Blog #4 due 2/27
Only three people reblogged my post so I am creating another 400 word post topic of my choice.
For the past week, I’ve been watching more Puroresu wrestling matches recently. After having my proposal accepted for my CWP 102 class, I was overly excited at the prospect of delving deeper into the Japanese culture of wrestling. I’ve watched the “Strong style” aspect of wrestling for five years; avidly admiring companies such as New Japan Pro Wrestling, DDT Pro and Pro Wrestling NOAH. I’ve learned a plethora of information regarding how fans respect the sport and its role of foreign wrestlers or Gaijins. Over the time, Puroresu has become a huge deal in the United States due popular stars such as Shinsuke Nakamura and KENTA joining the WWE and the overwhelming popularity of the Gaijin faction “Bullet Club”. The current landscape of Puroresu is hotter than ever and now was the right time to really learn its origins and how it became a ritual for fans not only in Japan but around the world as well.
@SeniorLARIATO is a very prominent page on Twitter as the user consistently posts gifs, videos, and information on the Puroresu style. Recently, he shared a spreadsheet of 700+ matches that are highly recommended to watch using the NJPW world subscription. This spreadsheet is very helpful for those looking to learn more about Puroresu and some of the past prominent figures in New Japan’s history. These past few days have been excellent because I have made it a mission to watch one match a day on this spreadsheet. After watching five years worth of NJPW already, there were about 50 matches that I had already seen. It is very entertaining to relive the excellent matches wrestlers such as Shinya Hashimoto, Antonio Inoki and Vader performed and how they became legends in the sport.
There’s one wrestler in particular that captured my attention, and his name is Masahiro Chono. I’ve heard about Masahiro Chono from watching classic WCW (World Championship Wrestling) matches and videos. I fell in love with his style considering Lou Thesz, a pioneer of both Catch Wrestling and Puroresu was his mentor. He is widely regarded for his physical style and he also depicts a very charismatic demeanor. It is a pleasure learning about his prominence in NJPW and his incredible feats such as winning a total of five “G1 Climax” tournaments which is an outstanding achievement. Chono is just one of the wrestlers that I will begin to watch and study closely. I believe that the more matches that I watch, the more I will gain a better understanding regarding the physical and stiff style of Puroresu. This will make my final CWP 102 project all easier and enjoyable.
