[Please note: there are full incidental spoilers for all other nights of G1 Climax 33 action so far. You can start the journey of non-spoiler reviews of each night here.]
[Please note: this year, all 19 nights will be entirely G1 Climax 33 Block matches, without the opening preliminary tags or young lions matches, with A/B and C/D across alternating nights. I am reviewing every tournament match, but this year I am being brutal: if a match is only ‘good’, it doesn’t get the positive check mark next to it. It’s hard to have a ‘bad’ match in the G1, so you can unofficially use the +/- marks as ‘must see’/’can be missed’. That said, damn I love G1 season.]
Nineteen nights of action across the next three weeks can only mean one thing: it’s time for New Japan Pro Wrestling’s (NJPW) G1 Climax 33, a round robin tournament where the winner earns the chance to main event the Tokyo Dome at Wrestle Kingdom next year. In the G1 Climax, a win earns a competitor 1 point with the loser getting 0 points, while a time limit draw or double countout earns 1 each. For the first time, all matches will have a 20 minute time limit. At the end of the round robin format, top two of each of the four groups advance into an elimination phase, before the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals to crown the overall winner.
Night six is once again time for the C and D Blocks to battle, including an incredibly interesting main event where David Finlay and EVIL face off in an intra-Bullet Club battle as both men strive to maintain their undefeated record. Hiroshi Tahanashi will also face off with Jeff Cobb, while Shingo Takagi and Tomohiro Ishii will go to war in a highly anticipated match up. Tetsuya Naito and Toru Yano will renew their rivalry in a match that historically might not go very long, and Eddie Kingston and Henare will battle in a first time ever contest. Shane Haste and Mikey Nicholls will also be in action in separate matches, as they face Hirooki Goto and Tama Tonga, respectively and starting off the show will be the powerhouse of Bullet Club’s War Dogs, Alex Coughlin facing Zack Sabre Jr.
+ Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Jeff Cobb (G1 Climax 33 D Block Match): this one was a lot of fun. With the same caveats that I seem to have every time — Tanahashi is a wounded man walking, Jeff Cobb is a freakish athlete — this felt like a big match up. For both me and I think the majority of the live crowd, this was the real main event featuring two people who the crowd wanted to see win in different ways. I liked this one
+ Shingo Takagi vs Tomohiro Ishii (G1 Climax 33 C Block Match): just reading this matchup on paper was enough for me. Absolutely hook this directly to my veins and never let it go. Big meaty men bumping meat is what I like, and I truly don’t think there is a better version of that style of match than Shingo/Ishii. I have nothing else to say but that this was great
+ Shane Haste vs Hirooki Goto (G1 Climax 33 D Block Match): after two matches of near silence, it was none other than Shane Haste who got the crowd immediately fired up. This was a strange match but for what it was I really enjoyed it, and I think the crowd appreciated it as well. Goto is in that weird area now where you kind of expect him to lose, but it’s never a certainty, and that gives his matches something that others don’t (not that I didn’t say you think he might win; that’s a different feeling)
– David Finlay vs EVIL (G1 Climax 33 C Block Match): bless their hearts, but Finlay is just not believable as a big bad wrestling stablemaster, and EVIL is… well, EVIL. Neither of them have any real gravitas behind them (thought at least that is by design for EVIL). I really wish that it did, but this just did nothing for me
– Tetsuya Naito vs Toru Yano (G1 Climax 33 D Block Match): another comedy match that went on far longer than it needed to. Strong pass
– Eddie Kingston vs Henare (G1 Climax 33 C Block Match): this was not at all the match I was hoping it would be for these two, and frankly I was supremely underwhelmed. Kingston has proven a better choice than I had feared for AEW to send (not due to his lack of trying or his knowledge of the greats from Japan, but I worried that he might not fit as well as many others) but this match was not what I wanted. Henare has improved os much lately, this felt like a real step back
– Tama Tonga vs Mikey Nicholls (G1 Climax 33 C Block Match): this was as forgettable as it gets, which is really disappointing. I feel bad for Nicholls because the only thing I can think of for him is how badly he nearly killed Henare in his first match, and has otherwise been outshone by his partner Shane Haste on every show. Tama Tonga also just never looked as impressive or crazy good as he has in the past
– Alex Coughlin vs Zack Sabre Jr. (G1 Climax 33 D Block Match): the crowd was absolutely dead for this match, but I didn’t think it was all that bad. Coughlin cannot do the stuff Sabre can so there was some very obvious ‘hand-holding’ so to speak, but this was a good showing for Coughlin after that match with Cobb. But not good enough to call it must see
Should you watch this event: A slight lull in overall match quality from night six means that only Shingo/Ishii was absolutely must see, but you won’t go wrong with Haste/Goto or Tanahashi/Cobb, either.
MoshFish Reviews 