Cero Reviews NJPW Best Of The Super Junior XXVII & World Tag League 2020 Finals

[cero2k]

NJPW Best Of The Super Junior XXVII & World Tag League 2020 Finals
December 11, 2020
Nippon Budokan, Tokyo, Japan

Robbie Eagles, SHO & Toru Yano vs. BULLET CLUB (Bad Luck Fale, Chase Owens & Taiji Ishimori) - 4.5/10
Ok match, it was really short. SHO was great and arguably the best thing of the match, but the whole thing was to advance Yano vs Fale, as the former is still trying to slam Fale. Chase pinned Eagles after a Fale Grenade.

Post-match - Fale destroyed Yano's KOPW trophy and challenged him to a match for it.

Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kazuchika Okada & Toa Henare vs. The Empire (w/Bea Priestley) - 7/10
This was mostly a repeat of the World Tag League match between these two team, but Ospreay and Okada were there to antagonize each other and give us a small preview. The rest was GOK and Cobb working over Tanahashi and beating up Henare, who got pinned with a Tour of the Islands.

The match mainly built Tanahashi vs Great-O-Khan, Okada vs Ospreay, and give Cobb a win for his own chase.

BULLET CLUB (EVIL & Yujiro Takahashi) (w/Dick Togo) vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon (SANADA & Shingo Takagi) - 6.5/10
SANADA was all intensity and fire going after EVIL. The match was so chaotic that it almost felt like an angle, but there was a match somewhere in there. Shingo pinned Yujiro with the Last of the Dragons, but it really felt like a formality in this SANADA vs EVIL build up.

Post-match - Cobb came out and challenged Shingo to a NEVER Openweight title match. Backstage, SANADA and EVIL kept going at it, with SANADA chasing EVIL around. Two matches for Wrestle Kingdom right there.

Kota Ibushi & Master Wato (w/Hiroyoshi Tenzan) vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon (BUSHI & Tetsuya Naito) - 7/10
This was all good action. While they are building Ibushi and Naito, I have to admit that I enjoyed BUSHI vs Ibushi and Wato vs Naito's stuff. Beyond that, there wasn't much to this, I just enjoyed all the LIJ teasing of Tenzan outside.

World Tag League 2020 Final Match
Guerrillas Of Destiny (w/Jado) vs. FinJuice - 8.5/10
Really good match, but I just wasn't all that invested in either team coming in. Finlay was the babyface in peril and once they were done with that, the rest of the match was a ton of great near falls from all sides, they really made you wonder who would win the whole thing. It was until the end, after FinJuice had countered the GOD big powerbomb, that KENTA showed up, smacked Juice with the briefcase, setting him up for another super powerbomb for the BC win.

Best Of The Super Junior XXVII Final Match
El Desperado vs. Hiromu Takahashi - 9.5/10
This was fucking awesome, and let's go straight to the controversy. Hiromu ripped half of Desperado's mask in a kayfabe fit of rage and Desperado, already showing half of his face, decided to remove the rest and complete the match without a mask. I thought this was fucking awesome, it's the second time that I've seen Desperado do this and I loved it the same, it adds so much drama and intensity to the end of the match. A lot of people, mostly lucha fans will complain that it goes against the masked tradition and shit, but let's be realistic, everyone has always know who Desperado (or BUSHI or Liger) were under their masks, there are no masked Young Lions for a reason. There's no identity to hide and to me, that is the uncrossable line for masked wrestlers. I have zero issues if a masked wrestler, with a known identity takes off their mask in the heat of the moment, and I find it more disrespectful to pretend that we don't know who is who.

Now, for the match, it was a great game of limb work by Desperado, he went after Hiromu's leg from the start and everything he did was done towards hurting the leg, every counter he did, was towards trying to lock in the Numero Dos. Hiromu sold his leg beautifully, always selling after hitting superkicks and all. There was a great spot where Despy had Numero Dos locked, with both of Hiromu's hands incapacitated, and somehow, Despy lifted Hiromu up in that position, and Hiromu flipped into a destroyer, it was great. At the end, after being unmasked, they went for a couple of near falls, Despy even kicked out of Time Bomb, but at the end, he hit Time Bomb II for the win. This went about 30 minutes, but went by fast.

