I didn’t ask for this…
You give me heart attack
I didn’t want to care…
And then I saw you there
Been working like a dog…
I turned all my dreams off…
I didn’t know my name, I didn’t know my name
I got a little bit longer, I got a ways to go
I got a little bit longer, I got a ways to go
I got a little bit longer, I got a ways to go
Whoa oh oh (I got a ways to go)
1. Yuya Uemura vs. Yota Tsuji
Outside of an uncharacteristic miss on a hiptoss, a well put together match. Uemura gets creative with the arm work and Tsuji does a jumping body press, then after a few elbows to the arm Uemura charges into a Tsuji dropkick and it’s a MOMENT. Uemura then quickly pivots back to the arm and actually hits the double-arm trap suplex he’s been trying all tour, wrapping it up with a BRIDGE for 3. **3/4
2. G1 Climax – Block A: Tomohiro Ishii vs. Jeff Cobb
Tomohiro Ishii could have easily just mailed this in with shoulder tackles and a few elbows and nobody would’ve asked questions, but NOPE – he just had to relentlessly beat a great match into Jeff Cobb. They brought the action and eventually the drama but Ishii also gave this a vibe that made me as compelled by Cobb as I have ever been. For the first part he was chopping and kicking him around like he just didn’t understand: WHY. AREN’T. YOU. BETTER?
It makes Cobb finally managing to catch and suplex Ishii count HUGE, and in the midst of his comeback he emerges as a guy who finally GETS IT. This only incenses ol’ Ishii, who after one particularly heated elbow exchange smashes Cobb so hard it looks like he breaks his own arm. Cobb himself can’t seem to understand why 10 suplexe variations aren’t putting this psychopath down, so he gets excited and throws a headbutt Ishii’s way!!!
By the end both guys are wrecked but still ready to go, Cobb reaching a new dimension of wrestler while Ishii is just his usual pissed off self – but extra, cause it’s Jeff Cobb. It leads to some great near falls that completely wrapped me in, finally ending when Cobb not only hits a pop-up powerbomb but DRAGS Ishii into Tour of the Islands for 3. Ishii not only beat the wrestler into Cobb, he took more suplexes than anybody on the tour. What a guy. What a match. ****1/4
3. G1 Climax – Block A: Jay White vs. Yujiro Takahashi
Jay White is wearing gym clothes and ready for a night off with his Bullet Club buddy, but Yujiro decides to try and take Big Switch out. It’s 3 minutes of stuff and Jay wins quick with the Blade Runner, but Yujiro finally showed up. Best clothesline he’s hit! **3/4
4. G1 Climax – Block A: Will Ospreay vs. Taichi
On a show filled with more memorable matches, this was still low key awesome – Taichi can do the big G1 match while also keeping up with the junior heavyweight that remains within Ospreay. He does a Hidden Blade Axe Bomber variation cause he’s a jerk, and he counters an OsCutter with a superkick perfectly cause he’s incredible. ****
5. G1 Climax – Block A: Kota Ibushi vs. Minoru Suzuki
This match stood out in the middle of ALL the G1 by being a less high-speed high-impact match and more a deliberate Strong Style match, the kind of one where it’s all strikes and submissions but everything counts: first Ibushi tries to go strike-for-strike with Suzuki and fails, but he’s able to fight back when the match becomes less about who can strike hardest and more who can strike fastest.
Suzuki is so good at being a confident jackass early on then an amused but tired jackass later as Ibushi keeps bringing it. MiSu’s obviously the O.G. but Ibushi is this pretty boy badass who almost has to be coaxed into showing that yes, he can destroy you. Suzuki tries to tap him with a CRAB HOLD towards the end before an amazing finish where Suzuki takes the greatest AHHHH I’M DEAD bump when Ibushi is finally able to fire off the Kamigoye. Great, brilliant wrestling. ****3/4
6. G1 Climax – Block A: Kazuchika Okada vs. Shingo Takagi
An unbelievable match that delivered everything I wanted from the first Okada vs. Shingo match besides maybe the IWGP Heavyweight Title on the line. It was not just Okada’s best G1 match by a couple miles, but like Shingo did with Ibushi’s “God” story on the last show he finally gave this bizarre slow burn Okada experiment the match that made it all MAKE SENSE. It was also by proxy just a match that continued to cement Shingo as THE dude in New Japan.
I love a big Okada match, but the big strikes and moves are only as good as the aura that Okada’s bringing to the festivities. The Okada G1 run has been hindered by not just a lack of quality matches but a lack of charisma – it’s just a BUMMER. I’m pretty sure this Shingo match would have been great even without it, but Okada finally emerging to show not just quality but some freakin’ charisma again was cathartic.
They paid off a lot here: Okada’s insistence on using the Money Clip cobra clutch, Okada’s reverse cradle now a big near fall, and a couple pitch perfect kickouts of Shingo’s finishers. Shingo’s sell of the Money Clip at the end was incredible and the only thing that made the 5 minutes he spent in it worth it. An epic match, a fun match, and a match that I hope means Okada is ready to play again. ****1/2
Happy Thoughts: Best show of the tournament, best show of the year – great matches, great variety. Must-see. 10/10
