So, we meet again! Another installment of The Characters of NJPW is coming your way. But before we get rolling, here’s a reminder about our main objective:
This series will try to give newcomers to New Japan, as well as people curious towards its product, a feel as for how each of their wrestlers operate, what their motivations are, how their story drives them to be who they are, and how their actions inside and outside of the squared circle further their personas. Although this will contain historical data and a brief description of each wrestler’s past, its main goal is not meant to be a comprehensive guide to a performer’s history and achievements. Rather, we intend focus on two main topics: Character and in-ring work, to see how each wrestler on NJPW sets themselves apart from the rest of the roster, and what makes them truly unique and worth investing. If you want to check all the previous nine parts (the Part thing is getting ridiculous, I know, but now I’m committed), here’s a list with all the articles done up until now, each readable by clicking on the wrestler’s name. Now, let’s get this thing started.
Junior heavyweight wrestling has been a staple of wrestling since its inception. In New Japan, its storied history dates from just years after the company’s foundation, and was a major highlight throughout its existence because of the sheer innovation of its performers. It is perhaps befitting we start a Jr. Heavyweight flavored week of The Characters of NJPW with one of the main standard bearers for in-ring innovation in the planet today. This man has had the wrestling world abuzz many times with his outstanding talent, and at such a young age, is already one of the most sought-after names in the game. Who knows what the probably extensive future of William Ospreay holds? Well, let’s find out how he got here first.
Will Ospreay
aged 24
183 cm
79 kg
Introduction: Some athletes just defy what we think is possible for a human being. And yet, raw physical talent is never enough to get to the highest stages. You have to have something more. But when they put it together with that something else, the sky is the limit. Such phrasing couldn’t be more appropriate when we talk about Will Ospreay. He made his in-ring debut in 2012. Five years later, he is a former IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion and Best Of Super Juniors winner in NJPW this year, as well as Ring of Honor World Television Champion, Progress Champion, and RPW’s British Cruiserweight Champion, and a myriad of other titles, in a resume that would surpass most 20-year veterans’ careers.
Which gets scary, because for all he accomplish, he still has much to learn. Case in point, when he arrived at NJPW at March of 2016, he immediately challenged then-champion KUSHIDA to a title match, which he would lose. He would rebound though, winning that year’s BOSJ tournament, only to again be defeated by the champion. After a period of ups and downs in the company, he managed to go far again in 2017’s BOSJ, only to be defeated in the finals. The victor? Yes, KUSHIDA. The frustration and desperation made Ospreay stronger, and on October, he finally bested his rival and became champion. In the first defense, though, another man he seemingly can’t best, Marty Scurll, took the title from him. Can Ospreay can channel his talents into more consistency? Let’s try to… dive into it.
Character: Ospreay says that AJ Styles, Christopher Daniels and Samoa Joe’s match at TNA’s Unbreakable event in 2005 made him be a wrestler. When you realize how recent those influences are, it is easy to see how the Aerial Assassin’s style came to be. It is a thoroughly modern blueprint to an innovative performer. Ospreay has an affinity for high energy, a thrill-seeking personality that makes him step into the ring looking for a bigger, greater fight each and every time. That is the product of a passion for performance, for doing things that inspire others, in any possible way.
Ospreay can do things with his body that no other performer is able to. And also has the passion to keep learning and improving greatly every time a challenge is met. It is no wonder that he achieved so much in such a short amount of time, as rarely a combination of gifts and talent like his go by without earning some accolades. It’s in the ups and downs that the biggest risk takers live and die, though. And his story in New Japan has been of a man who can reach the skies, but then always crashes down. Sometimes he lands on his feet. In others, a miscalculation may lead into a big fall and further recovery.
This high-flyer extraordinaire may get a little too cocky with his abilities. That, combined with a certain hothead disposition, overwhelms his psyche, which makes him prone to putting everything on the line at any point without thinking things through, an overconfidence that can end up clouding his better judgement in pivotal situations. Such success at a young age may have made Ospreay overstate his stage of development, which makes staying at the mountaintop much harder than getting there, especially if you are prone to jumping off of high places. It remains to be seen whether NJPW’s Quicksilver can develop enough to stay at the highest point. But usually, when you have all the tools and the right mindset, sooner or later everything falls in place.
In-ring work: Innovation is at the core of Will Ospreay’s work in the squared circle. His style is one full of high-flying attacks, counters and dodges. His athletic prowess makes him absolutely own the department. Seriously, good luck trying to complete a hurricanrana on him, never gonna happen. He also is absolutely fearless and will put his body on the line in many situations. That makes him one of the most exciting performers in the world, and also one of the most dangerous, with mostly high-risk, high-reward moves that can come from practically anywhere in the arena. Such is the youthful exuberance of young William from Essex.
His moveset is designed to take advantage of his superior speed, reflexes and leaping abilities, with a myriad of dazzling maneuvers. His finisher is the OsCutter, a springboard variation of a Cutter, or RKO, that as any wrestling fan knows, can come out of nowhere. Top rope moves? He has plenty. Imploding 450º Splashes, 630º Senton Bombs, Corkscrew Shooting Star Presses, you name it. He also can hit you with high velocity moves such as the Essex Destroyer, a running front flip DDT, and kicks from innovative situations, such as a spinning roundhouse kick to a grounded opponent, or the Cheeky Nandos Kick, a superkick done after he places an unsuspecting opponent’s head on the turnbuckle. For all his many gyrating moves, Ospreay can be quite the hard striker, too.
He acquitted himself well to the fighting spirit ways, showing fire and determination. Those attributes are well and good, but coupled with a penchant for getting angry and some extreme risk-taking, can be a tricky combination to nail. As is the norm, high-flyers can crash and burn, and that is even more so of an issue for Ospreay, as he frequently tries to work through difficulties imposed by his opponents instead of around them. He is getting better at that, though, as you would expect from such a promising talent. When he figures everything out, every other opponent better watch out. The Aerial Assassin is already so used to the highest heights, he may just live comfortably there when the time is right.
Thank you so much for your continued support to this series! If you’d like, I set up a Patreon Page if you want to donate and help me continue to produce better content. The articles will continue to stay free, of course. This is just an easy avenue if you have the willingness and means to contribute with any amount you can, so I can keep doing these more and more. As always, any feedback and suggestions are appreciated. See you next time!
