Merzbow Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 I mean, she can speak some English.. Â Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members I Bent My Wookie Posted February 4, 2021 Paid Members Share Posted February 4, 2021 Maki Itoh is great, I said this a while back, I really enjoy the work she does over in Japan. I can't see her winning the Japanese side but with the right draw she should make it past the first round as she's got more of a cult online following than a few who were announced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Supremo Posted February 4, 2021 Paid Members Share Posted February 4, 2021 (edited) Holy shit. Next week it’s Lights Out, Falls Count Anywhere, Moxley and Archer vs. The KENs. I’ve never been hugely into the idea of New Japan working with AEW but now that it’s happening I can’t deny it’s exciting. Say what you want about Tony Khan but the fucker can negotiate working relationships with other promotions. It’s crazy. At this rate, I think Edge’s opponent at Wrestlemania is gonna be Kenny Omega for the AEW Title. Edited February 4, 2021 by Supremo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Nick James Posted February 4, 2021 Paid Members Share Posted February 4, 2021 If I never see another wedding in wrestling it'll be too soon. Good god the concept was exhausted in the 90's, never mind in 2021.  Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Supremo Posted February 4, 2021 Paid Members Share Posted February 4, 2021 It’s a shame the wedding was so bad and the debut of KENTA was so wild because it means no-one will be taking about PAC and Fenix being the most exciting tag team of the millennium. Fucking HELL Rey Fenix can go. I love the Inner Circle stuff as much as anyone but let’s wrap that up quickly so PAC and Fenix can have a run with the tag belts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members BomberPat Posted February 4, 2021 Paid Members Share Posted February 4, 2021 are the Japanese matches in the tournament going to air on Dynamite, or just in their respective promotions? Because it'll be a shame not to see Maki Itoh and Mei Suruga make TV, and Aja Kong's always great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedRooster Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 That might have been the worst wrestling wedding ever. Not only was it bad, it was boring. If I'd been watching that live in the States I'd have switched over to NXT for sure. I've no idea why Tony Khan continues to persist with this god-awful storyline. I can't imagine there are many viewers out there who are actually enjoying it. And JR can go fuck himself. He had a dig at Excalibur for not explaining who James Mitchell was, accidentally revealing that HE knew who Mitchell was, meaning he could have given that explanation and just left Excalibur alone. While the show was, for the most part, enjoyable, I continue to be astounded by how often AEW puts itself at risk of hosting a super-spreader event. On one show they had people crowded around the ring for a battle royale, and then did the same thing later for a lumberjack match. Given that several roster members have already had COVID, including some who would be considered high risk, why would you through caution to the wind like that? Anyone can be vulnerable to this horrible illness without even knowing it. It's not even just about the risk of death, the risk of long term health complications is just as concerning. They really need to sort themselves out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members garynysmon Posted February 4, 2021 Paid Members Share Posted February 4, 2021 (edited) I think that AEW need to be careful how they portray/introduce New Japan guys now as there’s a tendency by wrestling’s hardcore fans to overestimate Japanese wrestling’s popularity in the west. It must be remembered that Japanese wrestling in itself is a pretty niche interest, with its biggest exposure over recent years in the western world being a show on AXS TV that everyone in the States takes the piss out of Impact for being on and apparently no-one getting (attracting similar audience sizes too). There are potentially very good stories to be told here if provided in the right context. But given that Dynamite is on a mainstream channel with a wider viewing audience than just tape traders of yonder, assuming that the likes of Kenta etc are household names will not serve them well. Edit: I suppose it also shows why Kenny Omega/Impact never got into trouble for the Bullet Club gear at the Hard to Kill PPV. Edited February 4, 2021 by garynysmon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Supremo Posted February 4, 2021 Paid Members Share Posted February 4, 2021 (edited) 37 minutes ago, RedRooster said: And JR can go fuck himself. JR getting all shitty and taking the piss out of Private Party having a move called, “The Silly String,” was bad enough, but to then try and get Tony Schiavone to join in? Felt like being in school when the naughty, disruptive ones would try and get the innocent kids to join in. Don’t stoop to his level, Big Tone! We’ve got high hopes for you, whereas with any luck JR will be expelled by the Easter holidays! Edited February 4, 2021 by Supremo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members I Bent My Wookie Posted February 4, 2021 Paid Members Share Posted February 4, 2021 I don't want to get into another WWE vs AEW debate but we've just had a Sunday where there was at least 10 people in a ring for WWE at some stages for sure. You have to assume these 2 companies are both doing as much as they can at this stage