tokyodome

With the "Big 3" of japanese pro-wrestling running big shows around New Year's Eve, the Eastern Lariat starts off the new year in proper fashion and very much in the tradition of the show's history. Of course one major talking point is Wrestle Kingdom 18 with Tetsuya Naito's roll call and Championship win, Okda vs. Danielson and all the fallout after New Year Dash, but that's not all. STRIGGA & Dylan go into depth with Pro Wrestling NOAH's New Year show in Ariake that featured the already infamous Kota Ibushi vs. Naomichi Marufuji match, but that also saw some great action. A very emotional point of discussion is AJPW and all the developments since mid December until now with a focus on Katsuhiko Nakajima's title run and his defense against WWE's Charlie Dempsey.

The traditional “big three” get a look at in the newest Eastern Lariat episode. It seems like All Japan Pro Wrestling and Pro Wrestling NOAH have much more issues bubbling than New Japan Pro Wrestling right now so first STRIGGA & Dylan address All Japan's missed opportunities to pur over their younger talent to the degree where the crowd reactions are a clear indicator of wrong decisions made. Wrong decisions also is the focal point when it comes to GHC Heavyweight Champion Kaito Kiyomiya who doesn't come across like he should cosplaying Keiji Muto. Muto himself has his big match with Shinsuke Nakamura coming up so his retirement road is another big topic once again. In contrast to thee two promotiomns things seem to be on the upswing for NJPW after their well received Battle Autumn show from Osaka that saw Ren Narita & Shota Umino in prominent positions. Join in for some positivity on the “King of Sports”!

New Japan Pro Wrestling has crossed the finish line and after a little over one month the 32^nd G1 Climax is over! Kazuchika Okada scored back to back tournament wins and called his shot, Will Ospreay rose to new hights and left Tetsuya Naito behind, which caught many fans by surprise. Tama Tonga got revenge on Jay White and much, much more happened in these 4 weeks. STRIGGA & Dylan put it all into perspective while bringing up both, the positive and negative aspects of the tournament itself and the surroundings of it. Some of the talking points include their lack of making new stars, their rigid booking patterns and the lack of fan interest, but also the great individual performances and the overall enjoyable tournament. There was a lot to get into, so hop on and enjoy the ride!

A lot has happened in late July in the world of japanese pro-wrestling so the Eastern Lariat duo got back together to discuss a wide range of topics led by New Japan Pro Wrestling's Wrestle Grand Slam in Tokyo Dome and its aftermath. The show though starts with a look back at All Japan's Summer Action Series and then moves to GLEAT's recent events (including the highly praised Takuya Nomura vs. Yu Iizuka bout) before STRIGGA & Dylan discuss current and future events in a trifecta of Joshi promotions in Stardom, Ice Ribbon and Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling.

Harry and Shane are back and this one is a little bit of something they love and a little bit of something they hate as they visit two era's of the Tokyo Dome.  They talk Inokiism, Japanese Richard Simmons, Jushin Thunder Liger, Stan Hansen vs Vader, Vaders Eye, Masahiro Chono's weird breathing, guy's in their 30's being the "Young Generation", the Makai Club, Shinsuke Nakamura, Hiroshi Tanahashi getting stabbed, Rikidozan getting stabbed, MMA vs Pro Wrestling, 

The second day of Wrestle Kingdom 14 is in the books and it was an historic event for many reasons. STRIGGA & Dylan got together to discuss their top 5 moments and matches from the show including the main event, Jushin Thunder Liger's retirement, Minoru Suzuki's entrance and the Jay White character. Other topics include a discussion about the general idea of running two Tokyo Dome shows, the post main event angle and – starting the show – a look at Joshi Wrestling in the year 2020.

Wrestle Kingdom 13 and New Year Dash!! lie behind us and with Hiroshi Tanahashi the beloved ace is back on top – but for how long? In this episode STRIGGA & Dylan take an extrensive look at all the matches and developments of New Japan's anual Tokyo Dome show, praise New Japan for their booking decisions and criticise them for meaningless belts and the missing focus on for example the junior heavyweights. With the big dates of 2019 having been announced the Eastern Lariat crew also discusses the promotion's business plans for the year to come and wonders where this leaves the Elite guys.

Wrestle Kingdom and New Year Dash are behind us which means STRIGGA & Dylan present their full analysis of what happened in front of over 35,000 fans in the Tokyo Dome. Join the Eastern Lariat crew in their run down of the matches, their takes on winners and losers, on stories, individual performances and especially on the outcome of the main event between Kazuchika Okada and Tetsuya Naito. Since New Year Dash is in the books as well they also highlight the rivalries that began at New Year Dash as New Japan starts their new “season” - and Chris Jericho seems to be a part of it!

Just days before the biggest japanese pro-wrestling show in over a decade STRIGGA & Dylan sit down to preview New Japan Pro Wrestling's Wrestle Kingdom 12 in Tokyo Dome. They discuss all the matches, their build and give their predictions whilst also weave in some listener questions. The Eastern Lariat crew also goes beyond Wrestle Kingdom as STRIGGA & Dylan talk about the future of Okada, Naito, Goto and Suzuki-gun. Plus: a look at some smaller companies like FREEDOMS, IGF, HEAT UP, Hard Hit and indies from the Osaka region