English Version
(日本語版はこちら)
Note: This interview was conducted prior to the announcement of Kobe Pro Wrestling Festival 2025’s match card.
“Who is going to carry Japanese pro wrestling into the future?” This singular question has been looming large over every major promotion in the country since the start of the 2020s. With many of the Japanese wrestling scene’s biggest stars aging into their 40s and 50s, companies of all kinds are scrambling to find young stars who will be able to support them over the course of the coming decade.
One of the most proactive promotions in this endeavour has been the Lucha Libre-based promotion DRAGONGATE, which has been propelling young talent and even rookies into the spotlight en masse over the last couple years. Few more so than the masked wrestler Shun Skywalker, who has already held their main title twice and grown to be arguably the most central figure in the company’s ever-raging field of faction warfare at only 29 years old.
This success has led him to become the first of DRAGONGATE’s young stars to hold his own produce show, a special type of event booked by and centered around a specific wrestler or faction. “SSW Quest IV – The Chosen Zs” featured talent from DRAGONGATE, New Japan Pro Wrestling, and the indies, carefully chosen and introduced through a series of Horror-esque videos on social media. The event sold out within a minute of the tickets going live and a sequel is already in the works.
However, Skywalker has not been able to rest on his laurels following SSW Quest IV. In early May, he had to defend his mask in DRAGONGATE’s yearly cage match for the third time in a row, and July will see him put his DRAGONGATE contract on the line in a title match against Open the Dream Gate champion YAMATO.
During this tumultuous period for wrestler and company alike, Five Star Network’s Sarah Rosner had the opportunity to interview Shun Skywalker about the ideas behind his produce show, as well as the surrounding circumstances of his most recent cage match.
Here is what he had to say:
You put on your first produce show, named “SSW Quest IV – The Chosen Zs” this year. How do you feel about the show now that it’s concluded?
I’m glad I did it. Because for the first time, with my own two hands, I built a space for wrestling. I really think the people whom I allowed to be in that space are blessed. They don’t just share the honor of being born in the same era as me, but also the honor of bearing witness to that space.
Tickets sold out exceptionally quickly. What do you think led to that success?
I wasn’t surprised at all. It may look like people were unable to get their hands on the right to enter the space after 1 minute and 10 seconds, but if anything that might be too time. I’ll have to shave off a minute.
The name “SSW Quest IV” is in reference to the series of trials you put Madoka Kikuta through ahead of your Dream Gate match in 2023, correct? In what sense does SSW Quest IV function as a continuation of that?
There’s nothing in the name “SSW Quest Ⅳ” that a human mind can understand. Everything depends on what you felt in that space.
The subtitle ‘The chosen Zs’, meanwhile, resembles the Japanese subtitle of the well-known RPG Dragon Quest IV. How would you describe its meaning in the context of SSW Quest?
I added [that subtitle] to that place because [it represents] what it means to be a member of Z-Brats. Beyond that, I let people play a fun game. Nothing more, nothing less.
You previewed the event through a series of spaces on X (formerly known as Twitter), several of which ended abruptly with repeated exclamations of pain. Something similar occurred during the show as well. In those moments, what were you feeling and what do you think was the cause?
Pain can be an agonizing sensation, but sometimes it can also bring pleasure. Depending on the source, the same pain can differ greatly in in how it is felt and how much agony it brings. Just by looking at [a person], it’s unfathomable whether they’re writhing in pain, or whether they are in the throes of ecstasy. You could even say that writhing in pain adds to the ecstasy.
While promoting the show, you also posted a set of Shikao Suga lyrics on social media that led to much confusion among fans. What did you mean to express with that post?
I’m sure you’ll be able to grasp why if you listen to the songs.
With regards to the event itself, one aspect that particularly stirred up speculation was the unveiling of a new wrestler competing under the “Masked Z” title. Following the show, fans have drawn comparisons to prolific freelancer Fuminori Abe. Will this new Masked Z play a role within Z-Brats going forward?
Debating who Masked Z really is is not unlike debating who SHUN SKYWALKER really is. It’s a base, meaningless, counterproductive discussion.
However, if I am to say one thing, it’d be that the Masked Z who fought at SSW Quest IV that day no longer exists.
Another point of interest was the participation of Luis Mante, who had seemingly been returned to his former identity as Z-Brats member Diamante by having one of your masks forced on him. There have now been several instances of a wrestler’s personality apparently being drastically changed by putting on one of your masks. What do you think is the cause of that?
That I don’t know.
Is the mysterious power of those masks something that also affects you?
Everything I wear, including the overmasks, is part of SHUN SKYWALKER.
Rather than influence me, it would be correct to say that [those articles] themselves are SHUN SKYWALKER.
The heart that at times feels wrath, at times humor, at times sadness, is not perfectly separated from the body, you know.
