[6/11] A Coronation of Omega Proportions: New Japan Pro Wrestling Dominion 2017

[Jmare007]

I'd love to know why they think they couldn't tell exactly the same stories of those matches in 20-30 minutes as opposed to 40-60. Naito/Tanahashi 1 and 2 this year were both right around 25 minutes and both were better matches and got their stories across better. I'd understand if the Okada/Omega matches had lots of downtime after the big spots, but they haven't, they just spent the first 15-20 minutes doing basically nothing then jumping into a full sprint for the rest of the match.

Well, wrestlers always think a longer match will give it an epic feel. Or least a big number of them do. Even Danielson became obsessed with them when he was in ROH.

 

[The Prince of All Saiyans]

Omega vs Okada

Spoiler: Backups

61117 dom ok vs om.mp4 | openload

https://estream.to/embed-3lt2oows1wge.html

Naito vs Tanahashi

Spoiler: Backups

61117 dom nai vs tan.mp4 | openload

https://estream.to/embed-pgdmztaz3iyq.html

 

[Jmare007]

I think we spoke on this. At the end of the day, when it comes to wrestling, if something genuinely captures me all academic analysis can go out the window. I can acknowledge all the faults in the match, but when that final bell rang I was both entertained and excited about what they can do in the future.

I get that. I do it all the time with Sekimoto I hate that I can't bring myself to do it with NJPW since like 2014

 

[stro]

Well, wrestlers always think a longer match will give it an epic feel. Or least a big number of them do. Even Danielson became obsessed with them when he was in ROH.

Remember how much the internet hated HHH and HBK doing this in 2002-2004.

 

[DoubleJ13]

Shocked Dave only went 6 1/4

 

[Jmare007]

Shocked Dave only went 6 1/4

Dave da GOAT stan, holy shyt

I honestly don't even wanna bother reading his thoughts on it but for those who do, here's his take on the last 2 matches.

12. Hiroshi Tanahashi beat Tetsuya Naito in 25:56 to win the IC title. Tanahashi jumped Naito before the match when Naito was still in his purple suit. Tanahashi’s right arm was heavily taped up but he did use it for punches and chops. Naito of course worked on the right arm. He used a tornado DDT on the ramp, but Tanahashi beat the 20 count back in. At one point Tanahashi spit on Naito. They did the Frye-Takayama spot. Naito then spit in Tanahashi’s hair. Naito went back to work on the right arm. Tanahashi then went to work on Naito’s bad right knee with dragon screws. He also did a high fly flow to the floor and Tanahashi started selling the damaged right arm. Naito had the armbar but Tanahashi made the ropes. Naito went for his flying forearm but Tanahashi turned it into a uranage. Both were fighting on the top rope and Naito threw elbows to Tanahashi’s bad biceps and gave him a Frankensteiner off the top, but Tanahashi rolled through with a sunset flip. Tanahashi did two twist and shout neckbreakers but missed the high fly flow. Tanahashi blocked the Destino and they traded hard slaps. Tanahashi kicked out of a Destino off the middle rope. Naito went for another Destino and hit a dragon suplex. After a sling blade, Tanahashi hit the high fly flow, but Naito kicked out. This is one of the two shows of the year where you do that. Tanahashi put him in the cloverleaf. Naito nearly made the ropes but Tanahashi pulled him to the center. He had the hold on, and bent Naito back like an extreme Walls of Jericho but with a cloverleaf. It seemed like it was on forever, and they teased a ref stoppage but Naito submitted. ****½

