Wrestling Omakase

Episode 2 of the three-episode Arametha takeover is a bonafide Korakuen-palooza, as the two of them discuss new Korakuen shows from NJPW (a big Road to G1 show featuring a major title change and then Tiger Mask's retirement), STARDOM (featuring an awesome red belt match), Dragongate (yet another middling show) and NOAH (which the two hosts strenuously disagreed on about almost everything!). Th...

It's an annual tradition here on Wrestling Omakase, and John isn't going to get the fact that they are very, very jet lagged put a stop to it! They're joined by an all star panel of frequent Omakase guests for our 2026 Mid-Year Awards, as all five choose the best & worst of the first half of a busy year in Japanese wrestling! See below for the full list of awards that were covered...

It's another Live from Japan episode, this time covering STARDOM The Conversion. John (while a little drunk) and Matt break down what was possibly the show of the year, featuring shocking results, a mega-hot crowd, and a whole lot more. Very short description because I'm in a rush to go to club MOGRA. Go listen. Or don't, it makes no difference to me really. Follow Matt on Twitter: htt...

It's the THREE HUNDRETH EPISODE of Wrestling Omakase (!!), and in very fitting fashion we are live from Japan! John is joined by first time guest Matt from their hotel room in Osaka for a full review of an eventful NJPW Dominion show from Osaka Jo Hall. Lots of live notes of course on the building and what the crowd was like in person as they break it all down match by match. A bit of a shorte...

John is back on another Japan trip eve-eve, so they're filled with restless energy at the prospect of soon being back in a giant metal tube for 14 hours and they're pretty sure it showed! Thankfully returning guest Velkej is here to help them break down the end of the NJPW Best of the Super Juniors tournament, and boy is there a lot to talk about: the very divisive winner, who had the best...

John and Eric (fka Snazzy??) are back for another super packed episode of Wrestling Omakase! They start things off with some discussion of VOW's latest edition of the 30 Under 30 project- who they voted for that got lost in the honorable mentions, then as 30-16 dropped right when they started recording they go through that list as well. Plus, lots of discussion on young wrestlers and how diffe...

John is joined once again by Arametha, the man of many pronunciations, as they discuss mostly absolute nonsense for 45 minutes before finally getting into STARDOM's Queen Dynasty show! They break down another strong showing for the World Wonder Ring at the box office, a fun undercard, and then very notable first title defenses for Sayaka Kurara & Hanan! After that it's over to New Japa...

John is back alongside returning guest Velkej Bracha as they open things up with the start of NJPW's annual Best of the Super Juniors tournament! They discuss all the tournament action from nights 1 through 3 all around Tokyo, breaking down which performances have been entertaining and which ones have been grating so far (and there's been plenty of both!). Then they head back to AJPW to wr...

John is back on the air for a special split episode! They start things out with returning guest Chris from Social Suplex, making his first appearance since the MOTY episode a few months back. After much complaining about broken phones and Apple bullshit they reminisce a little about being in Vegas for the Marvelous & West Coast shows, which is an excellent transition into the review of Marvelo...

The John & John connection is back on the airwaves as John is once again joined by John Bivins to break down, well, fewer wrestling shows than they originally planned! John (Classic) is sorry for the bad mood they were in at the start of this podcast, but at least they cheered themselves up by accidentally doxxing someone! Which they edited out, don't worry. Anyway! NJPW put on two Wrestli...

John is back on the air with Paul from the Emerald Flowshow for an absolutely jam packed episode! First, it's a long and detailed review of STARDOM's biggest show of the year, All Star Grand Queendom, which for the second year in a row did their biggest attendance in company history at the Yokohama Arena! They break down each and every match, all the major title changes and where things mi...

John is back from Las Vegas where they only lost SOME money! Yeah!! They're joined by Eric aka Snazzy from the Joshi-ing Around podcast & Social Suplex newsletter, who is in fact about to leave for a big trip himself- Japan for ASGQ, Marvelous' 10th anniversary show and more! They talk a bit about that before transitioning to a long recap of John's entire Vegas trip, including revi...

No exploding tooth or sudden new job could keep these two Johns off the air! Your humble host is having a slightly harder time talking than usual, but they gut through it for YOU, THE LISTENER, as they break down a surprisingly strong opening night of AJPW's 2026 Champion Carnival! Plus, full reviews of two STARDOM Korakuens back to back as the road to Yokohama Arena (finally) heats up, an eno...

