the G1 progressed, and it shwoed a bit here too. Good, stiff back and forth action, the kind that doesn't dive too deep but sure delivers in term of building an exciting match. Very good.

 

Nagata vs. Omega

Omega is kinda Dick Muroch. He's half masterworker, half goof-on-coke. Nagata looks kinda old at points here. Shaky selling, by that he barely shakes his worked-on legs while on offense. Enjoying the fact Omega is going for the Nagata lock on Nagata, that's a true dick move. Finishing stretch had some goofy no-selling, not surprising considering those two, but it was still quite a good match overall, despite the kinda thrown together structure.

 

EVIL vs. Naito

Another stable member vs aniki match. They don't care about that fact apparently, busting each other without remorse. Naito makes the usually always true heel EVIL look like an underdog here, with the crowd behind him. Hell, EVIL comes close to pack it up I'd argue they played a bit too much equal by the end, Naito should have won easier than this, but it sure made EVIL look strong in the end. Very good match, probably EVIL's best.

 

Small town show with some routine work, but enough good stuff.

[El-P]

A Block B Block
MOTYC

 

Ishii vs. Okada

****+ as they say

Marufuji vs. Tanahashi Elgin vs. Naito
Naito vs. Shibata
Honma vs. Naito
Naito vs. Nakajima

Quite excellent

 

SANADA vs. Tanahashi Nakajima vs. Shibata
Okada vs. Marufuji Nakajima vs. Nagata
SANADA vs. Okada Shibata vs. Omega
Tenzan vs. Marufuji
Ishii vs. Marufuji
Tanahashi vs Goto
Ishii vs. Tanahashi

Damn fine

 

Tenzan vs. Ishii Nagata vs. Naito
Fale vs. Goto Shibata vs. Honma
Ishii vs. Goto YOSHI-HASHI vs. Honma
Fale vs. Marufuji Omega vs. Yano
Goto vs. Okada YOSHI-HASHI vs. Nagata
Fale vs. Tanahashi EVIL vs. Nakajima
Tenzan vs Okada EVIL vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Tenzan vs. Goto Nakajima vs. YOSHI-HASHI
YOSHI-HASHI vs. Elgin
Nakajima vs. Honma

EVIL vs. Naito

 

Good it is indeed

 

Makabe vs. Tenzan Omega vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Tonga vs Ishii Elgin vs. EVIL
Makabe vs Marufuji Honma vs. Omega
Naomichi Marufuji vs. SANADA Shibata vs. Elgin
Okada vs. Makabe Omega vs. Elgin
Tonga vs. SANADA Omega vs. EVIL
Fale vs. Makabe Honma vs. EVIL

Shibata vs. YOSHI-HASHI

Nagata vs. Omega

 

Unoffensive

 

Makabe vs. Tanahashi Yano vs. Nakajima
Ishii vs. Fale EVIL vs. Nagata
SANADA vs. Makabe Naito vs. Yano
Tonga vs. Tanahashi Honma vs. Yano
SANADA vs. Goto Shibata vs. Yano
Okada vs. Tonga Yano vs. Nagata
Tonga vs. Goto Yano vs. Elgin

 

Not good

 

Makabe vs. Tonga Nagata vs. Elgin
Tenzan vs Tonga
SANADA vs Fale
Fale vs. Tenzan

[El-P]

DAY Fifteeeeeeeeen. ABLOCK

 

This stuff is officially running way too looooong. Kokugikan already.

 

Marufuji vs Tonga

Maru is awfully nice to Tonga. Maybe he fears him like he's his father. No stiff chops. Nice running around action. Quickness and shit, that was smart on Fuji's part, as it's Tama's strong point. Falls apart at the end though with some blown spots. Pretty good overall.

 

Ishii vs SANADA

Maybe SANADA is just miscasted as a heel. Ishii seems motivated again, which puts some fire under SANADA's. Bull vs dickhead. Although SANADA isn't enough of a dickhead. Nice work. Looks painfull. Some no-selling, fighting spirit style. Ok, this is very good and spirited, with SANADA pulling a nice upset.

 

Tanahashi vs Tenzan

Holy shit, Tanahashi is being a prick to Tenzan and actually gets booed. This guy really is the master, although he looks banged up on offense at points. Something his kinda lost with Tenzan at this point, although it's a good match, but there's no way Tenzan was winning. Well, ride in the sunset already, bull man.

 

Okada vs Fale

Ok, so Okada knows how to work with Fale. Builds to the good old bodyslam, like it's WWF in 1987, and it's really good. Damn, Okada is pretty giving to Fale, working a legit false finish and WHAT THE ??? Now this is one upset I could live without, as it kinda stains the huge Ishii win to me. Fale is a pretty good big man, but the IWGP champ, really ? Still, good match, efficiently worked.

