10 LIVE Observations From The NJPW/ROH G1 Supercard

9. How To Make A Soy Boy Scream For Eight Straight Minutes

Kazuchika Okada
NJPW

In which the case for eclectic in-ring philosophies was presented to a jury that required no convincing.

The uncut cocaine of Bandido Vs. Dragon Lee Vs. Taiji Ishimori brilliantly tackled an industry-wide problem in the streaming age. The answer to fading crowds is simple: inject them with a shot of pure adrenaline in a head-spinning sprint too action-packed to let absent thoughts wonder, but short enough to crave more. Treat your fans like the junkies they are.

A blitzkrieg whirlwind that defied physics, how Ishimori rotated so quickly and so crisply into the Greatest Canadian Destroyer Of All Time was astonishing. We've seen a lot this weekend. We've seen thumb wars, two invisible men having a scrap, shoots, worked shoots, anthropomorphic giant wrestlers performing comedy spots, Bob Backlund doing handstands and ordering Adam Wilbourn to buy his book - and yet, here, a rapt, slack-jawed crowd were left to marvel at the most elemental principle at the core of the art:

How the f*ck did they do that, and how did they not really, badly hurt themselves? I've watched wresting for years and years, and I'd like to think I know some things about it. I literally jumped up out of my seat and screamed NO F*CKING WAY when Ishimori took that bump. I was spellbound. That's what wrestling is. And yes, it was flippy sh*t.

The best flippy sh*t, ironically, is as quintessentially 'wrestling' as the atomic drop.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!