It's another episode of Wrestling Omakase, but this time around with a bit of a split format twist! First, John is joined by debuting guest Hal to discuss a very eventful (and apparently very divisive) NJPW Sakura Genesis show from Ryogoku (plus the two junior title matches from Korakuen a couple days earlier)! Why are people so stupid? We'll sure tell you! Then, Arametha comes back on to...

Arametha is back with John and (for maybe the first time ever??) we're actually leading off with Tokyo Joshi! Wow! It's a long, detailed review of TJPW's biggest show of the year, Grand Princess from Ryogoku Kokugikan, featuring a legitimate match of the year contender, three big title changes, Super Sentai fights, idol singers with swords and a whole lot more! Then it's over to NJ...

It's another John & John episode! John Bivins is back as the two of them break down an outstanding end to the New Japan Cup, talking the final two quarterfinal matches from night 10, both semifinals from night 11, and then the entire final night including of course the tournament final itself. Lots of talk about NJPW's young generation really stepping up, Shota Umino maybe forcing peop...

John and returning guest Velkej Bracha start with their usual banter/assorted nonsense, before then discussing the recent announcement of Shinjuku FACE's impending closure and the enormous hole it will be leaving in the Japanese wrestling scene. Then they discuss the last two nights of the STARDOM Cinderella Tournament in great detail, beginning with the 3/11 Korakuen and then the finals on 3/...

It's another absurdly jampacked show covering all of the biggest promotions in Japan and some of the smallest too, men's and women's! John is joined by returning guest John DK for their first solo episode together (he had previously appeared during the WK preview) and they DEFINITELY DON'T WEEB OUT IN EMBARRASSING FASHION FOR 20+ MINUTES. Nosiree. Once they get into the actual wres...

"This week on Wrestling Omakase John is joined by returning guest (and A+ drinking buddy) Paul Volsch from the Emerald FlowShow, their first time talking since they were just in Japan together for Wrestle Kingdom season! They reminisce a little of course, John tries to convince Paul to go again in December, and then John reveals that they'll be making their Wrestlemania weekend debut this...

Wrestling Omakase is back with another packed episode, and unfortunately a lot of these shows were #bad. But hey, our returning guest Eric aka Snazzy from the Joshi-ing Around podcast and the Social Suplex newsletter is never bad! John & Eric discuss an absolutely wretched Dragongate Uno Dos Tres show from Fukuoka, as they unfortunately turned in a supremely poor effort for one of their bigges...

The John & John: Both Took At Least One Bump Connection™ are back once again, as John is joined by John Bivins for another long path through a whole lot of Japanese wrestling! First up: a full review of NJPW New Beginning in Osaka, featuring some weird vibes but also some great wrestling. Also was Jake Lee really that bad? The answer may surprise you! Then John & John give a full preview o...

"We're back to our regular format for another episode of Omakase, as John is once again joined by returning guest Arametha to break down a ton of Japanese wrestling. But first: alpine skiing, for some reason. Then it's off to STARDOM to talk their 1/31 Korakuen and their VERY newsworthy 2/7 Osaka show, with some thoughts on Is There Too Much HATE, which seems to be the big debate of th...

With Japanese wrestling having an uncharacteristically quiet week, it's the perfect opportunity for us to take a look back at the best of 2025! Voices of Wrestling just rolled out its 2025 Match of the Year poll (always one of the coolest things the site does every year), and John is joined by four fellow voters: Joshi-ing Around's Tim Hunter, Social Suplex's Chris Whitehead, VOW's...

Wrestling Omakase is finally back to its regularly scheduled programming, as we're once again going weekly from here on out following our part-time schedule earlier in January (due to a combo of Japan trip, post-Japan trip blues/jet lag and then work stuff). John is joined by returning guest Velkej Bracha to discuss NJPW's 1/19 & 1/20 Road to New Beginning Korakuens (feat. the end of E...

Well folks, it's finally here. After we couldn't tear ourselves away from the karaoke rooms, Club MOGRA, or.....other activities long enough to get you an Omakase live from Japan this time, returning guest Arametha and I are here to recap 16 days and 22 shows of absolute insanity. We talk about attending everything from Wrestle Kingdom & Dream Queendom to Just Tap Out and Sportiva, plu...