Hideo Itami - Thoughts on him?

[Navi]

I've seen KENTA wrestle in the indies. Admittedly it was mostly through Youtube video's that friends recommended and I thought at the time this guy is not too bad.

Since his call up to the WWE and NXT now I'm not so sure. Like what I mean, is from what I've seen of him in NXT so far unimpressed. He's not a big guy 5'9" or so, and I don't even think he's 200 lbx. Sure he can kick like a donkey, but does his style of wrestling really fit well with the WWE style?

During the match between The Ascension, Baylor and Itami last week on R Evolition, he seems to get lost, and I forgot he was actually in the match at times. Maybe it was the fantastic entrance and body paint by Baylor or the fact that the two of them seemed so undermatched against the Ascension, but out of the four people in that match, Itami seemed to be forgettable.

It's been reported he's trying to learn English, to get better on the mic, but that seems to be the least of his worries, in my opinion. He just seems to disappear once he gets in the ring. I think he'll be in development longer than Baylor and Owens, and makes me wonder that maybe every wrestler out there isn't WWE material.

Thoughts on this please? I can't be the only one who feels this way.

 

[L@RISANO]

I haven't seen much of him other than youtube.


As you have pointed out, he has really failed to stand out thus far, and was overshadowed easily by Finn Balor.


However, I do feel that the language barrier may well be a problem for him, and it could be a possible hinderance at this point, and thus, he may have to spend some extra time in NXT before he is called up or he could go down the line of a certain Masked Menace from Mexico.

 

[TheICChampion]

I don't know about him seeming to disappear, but with the WWE being so rigid about their style, and with Itami still being fairly new to it, I'd be willing to give him more time before throwing in the towel on him. He's been used to other styles for so long, and it's gotta be tough doing things exactly the way WWE wants you to. It's a transition period, everyone who's worked somewhere else for years before coming to WWE has to go through it, and some can obviously pick up on it faster and/or have an easier time doing it. Maybe you're right and he won't be able to do it. I guess only time will tell.

 

[Navi]

I don't know about him seeming to disappear, but with the WWE being so rigid about their style, and with Itami still being fairly new to it, I'd be willing to give him more time before throwing in the towel on him. He's been used to other styles for so long, and it's gotta be tough doing things exactly the way WWE wants you to. It's a transition period, everyone who's worked somewhere else for years before coming to WWE has to go through it, and some can obviously pick up on it faster and/or have an easier time doing it. Maybe you're right and he won't be able to do it. I guess only time will tell.

I'm not throwing in the towel on him, I'm commenting that Balor who came in at the same time he did, and Owens who came in afterwards have made a bigger splash than he has. Now it might be the way he's being marketed, I have no idea. He was a bigger name coming out of the indies than either of the other two and he hasn't found the same fit they have.

 

[TheICChampion]

I'm not throwing in the towel on him, I'm commenting that Balor who came in at the same time he did, and Owens who came in afterwards have made a bigger splash than he has. Now it might be the way he's being marketed, I have no idea. He was a bigger name coming out of the indies than either of the other two and he hasn't found the same fit they have.

Maybe it's because, like I said, he's having a tough time adapting to WWE's way of doing things. It's been said before that it doesn't matter what you were, who you were or how good you were anywhere else. In WWE, that all gets thrown out the window, and you have to start from scratch. Plus, the guy's only had, what, 2-3 matches since they signed him? And as I said before, some guys have an easier time adapting than others. You could be right, maybe it is the way they're marketing him. I don't know. Couple of questions. How many singles matches has he had since coming to NXT? Maybe the more guys there are in the ring the easier it is to get overshadowed? Maybe that was part of the plan all along to give Finn Balor most of the spotlight for this match? Or perhaps The Ascension as they're coming up soon? Is this match the only time you felt this way? BTW these are serious questions I'd like your honest opinion on.