 

Goto vs Makabe

Goto the young samurai warrior is making old scared up brawler Makabe the underdog. Interesting. Work is stiff and crowd pushes Makabe. This is Makabe's best match of the G1, and Goto's effort strongly indicates he's going far. Yep, this was impressive on both part, with some huge bombs. I still love the Spider Suplex. Very very good.

 

Well, not bad for the last non-Kokugikan show of the A-Block. Tenzan should have received more though, and Fale got way too much for my taste. You could feel Goto's momentum in the main, which was nice.

[El-P]

DAY 16 - BBLOCK

 

Omega vs Nakajima

Is it me or are they rushing Omega to the top already ? Seemed kinda rushed as a match too, with Nakajima seemingly out of fuel against goofy Omega. Good match, but at this point I kinda expected better.

 

EVIL vs Yano

Funny, Yano does look like he can win at any time, in an sleaze-bag Yoshi Ogawa way. Short. Non offensive. Kinda funny. The usual Yano deal.

 

YOSHI-HASHI vs Naito

An escalation match in that first, you go, this is very good. Then minutes are passing and you think, it's actually excellent. And before it ends, you're like, great match. Naito goes after YH's injured shoulder for a while, which is a nice change from the usual knee attack. YH really grew on me despite some of his offense, I do enjoy the stiffness. And he comes very very close to winning that one before eventually falling down to the master. That Naito is a piece of work.

 

Shibata vs Nagata

Old kicks vs Now kicks. Perfect pairing. Nagata is grumpy and doesn't shy away from zeroing on the bad shoulder. This is crisp, doesn't get goofy (always a risk with Nagata) and really gets focused on the kicking and shoot-style attacks of both men, including some neat mirror spots. Very good match.

 

Honma vs Elgin

Totally srpint style. Would be perfectly nice for ten minutes or so, but it kinda goes on forever without building to anything. And Elgin rushed through dangerous spots like they are bodyslams, a typical terrible indy mentality. Honma doesn't reign him in, so it never goes beyond good, it's an inflated match without direction and too much kick-outs. Proof ? The ending seemed like a relief and not very climatic. Elgin has lots of potential, but can get silly quite easily.

 

Finally, the road to Kokugikan is over. Quite the ride with a bunch of great matches and tons of good stuff. Still, it feels like it's way too long.

[El-P]

A Block B Block
MOTYC

Ishii vs. Okada

****+ as they say

Marufuji vs. Tanahashi Elgin vs. Naito
Naito vs. Shibata
Honma vs. Naito
Naito vs. Nakajima

YOSHI-HASHI vs Naito

Quite excellent

 

SANADA vs. Tanahashi Nakajima vs. Shibata
Okada vs. Marufuji Nakajima vs. Nagata
SANADA vs. Okada Shibata vs. Omega
Tenzan vs. Marufuji
Ishii vs. Marufuji
Tanahashi vs Goto
Ishii vs. Tanahashi

Damn fine

 

Tenzan vs. Ishii Nagata vs. Naito
Fale vs. Goto Shibata vs. Honma
Ishii vs. Goto YOSHI-HASHI vs. Honma
Fale vs. Marufuji Omega vs. Yano
Goto vs. Okada YOSHI-HASHI vs. Nagata
Fale vs. Tanahashi EVIL vs. Nakajima
Tenzan vs Okada EVIL vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Tenzan vs. Goto Nakajima vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Ishii vs SANADA YOSHI-HASHI vs. Elgin
Goto vs Makabe Nakajima vs. Honma
EVIL vs. Naito

Shibata vs Nagata

 

Good it is indeed

 

Makabe vs. Tenzan Omega vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Tonga vs Ishii Elgin vs. EVIL
Makabe vs Marufuji Honma vs. Omega
Naomichi Marufuji vs. SANADA Shibata vs. Elgin
Okada vs. Makabe Omega vs. Elgin
Tonga vs. SANADA Omega vs. EVIL
Fale vs. Makabe Honma vs. EVIL
Tanahashi vs Tenzan Shibata vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Okada vs Fale Nagata vs. Omega

Omega vs Nakajima

Honma vs Elgin

 

Unoffensive

 

Makabe vs. Tanahashi Yano vs. Nakajima
Ishii vs. Fale EVIL vs. Nagata
SANADA vs. Makabe Naito vs. Yano
Tonga vs. Tanahashi Honma vs. Yano
SANADA vs. Goto Shibata vs. Yano
Okada vs. Tonga Yano vs. Nagata
Tonga vs. Goto Yano vs. Elgin

Marufuji vs Tonga EVIL vs Yano

 

Not good

 

Makabe vs. Tonga Nagata vs. Elgin
Tenzan vs Tonga
SANADA vs Fale
Fale vs. Tenzan

[El-P]

Day 17 - A-Block. Kokugikan !

