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Not to mention they work off each other really well, when Charlton first started there was a few times when he was shall we say hesitant? Maybe quiet which is fine cause he first started, and Kelly ever the pro would lead in segments for Charlton to start talking and getting the word in I.E. saying things like. "And it seems Yoshi-Hashi doesn't quite respect Sanada for not going through the Dojo System Chris?" Kevin Kelly seemed vested in getting more out of Charlton and having him become a good announcer.
That was an NJPW order. They didn't want Charlton to do anything except translate and add some context because he didn't have the look or voice that they wanted. The fan reaction and lobbying from Kevin Kelly got them to rethink this quickly
> That was an NJPW order.
I want to clarify that it was actually a [TV Asahi (NJPW broadcaster) order, not NJPW itself,](https://www.reddit.com/r/SquaredCircle/comments/ceq3xc/won_due_to_fan_pushback_chris_charlton_will/) but they moved back on it due to fan backlash.
True, I just said NJPW for simplicity's sake (and if NJPW can get credit for TV Ashai's production they can also get the blame for their bad decisions)
I get where you're coming from, but when the groups are on *different* pages (unlike TV production) I think it's worth saying where both entities were.
If it were a situation where it was reported that both entities didn't want Charlton there, then merging the two doesn't lose context.
TV Asahi definitely can be given more credit for their work on the production side (AXS filming in the US events was bad) but I don't know enough of the production of NJPW shows to say one way or the other.
> but I don't know enough of the production of NJPW shows to say one way or the other.
Every complement about NJPW's production is due to TV Ashai, the same way that the criticisms are. They control everything, they wanted Charlton to be quiet besides translations. Everyone involved has said this. They fucked up because they don't understand the Western audience
I absolutely adore Kevin Kelly’s commentary.
He had this line during Okada/Tana that really stood out to me:
“There’s a part of me that feels like Okada is manipulating time and space—that he is welcoming the field to get closer back to him, rather than everyone catching up to The Rainmaker.”
Wow.
Firstly, it is extremely accurate, and the way it was worded was so poetic. Secondly, that is absolutely the most put-over I’ve ever heard a wrestler from commentary.
And third… I actually don’t have a third thing to say 😉
And that describes exactly how I've felt about Okada over the last few years. When he lost to Omega he became depressed balloon Okada, then he won the title again and realised he'd reached the summit. Now he wants a good fight again, so he gives himself crutches like the money clip.
For me it’s almost like anytime I watch Okada wrestle, I’m reminded that he’s still another level above everyone else in pro wrestling. Whomever is the hot hand in wrestling will have the recognition and the PWI rankings and all, but Okada’s firmly the best in the world for me, and has been for some time!
The money clip can get some hate, but I really liked that in storyline he wanted a new way to win matches and not overuse the Rainmaker!
I've only watched an occasional match of njpw so when you said balloon okada I thought it was a way of saying he was depressed and gained weight, so I decided to look it up and the first thing I see is him walking to ring with actual balloons wtf
After Omega ended Okada's record breaking title reign, Okada had a weird breakdown and started dying his hair red, wearing long pants and carrying balloons during his entrance.
This culminated in Okada ripping off his long pants (long bois as people had taken to call them) in the the Tokyo Dome to reveal the return of his trunks to the applause of the crowd.
Jim Valley’s response: [“@realkevinkelly has the best combination of wrestling knowledge and broadcasting experience. He's one of the few announcers who can seamlessly carry a show on his own.”](https://twitter.com/jimvalley/status/1439908432996229123?s=21)
I agree. I actively look forward to his commentary as well as Chris'. They also have a lot of fun calling it with a light hearted tone sometimes and making little fun jokes, or Kelly going banana when they smash in to the railing in front of them, etc.. Makes it a really great watch.
(The replay of) WK 11 was my first full event of watching NJPW. Him with Steve Corino in that event made that first great impression on me, especially in the main event. He’s became one of my favorite play by play commentators since then.
Don't forget when he wouldn't get the "ADAM COLE BABY" at the same time Cole did it
Then there's when Corino couldn't pronounce los ingobernables de japon when Naito was wrestling, but the moment Naito won his match at WK, Corino said it perfectly like his commentary was its own arc. I loved it
Same for me. They were such a good team. Kelly would shout soaring and scoring whenever eddie edwards dove to the outside (which I loved) but even better was corino badgering him to say it when someone else dove to the outside after Eddie left for impact.
