VC Official Pro Wrestling Thread

[scottheisel]

12 hours ago, FiggyPud said:

Just bought a subscription to NJPW.  Gonna try my best to keep up with stuff, but more than likely I'll start with Strong Style Evolved whenever it's available to watch in the US (seriously, why isn't it live in the US?).

 

Anyone who's a subscriber use the app on the Amazon Firestick?  I just downloaded it and it seems like a bit of a mess.  Needs to have a category of all the shows with English commentary instead of it being random.

Strong Style Evolved is live on AXS TV tonight!

[Rip]

1 minute ago, scottheisel said:

Strong Style Evolved is live on AXS TV tonight!

 

I don’t have cable unfortunately...

[dantheriver]

10 hours ago, FiggyPud said:

 

I don’t have cable unfortunately...

VPN to Japan or I think basically any non US/AXS TV region and you should be able to watch live (likey with Japanese commentary only, I can’t remember how they did it for the first US show).

Edited March 26, 2018 by dantheriver

[Rip]

1 hour ago, dantheriver said:

VPN to Japan or I think basically any non US/AXS TV region and you should be able to watch live (likey with Japanese commentary only, I can’t remember how they did it for the first US show).

 

Thanks man.  Probably just gonna wait until the English commentary goes up.

[Breezus]

On 3/26/2018 at 3:53 AM, FiggyPud said:

 

Thanks man.  Probably just gonna wait until the English commentary goes up.

Don't bother, the English commentary was terrible. J.R. barely knows the roster and clearly doesn't care about the product. Barnett is really bad as well. They both sound like buzzkills and drag the enjoyment and quality of the entire show down (although the show was still pretty damn good). They did the same in the G1 Special last summer. I switched pretty quickly to the Japanese commentary and they were infinitely better (as usual).

 

Anyway, that tag main event was something else. I'm surprised they all came out of that alive.

[Rip]

1 hour ago, Breezus said:

Don't bother, the English commentary was terrible. J.R. barely knows the roster and clearly doesn't care about the product. Barnett is really bad as well. They both sound like buzzkills and drag the enjoyment and quality of the entire show down (although the show was still pretty damn good). They did the same in the G1 Special last summer. I switched pretty quickly to the Japanese commentary and they were infinitely better (as usual).

 

Anyway, that tag main event was something else. I'm surprised they all came out of that alive.

 

Yeah I’m in the middle of the Switchblade/Hangman match right now and this whole show I’ve been thinking “good god please don’t tell me that all English commentary is done by these guys because they’re so goddamn boring.”

 

The actual show has been so good though.  I do have a question: are there always soooo many tag-team matches?  I don’t necessarily have a problem with that, it just seems like a bit much.  There’s been like 7 or 8 matches so far (I think?  Haven’t really been keeping track), and I swear I’ve only seen 1 or 2 singles matches.

 

Sorry, this is my first full NJPW show.

[Rip]

Also, I wanted to start with English commentary because I was hoping it would help me start to familiarize myself with some of the stuff quicker.

[TheWindBlower]

Glad to know I wasn't the only one incredibly disappointed with the English commentary. I love JR, absolute legend, but he shouldn't call any matches outside of the WWE anymore. Josh Barnett was terrible. I'd like to think he could improve with more experience, but I'm not sure. There were moments when he was doing really well, and then he'd just flounder. Idk where Don Callis was, but he needs to be the lead English commentator for NJPW.

[dantheriver]

JR and Barnett are the AXS team for the weekly show they air, hence them being used for this event.  I watched a few matches with them before getting frustrated and switching over to Japanese. My friend told me they only got worse by the end so I’m happy with my choice. Don and Kevin Kelly are so much better.

 

Regarding the abundance of tag matches:

They do this to keep singles matches feeling important and to help keep the roster healthy.  A typical NJPW show only has 3 or so singles matches with the remainder of the card being multi man matches.  The two and three man tag matches can have title implications but everything else tends to involve one or more future opponents getting to interact without it being the payoff of an actual singles matchup.

[Rip]

6 hours ago, dantheriver said:

JR and Barnett are the AXS team for the weekly show they air, hence them being used for this event.  I watched a few matches with them before getting frustrated and switching over to Japanese. My friend told me they only got worse by the end so I’m happy with my choice. Don and Kevin Kelly are so much better.