Post-match - Hiromu said that him and Despy should do it again. He was going to challenge Ishimori, but instead, he challenged to whoever wins the Super-J Cup, to a battle of the tournament winners, and only the winner of such battle should challenge for the title. Sounds right.

He then closed a show with a nice heartfelt promo about COVID struggles and how the fans and the wrestlers feed from each other to keep going.

OVERALL THOUGHTS
Good show, this being the last big show before Wrestle Kingdom, it was productive in a way to set up a lot of matches for Jan 4 and 5, but beyond that, it was for the most part a 1-2 match show.

[Big Red Machine]

He was going to challenge Ishimori, but instead, he challenged to whoever wins the Super-J Cup, to a battle of the tournament winners, and only the winner of such battle should challenge for the title. Sounds right.

This is the sort of thing where I'm not saying it doesn't make sense, but the overall scheme of things makes it feel like there only reason there are two tournaments is so Hiromu could make this challenge and thus give us a match for each night of Wrestle Kingdom. I get that the Super J cup is for people NJPW would want to use for BOSJ but they're stuck in North America because of COVID... but if that's the case then wouldn't it have made more kayfabe sense for the idea going in to be that the winner of each tournament would get a title shot on one of the night's of WK, instead of BOSJ having the title shot as a prize and the Super J Cup just being a random tournament with no prize on the line? The way they did it here makes it seem like the kayfabe bookers are idiots and Hiromu is saving the day by offering to defend his title shot out of the goodness of his heart/his competitive spirit.

[cero2k]

This is the sort of thing where I'm not saying it doesn't make sense, but the overall scheme of things makes it feel like there only reason there are two tournaments is so Hiromu could make this challenge and thus give us a match for each night of Wrestle Kingdom. I get that the Super J cup is for people NJPW would want to use for BOSJ but they're stuck in North America because of COVID... but if that's the case then wouldn't it have made more kayfabe sense for the idea going in to be that the winner of each tournament would get a title shot on one of the night's of WK, instead of BOSJ having the title shot as a prize and the Super J Cup just being a random tournament with no prize on the line? The way they did it here makes it seem like the kayfabe bookers are idiots and Hiromu is saving the day by offering to defend his title shot out of the goodness of his heart/his competitive spirit.

the Super J Cup has never been for a title match, hell, it hasn't even been a NJPW tournament always, so suddenly making it for a shot at any title would not only change the tradition of the tournament, but also telegraph that ELP, the only NJPW roster guy would win. This worked perfectly because it makes Hiromu look for of a fighting contender and ELP as a villain that won't back down from a challenge.

[Big Red Machine]

This is the sort of thing where I'm not saying it doesn't make sense, but the overall scheme of things makes it feel like there only reason there are two tournaments is so Hiromu could make this challenge and thus give us a match for each night of Wrestle Kingdom. I get that the Super J cup is for people NJPW would want to use for BOSJ but they're stuck in North America because of COVID... but if that's the case then wouldn't it have made more kayfabe sense for the idea going in to be that the winner of each tournament would get a title shot on one of the night's of WK, instead of BOSJ having the title shot as a prize and the Super J Cup just being a random tournament with no prize on the line? The way they did it here makes it seem like the kayfabe bookers are idiots and Hiromu is saving the day by offering to defend his title shot out of the goodness of his heart/his competitive spirit.

the Super J Cup has never been for a title match, hell, it hasn't even been a NJPW tournament always, so suddenly making it for a shot at any title would not only change the tradition of the tournament, but also telegraph that ELP, the only NJPW roster guy would win. This worked perfectly because it makes Hiromu look for of a fighting contender and ELP as a villain that won't back down from a challenge.

But having them at the same time makes it weird otherwise. And, in general, not having a tournament like that be for a title shot is a little strange, as the idea of a tournament is to determine who is the best person in the league/division, so the winner getting a shot at the champ is only natural.