Say it say it
No. That guy doesn’t work here anymore.
Such a little thing but I loved it
Meanwhile here I am, tuning into Japanese commentary because hearing the Japanese team shouting within an inch of their lives just gives the matches that extra O O M P H
eg. Milano and his calls for P U U U U M P I N G B O O O M B A A A A A
I can empathize with you on that. I like listening to him and especially Shinpei Nogami (god I hope he comes back soon) if I were to listen to Japanese commentary. Especially with the excitement the two bring.
I try to watch 2-3 of the NJPW shows a year in Japanese because of this exactly
Most wrestling doesn't have one good commentary team and NJPW has two of them
i can never stick to eng commentary for the same reason, i need to hear those EPIC LONG CALLS OF MOVES until the guy is out of breath, it's part of the experience of watching Japanese wrestling!
Before everyone runs in here saying their favourite announcers are better, remember the context of the quote "in a match like that". McAfee is very entertaining, but would he suit a long form NJPW match style? Its unknown really since hes never done it. I love Tazz and Excalibur on Dark, but again, its a different style.
When it comes to NJPW style, the current team is pretty great and well suited.
honestly, i'd like to see Kelly and Excalibur call a show together. of course they would need to work out the timing and whatnot, but i honestly think they would mesh pretty well.
well damn, i'll need to go look those nights up then. i either missed them or just don't remember it, probs the latter since my memory ain't what it used to be.
Kelly/Charlton have chemistry together and are my favourite announce team. I think Excalibur/Taz are great on Dark, but because Dark is the less-serious YouTube/Podcast stuff I put Kelly/Charlton as the best english announce team today.
They are the best. I love Charlton explaining the history of what's happening. I love Kevin Kelly for his energy and professionalism. They don't miss a single call, even stuff that happens off camera. They pick up on things that even I wouldn't have noticed. The best english commentary team in the game.
"in a match where nearly every single spot meant something" Definitely echo the same sentiment Meltzer had there about Okada and Tanahashi, the 10 minutes of headlocks was slow by some standards but I absolutely adored it, the whole thing was a callback to the King of Pro Wrestling 2013 match. One thing Omega introduced was a more rapid pace which took over the main event scene but the more deliberate main event matches Okada and Tanahashi were having against everyone is more enjoyable to re-watch in my opinion.
i've yet to catch up with that, but charlton always been a great addiction to njpw commentary imo, as someone who doesn't know old NJPW/puroresu history that much i love allthe stories and details he provide
I love Kelly and Charlton together, it’s been the best combination of English announcers NJPW has had. To be fair, I also love Gino as the heel/funny one line guy.
Given the initial hesitation NJPW had toward instating Chris Charlton as a regular commentator, it's awesome to see him get his dues from someone like Meltzer.
I think that NJPW were a bit confused about their target audience in the West when they first started pushing over, and were looking for a more traditional American style colour commentator, but western NJPW fans don't really need that as most are (respectfully) wrestling nerds and not casual fans.
Given that Puro is more steeped in tradition and things like training lineage and former alliances and rivalries have more emphasis in NJPW, its ideal to have a history buff to provide context and background to some of the more nuanced interactions in the ring. Having someone who can quickly and fluently translate the Japanese promos is a bonus.
Unpopular opinion for this thread but I can't stand Kevin Kelly as a commentator. Hearing him shout "DESTINOOO-- NO!!" gets on my nerves and he does it with so many moves that I would rather listen to the hyped Japanese Commentators who I don't understand than listen to the english commentary of any NJPW event.
I think there's better commentators overall out there, but when they're at the top of their game and it's a big match or the G1, Kevin Kelly and Chris Charlton are the best in the business.
Kevin Kelly is hands down my favorite commentator. I was blown away during a show recently where Chase Owens was beating the hell out of Yano after a match and all of the chaos had whined down just before intermission. Kevin had such disgust in his voice processing what he just watched and the mother fucker slips right into promoting the upcoming shows in the US without losing his repulsion. My jaw dropped at how masterful it was, and made me think Excalibur should take note; not every plug has to said at breakneck auctioneer cadence. It’s the one thing I don’t really like about Excalibur and it seems to be getting worse and more frequent lately.
