Michael Elgin vs. Bad Luck Fale – G1 Climax (Block A)
It’s fascinating how Michael Elgin’s reputation as a shady-ass human being never crossed over to Japan. The fine people in Fukuoka might have been the most pro-Elgin crowd of the entire tournament, blissfully unaware of the man’s urine-based prostitution woes and loudly cheering for every thigh-slap this baby-headed colossus was throwing at them. And it made for a fun match with a strong heel/face dynamic, bullshit interference and all. I liked Fale going after the injured arm, I liked Elgin’s selling and best of all, I liked that they took the Andre/Hogan route and structured the match so it would peak at Elgin BODY SLAMMIN’ Fale. Two big dudes working a perfectly fine big dudes match. ***
Togi Makabe vs. Hangman Page – G1 Climax (Block A)
So far, Hangman’s been getting over in large parts because of his wild athleticism. Here’s this tall Texan badass that can flip with the best of ‘em. Like Jay White, the guy is very much a work in progress but the crowds are into him. This here match was all about Hangman toning down the flips and working a straight up Togi Makabe slug-fest, and I dug it a lot. No Moonsaults to the floor, just a bunch of stiff lariat collisions, f-bombs and crazy eyed staredowns. And from what we saw here, straight forward brawling would be an interesting avenue for young Hangman to explore – dude’s pretty good at it. It makes his other spots pop more when they’re not surrounded by a bunch of nutty SSP’s. That deadlift Blockbuster suplex he does is genuinely impressive and I couldn’t believe how well he pulled it off with Makabe. Some solid wrasslin’. ***1/4
Jay White vs. YOSHI-HASHI – G1 Climax (Block A)
About as watchable as it gets for a match pitting Jay White against YOSHI-HASHI. Jay’s heel shenanigans were kept to the bare minimum and they mostly had a straight wrestling match with Jay trying to convince YOSHI-HASHI of his CHAOS leadership skills by beating the absolute dogshit out of him. Jay’s psychopathic violence spree effectively turned YOSHI into a mega babyface and gave the match a lot of heat that helped make up for some of the more pedestrian wrestling bits. They worked some good near-falls near the end and I liked the crowd completely deflating when Jay finally connected with the Bladerunner. In a weird way, that means the move’s over. They know it’s lights out if it lands. Sidenote: Jay might want to tone down his in-ring trash talk so it doesn’t turn into a freaking Tama Tonga monologue. ***
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. EVIL – G1 Climax (Block A)
God damn, these guys were such a perfect fit. The pure-hearted babyface super hero taking on the morally-flexible cartoon villain in what felt like the most ‘’complete’’ Hiroshi Tanahashi match of the G1 so far. EVIL was a king-sized dick in this thing: going after Tana’s bad arm, then upgrading to literal murder with the HANSEN/KOBASHI-esque top turnbuckle lariat followed by a ridiculously stiff regular lariat outside of the ring for which Tana took a truly fearless bump. Tana did what he did best: sold his ass off and worked the crowd like a seasoned pro once he got on the comeback trail.
My favorite aspect of the match is that they brought some surprising twists to the EVIL Formula, a formula that’s been getting a little stagnant throughout the G1. Tanahashi being the first guy (I think?) to counter the ref-assisted kick was TRULY NECESSARY and I also popped for him rolling up EVIL when he went for his cut-throat pose. Great ending stretch too – loved Tana catching EVIL with his own STO to setup the finish. Yeah, this was a blast. ***3/4
Kazuchika Okada vs. Minoru Suzuki – G1 Climax (Block A)
The last time these two guys met in the ring, they fought to death in the middle of a damn rain storm and cemented their status as actual Gods of pro-wrestling. While this match might not have been as visually striking, it had everything you’d want from an Okada/Suzuki match and then some. Not a dull moment in sight: from the awesome opening crowd brawling segment to Suzuki doing the freaking Rainmaker pose, or Okada shouting ‘’LET’S HAVE SOME FUN!’’ at Suzuki before engaging into a world-shattering foream duel – I was hooked all the way through.
Minoru always brings out the very best out of Lil Kazu. He’s the guy that really puts his Ace-level power ranking to the test, and the more they clash in the ring, the more Okada seems to enjoy the challenge that this psychopathic monster brings to the table. Okada’s a cocky goofball at heart, but he knows he cannot fuck around with Minoru Suzuki.
The best part about their matches is that Suzuki will always find some great way to subvert expectations. In this one, Suzuki’s beatdown ends up awakening Okada’s DORMANT FIGHTING SPIRIT and he fucking clocks Minoru with a slap right in the face, and just when you think Okada will go on this triumphant comeback, Suzuki follows him into the ropes and just obliterates him with THE SHOOT DROPKICK.
The build around both guys’ respective Piledrivers was tremendous. Okada desperately trying to cut off Suzuki’s strike onslaughts by deadlifting him into the Tombstone, Suzuki having none of this shit, and the eventual GOTCH-STYLE TOMBSTONE payoff – just wow. I could watch these two wrestle all day. ****1/4