[cero2k]

But having them at the same time makes it weird otherwise. And, in general, not having a tournament like that be for a title shot is a little strange, as the idea of a tournament is to determine who is the best person in the league/division, so the winner getting a shot at the champ is only natural.

Well yeah, that was a bad timing thing, BOSJ shouldn't be happening right now. They could've made the change and make it work, but I don't think it's not that bad to not do so. Hiromu's promo is what made it work for me, he said he should be challenging Ishimori, but he wanted to defeat whoever won the Super J Cup, and it works that heel ELP is gonna try to take advantage and get himself a title match out of it.

I see it the same way when a babyface offers to put his G1 title shot to those who defeated him during the tournament, kinda wanting to prove to all that he truly deserves the shot.

[Big Red Machine]

But having them at the same time makes it weird otherwise. And, in general, not having a tournament like that be for a title shot is a little strange, as the idea of a tournament is to determine who is the best person in the league/division, so the winner getting a shot at the champ is only natural.

Well yeah, that was a bad timing thing, BOSJ shouldn't be happening right now. They could've made the change and make it work, but I don't think it's not that bad to not do so. Hiromu's promo is what made it work for me, he said he should be challenging Ishimori, but he wanted to defeat whoever won the Super J Cup, and it works that heel ELP is gonna try to take advantage and get himself a title match out of it.

To me, it should make sense without Hiromu having to take the initiative, or else it makes the promotion look silly.

I see it the same way when a babyface offers to put his G1 title shot to those who defeated him during the tournament, kinda wanting to prove to all that he truly deserves the shot.

So by this same logic, does that mean you've changed your stance and now agree that a champion getting pinned in a non-title match should result in a title shot?

[cero2k]

So by this same logic, does that mean you've changed your stance and now agree that a champion getting pinned in a non-title match should result in a title shot?

I don't think it should result in it, but I think it's deserving of one. title shots should come strictly from stipulations or challenges. Stuff like Ishii v Okada is still to me a personal decision by Ishii and Okada letting it slide, but without an authority, I don't think they should be automatic title shots.

[Big Red Machine]

So by this same logic, does that mean you've changed your stance and now agree that a champion getting pinned in a non-title match should result in a title shot?

I don't think it should result in it, but I think it's deserving of one. title shots should come strictly from stipulations or challenges. Stuff like Ishii v Okada is still to me a personal decision by Ishii and Okada letting it slide, but without an authority, I don't think they should be automatic title shots.

That's just so backwards to me, that a challenge can result in a title match regardless of the worthiness of the challenger (see: Carmella) but that doing something that proves that you might just be better than the champion doesn't automatically result in a title match needing to be booked.
In your book, is Hiromu a bigger babyface than Okada because he's more of a fighting "champion" here than Okada was because Hiromu is offering a "title" shot to someone with an (at least semi-)legitimate claim while Okada wouldn't do so with Ishii?

[cero2k]

That's just so backwards to me, that a challenge can result in a title match regardless of the worthiness of the challenger (see: Carmella) but that doing something that proves that you might just be better than the champion doesn't automatically result in a title match needing to be booked.
In your book, is Hiromu a bigger babyface than Okada because he's more of a fighting "champion" here than Okada was because Hiromu is offering a "title" shot to someone with an (at least semi-)legitimate claim while Okada wouldn't do so with Ishii?

Wrestlers can always deny challenges, no one is obliged to accept them. We see it all the time with heels. A Cena/Ibushi type of babyface takes on all challengers, but the opponent has to make the challenge at least. It's up to booking to make sure that if you're pushing someone to a challenge like that, to at least give them something to make them feel important, even with no wins, you can book them to make an impact on the champion, for the champion to want revenge.

In kayfabe, you can't force someone to challenge for a title that he/she/they don't want to challenge for, the right for the title shot is there, but there HAS to be a challenge made.

Current Hiromu vs that one time Okada, yes 100%. I've always seen Okada as a cocky prick anyway, I don't think it's out of his character to not make it a thing to get wins back. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think he's only called out Omega AS a champion.