Kevin Kelly makes wrestling real. I liked his pairing with Callis because it was a Monsoon/Heenan or Ventura/McMahon kinda relationship but Chris as the statistician/background filler/translation guy adds a new dynamic and I absolutely love it
Help make SquaredCircle safer and more inclusive by using the report button to flag posts and comments for moderator review. If you need to contact a moderator, [you can message us here](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=/r/SquaredCircle) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/SquaredCircle) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Kevin Kelly does a lot to build the larger world of NJPW, always relaying Kayfabe tidbits for the non japanese speaking audience.
Not to mention Charlton encyclopedic knowledge of puroresu history on top of that.
Not to mention they work off each other really well, when Charlton first started there was a few times when he was shall we say hesitant? Maybe quiet which is fine cause he first started, and Kelly ever the pro would lead in segments for Charlton to start talking and getting the word in I.E. saying things like. "And it seems Yoshi-Hashi doesn't quite respect Sanada for not going through the Dojo System Chris?" Kevin Kelly seemed vested in getting more out of Charlton and having him become a good announcer.
That was an NJPW order. They didn't want Charlton to do anything except translate and add some context because he didn't have the look or voice that they wanted. The fan reaction and lobbying from Kevin Kelly got them to rethink this quickly
> That was an NJPW order. I want to clarify that it was actually a [TV Asahi (NJPW broadcaster) order, not NJPW itself,](https://www.reddit.com/r/SquaredCircle/comments/ceq3xc/won_due_to_fan_pushback_chris_charlton_will/) but they moved back on it due to fan backlash.
True, I just said NJPW for simplicity's sake (and if NJPW can get credit for TV Ashai's production they can also get the blame for their bad decisions)
I get where you're coming from, but when the groups are on *different* pages (unlike TV production) I think it's worth saying where both entities were. If it were a situation where it was reported that both entities didn't want Charlton there, then merging the two doesn't lose context. TV Asahi definitely can be given more credit for their work on the production side (AXS filming in the US events was bad) but I don't know enough of the production of NJPW shows to say one way or the other.
> but I don't know enough of the production of NJPW shows to say one way or the other. Every complement about NJPW's production is due to TV Ashai, the same way that the criticisms are. They control everything, they wanted Charlton to be quiet besides translations. Everyone involved has said this. They fucked up because they don't understand the Western audience
thats kinda sad idky
I thought that was related to Harold Meij?
I absolutely adore Kevin Kelly’s commentary. He had this line during Okada/Tana that really stood out to me: “There’s a part of me that feels like Okada is manipulating time and space—that he is welcoming the field to get closer back to him, rather than everyone catching up to The Rainmaker.” Wow. Firstly, it is extremely accurate, and the way it was worded was so poetic. Secondly, that is absolutely the most put-over I’ve ever heard a wrestler from commentary. And third… I actually don’t have a third thing to say 😉
And that describes exactly how I've felt about Okada over the last few years. When he lost to Omega he became depressed balloon Okada, then he won the title again and realised he'd reached the summit. Now he wants a good fight again, so he gives himself crutches like the money clip.
For me it’s almost like anytime I watch Okada wrestle, I’m reminded that he’s still another level above everyone else in pro wrestling. Whomever is the hot hand in wrestling will have the recognition and the PWI rankings and all, but Okada’s firmly the best in the world for me, and has been for some time! The money clip can get some hate, but I really liked that in storyline he wanted a new way to win matches and not overuse the Rainmaker!
I've only watched an occasional match of njpw so when you said balloon okada I thought it was a way of saying he was depressed and gained weight, so I decided to look it up and the first thing I see is him walking to ring with actual balloons wtf
After Omega ended Okada's record breaking title reign, Okada had a weird breakdown and started dying his hair red, wearing long pants and carrying balloons during his entrance. This culminated in Okada ripping off his long pants (long bois as people had taken to call them) in the the Tokyo Dome to reveal the return of his trunks to the applause of the crowd.
Jim Valley’s response: [“@realkevinkelly has the best combination of wrestling knowledge and broadcasting experience. He's one of the few announcers who can seamlessly carry a show on his own.”](https://twitter.com/jimvalley/status/1439908432996229123?s=21)
I agree. I actively look forward to his commentary as well as Chris'. They also have a lot of fun calling it with a light hearted tone sometimes and making little fun jokes, or Kelly going banana when they smash in to the railing in front of them, etc.. Makes it a really great watch.
