10 Things We Learned From NJPW G1 Special 2018
Rise and Fall
Back at it on pay-per-view and back in the United States after a broadly successful trip across the Pacific Ocean earlier this year, New Japan Pro Wrestling's presentation of 2018's G1 Special still carried the heft of a brave expedition for the company - even if the performers themselves won't be under similar conditions until the legendary Climax tournament itself kicks off on 14 July.
There were quiet catcalls at the company's expense upon booking California's Cow Palace, a venue bigger than their previous Long Beach locale, and the knocks proved not without merit. Despite Kenny Omega's show-closing bluster, the card failed to sell out the venue, though an impressive 6,000+ in attendance still bore witness to a show worthy of a stadium they'll inevitably one day find a way to fill.
It was unable to reach the peaks of June's already-iconic Dominion, but then can any wrestling show for the remainder of the decade even stand a chance of coming close? The Golden Elite's world-changing formation at the climax of that was built on stars - both human and Meltzer-manufactured - that virtually guaranteed something earth-shattering just for the price of admission.
This is a tough expectation to set going forward, but it's already proved hugely enjoyable watching NJPW's best and brightest try.
10. Come At The King...
The Bullet Club originals paired with Guerrillas Of Destiny dad King Haku to hammer the CHAOS also-ran crew of Yoshi-Hashi, Gedo, Rocky Romero, Yoh and Sho, but the significance of their victory in the match didn't carry extra weight until the shocking events that took place several hours later.
During New Japan Pro Wrestling's swing through the United Kingdom last week, Suzuki-Gun squashed CHAOS in a multitude of matches, but it was to be Bullet Club's night on American soil with victories here, in tag matches later on the card as well as a guaranteed winner in the evening's main event.
It's added weight to a belief that stables may be establishing home turfs of sorts - a particularly useful narrative as the company continue their global expansion, with Bullet Club as hot a topic to the California natives as anybody else on the NJPW roster.
Criticisms were later levied at the company for their profiling of Haku in this and another prominent spot later that night, but they missed the point of his inclusion. A known hard-case with stories of his legendary toughness that betray the ageing process no matter how old he gets, his position alongside his son as they made a drastic choice was vital - who else to empower two angry sons like their father?