Indy: All-Purpose Non-WWE Discussion Thread -- Part 3 [Impact coming to AXS in October]

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Tw1ster

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Mar 12, 2008
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Thought the opener was gold along with the final two matches. I’m hoping Kenny gets a shot at being the face of WWE. If they use him and treat him like they did AJ, they will have their guy for years to come. Wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up in AEW though.
 

SeidoN

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The AJ argument is meh to me. Yeah he's had title runs and been featured, but he's really only had one good feud and a whole lot of underwhelming matches with screwy finishes almost the entire time he's been in WWE.
 

Tw1ster

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Yeah I understand that for sure. But they haven’t really restricted him all too much. I thought his first good feud was with Roman tbh, and the one with Cena was gold. For them to give a guy that was with the competition for so long, a title reign as long as the last one was speaks volumes of the trust they have in him even if it is Smackdown. If anything, Kenny would probably have a better title reign in WWE than the one he had in NJPW. I understand his contract is up but it felt like a tiny blip that was a year too late
 

GKJ

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Yeah, I'll admit my blindspot to video games as well...didn't get the reference but his entrance get-up was pretty damn cool. Part of that video game opener was from a vignette that BTE posted a couple days ago.

The vignette was Legend of Zelda on Super NES, and he was supposed to be Link as a one-winged angel.

No elite at New Years Dash, including Page and Scurll.

The AJ argument is meh to me. Yeah he's had title runs and been featured, but he's really only had one good feud and a whole lot of underwhelming matches with screwy finishes almost the entire time he's been in WWE.

There’s been very few big matches he’s had that haven’t been great. He’s brought it every PPV and often got screwed by the finishes. The guy got 4 stars out of Shane McMahon.
 

M.C.G. 31

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The guy got to work a McMahon at WM (say what you will, but backstage that’s a big deal) and is now in a program with Vince.

AJ is one of the top guys and protected as hell.
 
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Shoalzie

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I like how they sorta omitted The Elite from the show today...didn't necessarily say they were gone or they were going to be around. I think for now, you can say they're on their own. They could still do something with NJPW.

Big question around Ibushi...being hurt but also, where does he fit in?

Makes sense that Chase and Yujiro re-align with Bullet Club proper. That group looks good.

CHAOS/Taguchi Japan seems like a mutt faction. Something big needs to happen there. Okada looks very vulnerable right now.

Not a big shock that Jay would gun for Tana. Seems really early for them to do this but who else can challenge him and Jay beat Okada and Kenny is seemingly out of the picture.

LIJ vs. Suzuki-gun gang warfare was fun. Nothing fresh but it was a spirited fight. Taichi is gunning for Naito. We'll probably will see a rematch for the junior tag belts.

A few weeks until the build to New Beginning...trying to decide how invested I will be in a NJPW without Kenny.
 

Big Poppa Puck

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The 2 main events were good and Ibushi-Ospreay was good as you would expect but everything else was rushed. The Elite (Kenny excluded) were basically squashed on their way out.

Finishes were very predictable other than I thought for sure Okada would get his comeuppance on White. But they seem really high on him.

G.o.D's entrance with Red Hood and Arkham Knight masks and their new music was sick.
 

JackSlater

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Just finished Wrestle Kingdom now. Solid show, not nearly as good as last year's show. A lot of generic matches in the middle of the card. I can't stand Ospreay and sadly Okada was stuck with White. I expected a bit more from the Rhodes match. Omega-Tanahashi was definitely very good and Naito-Jericho was good as well, though I'm not sure what kind of shape Jericho was in. The predictability of the finishes with regard to certain wrestlers is unfortunate. It will be quite interesting to see where New Japan goes from here.
 

Kimi

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Yeah, I thought the show wasn't as good as other years. Still an extremely good one, just the last few have been literally off the charts good.
 

Tw1ster

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The elbow Ospreay delivered to Ibushi was awesome. Stuff as hell, but awesome. One of the highlights of the show. I also honestly thought Jericho broke his neck on that pile driver on the ramp, looked terrible.
 

Shoalzie

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Since we're openly talking about WK13 now...

An unusual choice to have every title change hands but I honestly thought every title match could've gone either way. Obviously, any match involving a member of the Elite would make perfect sense if they lost. In a confidence pool, I would've put Juice over Cody as my #1 pick. The early seeds of the Elite being on their way out was with Page getting into it with Chase and Yujiro during the gauntlet match. Then we saw the next night with Chase and Yujiro wearing their old Bullet Club gear in their match and then they help G.O.D. and Ishimori retain the 6-man titles.