 

Regarding the abundance of tag matches:

They do this to keep singles matches feeling important and to help keep the roster healthy.  A typical NJPW show only has 3 or so singles matches with the remainder of the card being multi man matches.  The two and three man tag matches can have title implications but everything else tends to involve one or more future opponents getting to interact without it being the payoff of an actual singles matchup.

 

Can I ask how the Japanese commentary is better?  Besides it SOUNDING more hype, I feel like I would have no idea what was going on without English commentary.

 

And I guess that makes sense about the tag matches.  Just was a lot to take in at first haha.

 

That Golden Lovers/Young Bucks match though.  Holy shit.

Edited March 28, 2018 by FiggyPud

[Breezus]

6 hours ago, FiggyPud said:

 

Can I ask how the Japanese commentary is better?  Besides it SOUNDING more hype, I feel like I would have no idea what was going on without English commentary.

Just by being more excited, they elevate the entire product. They make you feel like you're watching something important, something you should absolutely not miss. It's like watching sports. They actually and genuinely go apeshit when something crazy happens. For example, they fucking lost it during the Hangman/Switchblade finish, screaming for a solid five seconds when the counter happened. It made the match even better.

 

Not knowing what's going on because of the language barrier is a valid point. I only understand about 20% myself but them hyping up the action is enough reason for me to never switch back to English commentary. That being said, Kelly/Callis are actually quite good from what I've heard, so they're not a bad option at all.

[Rip]

When do Kelly/Callis do commentary again?

[dantheriver]

43 minutes ago, FiggyPud said:

When do Kelly/Callis do commentary again?

There will be English commentary for the Sakura Genesis shows this weekend.

And to answer your previous question, the language barrier is tough but if you utilize the English subtitled backstage interviews you can pretty well keep up with all of the storylines without needing announcers to explain to you why things are important. Even if you don’t bother with those the matches in NJPW are way better at conveying meaning than you’d get out of the typically much shorter WWE style matchups.

Stick around and you’ll catch on. I like Don and Kevin so I do watch the English versions when they are calling (JR and Barnett are really only utilized for AXS tv stuff so probably 95% of the English commentary on NJPW isn’t them) but it’s fun to go back and check out the Japanese guys sometimes since they pop huge for stuff.

[Rip]

Alright next question:  I asked this before, but what exactly is the “schedule?”  They have a normal show every Friday on AXS right?  Then a PPV once a month like WWE?

 

And if there’s more to it then that,  What’s the essential stuff I need to keep up with?

 

Once again, real sorry about all these questions, just want to get as much out of it as I can.

[Breezus]

57 minutes ago, FiggyPud said:

Alright next question:  I asked this before, but what exactly is the “schedule?”  They have a normal show every Friday on AXS right?  Then a PPV once a month like WWE?

 

And if there’s more to it then that,  What’s the essential stuff I need to keep up with?

 

Once again, real sorry about all these questions, just want to get as much out of it as I can.

They don't have a weekly show but they do have a big event every month, with a couple of Road To shows (which can be compared to RAWs/SD!s that build to PPVs). They also have tourneys for the respective divisions as well as for #1 contendership. AXS' weekly show is only shown in the US (I think) and is months behind.

 

I highly suggest subscribing to Real Neat Pro and Showbuckle if you're new to NJPW and want to know more. This video explains the schedule very well.

 

 

[Rip]

Well as long as stuff is added regularly to the NJPW “streaming  thing” I have on my Firestick, I hopefully won’t have trouble keeping up.

 

Thanks so much for all the answers guys.  That’s about it right now that I can think of haha.

[dantheriver]

1 hour ago, FiggyPud said:

Well as long as stuff is added regularly to the NJPW “streaming  thing” I have on my Firestick, I hopefully won’t have trouble keeping up.

 

Thanks so much for all the answers guys.  That’s about it right now that I can think of haha.

Yea just check the schedule page of njpw world (not sure exactly what the layout is on the fire stick app but you can always check it from your phone or computer). 

The njpw and squaredcircle Reddits have some solid info usually as well. 

[CoheedFanSonnn]

Any body else sick of John Cena? His same rootine year after year is getting old. He needs to leave like the Rock and just do movies. He's a great actor but wrestler no. Sammy Zain is the best talent in the Wwe now so he needs a push!

