G1 Climax 24 - Day 7

G1 Climax 24

(2014/8/1)

1.      Block A: Shelton Benjamin vs. Satoshi Kojima

Fun opener that didn’t overstay its welcome, the beginning and the finishing run were a nice back-and-forth, while the middle was Benjamin on offense. Good match.

***

2.      Block B: Lance Archer vs. Toru Yano

Typically fun Yano match, of course it was short and dramatic, and of course Korakuen was hot for it. Really fine dynamics with Yano trying to materialize his shtick against much stronger gaijin villain, and the climax was fun, as in most YTR matches. Archer is ready to go places. IMO.

**3/4

3.      Block B: Karl Anderson vs. Yujiro Takahashi

Well, very similar to Gallows/Fale from the previous show, it’s a heel/heel match between the two hated Bullet Club members, and the crowd just didn’t care, and this is Korakuen we’re talking about here. Korakuen didn’t care, which is remarkable, and it showed in the wrestlers’ work, totally uninspiring stuff, although I remember thinking “this is decent” during the match, but once it ended, I couldn’t remember a goddamn thing other than the finish. Okay, the earlier part about the crowd not caring was not a complete truth, they did react during the climax. All in all, this was a very skippable match.

bad

4.      Block A: Doc Gallows vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr.

Nice little powerhouse match between the two heel gaijin wallopers, I really dug it, they were both about big power moves, so the key was what else they had up their sleeves, and Davey Boy’s ground-based stuff overbid Doc’s brawling stuff. Also, unlike the earlier gaijin/gaijin heel matches, they made the crowd care, swell stuff.

***1/4

5.      Block B: Hirooki Goto vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan

Tenzan’s biggest moment of the tournament, he can ride off into the sunset like a fucking boss he is. Here he is, the same story as always, the broken down veteran trying to hang with a younger and physically more dominant wrestler, trying to fight like there’s no tomorrow, only this time it’s in the motherfucking KORAKUEN, where everyone’s rooting for him. Such a smart, well structured match, with the biggest feelgood moment of the toruanament, maybe even the whole year. Pro-wrestling is glorious, and this match is why.

****

6.      Block A: Bad Luck Fale vs. Tomoaki Honma

Just when you think it’s impossible to top the Tenzan support, here comes the underdog of the year, Tomoaki Honma, and makes the place fucking explode! That moment when he finally brings Fale down is pure magic. The match was only 6-7 minutes long, but boy, oh boy… Madness!

***3/4

7.      Block B: Tetsuya Naito vs. Togi Makabe

Naito’s scored some big wins in the tournament, against Styles and Okada, but can he survive the roughhouse Makabe? Because, his style is an entirely different story, very similar to Ishii’s, and we all know how that ended earlier this year. Twice. Another smashing match with a superb finishing run. Do I even need to say the crowd rocked?

****

8.      Block B: AJ Styles vs. Minoru Suzuki

*****

9.      Block A: Katsuyori Shibata vs. Yuji Nagata

Hopefully this slugfest doesn’t get overlooked due to Styles/Suzuki. These two had a beef coming off the tag team match from a month + ago, and they sure as hell made sure it translates into this match properly. Stiff shots and brutality everywhere, and the finish was just fabulous. Nagata’s powerful year continues.

****1/4

10.  Block A: Tomohiro Ishii vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

CHAOS Invincible collides! Another fantastic battle that MUST NOT be overlooked due to previous matches from the show, this was a wonderful mayhem and clash of styles, as well as personalities, Ishii’s no-nonsense mantra versus Shinsuke’s swag philosophy and mental games. The peak of the match was something else.

****1/2

One of the greatest events I’ve seen, and trust me, there are tons and tons of them under my belt.