 

SANADA vs. Tenzan

So, is that gonna be Tenzan's last G1 match ever ? Probably, also he showed he had still enough in the tank to have a bunch of good matches. This was no different, with SANADA showing good fire. Still, Tenzan's booking was puzzling at best. What was the point of him flopping that badly ?

Makabe. Vs Ishii
Makabe has the worst Vader-like forearm shots, just floating over Ishii's head. Apart from this, it was two bull going at each other, and it was a spectacle it should be. Ishii's so good. I've really come to terms with him not being a simple one-trick poney. Best Makabe match of the G1 probably.

Fale vs. Tonga
Tonga's story in the G1 is most compelling than Tenzan's, especially since it looked like actually improved along the way. This was a good match, with nice Bullet Club hierarchy bullshit at the beginning. Tama playing babyface against monster Fale kinda reveals himself better in that role too. Tama grew on me and the win worked very well there.

Goto vs. Marufuji

A bomb throwing exchange, with Maru looking superior to the energetic samurai warrior, working from underneath to maybe qualify himself for the final. highspot based match, and Maru looked amazing most of the way here, with some really nifty stuff. Say it again, he's been the best and most compelling "creative" worker post 00's. Excellent match.

 

Tanahashi vs Okada

Great beginnings with Tana being a dick to somewhat heel (I guess) Okada. This is the ultimate japanese blowjob match. Okay, so they go long. Nice focused, repeated attack on the knee by Tanahashi, which wasn't sold the best by Okada, especially after Tana always went back to it with some brutal looking stuff. Still, built to one hell of a match, but Okada was too short on selling to me to get above excellent-to-great match, which is earned a good part thanks to the drama during the finishing stretch and some legit great moments (Tana has the knack for making them happen). Tanahashi is still a great fucking worker despite some execution issues. Okada can work great matches, but I would not call him a regular great worker, from what I've seen on this G1.

 

One hell of a first Kokugikan show, with a fun undercard too.

[El-P]

DAY 18 - B-Block - Kokugikan

 

Nagata vs. Honma

And another really good match by old Nagata. Quite the good performance overall by the veteran over the G1, save for a bad night. Honma really has his act down pat, and although the rush to the headbutt early is quite goofy at times, he's proven to me he's a super solid and fun worker, 16 years after he was the best deathmatch worker in the world.

 

Yano vs. YOSHI-HASHI

If I were a pro-wrestler, I'd want to work with Yano all the time.

 

EVIL vs. Shibata

EVIL beats Shibata's bad shoulder unmercifully. Shibata does look beat up. This was very good. Sorry, I'm just burned out.

 

Nakajima vs. Elgin

Holy shit, it's kinda like the previous match, but taken to another level entirely. Funny how Elgin, with the right opponent, can deliver a great match and not get goofy. Nakajima sure has proven he was the right opponent for everybody in the thing. Stiff, focused, dramatic, epic. Great match.

 

Omega vs. Naito

Very seldom in my 25 years of watching pro-wrestling did I think I was watching the best match ever, or something to that effect. I don't think I've considered much more (if that much) than ten match ever reaching the infamous ***** rating. When I saw the comments in that thread, I was very doubtful to say the least. As much as Omega showed me if could be a great worker, he also showed way too much goofiness on day to day. I expected a great match, counting on Naito to work the same brilliance he already showcased and Omega reigning down his bad instinct. Nope. This is one of the best match I have ever seen. Both were absolutely awesome. The build, the selling, the moves (yeah, fuck a gazillion punches in the ass with a barbwire bat), the escalation, the drama, the body language. Yep. This one I'd give the ***** rating. MOTY. Pro-wrestling can be so great. It's rare, but when it happens, i's beautiful.

 

Well. Tetsuya Naito is the best wrestler today and my new favourite. VIP of the G1, along with Nakajima, Tanahashi & Marufuji. Kenny Omega has the potential of being a true all-time great if he works more like he did his two best matches here and does less of the bad ROH-isms.

