NJPW G1 Climax 2019

[Jmare007]

Naito vs Shingo lived up to the hype, go watch it!

[FMKK]

Listening to WOR earlier was doing my head in because Dave was completely screwing up who was in and out. He seemed to think Naito and White were both gone. Well, after forgetting that Jay existed for about five minutes.

[Jmare007]

Come on man, I broke down the scenarios for Naito and White a couple of days ago. No need for Dave

[Makai Club #1]

Ishii vs Yano - A great comedy vs serious match. Great nearfalls down the stretch

Juice vs Taichi - A okay match. A bit boring in parts but fun overall.

Cobb vs Goto - Much improved over their other matches. Good match

White vs Moxley - An awesome 'face beats down the heel w/ the heel cheating' match. 

Naito vs Shingo - I've feel I've grown out of love for Naito. He simply doesn't engage me whilst fighting from beneath, if I'm honest. He improved in the latter parts of the match though - his bread and butter. Shingo, from start to finish, ruled though.

[Microstatistics]

I'd say Yano is MVP so far. 

[Boss Rock]

9 minutes ago, Microstatistics said:

I'd say Yano is MVP so far. 

I love Yano every year but this definitely feels like his best in a while, especially since he's been made an actual player in the tournament and hasn't been eliminated already like he was in the last two.

My pick for MVP would probably be Shingo, Ishii, or Moxley. Ishii is a given as he's great every year, but Shingo has yet to have a lackluster match and even if Mox's matches haven't always been the best, they've all managed to stand out in some way.

[Microstatistics]

I'm not as high on Ishii as most but his consistency over the years is pretty remarkable. 

[El-P]

Yano vs Ishii was priceless. Yano going all workrate on Ishii was something else.

Juice vs Taichi was exactly what I thought it would be. Extra points for Miho Abe slapping Juice outside. Extra points for Taichi making a sumo reference, as explained by Chris Charlton.

Goto vs Cobb was so *there*. Good match and all, but totally there. Cobb keeps on being the disappointment of this G1, sadly.

White vs Mox went exactly I as thought it would. Again, White is working his gimmick like nobody's business. Some of his explosive counters are simply awesome. But it can get somewhat predictable. Still, very good match.

But really, let's be honest, Takagi & Naito just stole the show. And they probably stole this two days shows. Yeah, I have it above Tana vs Ibushi. Maybe because I have Takagi & Naito above Ibushi, generally speaking. And say what you want, but Naito still feels like the biggest star in this company. One day may come when Gedo regrets not going all out with Naito when he was still physically in his prime. MOTYC, just awesome awesome match. And there's so much you can do with Takagi...

[El-P]

On 8/4/2019 at 10:09 PM, Microstatistics said:

I'd say Yano is MVP so far. 

I wouldn't go that far, but he is a highlight of every A Block day. His best G1 yet ?

MVP.... To me it's between Ishii & Takagi for consistency and Tanahashi for the big matches performances.

[SmartMark15]

Ospreay had KENTA's best match of the tourney tonight and really kind of outclassed him just from the simple standpoint of execution alone. KENTA's been blowing his signature spots for years now and it does a lot to wreck his image.

[Boss Rock]

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.

[Boss Rock]

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.

[Jmare007]

Ibushi vs Okada drawing well was expected considering how protected that matchup is, but still, gotta point out how impressive is selling 9.6k tickets for night 1 of the triple header they've been doing in Tokyo the last five years. They did 50% more than Okada vs Tanahashi last year and more than 2,000 than the previous "record" for night 1 (Naito vs Tana at Sumo Hall in 17, which sold out the "small" set up they use).

This once again confirms how massive an Ibushi challenge at the Dome would be.

 

Poor Naito, man.

[FMKK]

Naito is basically in the exact position that Nakamura ended up stuck in through his last years in the company. He'll always be pushed but he's basically king of the Intercontinental Title as consolation for never getting to win the big one.

[Jmare007]

Naito's case I think is worse because at least Nakamura was pushed as the main guy for quite a while. He just never had the gimmick/character work, nor was over enough to match his push. Then he went to Mexico and he finally had the complete package but he never got the main title again.

Naito got a 2 month transitional reign and that's it, that's really fucked up considering he's more over and more of a draw than Nakamura ever was.

 

What's funny is that if for some miracle Naito actually wins this G-1, it would also feel like Ibushi got Naito'd this time around

[Boss Rock]

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).

[Boss Rock]

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.

[Boss Rock]

Welp, full speed ahead on Jay. Can't say I'm surprised.

[Jmare007]

Eh, I think it's fine as long as they make the right call and make Kota win tomorrow.

To be honest, a legit feud between Naito and White is the most interesting thing both could do heading into WK 14.

[Boss Rock]

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.

[Boss Rock]

3 hours ago, Jmare007 said:

Eh, I think it's fine as long as they make the right call and make Kota win tomorrow.

To be honest, a legit feud between Naito and White is the most interesting thing both could do heading into WK 14.

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. 

[Microstatistics]

That's it for Naito then? Disappointing since he is the most over and, IMO, the best wrestler in the company. But he makes whatever he is given work so I'm not too worried.

[Boss Rock]

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.

[Migs]

I think the two main event thing for the Tokyo Dome kinda hangs over the proceedings tomorrow. Are they going to do two title defenses? If so, do they do something weird in the finish here to necessitate both guys getting WK shots? Also, the image of Ibushi getting beat down and not saved tonight made me wonder if they are setting up for someone (Omega?) to be his savior and set up something with White for the Dome.

[Jmare007]

I don't think Naito had to be an Ace, he just needed to get a legit title run. Not because New Japan needed for it's business, but because it would've freshened up the main event scene and taken advantage of how over he was (and business wise there was nothing to lose), and he could've put someone other than Okada over big.

He could still get that run but it's gonna be 3 years later than when it should/could've happened, it's impossible not to criticize Gedo and New Japan for it.