10 Things WWE Doesn't Want You To Know About NJPW

9. It's Entertaining

Okada plays the Crystal Maze
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WWE is obsessed with "entertainment". What they do isn't wrestling; it's a medium closer in genre to action adventure, not the lowbrow regional hick concern it once was.

This is something loyalists use to criticise New Japan, or claim in order to resist the recommendation to watch it in the first place. Who cares about good wrestling matches, when the presentation is so dry?

That is a false narrative. The New Japan roster doesn't (just) indulge in head-dropping festivals and next-level aerials. The much-maligned Toru Yano wrestled a stupidly fun comedy match with Kenny Omega during this year's G1 Climax tournament, but leveraged his status as joke to craft a ridiculously unpredictable, is-this-going-to-actually-happen sprint with Okada earlier in the tourney. Minoru Suzuki ritually kicks ring boys off the apron in puro's hilarious version of the Sideshow Bob rake gag - and his sh*tbag Suzuki-gun stable (in small doses) is awesome at generating interference-laden heat. Kazuchika Okada makes money rain from the ceiling, and once entered the ring flanked by a massive animatronic dinosaur. The Guerrillas of Destiny swear like sailors (NSFW) throughout their matches, for those in the PG SUX crowd.

New Japan isn't a succession of long, violent matches with slow builds - it's a show, not a card.

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!