10 Best Booking Decisions In Wrestling History
1. The Ishin Gundan "Invasion"
In 1983, New Japan was in the midst of a red-hot period driven by the ultra-novel Ishin Gundan stable that was a tweak on the original invading forces from the ashes of the International Wrestling Enterprise.
The IWE was a legit group that when defunct "invaded" NJPW. Think ECW's role in the 2001 invasion in terms of disparity between the groups (and in a further parallel, much in the way of garbage wrestling).
Ishin Gundan was something else; a fictional break-away promotion of defectors, the group was a huge success, influencing the programme that influenced the nWo, because leader Riki Choshu was an incredible and charismatic figure: the proto-cool heel. His programme with Tatsumi Fujinami (pictured) generated incredible business, selling out 90% of the company's gates, because it was fresh and compelling in several different ways. Grudge rivalries between native talents were rare, and there was a meta edge to a rivalry premised on jealousy and becoming the new face of the company.
Several promotions use this angle to this day.
The match quality was futuristic and super-heated, too. Everything was white-hot. One of the most influential series ever, it only failed because company founder Antonio Inoki was caught in an embezzlement scandal and Choshu left in disgust (or because he reasoned that Inoki was never going to stop being the focal point of the company no matter how hot his angle was or wasn't).