 

[Navi]

Maybe it's because, like I said, he's having a tough time adapting to WWE's way of doing things. It's been said before that it doesn't matter what you were, who you were or how good you were anywhere else. In WWE, that all gets thrown out the window, and you have to start from scratch. Plus, the guy's only had, what, 2-3 matches since they signed him? And as I said before, some guys have an easier time adapting than others. You could be right, maybe it is the way they're marketing him. I don't know. Couple of questions. How many singles matches has he had since coming to NXT? Maybe the more guys there are in the ring the easier it is to get overshadowed? Maybe that was part of the plan all along to give Finn Balor most of the spotlight for this match? Or perhaps The Ascension as they're coming up soon? Is this match the only time you felt this way? BTW these are serious questions I'd like your honest opinion on.

I've seen him in only a couple of matches on NXT. I work nights and sometimes I'm not home when it's on. He worked a match with Viktor and he was fine in that one, and then a tag match with Balor against Gabriel and Kidd. Again he was okay there. Balor I find though is a much more seasoned WWE wrestler than Itami and it shows. The match with The Ascension really showed that, and Balor grabbed most of the spotlight with the body paint. I'll keep my eye on him and hope he improves.

 

[skyflope]

Kenta used to work for NOAH, who has a style more close to Shoot Wrestling, and that is the style that he learn. Even when he works in the indies in the USA or Europe he keeps his style and the opponent who addapt to that. Devitt works in NJPW, and learn to wrestle in a high flying style more global and similliar to american wrestle , for him must be wat easier to addapt. CM Punk and Bryan also used to work in very different ways of wrestling before come to WWE.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Znba4lBYPC0

Kenta ia a one hell of a striker and has a lot of in ring psichology and wrestling storytelling.

 

[The Captain]

Bad booking.... oh no! Are you allowed to say that about nxt? Anyway, first they pair him with funaki (obvious mistake) and his first feud is with a tag team. Secondly, putting him with Finn took his feud and made it their feud... more Finns feud.. i also think the name change and inital ring gear change hurt him as well. He should have remained KENTA and wore the yellow and black right out of the box. No need to mix up the character of a guy who is already a wrestling icon.

Hideo needs a good singles feud. Either turn on Balor due to some jealously stemming from Finn taking up all the spotlight (literally) at R evolution, or maybe a program with a guy like Tyson Kidd or Cesaro from the main roster.

I dont think squash matches are a great way to get someone over, but in hideos case a couple quick ones where he dispatches a much larger ham and egger with a series of knockout kicks would have helped his character... right now all im seeing is a little guy who was getting beat up by the schoolyard bullies and needed the help of a friend to solve his problems. Bingo

 

[Uncle Sam]

Hideo's improved tremendously. Starting up, he was suffering from serious Sin Cara syndrome (i.e. was struggling badly to adapt to the WWE style). He seemed afraid to actually make contact with his opponents, like he didn't want a reputation as being too stiff, which doesn't really work when your entire style is based around kicking people into submission. His matches were therefore, well, pretty pathetic things. The less said about that debacle against Viktor, the better.

Just prior to R-Evolution - I'm still not sure how to type that - he started laying it in a bit more. He stopped missing cues. You don't want him knocking people unconscious but you also don't want a man who only uses kicks to clearly not being making contact with his opponents. He's found a good middle ground.

He's obviously being outshone by Finn at the moment but the change from Japan to America, even if he's wrestled there before, is a pretty drastic one, particularly if you don't speak English. He's clearly working hard and he's already come a long way.

 

[sMark]

I agree with the above statements about his in ring work and the name change, but i can see him debuting on RAW sooner than later, maybe even sooner than Zayn. With the loss of Mysterio & ADR and Lesnar living, WWE will try to capitalize on Kenta, Balor & Kalisto - to get more international viewers.

 

[Uncle Sam]

I agree with the above statements about his in ring work and the name change, but i can see him debuting on RAW sooner than later, maybe even sooner than Zayn. With the loss of Mysterio & ADR and Lesnar living, WWE will try to capitalize on Kenta, Balor & Kalisto - to get more international viewers.

