Your favorite stage 1/2/3/4?

[BigT]

Think of both results, obstacles and other factors. Here’s my choice:

Stage 1 – Sasuke 31. In terms of obstacles, it was somewhat of a renewal. Rolling Hill was a great and interesting introduction that claimed some victims (more on that later). We also got Music Box and Tackle. In terms of results we got a close call from Hioki and then out of nowhere came Ragivaru who destroyed the course. We also got a very strong last 10 (maybe even the best ever):
91. Morimoto Yūsuke
92. Yamamoto Shingo
93. Takeda Toshihiro
94. Drew Drechsel
95. Asa Kazuma
96. Kanno Hitoshi
97. Kawaguchi Tomohiro
98. Nagano Makoto
99. Urushihara Yuuji
100. Matachi Ryo

Personal life and controversies aside, these are all great competitors deserving of a high spot. There are no undeserving celebrities or athletes there. It’s a roller coaster, too. So we start with Morimoto clearing but then two all-stars (coming off of stage 2 attempts last tournament) fail the new Rolling Hill in the same stupid fashion. Drew looks to be the third but he makes one of the best recoveries in show’s history. Then we get emotional Asa clearing in his usual fast fashion, then Kanno and Kawaguchi digested (which I hate but ok). We are left with last 3. It completely turns around and they all fail, mainly due to tackle as Nagano’s stamina is pushed to the limit and Yuuji and Ryo just can’t push that much weight. A truly shocking end. The only negatives I can think of are Nagasaki and Kong being cut completely.

Stage 2 – Sasuke 23. While they went overboard with Shin Sedai vs. All-Stars in Sasuke 24, it was somewhat normal in Sasuke 23. I really liked what they did before stage 2 – divided competitors in categories – Shin Sedai, foreigners, veterans - All-Stars and Kongu, Okuyama. This was the last good collective performance from All-Stars we have seen with them all clearing, especially Shingo in his usual dramatic fashion. It was nice to see Kongu and Levi clear again and Okuyama proved himself to be a top competitor. We had our fair share of shock fails – Urushihara and Lee En-Chih. Also, Kanno’s one-handed Salmon Ladder is perhaps the best stage 2 recovery ever. Salmon ladder was deadly, too.

Stage 3 – Sasuke 24. Firstly, newcomer Tajima almost cleared it if not for the stuid mistake at the end. Then we get 5 clears in a row, which is just spectacular. During that we see Takeda breaking down and eventually he fails creating perhaps the most heartbreaking moment in Sasuke history. What more could you ask for?

Stage 4 – Sasuke 17. We finally get a final stage after 4 competitions. It feels really deserved as we see competitors make progress after a bump in difficulty from Sasuke 14 to 16. We see best results in each competition from Akiyama’s victory in Sasuke 4 to Bunpei’s pipe slider fail in Sasuke 16. Then comes the most satisfying moment – Nagano’s victory and his emotional interview (I understand parts but does anyone have the full translation?)

Share yours!

[tns8597]

Stage 1 - I have to be honest I've never really focused as much on Stage 1 as I have with other competitions because it's more interesting to see how the stronger competitors do on later, harder stages. If I had to pick one though I'd go with either SASUKE 5 or 18. I know it's cliche but it's really interesting to see how the competitors fare on suped up obstacles they've never seen before. I also prefer competitions with lower numbers of clears because you really feel that the survivors are the best of the best, as well as fewer digests and more fluff pieces. Sasuke 31's Stage 1 was awesome though.

Stage 2 - Probably Sasuke 35 for me. It was the first time in a while that we had seen the vast majority of competitors get their runs shown in full with fluff pieces. There were a range of factors that made this one interesting for me. From Shunsuke's unexpected fail, to Keitaro and Jun getting their Stage 2 runs shown in full for the first and only time ever, to Tomohiro's close call.

Stage 3 - Sasuke 37: Honestly, after so many twists and turns this Stage 3 just hit the nail on the head. For the past few competitions, Stage 3 was either way too OP (think 32-34) or Morimoto cleared. A lot of people rate 36 highly but I honestly found the results of Stage 3 really disappointing, how Morimoto was ONCE AGAIN the only clear. This time, we had a much more different mix of competitors, from old faces like Hioki and Yuuji, to the new Black Tigers, as well as rising stars like Tada, and champions and foreigners too. While the Cliffhanger being halted to promote chances of a clear deliberately sucked, there were so many surprises. Rene crushing the stage on his first attempt, Tada's clear, Yuuji's heartbreaking fail etc. Honestly so many unexpected events really made this tournament memorable for me.

Stage 4 - Either SASUKE 12 or 24. These were the only two competitions since SASUKE 3 where more than 2 competitors made the final. SASUKE 12 I liked because during the Nagano era, it was really interesting to see breakout performances from non-All-Stars. Asaoka was never really expected to reach the Final, and Bunpei just came out of nowhere. Also, Nagano's near miss for me will be what really makes this tournament exciting by ending on a bittersweet note. SASUKE 24 because it was just an ode to how far competitors had come in the space of 2 years. Only 4-5 tournaments ago, we were seeing barely 2-3 clears in Stage 1 and no one reaching Stage 3. Now, all of the top competitors of that era got a chance at Total Victory. I did find it weird that we got a Kanzen in the middle of the cohort though.