[Rip]

Sorry to bring up the NJPW “schedule thing” again, but this is a good example as to why I’m so confused: 

 

Was just looking at the schedule online, and it’s showing an event tonight, April 1st, April 10th, and April 13th.  Then it’s showing an event almost every single day up to April 27th.  So I really don’t understand.  Do they really have a show every day?  And if so, are they necessary viewing?

 

I’m just so confused as to what I can watch, and what’s necessary to watch lol. 

[dantheriver]

1 hour ago, FiggyPud said:

Sorry to bring up the NJPW “schedule thing” again, but this is a good example as to why I’m so confused: 

 

Was just looking at the schedule online, and it’s showing an event tonight, April 1st, April 10th, and April 13th.  Then it’s showing an event almost every single day up to April 27th.  So I really don’t understand.  Do they really have a show every day?  And if so, are they necessary viewing?

 

I’m just so confused as to what I can watch, and what’s necessary to watch lol. 

Those “Road to” shows are essentially house shows. They are typically non essential. Glancing at the schedule now I’d say the only things you need to be concerned with for the next few months are Sakura Genesis, both nights of Wrestling Dontaku and Best Of The Super Juniors. Best of Super Juniors is a tourney that will have 1-2 matches of the tourney headlining each date, so you can just watch those match ups to stay current with the tourney (sometimes they only have the tourney matches available anyways). After that is the big mid year show, Dominion, which is usually pretty significant.

[Rip]

Alright thanks a lot man.

[CoheedFanSonnn]

OH yeasssss! MONDAY NIGHT RAW tonight fellow WWE Junkeez!! Let's get it!

[Rip]

Holy shit that Ospreay/Villain match at Genesis was unreal.  So many crazy/scary looking spots.

 

Back with another question too:  So am I missing anything major by not watching any of the ROH crossover matches?  I mean... I’m aware that I’m missing some great matches.  But by not watching, will it fuck up my NJPW experience?  I guess storyline wise?

 

Cause goddamn there just isn’t enough time in my days to add ROH to my schedule now too.

[dantheriver]

15 minutes ago, FiggyPud said:

Holy shit that Ospreay/Villain match at Genesis was unreal.  So many crazy/scary looking spots.

 

Back with another question too:  So am I missing anything major by not watching any of the ROH crossover matches?  I mean... I’m aware that I’m missing some great matches.  But by not watching, will it fuck up my NJPW experience?  I guess storyline wise?

 

Cause goddamn there just isn’t enough time in my days to add ROH to my schedule now too.

I don’t think you won’t be able to follow the whole Bullet Club meltdown angle if you aren’t watching every possible matchup between them. I don’t have time for that shit either and I still understand that Cody is trying to run BC, the Young Bucks are torn and the Tongans don’t give a fuck.

 

But yea... that Ospreay Marty match was wild.  The one man Spanish fly off the apron was absolute madness.  ZedSJ Okada was dope too even though everyone knew how that was going to end and what angle would be set up for Okada’s next match. I’m thrilled about the Naito MiSu angle too, watching Naito not give a fuck and Suzuki getting enraged is infinitely hilarious to me.

[Rip]

11 minutes ago, dantheriver said:

I don’t think you won’t be able to follow the whole Bullet Club meltdown angle if you aren’t watching every possible matchup between them. I don’t have time for that shit either and I still understand that Cody is trying to run BC, the Young Bucks are torn and the Tongans don’t give a fuck.

 

But yea... that Ospreay Marty match was wild.  The one man Spanish fly off the apron was absolute madness.  ZedSJ Okada was dope too even though everyone knew how that was going to end and what angle would be set up for Okada’s next match. I’m thrilled about the Naito MiSu angle too, watching Naito not give a fuck and Suzuki getting enraged is infinitely hilarious to me.

 

Awesome.  Thanks once again.  Kind of a relief because I feel like I’m just starting to get a hang of the NJPW stuff.

 

Yeah I was worried that that ZSJ/Okada match was gonna be boring because of the nonstop submissions, but I ended up thoroughly enjoy it.  Although I’m not a huge fan of the slow, submission style of ZSJ, there’s no doubt he’s talented as fuck.  Ended up impressing me quite a bit.

 

Really excited for the Naito stuff too.  He quickly became one of my favorites.  I keep kicking myself for getting into this so late, I feel like I’ve just missed so much over the years.