I'm not sure why you'd consider Lesnar a particular draw for, well, most people, but particularly for international audiences - nor why Hideo and Balor are really like-for-like replacements for Rey Mysterio or Del Rio. It's not like "international viewers" are actually one amorphous blob who'll flock to someone simply because they're not American. Assuming people are more likely to tune in to watch someone of their own nationality, it's not like bringing in Finn Balor's going to bring back the Mexican fans who tuned out when Rey Mysterio disappeared. What's more, Ireland has a population of about six million people, whereas Mexico has a population of about 120 million. That's quite a big difference.

I suppose I can see fans of Japanese investing in Hideo in WWE for the same reason I can invest in AJ Styles in NJPW.

Last but not least, if you want to talk about untapped audiences, Sami Zayn is an Arab.

 

[MartialHorror]

I still dont get why they changed his name. Kenta is snappy and memorable, even to someone who isn't used to Japanese names. I am used to Japanese names and Hideo Itami just doesn't stand out as much, at least based on the English language. Maybe in Japan, Kenta would sound more generic.

 

[Banzalik]

I do like him, but I have no idea why you guys do. I say this because he is a striker. He uses strikes in his matches far more than he grapples, and in my experience here, you guys hate that. Roman Reigns strikes a lot and you all ripped him for it, but everyone seems to love Kenta, and everyone was shitting themselves when he arrived... So what makes everyone love Kenta?

 

[Uncle Sam]

I do like him, but I have no idea why you guys do. I say this because he is a striker. He uses strikes in his matches far more than he grapples, and in my experience here, you guys hate that. Roman Reigns strikes a lot and you all ripped him for it, but everyone seems to love Kenta, and everyone was shitting themselves when he arrived... So what makes everyone love Kenta?

Roman Reigns has a superman punch and an apron dropkick. He and Hideo are both strikers in the same way that CM Punk and Rey Mysterio are both high fliers, or a yacht and a tramp steamer are both boats.

 

[sMark]

I'm not sure why you'd consider Lesnar a particular draw for, well, most people, but particularly for international audiences - nor why Hideo and Balor are really like-for-like replacements for Rey Mysterio or Del Rio. It's not like "international viewers" are actually one amorphous blob who'll flock to someone simply because they're not American. Assuming people are more likely to tune in to watch someone of their own nationality, it's not like bringing in Finn Balor's going to bring back the Mexican fans who tuned out when Rey Mysterio disappeared. What's more, Ireland has a population of about six million people, whereas Mexico has a population of about 120 million. That's quite a big difference.

I suppose I can see fans of Japanese investing in Hideo in WWE for the same reason I can invest in AJ Styles in NJPW.

Last but not least, if you want to talk about untapped audiences, Sami Zayn is an Arab.

For their investors, international fans is one amorphus blob.
In reality WWE will lose some fans after Mysterio & Brock completely gone. But on paper, and on the corporate phonecall, they can claim they grew their international fanbase due to KENTA, Devitt & Kalisto's additions to the main roster, so they can show some amorphus progress.
Devitt maybe an irishman, but he is most famous for his NJPW work, i think japanese fans will like to see him on WWE TV.

 

[Navi]

For their investors, international fans is one amorphus blob.
In reality WWE will lose some fans after Mysterio & Brock completely gone. But on paper, and on the corporate phonecall, they can claim they grew their international fanbase due to KENTA, Devitt & Kalisto's additions to the main roster, so they can show some amorphus progress.
Devitt maybe an irishman, but he is most famous for his NJPW work, i think japanese fans will like to see him on WWE TV.

Mysterio hasn't been around for since Mania last year, and we've seen precious little of Brock Lesnar, so I doubt they are keeping the fans there.