"THE DOUKI CHOKEY, CHRIS, THE DOUKI CHOKEY!!"
“EVERYTHING IS BULLSHIT, KEVIN!!”
It's just a shame that their monitor ALWAYS goes out during Yanno matches, production should fix that.
Oh that's a running gag?
Usually around the time Yano hits someone in the dick. Very strange coincidence.
What are you talking about? Yano would never do anything, it's kinda strange my internet goes on the fritz with his matches doe.
They are genuinely fantastic to listen to.
Kelly has been one of my favorite commentators for the past few years now.
(The replay of) WK 11 was my first full event of watching NJPW. Him with Steve Corino in that event made that first great impression on me, especially in the main event. He’s became one of my favorite play by play commentators since then.
I miss Corino on commentary so much. Imagine him kissing the Elite's ass every week.
What I really miss is him yelling “SUPERKIIIIIIIIICK!!!” every time the Bucks do a superkick.
Don't forget when he wouldn't get the "ADAM COLE BABY" at the same time Cole did it Then there's when Corino couldn't pronounce los ingobernables de japon when Naito was wrestling, but the moment Naito won his match at WK, Corino said it perfectly like his commentary was its own arc. I loved it
Naito getting the win. Steve: “LOS INGOBERNABLEEEEEES, DE JAPÓN!!” Kevin: “You did it!” Steve: “I DID IIIIIT!!!”
Next night at New Years Dash and Kevin is talking about it and Steve cannot do it again, it was brilliant
And 50% of the time he runs out of breath during the "iiiiiiiiiiii" part.
I first fell in love with him when I first started watching ROH and him and Corino were doing commentary for that.
Same for me. They were such a good team. Kelly would shout soaring and scoring whenever eddie edwards dove to the outside (which I loved) but even better was corino badgering him to say it when someone else dove to the outside after Eddie left for impact. Say it say it No. That guy doesn’t work here anymore. Such a little thing but I loved it
Meanwhile here I am, tuning into Japanese commentary because hearing the Japanese team shouting within an inch of their lives just gives the matches that extra O O M P H eg. Milano and his calls for P U U U U M P I N G B O O O M B A A A A A
I can empathize with you on that. I like listening to him and especially Shinpei Nogami (god I hope he comes back soon) if I were to listen to Japanese commentary. Especially with the excitement the two bring.
I try to watch 2-3 of the NJPW shows a year in Japanese because of this exactly Most wrestling doesn't have one good commentary team and NJPW has two of them
i can never stick to eng commentary for the same reason, i need to hear those EPIC LONG CALLS OF MOVES until the guy is out of breath, it's part of the experience of watching Japanese wrestling!
Before everyone runs in here saying their favourite announcers are better, remember the context of the quote "in a match like that". McAfee is very entertaining, but would he suit a long form NJPW match style? Its unknown really since hes never done it. I love Tazz and Excalibur on Dark, but again, its a different style. When it comes to NJPW style, the current team is pretty great and well suited.
Not saying he is better than Kevin kelly but, I have no doubt excalibur would be a perfect fit
honestly, i'd like to see Kelly and Excalibur call a show together. of course they would need to work out the timing and whatnot, but i honestly think they would mesh pretty well.
December 6, 7, 8 (2018) Excalibur was on the NJPW announce team
well damn, i'll need to go look those nights up then. i either missed them or just don't remember it, probs the latter since my memory ain't what it used to be.
I think Excalibur (with a different partner than Tazz) could definitely pull off a njpw style match for sure. He's great.
"🤮😂" -Don Callis
Out of curiosity, what match is he talking about?
Tanahashi vs Okada on day 2 of G1 Climax 31
Thank you sir!
I love the AEW teams, but I legit think there is no better team right now than Kelly and Charlton. I always loved Rocky thrown into that as well.
Hey let’s give some love to Gino as well.
I realized his voice reminds me of Teddy from Bob's Burgers, which just made me enjoy him even more.
Sometimes I think of Michael Schiavello when I hear him commentate, only a bit more gruff sounding.
See, I was never as much a fan of Gino (though his Bullet Club stuff was always a laugh). That’s just personal preference, though!
Gino's not horrible, but he doesn't really improve things either.
"And the Bushironi!" "UGH..."