[Deleted]

Stage 1 got to be Sasuke 27 rolling escargot spinning bridge jumping spider half pipe attack it just had that vibe you know
Best Stage 2 ever without question is 27 that stage 2 was perfect cause they took the stupid side things off the salmon ladder bar and it was the hardest stage 2 double salmon ladder unstable bridge balance tank metal spin it’s a shame Inui ruined what was so perfect
Stage 3 33 the point of stage 3 is to be extremely hard I feel someone could have beaten it if they kept having it instead they nerfed it I like ultra crazy vertical combo it seemingly impossible which makes exciting
Final stage Sasuke 35 every other version before put in Salmon ladder was pretty boring I actually feel excited to watch final stage now

[azn]

Stage 1 - Hard to decipher, but gotta go with 5, seeing three people clear was really the first time the course did what it was meant to do, no BS or anything like 19. Obviously since it was in the show's early era, the course back in 5 would be a laughing stock today but still, it was definitely the best course renewal after a kanzen.

Stage 2 - 11, by far the most epic 2nd stage I've seen. The red lighting was a breath of fresh air considering how many times they used blue lighting on the stage, it really looked epic and perhaps my favorite part was that during some runs like Nagano's, their would be a lightning effect used right after dismounting of the Chain Reaction. Plus the obstacles combined together were perfect, definitely the best of the speed courses.

Stage 3 - 17 or 37. Both had major surprises and moments like in the former where Paul Terek went all the way to the cliffhanger considering he was extremely heavy for the stage, or considering that this would be the last chances for Bunpei and Shingo, meaning that the all-stars were starting to dismantle slowly due to their age, and of course I can't forget Shunsuke and Nagano's clears and Takeda's heartbreaker. For 37, we had another heartbreaker in Yuji's fail, but also we got Tada and Rene clearing, plus both courses were alright, looking back 17's was boring and showing some age but it still delivered in it's difficulty.

Stage 4 - 8, perhaps my favorite moments in the show's history were sad and emotional moments. I remember watching these as a kid and thinking whether I was watching the end of a movie or a tournament (mainly for Kane). Jovtchev might've failed painfully but I think he would've had a better chance to reach the top if it didn't rain. As for Kane's attempt, which is my favorite attempt of the final stage to result in failure, again if the rain wasn't their, perhaps he had a chance though if he actually used a hand over hand technique without rain then it would've been slim. Ironic how as soon as he failed his tears were camouflaged w/ the downpour that occurred. Plus that behind shot of Kane on his knee's whilst one of the crew signalled to someone in the back looked like a video game scene, especially considering the camera lens was soaked at this point.

[ChiBiJKT48]

First Stage: SASUKE 12. Man. You start the stage with a clear. And it was done by someone you don't even know before *SASUKE 4's #1 was Atarashii Ichiro, who is already competing for the third time, and got cut, anyway, while SASUKE 27's #1 was Kanno Hitoshi, which is even a Finalist and a Shin-Sedai member*. Yamada Koji, out of nowhere, came and destroy the entire stage, and almost had the fastest clear time too had Nagano Makoto not went 2.12 seconds faster than him later in the tournament. Oh, and every All-Stars clear the stage *well, not for the first time, but, they were in their absolute prime*. Just perfect.

Second Stage: SASUKE 13. Yeah, this is what Speed Stage supposed to be. Time outs rarely happen after major renewal, especially if we talked about the tournament before, when everyone, techincally, finish the course in time *stupid of Yamada Katsumi for not taking the gloves off*. This tournament, however, there is four time outs at once. Even Shimizu Hideaki, the one whose failure was not by time out, would have suffered time out too as he attempt Balance Tank with 18 seconds left.

Third Stage: SASUKE 4. 11 competitors, no tournament can beat this record. Cliffhanger introduced for the first time and it directly claim five victims. Pipe Slider also proved that it can be killer when the gap was introduced. And Akiyama Kazuhiko, on his first attempt, beat the stage, and sets himself for the historic run later on.

Final Stage: SASUKE 12. Sorry, SASUKE 17, but, when the results were spoiled in the Opening, when they mention someone gonna achieve Kanzenseiha, it made me not interested anymore. But, SASUKE 12, it had everything. You had someone who already wait for years for his Final Stage attempt. You had newcomer who, out of nowhere, beat most of the veterans and attempt Final Stage. You had veteran who had experience of defeat in previous tournament. Perfect set-up for the stage. And not to mention the near-miss at the ending, ouch. Also, personal reason: This is the last time I can hear Furutachi Ichiro's sound. No offence to other SASUKE announcers, but, Furutachi will remain the best ever.

[tns8597]

I don't get why they do that. They always spoil the results at the start of the tournament; why do they state at the start that someone achieves total victory? Especially in the case of SASUKE 31, where we knew that someone would win, and Morimoto ended up being the only Final Stage attempt. So the minute we found out that Kawaguchi failed Stage 3, the results were already ruined .....

