While I think everyone would agree the company is in a better place now than it was at the start of the year, there's still a lot of conflicted opinion. For me, I just wanted to share that as someone who started watching around the time Moxley first came over, this is the best the company has been for me. I'm excited for pretty much every match on Wrestle Kingdom this year and think everything has been built great. My only two complaints I can find about the card is I don't like the Rambo being a #1 Contendership thing, and I was hoping Boltin would get involved in the TV title match (but I have a feeling he'll have a big role to play in EVIL and Tanahashi's match).
The returning generation of Young Lions have been a huge success for me. Tsuji and Umino are great talents, Kidd is having one of the greatest runs I've ever seen a wrestler have, Uemura shows clear promise as the pure babyface ace of the promotion, and even Narita I think has really found his spot as a member of House of Torture and is a credible upper midcard heel talent. Also, Clark Connors, who I think gets left out of that classes conversation due to being the only junior, has definitely earned his spot as tag gatekeeper and I think after his BOSJ run this year would probably make a good Junior champion.
In the following class, you have two of the most instantly talented Young Lions ever in Fujita and Oiwa, and Boltin who I think will grow up to be a very valuable set of hands in the promotion. Leube and Nakashima still on excursion, the latter of which I have super high hopes for. And even after them, you have Daiki Naigi who has made a presence for himself immediately in a way that Young Lions never do.
The abandonment of the notion that the Wrestle Kingdom main event MUST be set at the G1 finals and thus the expectation that post-G1 season the IWGP title won't change? Great decision. Opens up the latter half of the year to be way more interesting. As someone who did start watching when I did, Zack is one of the first long-term character arcs I've been able to witness the majority of (the very first NJPW match I ever watched was Sabre/Fale in G129) it's been so rewarding as a fan to see him where he is now. I never thought he'd make it.
I get why the Umino main event is weird to some, but I think there's a perception that NJPW genuinely doesn't know what they're doing and don't realize how weak they've booked Umino this year. Im not saying it's been the long term plan this whole time, but they know. That's why the story here is that it's a clearly undeserving guy (who knows it) who is trying to prove himself to Zack and the audience. Would Zack/Naito have been a better drawing main? Yes. But would it have been as interesting of a build? I don't think so. I'm glad Zack won when he did and that Naito lost when he did.
My only fear for the future is just seeing who exactly will end up jumping to America next, but that is what it is. NJPW can't control that – but I think overall they've handled losing to Okada and Ospreay well. The plan for the future is very clear.
by PlatformDry4831