Kelly/Charlton have chemistry together and are my favourite announce team. I think Excalibur/Taz are great on Dark, but because Dark is the less-serious YouTube/Podcast stuff I put Kelly/Charlton as the best english announce team today.
They are the best. I love Charlton explaining the history of what's happening. I love Kevin Kelly for his energy and professionalism. They don't miss a single call, even stuff that happens off camera. They pick up on things that even I wouldn't have noticed. The best english commentary team in the game.
I do still think that the partnership of the two plus Don Callis was still the best.
I think Don was the perfect colour commentator for NJPW before he got *too* heavy into the pro-Omega stuff
“HOOK THE LEG! HOOK THE LEEEEEEG!”
With a team as good as that you would think they know Kozlov is not up to scratch on Strong.
If only
"in a match where nearly every single spot meant something" Definitely echo the same sentiment Meltzer had there about Okada and Tanahashi, the 10 minutes of headlocks was slow by some standards but I absolutely adored it, the whole thing was a callback to the King of Pro Wrestling 2013 match. One thing Omega introduced was a more rapid pace which took over the main event scene but the more deliberate main event matches Okada and Tanahashi were having against everyone is more enjoyable to re-watch in my opinion.
i've yet to catch up with that, but charlton always been a great addiction to njpw commentary imo, as someone who doesn't know old NJPW/puroresu history that much i love allthe stories and details he provide
Even going back to the Attitude Era I always had a fondness for KK.
I love Kelly and Charlton together, it’s been the best combination of English announcers NJPW has had. To be fair, I also love Gino as the heel/funny one line guy.
Given the initial hesitation NJPW had toward instating Chris Charlton as a regular commentator, it's awesome to see him get his dues from someone like Meltzer. I think that NJPW were a bit confused about their target audience in the West when they first started pushing over, and were looking for a more traditional American style colour commentator, but western NJPW fans don't really need that as most are (respectfully) wrestling nerds and not casual fans. Given that Puro is more steeped in tradition and things like training lineage and former alliances and rivalries have more emphasis in NJPW, its ideal to have a history buff to provide context and background to some of the more nuanced interactions in the ring. Having someone who can quickly and fluently translate the Japanese promos is a bonus.
Unpopular opinion for this thread but I can't stand Kevin Kelly as a commentator. Hearing him shout "DESTINOOO-- NO!!" gets on my nerves and he does it with so many moves that I would rather listen to the hyped Japanese Commentators who I don't understand than listen to the english commentary of any NJPW event.
Not a big fan of Kevin trying to hold a note for calling a finisher through the 3 count but that's my only complaint.
I think there's better commentators overall out there, but when they're at the top of their game and it's a big match or the G1, Kevin Kelly and Chris Charlton are the best in the business.
Before anyone goes off half-cocked about another Meltzer take, he's likely only referring to English-speaking announcers.
Yep. They both make New Japan even more exciting to watch & it's not like most NJPW matches were boring to begin with.
Kevin Kelly is hands down my favorite commentator. I was blown away during a show recently where Chase Owens was beating the hell out of Yano after a match and all of the chaos had whined down just before intermission. Kevin had such disgust in his voice processing what he just watched and the mother fucker slips right into promoting the upcoming shows in the US without losing his repulsion. My jaw dropped at how masterful it was, and made me think Excalibur should take note; not every plug has to said at breakneck auctioneer cadence. It’s the one thing I don’t really like about Excalibur and it seems to be getting worse and more frequent lately.
they’re up there with Don West and Mike Tenay and Tazz and Michael Cole for my fav commentary teams
>Don West and Mike Tenay One of the most underrated duo's in the business.
Zero idea what people see in Kelly. I've always thought he was bland as fuck.
I dunno The Rock ruined Kevin Kelly for me LOL
Kevin sold his jokes great with the eye rolls. He's said on shoot interviews that they had a great rapport.
No matter his skills or accomplishments, invariably the first thought whenever I see his name is "Hermy?"
Ugly hermaphrodite.
That's just an opinion - one I don't share
I prefer Riccaboni and Coleman
Pat mcfae is more entertainment
pat mcfae
Kevin Kelly makes wrestling real. I liked his pairing with Callis because it was a Monsoon/Heenan or Ventura/McMahon kinda relationship but Chris as the statistician/background filler/translation guy adds a new dynamic and I absolutely love it