>>9699700People are way too quick to write off younger guys. I remember when Shota was in that six man match at Forbidden Door and he was the most over guy in a match with Jericho, Sammy, Suzuki and Kingston despite most of the audience never having heard of him before. People were raving about how good he was and the natural babyface energy he had, but because he isn't Okada upon returning from excursion he's doomed. Sure his first few big singles matches upon return have been spotty, but when he slows down like he did in the ZSJ match he can make it work. The biggest issue is the terrible gimmick, he's called a Roughneck and he comes through the crowd to give glowsticks and wristbands to kids like a volunteer at a parade. Hopefully he can figure out what he's supposed to be and stop carrying around Mox's jacket like Linus.
I think he's going to outperform the naysayers' expectations at the G1, people should just give him time. Look at Jeff Cobb in 2020 vs 2021, or Master Wato in 2021 vs 2022. People are so quick to write these guys off, I'll bet half the people masturbating to the thought of Big Dimes Tsuji's return will only need a couple of botches or awkwardly flowing matches before they call him a failure.