[Big Red Machine]

That's just so backwards to me, that a challenge can result in a title match regardless of the worthiness of the challenger (see: Carmella) but that doing something that proves that you might just be better than the champion doesn't automatically result in a title match needing to be booked.
In your book, is Hiromu a bigger babyface than Okada because he's more of a fighting "champion" here than Okada was because Hiromu is offering a "title" shot to someone with an (at least semi-)legitimate claim while Okada wouldn't do so with Ishii?

Wrestlers can always deny challenges, no one is obliged to accept them. We see it all the time with heels. A Cena/Ibushi type of babyface takes on all challengers, but the opponent has to make the challenge at least. It's up to booking to make sure that if you're pushing someone to a challenge like that, to at least give them something to make them feel important, even with no wins, you can book them to make an impact on the champion, for the champion to want revenge.


In kayfabe, you can't force someone to challenge for a title that he/she/they don't want to challenge for, the right for the title shot is there, but there HAS to be a challenge made.

Heels deny challenges all the time, yes... but when the challenger really is deserving, the babyface authority figure will come out and say "not so fast there, champ" and book the match anyway.
And I don't think an explicit "get in the champ's face and ask for a title shot" segment is necessary. If someone has done enough to earn a title shot, the office should proactively book the match because 1) their job is to preserve the integrity of their title by ensuring that the best wrestler is always the champion, and a guy on a big winning streak might be able to beat the champion, and 2) because they want to make money (both for themselves and to keep the wrestlers happy with big purses).

And what wrestler wouldn't want a title shot? Everyone's goal should should be to be the top champion of their division. Otherwise, why are they there? Even a "heel mercenary" type should take a title shot if offered because if your goal is to make money, you still want to be the champ because that way you make more money per match.

I've always seen Okada as a cocky prick anyway, I don't think it's out of his character to not make it a thing to get wins back. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think he's only called out Omega AS a champion.

Per Dave, Okada called out both Marufuji and Fale after losing to them in the 2016 G1. The match with Marufuji was for the title, the match with Fale, inexplicably, was not. The only reason he didn't call Omega out is because the booker's grand plan wasn't for them to have another match until next year... which makes everything feel orchestrated, which is one of my main problems with Gedo's booking.

[cero2k]

Heels deny challenges all the time, yes... but when the challenger really is deserving, the babyface authority figure will come out and say "not so fast there, champ" and book the match anyway.
And I don't think an explicit "get in the champ's face and ask for a title shot" segment is necessary. If someone has done enough to earn a title shot, the office should proactively book the match because 1) their job is to preserve the integrity of their title by ensuring that the best wrestler is always the champion, and a guy on a big winning streak might be able to beat the champion, and 2) because they want to make money (both for themselves and to keep the wrestlers happy with big purses).

And what wrestler wouldn't want a title shot? Everyone's goal should should be to be the top champion of their division. Otherwise, why are they there? Even a "heel mercenary" type should take a title shot if offered because if your goal is to make money, you still want to be the champ because that way you make more money per match.

Keyword here is 'authority figure', something that NJPW doesn't use in the sense of matchmaking, Sugabayashi only comes out to validate contract signings. Yours is a perfectly fine argument for WWE, Impact, AEW, DDT, even ROH, but it doesn't really apply for promotions that don't use the whole authority figure thing.

You can definitely add reasons for wrestlers to not chase titles. Okada for instance has said on many occasions that he only has eyes on the world title and doesn't care about challenging for the IC title, even if Naito has both, he'd only challenge for the heavyweight one. He could pin the IC champion and not care about challenging for the title (or probably any other title in the promotion at this point). Ishii we've always seen as someone that is not chasing money or glory, he's here to fight and once he has won, he heads to the back to keep on doing his thing. Yeah, he'll take your title if he doesn't like you, but he also won't take his boy's title either. They're all perfectly good character traits

Per Dave, Okada called out both Marufuji and Fale after losing to them in the 2016 G1. The match with Marufuji was for the title, the match with Fale, inexplicably, was not. The only reason he didn't call Omega out is because the booker's grand plan wasn't for them to have another match until next year... which makes everything feel orchestrated, which is one of my main problems with Gedo's booking.