[El-P]

A Block B Block

*****

 

Omega vs. Naito

 

MOTYC

Ishii vs. Okada

 

****+ as they say

Marufuji vs. Tanahashi Elgin vs. Naito
Tanahashi vs Okada Naito vs. Shibata
Honma vs. Naito
Naito vs. Nakajima
YOSHI-HASHI vs Naito

Nakajima vs. Elgin

Quite excellent

SANADA vs. Tanahashi Nakajima vs. Shibata
Okada vs. Marufuji Nakajima vs. Nagata
SANADA vs. Okada Shibata vs. Omega
Tenzan vs. Marufuji
Ishii vs. Marufuji
Tanahashi vs Goto
Ishii vs. Tanahashi

Goto vs. Marufuji

 

Damn fine

Tenzan vs. Ishii Nagata vs. Naito
Fale vs. Goto Shibata vs. Honma
Ishii vs. Goto YOSHI-HASHI vs. Honma
Fale vs. Marufuji Omega vs. Yano
Goto vs. Okada YOSHI-HASHI vs. Nagata
Fale vs. Tanahashi EVIL vs. Nakajima
Tenzan vs Okada EVIL vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Tenzan vs. Goto Nakajima vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Ishii vs SANADA YOSHI-HASHI vs. Elgin
Goto vs Makabe Nakajima vs. Honma
Makabe. Vs Ishii EVIL vs. Naito
Shibata vs Nagata
Nagata vs. Honma

EVIL vs. Shibata

Good it is indeed

Makabe vs. Tenzan Omega vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Tonga vs Ishii Elgin vs. EVIL
Makabe vs Marufuji Honma vs. Omega
Marufuji vs. SANADA Shibata vs. Elgin
Okada vs. Makabe Omega vs. Elgin
Tonga vs. SANADA Omega vs. EVIL
Fale vs. Makabe Honma vs. EVIL
Tanahashi vs Tenzan Shibata vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Okada vs Fale Nagata vs. Omega
SANADA vs. Tenzan Omega vs Nakajima
Fale vs. Tonga Honma vs Elgin

Unoffensive

Makabe vs. Tanahashi Yano vs. Nakajima
Ishii vs. Fale EVIL vs. Nagata
SANADA vs. Makabe Naito vs. Yano
Tonga vs. Tanahashi Honma vs. Yano
SANADA vs. Goto Shibata vs. Yano
Okada vs. Tonga Yano vs. Nagata
Tonga vs. Goto Yano vs. Elgin
Marufuji vs Tonga EVIL vs Yano
Yano vs. YOSHI-HASHI

Not good

Makabe vs. Tonga Nagata vs. Elgin
Tenzan vs Tonga
SANADA vs Fale
Fale vs. Tenzan

[WingedEagle]

DAY 18 - B-Block - Kokugikan

Omega vs. Naito

Very seldom in my 25 years of watching pro-wrestling did I think I was watching the best match ever, or something to that effect. I don't think I've considered much more (if that much) than ten match ever reaching the infamous ***** rating. When I saw the comments in that thread, I was very doubtful to say the least. As much as Omega showed me if could be a great worker, he also showed way too much goofiness on day to day. I expected a great match, counting on Naito to work the same brilliance he already showcased and Omega reigning down his bad instinct. Nope. This is one of the best match I have ever seen. Both were absolutely awesome. The build, the selling, the moves (yeah, fuck a gazillion punches in the ass with a barbwire bat), the escalation, the drama, the body language. Yep. This one I'd give the ***** rating. MOTY. Pro-wrestling can be so great. It's rare, but when it happens, i's beautiful.

 

Well. Tetsuya Naito is the best wrestler today and my new favourite. VIP of the G1, along with Nakajima, Tanahashi & Marufuji. Kenny Omega has the potential of being a true all-time great if he works more like he did his two best matches here and does less of the bad ROH-isms.

 

I haven't watched the finals yet, but Omega gave a very similar performance there. Goto is not Naito, so the match doesn't reach the level of this one but it wasn't too far off.

[El-P]

G1 Climax final

 

Kenny Omega vs Hirooki Goto

A very good/maybe excellent match can only be seen as a disapointment of sort after the al-time classic of the previous day. Just a typical all-action Goto match, with Omega pulling off a very good performance, lower on goofiness and strong on selling from the day before. But there was not much in term of build. The finishing stretch felt a bit too much finisher spamming too. Still, this Climax was certainly a star-maker in term of Omega as a main-event fixture. The long promo in fucking japanese was quite impressive. I guess, with the video game theme gimmick, Omega really is the total Japan nerd worker, which also explains some of his idiosyncrasies in the ring.

 

Overall, the G1 was quite impressive in term of delivering strong matches. Too long and draining, but way too much great stuff to complain. Glad I'm finally done.