13. Kazuchika Okada retained the IWGP heavyweight title with a 60:00 draw with Kenny Omega. Omega used a huracanrana on the floor and teased the Terminator dive, but Okada kicked him. Okada used a running flip dive and started selling like he hurt his left knee. Omega worked on the knee with a dropkick and a 70s Brisco avalanche leg dive. He worked it over with a kneebreaker and the figure four leglock, which Okada reversed ad they got into the ropes. Omega gave him a kneebreaker on the apron and threw the knee on top of the table. Omega went for a moonsault off the guard rail, but Okada shoved him and Omega flew into the other guard rail. Okada did the running crossbody over the guard rail onto Omega and drove him through the second guard rail. They both reversed out of tombstone attempts. Okada missed an elbow off the top. Omega did a top rope Asai moonsault to the floor where he nearly lost his balance for a second. Omega used a missile dropkick to the back of the head for a near fall. Omega did a power bomb, a forward fireman’s carry and middle rope moonsault, but Okada got his knees up. They teased both a top rope piledriver and a top rope dragon superplex, neither of which they did. Okada did a Death Valley bomb on the apron and a running Woo (Suwa) dropkick into the guard rail. Okada set up a table. Omega did a top rope superplex with knee pressure but missed a knee. They each got out of the rainmaker and One winged angel. Okada used two German suplexes and hit the rainmaker. Okada went for his big dropkick but Omega power bombed him. That was incredible. Okada later dropkicked him off the top to the floor. He put Omega on the table and came off the top rope with an elbow through the table, which cracked but didn’t fully break. Okada used a missile dropkick and a low dropkick. Omega was selling like he had no strength. Omega was throwing weak punches to the stomach and Okada hit two rainmakers. Okada wanted the ref to stop it and Cody came out and wanted to throw in the towel. The Bucks stopped Cody. Then Omega suddenly exploded with a jumping knee and a reverse huracanrana. He went for another knee but got hit with an Okada dropkick. Omega hit some running knees and hit the one winged angel for the first time in their two matches, but Okada got his foot on the ropes. Okada it another rainmaker and then stumbled. Omega hit the fast dragon suplex but Okada hit another dropkick. They traded elbows and Omega hit the running knees for a near fall. Omega went for the one-winged angel but Okada reversed into a tombstone. Okada went for another rainmaker, but Omega just collapsed causing Okada to miss. Both were trying gut wrenches to set up a tombstone but couldn’t get the other up. Omega hit all kinds of elbows and knees. He went for another one winged angel but Okada got out and hit a dropkick to the back. Okada hit a spinning tombstone, but then collapsed and couldn’t cover him. Okada did another German suplex, and another dropkick. Omega then started throwing backwards elbows and another snap dragon suplex. Okada hit another dropkick and hit the rainmaker and collapsed. Okada was crawling trying to get the pin when the bell rang. They didn’t gimmick the time at all, it was right at 60:00 and not on top for the two. You could argue that Omega, as challenger, should have been the one crawling. The match story was all about Omega’s survival so from that standpoint, Okada should have been trying for the pin at the end, and it really doesn’t matter. After their 1/4 match, which was one of the best matches I’ve ever seen, I watched the Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Toshiaki Kawada match from 1994, which many call the best match ever. Obviously that is a subjective subject and there are tons of matches that can fit into that category, but more people I know would say Misawa vs. Kawada then any other. I would say the two were comparable. They were different. Misawa vs. Kawada was more a fight and more heated, like an incredible sports contest. Omega vs. Okada I was more spectacular when it came to moves, as we’re 23 years later but every bit as dramatic, which is ultimately the goal. What I can say is that while this match was not as heated as either of those two matches, it was more intense, featured better selling, was more drama and told a better story than either. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion on the greatest match they’ve ever seen. This was better than those two matches that I thought were the best ones I’d ever seen. It was the two best wrestlers in the world at this point in time, both in the best match of their lives. We are seeing history with this Okada championship run and this Omega vs. Okada program. This is the modern version of the 1989 Flair-Steamboat series, which consisted of three major national shows (they also did dozens of house show matches, most of which were close to the level, at least one of which was above the level, of the three national matches, which is something Omega and Okada didn’t do). Omega and Okada are right now scheduled for three matches this year, and after two, they are well ahead in comparison, even factoring in the time and place elements. I don’t know how you could top it, except some day, like everything, it will happen. ******1/4

Now a 3 star match is gonna be considered garbage

I love it though, this probably means that a couple of years from now the obsessions with snowflakes will probably end eventually there's gonna be a backlash at how ridiculous this whole thing is and people will stop giving them so much importance.

 

[3Rivers]

Shocked Dave only went 6 1/4

I figured this was just you bullshytting, but this fool really went 6 1/4 stars

Meltzer

 

[Jmare007]

It's Dave at it's finest though. By being so into this shyt and loving it so much, he's making his own rating system a much bigger deal for some fans than what already was.


Like, most of us don't give a shyt and just find it funny, but the amount of pointless discussion this is gonna generate is gonna be hilarious. Specially because Dave is just saying he loved the match. He's so clueless he gonna be like "I mean, it was the best match ever you know, I..I..I mean why are people so upset "

 

[MenacingMonk]

These Japanese still taking unprotected chair shots to the head

 

[R=G]

It's Dave at it's finest though. By being so into this shyt and loving it so much, he's making his own rating system a much bigger deal for some fans than what already was.


Like, most of us don't give a shyt and just find it funny, but the amount of pointless discussion this is gonna generate is gonna be hilarious. Specially because Dave is just saying he loved the match. He's so clueless he gonna be like "I mean, it was the best match ever you know, I..I..I mean why are people so upset "

Lmao...the magic of pro wrestling

 

[The Rainmaker]

They going 90 minutes at Tokyo Dome to get that extra .25 star

 

[Adam3000]

There is something immediately hilarious about the visual of 6.25 stars

I mean....6 stars kind of made sense. His ratings went to 5, but he thought it was better than any other 5 star match and needed its own category. Fine, give it 6. Why not.

But 6.25?????

We just gonna skip 5.25, 5.5, and 5.75?

 

[MenacingMonk]

Okada using a shytload of drop kicks toward the end of the match after his knee was continuously worked on 20-30 minutes before.

That's that fighting spirit, huh?

 

[Jmare007]

Okada using a shytload of drop kicks toward the end of the match after his knee was continuously worked on 20-30 minutes before.

That's that fighting spirit, huh?

He got that healing factor from Nakamura breh :purogang:

 

[MenacingMonk]

Still wish Corino was around but Callis has gotten much much much better

Yeah, glad someone else noticed. Hearing them on the Suzuki/Okada show was

Him and Kelly built that chemistry now.