Oh ok, forgot those two. Marufuji actually makes sense to me, Okada surely wouldn't want to have a loss against someone outside the company in terms of pride more than honoring a title shot.

[Big Red Machine]

Heels deny challenges all the time, yes... but when the challenger really is deserving, the babyface authority figure will come out and say "not so fast there, champ" and book the match anyway.
And I don't think an explicit "get in the champ's face and ask for a title shot" segment is necessary. If someone has done enough to earn a title shot, the office should proactively book the match because 1) their job is to preserve the integrity of their title by ensuring that the best wrestler is always the champion, and a guy on a big winning streak might be able to beat the champion, and 2) because they want to make money (both for themselves and to keep the wrestlers happy with big purses).

And what wrestler wouldn't want a title shot? Everyone's goal should should be to be the top champion of their division. Otherwise, why are they there? Even a "heel mercenary" type should take a title shot if offered because if your goal is to make money, you still want to be the champ because that way you make more money per match.

Keyword here is 'authority figure', something that NJPW doesn't use in the sense of matchmaking, Sugabayashi only comes out to validate contract signings. Yours is a perfectly fine argument for WWE, Impact, AEW, DDT, even ROH, but it doesn't really apply for promotions that don't use the whole authority figure thing.

I completely disagree. You're confusing the concept of an authority figure with the stereotypical "GM" we've seen over the years. New Japan does have this. If they didn't, then there would be no need for Sugabayashi to come out and at all. He's a representative of NJPW, and NJPW is the authority. They're the ones booking the matches.
In the world you're describing, a chicken-sh*t heel could just turn down every challenge (especially if it's for a belt that there is no #1 contendership tournament for) and keep the belt forever.

You can definitely add reasons for wrestlers to not chase titles. Okada for instance has said on many occasions that he only has eyes on the world title and doesn't care about challenging for the IC title, even if Naito has both, he'd only challenge for the heavyweight one. He could pin the IC champion and not care about challenging for the title (or probably any other title in the promotion at this point). Ishii we've always seen as someone that is not chasing money or glory, he's here to fight and once he has won, he heads to the back to keep on doing his thing. Yeah, he'll take your title if he doesn't like you, but he also won't take his boy's title either. They're all perfectly good character traits

If Okada wouldn't take a second belt that he literally has to do zero extra work for, then he's a moron. If he doesn't want to defend it ever then he could just- as you have suggested- merely not accept challenges for it.

We have seen no evidence that Ishii will only want to take your title "if he doesn't like you." I don't recall him ever saying anything like this, and based on his behavior, he doesn't seem to like ANYONE (Okada included. He's never lifted a finger to help the dude). He beat Shingo in this year's G1 but hasn't gone after his belt. We don't have any evidence that he likes Shingo, either.

Per Dave, Okada called out both Marufuji and Fale after losing to them in the 2016 G1. The match with Marufuji was for the title, the match with Fale, inexplicably, was not. The only reason he didn't call Omega out is because the booker's grand plan wasn't for them to have another match until next year... which makes everything feel orchestrated, which is one of my main problems with Gedo's booking.

Oh ok, forgot those two. Marufuji actually makes sense to me, Okada surely wouldn't want to have a loss against someone outside the company in terms of pride more than honoring a title shot.

I don't follow that logic at all. Why would he care about losing to someone outside of the company more than someone in the company. Being the champ means he's the best wrestling in New Japan, and losing to someone in the company puts that into doubt. Losing to someone outside of the company doesn't.

And the Fale part would disprove that idea, as he cleared cared about losing to Fale, who is in NJPW.

For both Okada and Ishii, you're coming up with theories that fit most (but not all) of the observable data, but you don't have any evidence that supports that your hypothesis is the correct explanation for the the non-congruent data (as opposed to some other hypothesis). And, in this case, the burden of proof does lie on you, because the evidence for my argument- that the booking is flawed- is proved by the discrepancies, absent any supported explanation.