DAY 7 7/26/2017 SENDAI SUN PLAZA HALL (A BLOCK)
Tomohiro Ishii vs. YOSHI-HASHI
It's almost a shame that these two are in the same stable, preventing them from squaring off much outside of tournaments like these. The two best underdogs in the company right now can't help but have chemistry, with HASHI taking the initiative at the start to try and hang with Ishii's hoss game, which largely amuses the Stone Pitbull until HASHI's chops actually add up to pain. From there the formula is pretty simple: Ishii brutally dominates the strike game while HASHI starts to pick up the pace to cut off his opponent's moves. These two put together a textbook opening match, gradually working a reserved crowd into a hot back half that found HASHI pulling out all the stops to wear down Ishii. Nothing too fancy here, with the most surprising move coming when HASHI scoops Ishii's leg for a single leg suplex, only for Ishii to lunge backward to counter into an old-school DDT. HASHI gets in some bombs in but Ishii puts it away with a brainbuster. ***1/2
Zack Sabre Jr. vs Bad Luck Fale
Such, such smart booking. Sabre runs at the bell to jump into a hanging guillotine that Fale does not so much work his way out of as shove down. Poor Zack comes in for a beating at ring side, getting his tiny frame crushed into any piece of steel in the vicinity. Fale squeezes in a moment to ruin Desperado to pre-empt any Suzuki-gun bullshit, and then the beatings continue. Fale tortures Sabre in the corner, only for Sabre to slip to the apron while hooking the leg to catch a quick break. At long last, Sabre starts getting in some offense, worming around into any catch he can grab before laying in some kicks and uppercuts to halt Fale's momentum. There's a mesmerizing sight of Sabre actually locking an octopus hold onto this mountain of a man, even working the wrist in his usual shitheel fashion. Sabre is so good at being a mean, punishing asshole that Fale gets some crowd chants. Sabre locks in holds that would torture anyone else, but Fale is just too big and thick, able to make the ropes just by virtue of his size. Finally, Sabre tosses his usual shtick to the wind, raking Fale's eyes and cradling him for a shock pinfall. Just a cleverly designed match that did not (and likely could never) kick into high gear but that showed off Sabre's indefatigable versatility and adaptability not merely in his chain wrestling but his shrewd ability to cut off a match the second he saw an opening. ***1/4
Togi Makabe vs. Kota Ibushi
Kota Ibushi can literally get four-star matches out of inanimate objects, so here he is with Makabe. Ibushi continues to show off both his versatility and his striking power by meeting Makabe on his preferred ground of slobberknockers, brawling in and out of the ring. Ibushi controls the first stretch,eventually getting back in the ring and nailing Makabe with another dropkick. Makabe lands a few lariats to equalize, only for Ibushi to catch him with a head kick and then helpfully show Makabe how to throw a lariat actually worth a damn as the crowd begins to get hot. Ibushi gets a hurricanrana for a near-fall before the Makabe dares Ibushi to keep laying in his kicks before scoring a nice lariat to break things up. This match worked against usual small fast man/big bruiser dynamics in making Ibushi's strikes look, at almost all times, more devastating than Makabe's, which is a nice change of pace but also backs Makabe even deeper into a corner by showing how outclassed he was. He eventually turns it around by stopping Ibushi from nailing his super-piledriver and landing two knee drops for the win. The finish elevated the match and gave Makabe a credible win thanks to Ibushi's selling, but this is sure to be Ibushi's weakest bout of the tourney. **3/4
Yuji Nagata vs Tetsuya Naito
Everyone is working heel against Nagata by default, so Naito gets to bring his A game as a cocky asshole as he toys with the New Japan Dad. Great series of counters at the start with both men ducking strikes and halting whips, with Nagata looking like a spring chicken in how quickly he can adjust in the air to ground himself rather than fly into Naito's attacks. Naito plays up his tranquilo teases while Nagata just looks too old for this, hanging out for a bit at ringside as Naito teases him, not so much to rest but to collect himself, to get his temper under control over the disrespect. Naito is getting the most cheers out of anyone to go against Nagata so far; more than his actual point standing this seems like the best indication that he is on-track to win the tournament this year. But despite the crowd love he still makes sure to play mean little mongoose, forcing Nagata to fight defense until he can get a strong sequence in with kicks and a snap xploder. Naito's corner dropkick gets Nagata fired. up. and he starts to kick the holy terror out of the punk before slapping him to death for good measure. Naito sells these like a champ, like the pissy teenager who is absolutely shocked and horrified when he finally pushes a parent too hard and gets smacked. Naito gets some wind and goes for a superman punch, only for Nagata to duck away and grab him for a suplex. Nagata puts on such a beating that he makes Naito the underdog, and both men send the crowd into hysterics, going nuclear when Nagata actually kicks out of Destino. A second Destino gets a win for Naito in a killer back-and-forth that changed up Nagata's approach in this tournament by having him help the crowd get even more invested in Naito than they were at the start. ****
