Strap yourself in motherfuckers because this is going to be a long one. Both blocks, ten matches and twenty wrestlers. New Japan is going all in for their Korakuen Hall shows, and I am very intrigued to see how it goes.
After this show, Super Juniors is set to take a two-day break before doing three straight at Korakuen with ten matches on each. If you’ve been enjoying the fast and breezy watches, then appreciate this one because we’re about to get hardcore. Also, DDT has run a parody of New Japan’s Time’s Up video which revealed that Chris Brookes is doing a tour with them. I want to point out that I said from day one that it made no sense for him to join New Japan, so I’m giving myself two points.
Night three of Best Of The Super Juniors was a bit of a wet fart as the two big matches fell flat. That leaves B Block with the job of picking up the scraps. We’re heading into the grind of the tournament now, and this might give us an indication of how much effort we can expect to see going forward.
With A Block smashing it out the park on night one, it’s time to wander over to B Block as they kick off their side of the tournament with a card that lacks the wow factor of SHO vs Shingo or Ishimori vs Dragon Lee. Not that there isn’t intrigue to be found. We’ve got El Phantasmo and the mysterious DOUKI competing in straight-up matches for the first time while Will Ospreay’s return to the Juniors after his NEVER run will be interesting. There is fun to be had even if the potential for brilliance is not quite there.