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pokoko on 05 February 2017
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badgenome said:
pokoko said:

This is also the kind of situation where major MMA submissions fail in pro wrestling.  In reality, Okada would have tapped long before the end just to keep his career from ending, not simply because of pain.  If he *did* keep from tapping after all that, he darn sure wouldn't be doing drop kicks.  It's like they took the realistic parts because they're realistic and then made them as unrealistic as possible.  

I don't know who said it, but I remember one of the older guys saying that some of the really vicious submissions should be sold with either the one taking the move fighting like hell to keep the move from being applied cleanly or them fighting like hell to quickly reach the ropes for a break.  Extended periods locked into something nasty should be avoided.  I agree with that.

Yeah. It's kind of strange to see NJPW of all places go down that road. '90s AJPW got to the point where none of the top guys would ever submit and so submissions lost all credibility as finishers outside of undercard matches. I remember them doing exactly one hot submission spot in all those years (my avatar!) while in NJPW for so long any dude could get a reaction out of slapping on a cross armbreaker because it wouldn't have been unbelievable for anyone to tap out to it. Feels like in getting away from all the stupid parts of Inoki-ism they've also gotten too far away from the psychological underpinnings of the old strong style for my taste.

They're also starting to remind me of '90s AJPW in the way that the big main events are becoming increasingly epic purely for the sake of being epic. It becomes exhausting to watch when you know for a certainty that it won't end in the first 20 minutes, 30 is likely, and 40+ isn't out of the question. Just like AJPW was that stuff is all the rage among a certain subset of fan right now, but it's going to take its toll eventually... both in terms of diminishing returns and physical wear and tear.

Oddly, the structure where matches have to keep topping themselves is something Tanahashi long spoke out against.  Now, you're right, it does feel like AJPW, which really isn't sustainable.  I'd rather see consistent 4-star matches than them reaching for 5-stars every single time.  40 minute matches should also be rare and unexpected.  Nakamura and Tanahashi used to have incredible matches that clocked in under 30 minutes.  That is what built NJPW up to where it is now.

Personally, unless there is a reason to go longer, I like matches in the 20-25 minute range.  Those are the matches I'll go back and watch, as well, like some of the G1 stuff (which is the best thing in wrestling).

NJPW also seems to be dangerously close to becoming "Okada Produce".  I suspect they're going to line up the roster for him to run through, much like Cena did at one point, though he'll keep getting pinned in 6-man tag matches so we think his next challenger has a chance.  I call it the "Bad Luck Fale" effect.  

Maybe I'm just bitter, as Okada is like my 5th or 6th favorite New Japan wrestler.  I like it a lot better when it seemed like everyone was closer to the same level.