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Hirooki Goto
Tanahashi is putting more and more abuse on his torn arm, but he's up against perennial choke artist Goto. Goto, bless him, he tries; after letting Tanahashi dictate the flow of the opening stretch, he takes charge by nailing Tanahashi on the top turnbuckle with a lariat. From there, Goto does what all in this G1 must: he goes after Tanahashi's bum arm with the same menace that he attacked Omega's leg in last year's final. By the time Tanahashi fires up, his already weakened arm is all but useless, and his strikes cause him more damage than his opponent. When Goto rolls away from a High Fly Flow, he looks like he might actually have this, but he just can't help himself. After nailing one GTR, he spends too much time gloating as he sets up another, giving Tanahashi time to nail a neckbreaker and then a sling blade for a near-fall. Two High Fly Flows gets Tanahashi a victory that cost him a great deal, pushing him to the brink with his injury. Goto's tweener status let Tanahashi oscillate between a dick at the start and, as the crowd fully got behind him toward the end, play his usual face. That was a bit of a missed opportunity to have Tana keep reaching toward heel status, but given the opponent it makes sense. Regardless, this was a fine way to end the show, with the crowd absolutely invested in all of Goto's torture of Tanahashi's injured arm and the former ace's comebacks. ***3/4
OVERALL: This was a solid card from top to bottom, with two hot matches to end the show and sharp storytelling throughout. Even Makabe, still the least motivated, least interesting man in the block, told a solid story against Ibushi even as he picked up a win over his much better opponent. There's nothing on the show that will make a MOTY or even best-of-tournament list, but everyone worked smartly according to their personae and storylines for a satisfying event.
DAY 8 7/27/207, AORE NAGOAKA, NIIGATA (B BLOCK)
Juice starts selling out of the dang curtain, putting over the damage that has been wantonly done to his leg for the entire tournament. Just watch him staggering down to the ring, smiling at his fans through gritted teeth. God, he's so great. Juice ties up Tonga to begin, but once Tonga gets a hold on that knee, he puts the poor kid through the ringer. Tonga runs wild around Juice, who finally catches Tonga in a corner strike for a slam, but the knee won't let him capitalize. Robinson's punches and chops are worked so smartly around the energy; he has to take more time to throw them, keeping weight on his "bad" leg for as little time as possible which results in seesawing leans and quick, short jabs that cannot gather momentum and stopping power. Tonga is a rat bastard here, ripping away Juice's thick bandages and whaling away on the limb. Tonga fights out of a pulp friction and kicks the leg for the boy's impudence. After some finisher reversals, Tonga gets a sick headshrinker DDT for a 2.75-count that gets a massive pop for Juice's kick-out. But Robinson is just too worn down, and a gun stun ends a match that made Tonga look like a nasty tactician and continues to build Juice as the best babyface in the world. Juice even gets an ovation as he works his way to the back. ***1/2
Toru Yano vs. SANADA
Yano's spate of 10-minute matches in this tournament have been the equivalent of a 60-minute Broadway for the king of cock-punching quick pins. The universe rights itself here as SANADA refuses to let himself be embarrassed, lunging at Yano the second he gets into the ring. Of course, Yano always has a plan, throwing his robe into SANADA's face and trying a small package. SANADA gets pissed and pours a bottle of water onto Yano's head, only for Yano to drink enough to spit back into his opponent's face for another pin attempt. Yano gets little attacks where he can, but SANADA is always sure to stop his usual bullshit before it gets out of hand, disposing of the tape that Yano used to tie up Omega. SANADA lands on his feet over a failed moonsault but then ends up running into the exposed turnbuckle. A skull end counter leads to a slide to the outside that Yano catches for a tape tease but SANADA is done with this shit and refuses to give his opponent the dignity of a pinfall, dragging Yano up the ramp and taping him into a paradise lock before calmly walking back into the ring at 19 for the win. Then, for added insult, SANADA walks right back up the ramp to leave, casually stepping to the side as he passes the moaning Yano. This legitimately might be Yano's best G1; with the exception of the Kojima match, he's been absolutely hilarious with each opponent, and his matches have boasted a shocking level of variation for someone who usually only has about four tricks up his sleeve. ***