[BigT]

Aug 12, 2020 21:21:59 GMT -5 azn said:

Stage 2 - 11, by far the most epic 2nd stage I've seen. The red lighting was a breath of fresh air considering how many times they used blue lighting on the stage, it really looked epic and perhaps my favorite part was that during some runs like Nagano's, their would be a lightning effect used right after dismounting of the Chain Reaction. Plus the obstacles combined together were perfect, definitely the best of the speed courses.

Stage 4 - 8, perhaps my favorite moments in the show's history were sad and emotional moments. I remember watching these as a kid and thinking whether I was watching the end of a movie or a tournament (mainly for Kane). Jovtchev might've failed painfully but I think he would've had a better chance to reach the top if it didn't rain. As for Kane's attempt, which is my favorite attempt of the final stage to result in failure, again if the rain wasn't their, perhaps he had a chance though if he actually used a hand over hand technique without rain then it would've been slim. Ironic how as soon as he failed his tears were camouflaged w/ the downpour that occurred. Plus that behind shot of Kane on his knee's whilst one of the crew signalled to someone in the back looked like a video game scene, especially considering the camera lens was soaked at this point.

Second stage in Sasuke 11 does stand out to me, too. It was very different to, say Sasuke 10 or 9. We got more clears and at this moment competitors began to take over the course, which resulted in Sasuke 13/14 changes. Some of my favourite moments are Shingo's and Takeda's digests (I usually hate digests but these are good) and the build-up to Akiyama's run, especially that balance tank camera shot. Oh, and we had one of the most shocking and unexpected fails ever.

You really captured the Sasuke 8 final stage emotions well.

[ChiBiJKT48]

Aug 13, 2020 6:34:13 GMT -5 tns8597 said:

I don't get why they do that. They always spoil the results at the start of the tournament; why do they state at the start that someone achieves total victory? Especially in the case of SASUKE 31, where we knew that someone would win, and Morimoto ended up being the only Final Stage attempt. So the minute we found out that Kawaguchi failed Stage 3, the results were already ruined .....

Exactly. Only SASUKE 4 that didn't spoil the results blantantly *they did show Akiyama flying on the rope (and, surely the audience had no idea who that was at that time), but no Kanzenseiha shout*, hence, a big surprise when I found out that this guy actually fail Second Stage twice before when I later dig information from the show. That is the element of surprise I wanted from the Opening.

[GlobalNinjaFan]

Stage 1 - Sasuke 31. A perfectly balanced stage with a blend of old/new. More of a renewal than 32 was.

Stage 2 - Sasuke 17. A classic stage that hits the balance between speed/difficulty perfectly.

Stage 3 - Sasuke 24. For me, a definitive, challenging Stage 3, packed with iconic obstacles. Was beaten naturally and with no obstacle nerfs.

Stage 4 - Sasuke 7-17. While I love the current iteration, something about this felt more like a "complete package". Had a Spider Climb that moved apart, the rope cutting, and had so many iconic, close runs.

[ChiBiJKT48]

Aug 13, 2020 7:52:36 GMT -5 GlobalNinjaFan said:

Stage 4 - Sasuke 7-17

A very wide answer....

[tns8597]

I think GlobalNinjaFan was referring to the iteration of the final stage rather than the actual results of a given competition.

That’s my favourite iteration as well, so much better than the shin-SASUKE one and defo way better than the watered down final in 27....

[Deleted]

Stage 1 Sasuke 27 Had everything and was fun even tho there was lot of clears it was perfection
Stage 2 Sasuke 27 cause they took the stupid side things off salmon ladder bar it had everything
Stage 3 Sasuke 33 this 3rd stage was nerfed harder than Sasuke 27 it was the hardest and that what stage 3 is all about
Final stage 35 36 actually entertaining

[casuallystranded]

This is based purely off of obstacles.

Stage 1: 30. I wantto put 27 here, but I opted for 30. This tournament had my favourite obstacles of the RISING era (Long Jump, Hedgehog, Jump Hang Kai {best Jump Hang don’t @ me}, and the Lumberjack Climb. High number of finishers also helps.

Stage 2: 27. I love SASUKE 27’s Stage 2. The Slider Drop, Double Salmon Ladder, and Metal Spin are all excellent obstacles that I wish would come back. Stage 2 has always been my favourite, as you always see the separation between the good competitors and the random guys who took advantage of an easy Stage 1.

Stage 3: 24. Even though the results were appalling (7 out of 7 reaching the second last obstacle? Really?), I love the concept of this course. A thing that I wish would come back is the concept of “Late Stage 3”. The obstacles after the Cliffhanger are always mysterious, as we never really see them being attempted if the Cliffhanger does it’s job. Nowadays, there’s just 2 obstacles after the Cliffhanger.

Stage 4: 32-Present. Even though I have concerns about it being unbeatable in the time limit, I think that Stage 4 should have more than just a straight Rope Climb. Now that ANW has had 2 Million Dollar Winners, they should really consider spicing up the Final Stage.