The WWE is huge is Japan and sells out the Toyko Dome every time they go there. They would love to see KENTA and Devitt on the roster. Not so sure about Kalisto though. If the present roster isn't generating new fans, will three newcomers bring out thousands more.

 

[RedRegan1005]

I'll have a much better feel for Itami after his next feud. The booking for his debut program wasn't ridiculous and you could see what they were trying to do, however it really got Balor over a lot more than Itami. Itami kept getting his ass kicked by The Ascension and once Balor came in to back him up he made a big impact and really out shined Itami. I think once he's put in a singles feud or a program that is designed to give him the spotlight more, then we'll have a much better view of what he can do in WWE.

I will say that Hideo Itami's start in NXT has been kinda rough, but i'm holding out hope he'll pull it together. I'm really pulling from him to become a big time player. WWE has brought over a lot of Japanese wrestlers from the land of the rising sun hoping they would become a breakout WWE superstar, and as we've seen none of them worked out. So this time they went and pretty much grabbed the biggest Japanese born wrestler there was, so if Kenta AKA Itami can't do it WWE might think no one ever will be able to.

But like it said, I really hope Hideo Itami pulls it off. Because if he doesn't history will show that the biggest Japanese superstar ever in WWE was Yokozuna. . .And for those keeping score at home, that was just his gimmick, he was actually Samoan in real life.

 

[Darkshadow1234]

I haven't been impressed with Kenta since he debuted in WWE. He seems lost and awkward in the wwe.
His wrestling and style hasn't been great in WWE.
All that hype. And Prince/ kevin steen have been more impressive than Kenta.
KENTA in japan was a monster, his style was great.
When he went to wwe, his started wrestling wwe style, which is hurting him.
WWE is restricting him way too much.
WWE style of wrestling is one the worst styles in wrestling.

IMO, kenta should of stayed in japan.
Right now, he is lost in the shuffle.

They should of let Kenta be him.
Not some random wrestler that kicks.

Don't let me get started on his finisher.
His finishers are laughable and medicore at best.
Fucking garbage.
He needs to go back to using the gts or busiku knee as finisher.

Just my opinion.

Go back to japan Kenta.
You were more respected there
Shouldnt of sold out to the wwe.

 

[Bernkastel]

But like it said, I really hope Hideo Itami pulls it off. Because if he doesn't history will show that the biggest Japanese superstar ever in WWE was Yokozuna. . .And for those keeping score at home, that was just his gimmick, he was actually Samoan in real life.

False. The biggest Japanese star ever to work the WWE was Antonio Inoki. And he was very successful. He has a winning record in the US and the WWE, had many matches against many American greats including Bob Backlund and Harley Race. He even defeated Backlund in Japan to win the WWE championship. And he's got the WWE Hall of Fame ring.

As for Itami, there's no reason why he can't be successful. Sure, he's got the language and cultural barriers to overcome, but look at all the American gajins that went to Japan to become successful. It's tomfoolery to believe that someone at the level of Kenta wouldn't be able to make the jump to a sports entertainment based company in WWE when NOAH - the company where he made his bread and butter - borrows aspects of sports entertainment rather than relying solely on the worked shoot style of New Japan.

 

[RedRegan1005]

False. The biggest Japanese star ever to work the WWE was Antonio Inoki. And he was very successful. He has a winning record in the US and the WWE, had many matches against many American greats including Bob Backlund and Harley Race. He even defeated Backlund in Japan to win the WWE championship. And he's got the WWE Hall of Fame ring.

I obviously meant Biggest as in size. . .Okay so I didn't. You're right though I completely forgot about Antonio Inoki. I stand corrected.

 

[MartialHorror]

I sort of disagree about Inoki>Yokozuna.

I only knew about Inoki, and even then I was more familiar with his career in Japan, once I really got into wrestling. I knew who Yokozuna was long before I got into wrestling. But I wouldn't really bother debating that, as Inoki has had a much more varied career and I can easily see why someone would say that.