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What do you guys think of Dave's steadfast contention that NJPW is 1987 Crockett? I see where he's coming from, but to me Okada is the big difference.

I don't listen to the audio, could you explain what he means?

 

 

That they've got a really talented group of performers that popped business, but are running the risk of losing popularity long term by going with a pat hand for far too long.

 

Putting all your eggs in the Okada basket is a bit risky, given that WWE has shown interest and that allure may eventually be too much for him to turn down. It also remains to be seen how well he'll draw when Tanahashi/Nakamura slow down and slide down the card into more supporting legends roles rather than being regular co-headliners, particularly on the annual Dome Show.

 

I'd also say Crockett actually had a better crop of future headliners in Luger/Sting/Windham in early 1988 than New Japan does today and there was more name talent on the outside that they could bring in to freshen things up on top (like Steamboat and Funk in 1989) that they actually had much more room for manoeuvre, but the booking killed the promotion. This is where New Japan has the advantage, as Gedo hasn't shown any signs that he'll run the company off a cliff through a combination of ego, incompetence and burnout. They also have the advantage of being the clear number one promotion in their market, which JCP/WCW never had outside of the Carolinas.

 

The better comparison would be All Japan in the mid 1990s, as more likely is a slow tapering off of crowds, rather than a fast fall from grace. Still, Okada is clearly in a much better position to lead the company than Jun Akiyama was at the same age. I'm sure Tanahashi and Nakamura will keep going into their mid 40s than the legends before them too.

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Business in JCP was in decline in 1987 off 1986. After Mania, especially with Rude's jump, a person realistic about JCP was worried. I certainly was. The going back to Flair vs Ron Garvin, regardless of how much some of us now like Garvin, wasn't a great sign and did problematic business. The Starcade bombed thanks to Vince's power play.

 

There was just a lot of horrible stuff going on with Crockett in 1987. One could look at the product in the ring and try to pretend everything was okay. But if you were at a live show, watching a good match, then looking at the crowd and seeing mediocre/poor attendance... it was worrisome.

 

Then of course there was nothing at all gained from UWF.

 

JCP is a hard analogy for New Japan unless there are similar behind the scenes and business issues already.

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NJPW also has Ibushi coming into his own as a draw although he's a bit older but doesn't have the years of wear and tear that many guys his age do. Komatsu and Tanaka both seem a big push and a few months on the gas away from being viable main eventers too.

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JCP is a hard analogy for New Japan unless there are similar behind the scenes and business issues already.

 

There's no business issues yet. Jan. 4th Tokyo Dome drew the largest paid crowd since the mid '00s. Ibushi vs. Styles sold out Sumo Hall (lower set-up than in the past, but legitimate sell-outs for non-G1 shows had been a thing of the past until very recently). House shows have been regularly selling out too with the Bullet Club on top. The Dominion show in July is a big test, as they run the 16,000 Osaka Jo Hall for the first time ever, and the G-1 too, as they run Sumo Hall for three consecutive days for the first time since 2004.

 

The booking is conservative and predictable, which doesn't suggest any behind the scenes issues.

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JCP is a hard analogy for New Japan unless there are similar behind the scenes and business issues already.

 

There's no business issues yet. Jan. 4th Tokyo Dome drew the largest paid crowd since the mid '00s. Ibushi vs. Styles sold out Sumo Hall (lower set-up than in the past, but legitimate sell-outs for non-G1 shows had been a thing of the past until very recently). House shows have been regularly selling out too with the Bullet Club on top. The Dominion show in July is a big test, as they run the 16,000 Osaka Jo Hall for the first time ever, and the G-1 too, as they run Sumo Hall for three consecutive days for the first time since 2004.

 

The booking is conservative and predictable, which doesn't suggest any behind the scenes issues.

 

 

So JCP 1986 is more likely a better analogy than 1987. Not that either is likely a good analogy.

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LOL, the Tuesday Bryan & Vinny & Craig show originally started off with Craig saying the next song contest would be about Bryan's love of black women wrestlers until apparently people on the board said it was racist and the show was uploaded with an obviously added on intro and the whole opening segment dumped like a raunchy terrestrial radio bit. The funny thing was the whole bit was set up as a jab on Bryan's unexplained fandom of Naomi and how he's always saying she should win the Divas belt, and by the disclaimer that was posted on the show link you'd think there was a string of N-bombs that had to be edited out.

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LOL, the Tuesday Bryan & Vinny & Craig show originally started off with Craig saying the next song contest would be about Bryan's love of black women wrestlers until apparently people on the board said it was racist and the show was uploaded with an obviously added on intro and the whole opening segment dumped like a raunchy terrestrial radio bit. The funny thing was the whole bit was set up as a jab on Bryan's unexplained fandom of Naomi and how he's always saying she should win the Divas belt, and by the disclaimer that was posted on the show link you'd think there was a string of N-bombs that had to be edited out.

Song contests? Aren't they a wrestling website?

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The B&V(&C on Tuesdays) shows do wacky things like talk to Bryan's granny and have listeners create songs using drops from the show. Most of them usually are pretty funny, from listening to the show pre-edit, it seemed like they were afraid of the submissions going over the line so they pre-emptively pulled the plug. The way it was worded on the site made the show itself seem racist which wasn't the case.

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I knew it was going to cause problems the moment I heard it. I mean I don't think Craig is a card-carrying KKK member of anything but it's not really okay to start talking about "Jungle Love" (even if it was in reference to the song) and repeatedly refer to women of color as "exotic". Honestly I could do without all the lecherous 40 year old dudes creeping on young women on that show in general.

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The best period was when Bryan kept interviewing Trina Michaels about the business like she was really knowledgeable. Granted she was working as a manager in the florida indies and even EVOLVE/Dragon Gate USA but most people know her for her porn career. I am going to assume the Bryan knew that as well ^_^

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The best period was when Bryan kept interviewing Trina Michaels about the business like she was really knowledgeable. Granted she was working as a manager in the florida indies and even EVOLVE/Dragon Gate USA but most people know her for her porn career. I am going to assume the Bryan knew that as well ^_^

 

She's called into Wrestling Observer Live and effectively advertised her escorting service before.

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I hardly ever rail on Dave outside of match ratings but this line legitimately confused me when reading the results of tonight's UFC show...

 

Velasquez with a takedown into the guillotine and Velasquez tapped out at 2:13.

 

 

The result was right but Dave needs to be a little more clear in what was going on here.

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LOL, the Tuesday Bryan & Vinny & Craig show originally started off with Craig saying the next song contest would be about Bryan's love of black women wrestlers until apparently people on the board said it was racist and the show was uploaded with an obviously added on intro and the whole opening segment dumped like a raunchy terrestrial radio bit. The funny thing was the whole bit was set up as a jab on Bryan's unexplained fandom of Naomi and how he's always saying she should win the Divas belt, and by the disclaimer that was posted on the show link you'd think there was a string of N-bombs that had to be edited out.

Song contests? Aren't they a wrestling website?

 

 

No kidding. Dave has got to update his model. The editorial standards aren't strong in the newsletter either, but people forgive that because he writes such a huge amount each week. But that kind of thing can destroy Dave's rep over time even if he has nothing to do with it. Whether it's him or someone else, someone should be screening everything that goes on the site against a set of consistent standards. Just imagine if that site was run like an actual news enterprise.

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