Minoru Suzuki vs. EVIL
We all know the deal with Suzuki-gun but honestly, it gets so old having to keep writing some variation of "this match would have ruled without the bullshit." But this was a rare case of the bullshit almost, almost working as Desperado makes a move at EVIL before the match even starts to get down to it early. We head out to the crowd with some shenanigans as Suzuki starts grabbing chairs and throwing them into Evil's lower back, the steel slapping his flesh in grotesque thwacks. EVIL only just manages to beat the 20-count before Desperado distracts the ref as Suzuki gets a nasty facelock and grinds a pen into his opponent's head. EVIL recovers with a lariat, but then they go right back out to ringside so EVIL can do his chair baseball swing, which Suzuki sells as the killer move it looks like. In shades of his match with AJ Styles, Suzuki gets pissed when EVIL goes for a facelock and tries to rip off the man's thumb. So far so good, but then a ref bump lets Desperado charge EVIL, only to be saved by BUSHI, then Taichi hits EVIL with a chair and Takahashi makes the save with a rana. This, too, recalled Suzuki/Styles in a good way, putting over how close-knit LIJ are with each other to prevent EVIL from being ganged up on by his lonesome. But then Red Shoes recovers in time to see Suzuki hit EVIL with chair and respond only by taking away the chair. New Japan Pro Wrestling will seriously sometimes make you wonder if the Japanese have a word for "disqualification." This kills the justifiable overbooking to this point, though things recover when EVIL converts a sleeper into an STO and wins to a massive pop. Were it not for just how convoluted things got after the ref bump this might have been closer to a four-star match, but for the most part the run-ins told a solid story about New Japan's key stable. ***1/4
Kazuchika Okada vs. Satoshi Kojima
The crowd is losing it for Kojima from the second hit music hit and Okada even encourages a chant for his opponent, only to cheap shot him at the bell and revel in the crowd's boos, sarcastically trying to get the chant going again. Folks, I'm happy to report that shithead Okada came to play. Okada could not possibly be more smug as he handles Kojima at first, kicking him to the floor and just sitting down in the ring, checking his fingernails as Kojima writhes on the floor. Okada finally heads out and beats down on the legend, landing a hanging DDT before rolling Tenzan into the ring with a few attacks and an emasculating taunt. Another condescending bit of applause from the ace when Kojima manages to roll back in the ring, and soon Okada is trying for pinfalls off the most basic moves, refusing to even go for signatures and blithely stomping on his prostrate opponent when he refuses to stay down. It's fun to talk about how Tanahashi subtly worked a heel angle on Nagata and then see this, with Okada, deep into his golden year as company representative, being the rattiest little shit on the playground. When Kojima fires up for some Mongolian chops, the crowd pops like Kawada just pinned Misawa.
This match is worked so simply, which lets any comeback that Kojima makes feel all the more thrilling while letting him duck having to work the high-risk style that Okada has dragged out of his title challengers. Chops and DDTs get the kind of reactions they got in the 1980s. When Okada does the Rainmaker pose, he gets booed right out of the building, out of the city and into a plane headed out of the country. After some teases, Okada goes up top in time for Kojima to hit a lariat to send Okada reeling on the floor. Kojima is beyond pissed and takes the fight to Okada when he gets on the apron, and though Okada responds with running kicks and an uppercut, the champ looks genuinely rattled and serious for the first time in this match. Kojima is fired up and so is the crowd, and when he nails a Cozy Cozy Cutter and a brainbuster for back to back near-falls this match goes nuclear. A lariat counter on a Rainmaker actually makes you think the old man might have it, and Kojima manages to avoid yet another Rainmaker before Okada finally says fuck it and hits a tombstone/Rainmaker combo to stop this.