Kenny vs. Tana was match of the night...it was another Kenny classic but Tana has been on a run of great matches in the last year or so. I thought he's had a series of brilliant matches with Okada and the final of the G1 against Ibushi was awesome. If this was Kenny's last match in Japan, I think he leaves on a high note. Also worth noting, they leave the One-Winged Angel as a protected finisher. I'm happy that Tana didn't kick out of it...he just avoided it a couple times during the match.

The big thing now with this show and NYD, what do you have with NJPW if the Elite isn't going to be a part of it? I think for the local Japanese fans, they'll still love the product. The best workers in the promotion are Japanese. Juice is a good midcard foreign babyface. He's been well-received by the fans for a while. Ospreay is entertaining but is moving more towards a stiffer worker and is showing heel tendencies. The openweight title should be a nice way to work him up into the top of the card and out of the junior division.

I think Jay White is a credible heel leader of Bullet Club but he's not on the level of Devitt, A.J. or Kenny in terms of in-ring work. He's going to need a big year in terms of putting on great matches because I can't accept him as a top guy if all he does is cheat. What made Kenny great was that he could work heel but still win clean because you believed he was the better man. He basically was a heel or tweener until he and Ibushi re-united. It was the end with this match with Tana that he went back to being more of a heel with his promos and in-ring.

I love the junior division but it's in a bit of a strange place. Ishimori is a worthy champ but with Ospreay moving up, Kushida potentially leaving, Hiromu not returning any time soon...Marty is still with ROH so I'd think he's still in the division. There's some good juniors on the roster (mostly tied in with junior tag division) but not quite where they were a year ago when the 4-way at Tokyo Dome was Ospreay, Hiromu, Kushida and Marty.
 

GKJ

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New Japan has to make new stars and that's all there is to it. And they will. They've done it before.
 

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There was a car accident involving 4 wrestlers going home after PCO’s farewell in Quebec.


It is with deep sadness that we learned this morning that Kevin Bennett, Daniel Garcia, Kevin Blackwood and Puf were involved in a serious car accident just outside of Buffalo on their way home from Cold Wars. Bennett and Puf have sustained minor injuries. Unfortunately, Garcia and Blackwood suffered serious injuries and we understand that they are currently undergoing emergency surgery. “
 

Dr Pepper

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So Priscilla Kelly did something pretty gross the other day. Not even gonna post the vid here. :help:

It's fake, but......who thought it'd be a good idea for a spot?
 

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That video is everywhere. Pretty funny it doesn’t bother me.
Not really wrestling but I prefer that, over death matches and the crazy spots.
 

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njpw: KUSHIDA announces departure from New Japan.
"I will leave NJPW on January 31. This was an extremely tough condition made with Meij, Sugabayashi and Kidani. It was a very big decision in my life and I’m thankful they understood. I will head overseas and to see the world of pro wrestling."
 

GKJ

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Talent is going to get spread pretty thin with AEW in the picture.

At least for now, NJPW is staying only with ROH for their partnership, which means AEW is out. Which also means that all those Elite guys are out of the MSG show.

NJPW on the other hand, needs Kenny Omega and if he goes or AEW, then he is out, too. NJPW's ambitious international expansion takes a major hit as a lot of it revolved around Kenny, but not working with AEW may be costing them Kenny.

In either scenario, there's going to have to commit to something that isn't good business.
 

GarbageGoal

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So Priscilla Kelly did something pretty gross the other day. Not even gonna post the vid here. :help:

It's fake, but......who thought it'd be a good idea for a spot?

LOL I was wondering if someone was going to bring it up it’s pretty much the hottest wrestling debate on Twitter with everyone from Gail Kim to Road Dogg and of course Corny getting involved.

I have to say I was thoroughly impressed at how hard she sold the reveal. But she’s probably killed another invite to the Mae Young Classic.
 

Shoalzie

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If Kenny is doing a more kayfabe departure in New Japan, then I think there's a better chance of a return down the road. If I'm a betting man, he'll do AEW and work a lighter schedule than if he went to WWE and where he'd be thrusted into the main storylines right away and had to travel constantly and work every week on TV.

If we think we know these Elite guys, I have to believe they want to have control of their creative and their working schedule and conditions. I can live with him going to AEW if there's a better chance of getting to do work with NJPW in the near future if there's a working arrangement with them later. His statements sounded more like he wants to return and settle the score with Tanahashi. This is different than Kushida's departure who seems destined for WWE based on rumors.
 
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