especially E keeping Keith Lee off the Rumble after Yim got Covid and AEW doing regular testing and only filming on one day. The wedding, you're right, garbage, hot garbage. Miro is falling into that "remember when I was in WWE and we did this" with every week that goes by, just an old man with his stories. Him looking ready to smash Kip's head in was good though, maybe Miro feeling he got embarrassed because of Kip can lead to him smashing him around the arena and then going on a killing spree. Maybe I'm still too optimistic. I love Kingston and Archer smashing 7 bells out of each other. But Kingston needs a definitive win soon, Archers beat him clean, PAC, Moxley, Cody, he still has stuff to settle with the rest of the Death Triangle but it looks like Lance has moved on. Kenta back if anything is making me excited about a potential summer trip to Japan if vaccines and stuff start working and borders and travel ease. The G1 should go back to normal this year in dates and I can see a working agreement meaning AEW sending 3 or 4 people over (PAC, Pentagon and Archer maybe someone from the Inner Circle too) which could give some great match ups. Exciting time to be a wrestling fan, didn't think I'd be saying that with truth a few weeks back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members BomberPat Posted February 4, 2021 Paid Members Share Posted February 4, 2021 3 minutes ago, garynysmon said: I think that AEW need to be careful how they portray/introduce New Japan guys now as there’s a tendency by wrestling’s hardcore fans to overestimate Japanese wrestling’s popularity in the west. I think AEW have built up enough equity with their fanbase that by debuting someone in a major position and allowing them a big match/angle, the fans will believe that they're a big deal. It's no different to them debuting Brian Cage or Lance Archer in major positions, or Eddie Kingston against Cody. If you respect your audience's intelligence, they're more than capable of filling in the blanks, especially if they trust you. On a much smaller scale, the majority of the shows I've worked have been small shows to a captive audience - not to a wrestling fanbase at all. So when we've booked imports, it's on the assumption that the crowd have no idea who they are. So then it's our job to tell the crowd that. And once, two or three times, you've told the crowd "this person is a big deal" and they've lived up to the hype, they'll trust you the next time, and the time after that, and you don't have to put so much effort in to putting them over. Perhaps the biggest advantage AEW have over WWE is that goodwill that the audience are prepared to extend to them - we trust that they'll try and make things work, or we'll be prepared to wait and see where a story goes, whereas in WWE we're expecting the worst all the time. That fan relationship pays dividends when it comes to debuting someone in a top spot in the company - people don't need to know who KENTA is, "he's a star from Japan and he's on Kenny Omega's team" is enough. 1 minute ago, Shy Dad said: I don't want to get into another WWE vs AEW debate but we've just had a Sunday where there was at least 10 people in a ring for WWE at some stages for sure. You have to assume these 2 companies are both doing as much as they can at this stage especially E keeping Keith Lee off the Rumble after Yim got Covid and AEW doing regular testing and only filming on one day. I know NXT UK are doing Covid tests and putting people up in hotels for their isolation period, and not allowing anyone to work who hasn't tested negative. I assume AEW are doing at least that - a few people who work there have said that they have fairly comprehensive testing. It won't be a surefire solution, though, and I wouldn't be comfortable booking something like a Lumberjack match at the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members LaGoosh Posted February 4, 2021 Paid Members Share Posted February 4, 2021 (edited) Pretty sure I've heard that talent get two COVID tests at the hotel before they are even allowed into the arena. Other than the wedding, that show was absolutely brilliant. Top stuff all round. Hopefully going forward they keep Fenix and Pac as a team as they are just insane together. Pentagon is better in singles. There's a bunch of matches I'd be excited to see them in Pac/Fenix vs Bucks would be nuts. JR may be a miserable cunt but even he loves John Silver. Edited February 4, 2021 by LaGoosh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 Kenta had a fairly long NXT run, and aew seems to have a younger and more social media friendly audience who are gonna have seen the Moxley announcement footage. Don’t think too much explanation is needed there. Was something they lacked tv wise with a lot of the new to tv names early doors, would like to see more of the Road To type videos for new people coming in Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Butternut Squash Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 I was hoping the wedding would at least be a Cody/Cargill type car crash. As it turns out, when you have boring people being boring wrestlers in a boring storyline you get the most boring segment in Dynamite history. Huge waste of time. And the feud must continue! Fenix is a fucking LUNATIC. Christ. The velocity he hits his dives with. Can't wait for him to go solo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theringmaster Posted February 4, 2021 Share Posted February 4, 2021 Hasn't the Joshi experiment already failed in AEW? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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