Kojima is being booked as if this were his last G1 and I hope that's not true; he deserves to get the same fanfare-ridden bow-out that Tenzan, Liger and Nagata got/are getting in the last year. But if it is, he has put together a final tournament performance just as worthy of praise as Nagata. Okada flipped the script on the storyline he's been building all year, that of the ambitious ace whose need to not merely win but out-wrestle all of his challengers is pushing him closer to a hubristic fall from Olympus. Here, we got that smugness without the epic scale, allowing him to work a different match while still adding to the sense of his impending implosion. You got the sense that a match that he could have won in eight minutes went twice as long because Okada wouldn't stop toying with his opponent, who rallied in such a way that the champ was caught completely off-guard and even betrayed some fright, if not of Kojima than of the realization that he was screwing himself. Great storytelling, great fire from Kojima, great crowd, great finishing stretch. Great match. ****1/4
Kenny Omega vs. Michael Elgin
New Japan's camerawork lacks the fully glossy polish of WWE's, but just watch how they frame Elgin seething in the background when Omega poses in the ring and brags about his title to the camera. These two have unimpeachable chemistry, and Omega brings out his full heel persona at the top of the match, teasing Elgin and raking his eyes to fire up Elgin early for some heavy corner whips and a suplex that he delays to add insult to injury. Now Omega is equally pissed, and the two trade positions between the ring and apron until Elgin charges him into the barricade below, then over another. Elgin catches a springboard off the rail into a belly-to-belly. Up top back in the ring, Omega counters a sunset flip powerbomb and nails a superkick and Kotaro Krusher. These two have a way of using a million moves on each other while also selling the cost of missing an aerial attack or having something countered. Each has an answer for anything the other does, with Omega slipping away from a splash but then Elgin rolling away from Omega's Finlay roll/moonsault combo. There are so many little touches, like Elgin countering a German attempt by backhanding Kenny instead of slipping around for a suplex attempt of his own, or how Omega actually flies off his feet for Elgin's chops.
Omega and Elgin follow a basic pattern of constant escalation with each other, but it's amazing how different this fight felt even from the match they had earlier in the month at the G1 Special in America. Their ever-increasing familiarity with each other only makes each interaction more compelx, seen here when Omega goes for a Terminator dive, only for Elgin to roll in and cut it off, eating a V trigger for his troubles. Then, Omega lands cat-like out of a German suplex attempt, hits a snapdragon suplex of his own to send Elgin back out, then nails the Terminator dive. The intricacy of this bit, lasting not quite a full minute is the result of two monstrously talented men who have each other totally scouted and trust each other completely. Another great moment involves Omega landing a series of killer moves on Omega, only for him to drag Elgin up from a V trigger to be greeted by a furious lariat. Elgin slipping down from a One-Winged Angel into a rana and lariat that turns Omega all the way around while his neck is still attached to Elgin's elbow. Omega pulls back the mats at ringside in the hopes of a rana onto the concrete, but Big Mike lands an apron powerbomb. Omega lands two V Triggers and then a pitch-perfect butterfly driver that plants Elgin so deep on the canvas that you want to water him to see if Little Mikes will grow. Insane kick-out spot of Kenny surviving a buckle bomb and Elgin bomb back to back. This match just will not let up, so finally Elgin goes for broke and nails a burning hammer for the pin. ****3/4
What can you even say about these two? At this point you could slot "stunning Elgin/Omega match" right after death and taxes on a list of cosmic absolutes, and this managed to be every bit as brutal as their ladder match last year while being worked in a (relatively) safe fashion. Elgin's win should set up an immediate MOTY contender for a defense of Omega's U.S. title, and he looks firmly back in his groove after some uneasy return matches. Omega, meanwhile, continues to stand out as the hottest prospect in the world. Everything he did was a work of art here, from the elaborate chains that sent the crowd into higher and higher plateaus of excitement to his consistent sell-job of increasing exhaustion, exasperation, and despair. The only criticism I have of this match are the two suplexes that Omega took directly onto his neck at the end, all the better to put over Elgin's dominating victory but the kind of crap that is going to truncate the career of a man who currently has the world on a silver platter. Omega manages to work safely in spite of his high risks, but working safe also means looking out for yourself as well as the other guy, and here's hoping that Omega stays healthy, for his sake and ours.
OVERALL: Easily the best B Block show so far. Toru Yano continues to have a shockingly good G1 that has changed up his formula in exciting ways, while Juice Robinson, SANDA and EVIL look like they are on the cusp of major breakouts with their exceptional in-ring and character work. The usual Suzuki-gun nonsense worked wonderfully until it ran too long, but at least it put over EVIL in definitive fashion. Kojima/Okada was utterly thrilling and would have stolen the show on any other night with Okada laying down a great blueprint for returning to his cocky heel persona when he eventually drops the title and Kojima putting in a world-class effort. Then came Omega/Elgin with the best match of the tournament so far, a dizzying array of perfectly scouted and executed moves that is sure to piss off old-school critics and thrill everyone else. If wrestling is typically more like opera, these two made it like ballet. Elgin's win puts Omega on the back foot as he struggles to win his second G1, which should light a fire under him for the rest of the tournament.
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