This Thursday, Rewind-A-Wai #158 will focus on the August 4, 2013, G1 Climax card from Osaka, Japan.
Espresso Executive Producer @Contrasoma selected this show and will join us for a segment to reflect on this card.
Post any thoughts, feedback & questions below and check out the show this Thursday at POSTWrestlingCafe.com
Watch this show:
NJPW G1 Climax 23: Day 4 (2013)
G1 Climax - Day 4
Sunday, August 4, 2013
Osaka, Japan
Bodymaker Colosseum
*Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kota Ibushi
*Kazuchika Okada vs. Togi Makabe
*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Prince Devitt
*Tetsuya Naito vs. Minoru Suzuki
*Lance Archer vs. Hirooki Goto
*Katsuyori Shibata vs. Tomohiro Ishii
*Satoshi Kojima vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr.
*Yuji Nagata vs. Shelton X Benjamin
*Hiroyoshi Tenzan vs. Karl Anderson
*Yujiro Takahashi vs. Toru Yano
Jesse from the 6
This was an excellent choice of review by Mr. Lord. I know, because I considered choosing it myself.
I still remember listening to John Pollock in 2013—recording from his car inside his building’s parking lot, probably—stating that this show was equal to any of the greatest wrestling shows he’d ever seen. 2013 was the first year I’d watched any New Japan, spurred on by a conversation John and Wai had had about the Sakuraba-Nakamura match earlier that year at Wrestle Kingdom.
As a product, New Japan wowed me, and no show did that better than this one here. Shibata-Ishii stunned me with its breathless pace and ruthless physicality. So many of these characters jumped off the screen to me, such as Suzuki, Tanahashi, and Prince Devitt. What sticks with me most, however, was the main event. I know many people hold the match they’d later have at a Wrestle Kingdom in higher esteem, but this Nakamura-Ibushi match is my favourite between the two and, at the time, was probably my favourite match ever. I will never forget the sight of the baby-faced Ibushi defiantly rising from the corner, like a Golden Phoenix from the ashes, daring a bewildered Nakamura to visit more violence upon him.
Question: Why do you think it was 2013, and specifically this G1, and not 2011, -12, -14, or -15, that propelled New Japan to the attention of many Western wrestling fans? For me, the answer is as simple as John Pollock covered it, so I started following it. But were there broader forces at play, or is Pollock just that much of a taste-maker?
Take Care
Cory from Long Island
As of me typing this, I can safely say that my interest in pro wrestling has been at its lowest than it has been in a long time. Perhaps it is the endless deluge of wrestling week after week that fries the neurons, or perhaps I just feel a bit uninspired by the stories presented to me currently by my companies of choice. However, when I heard that you two were covering this particular G1 card, it got me to revisit an all time favorite match of mine.
Getting recommended something I find can be a bit of a minefield. When someone comes to you with the suggestion of some critically acclaimed movie or album, it can be hard for me to not have it enter the realm of “homework”. It can sometimes be a really sell for me to want to sit down for 120 minutes to watch some emotionally intense drama or a 90 minute long intricate metal album. These are things I try to be cognizant of when it comes to recommending anything to my friends any piece of media - whether it be music, movies, or wrestling.
12 minutes of dudes taking turns beating the ever loving shit out of each other, though? Easy sell.
Ishii vs Shibata was the go to match to show my friends who have not watched wrestling; beyond the WWE, or just in general. The level of violent spectacle on display transcends pro wrestling and enters the same kind of territory my friends and I would enter when downloading random street fights on Kazaa. This match - more than anything else - is just straight up RAW. The sounds of the kicks and chops pounding flesh, the frantic pace as lariats turn into suplexes that turn into boots to the jaw - all of this is just tailor made for a bunch of jaded violence junkies to point at and shout in awe. And all of this in just over twelve minutes?!
I can wax poetic about intricate storytelling and booking, about the grand tapestry of wrestling history and how the past can beautifully inform our present though this enduring art form but truthfully, all of that is secondary to the most important thing of all: it is very fun to watch people hurt each other. To me - and to many - this match right here is proof positive of that.
Chris Maffei from Long Island
This is simply one of my favorite wrestling shows ever. John’s G1 coverage from 2013 is what inspired me to finally check out New Japan, and I dove headfirst into what wound up being an incredible G1 that introduced me to many of my current favorite wrestlers like Shibata, Nakamura, and Suzuki.
This show stands out in my mind as one of the most enjoyable experiences I’ve ever had watching wrestling (outside of a live setting). Ishii/Shibata and Ibushi/Nakamura from this show are still two of my all-time favorite matches, and I can’t describe the thrill of watching them for the first time. This entire G1 tournament is rivaled only by the next year’s G1 in my mind.
I can’t thank John enough for his overage at the time, and I’m willing to bet that it inspired many others to jump into New Japan as it was entering a new golden age. Getting into New Japan at the time also led me to exploring what the rest of the puroresu scene had to offer. I wound up falling in love with Dragon Gate - and also with my wife, who I met on Twitter and bonded with over our mutual love of Dragon Gate. We’ve been together ever since.
I’ve been listening to you two for almost 15 years now and just want to thank you for everything you do. All the best and much continued success.
1 Like