In the main event of SSW Quest IV, you were pinned by New Japan Pro Wrestling’s BUSHI, who you had teamed with several times before. How do you feel about that?
The only truth that remains is that Shingo Takagi was unable to beat SHUN SKYWALKER.
The result is the same, he failed the quest.
After the show, you singled out his teammate Shingo Takagi for having “failed the quest” due to not bringing you down. Given that his team did pin you, what would you define as a completion of SSW Quest IV?
Shingo Takagi winning.
What I want to tell him is that it’s foolish to assume just because the people who stand in his corner are facing in the same direction, that they’re his friends in the quest.
Regarding quest completion, the venue for SSW Quest IV also featured a riddle game, proposed through a series of flyers. What was the purpose of that challenge?
I was testing the people who ventured into that space. How close they’d come to the intelligence of SHUN SKYWALKER.
Not even one of them was able to achieve 40% completion. What a pity. That’s all humans are able to accomplish, in the end.
Following the main event of SSW Quest IV, you seemed to be having a standoff of sorts with three of the masked people who had been helping out at the event. What was the meaning of that moment?
They were in the service of SHUN SKYWALKER. However, it’s also true that at that moment, things got out of control. I haven’t come face to face with them since, so I don’t know what [the moment] itself meant. If it meant anything, I want you to tell me.
This was after you were pinned as a result of fellow Z-Brats member Kota Minoura accidentally hitting you, in one of many instances of friendly fire leading up to Dead or Alive 2025. Given the events of the cage match, how much of the friction seen within Z-Brats at the time was genuine?
I don’t know what Minoura’s plan was, but ultimately even he understood what it means to defy SHUN SKYWALKER. I didn’t put on an act in order to confuse our opponents, and I didn’t control Minoura in order to misdirect the public, either. There’s no place for such frivolous strategies in the design of SHUN SKYWALKER.
When and how did the plan of Madoka Kikuta betraying D’Courage during the cage match first take shape?
Kikuta approached [me] before the cage match.
In our first interview, you declared Kikuta to be the only wrestler in DRAGONGATE who you could imagine surpassing you at some point. What makes him special as a wrestler, in your opinion?
He has strength. So I accepted his offer. That should say more than enough about how special he is.
Regarding that possibility, comparisons have been drawn between current-day Z-Brats and R・E・D in 2021. With several of Z-Brats’ members now being people who you had major conflicts with in the past, do you think that there might be a chance of history repeating itself?
Are past stables being compared with the current Z-Brats? Pro wrestling fans love doing that, it seems. I’m closer to understanding the nature of fans now.
That’s like comparing metrics with form, like bringing the height of Mt Fuji and the price of the newest iPhone into the same competition.
One Z-Brats member who is unambiguous in his loyalty towards you is Homare, who you won Rey de Parejas with this year. What do you think of him so far?
Homare has a very promising future ahead of him.
While Z-Brats has grown quite big at this point, there also seems to be an interesting pattern emerging in the faction recruitment, of you declaring that you want a particular wrestler to join and someone else from the same faction becoming a part of Z-Brats instead. What do you think has led this to occur three times already?
I suppose you mean that, in JACKY “FUNKY” KAMEI’s stead Jason Lee joined, in Minorita’s stead Kota Minoura joined, and in Dia Inferno’s stead Madoka Kikuta joined? What an interesting theory. There’s no element of substitution in this, but perhaps it does contain a component valuable in deciphering how humans think. If the increase of Z-Brats members really was by design, then it would not have lead to giving up on [that endeavour], don’t you think? You mustn’t forget that SHUN SKYWALKER [enjoys] amusement.
Kikuta claimed that this new form of Z-Brats would “destroy DRAGONGATE” at the Korakuen Hall event following Dead or Alive. What would “destroying DRAGONGATE” mean to you?
What Kikuta wants to do, and the future that SHUN SKYWALKER envisions, are doubtlessly not the same.
If anything, that makes it thrilling, and Kikuta must know himself that if he gets in my way, he’d disappear.
One thing you did to break the roster’s morale was forcing Dragon Dia to shave the head of his tag team partner Yuki Yoshioka following the cage match. As someone who has a particular history with those two wrestlers, what did that moment feel like for you?
Yuki Yoshioka really has no desire to get ahead. You can tell when you look into his eyes. They’re the eyes of someone who has settled, so much so that he blindly believes in keeping the status quo. It’s not the liveliness you’d find in the eyes of someone who’s actually satisfied, he’s been lied to. Or they’re the empty eyes of someone who’s lied to himself. But if he finds that desire, then his future will change as well.
You chastised Dragon Dia for “abandoning his allies to survive and acting like it never happened” in that cage match on social media. Dia turned the accusation back on you in response, referencing your actions in the match that cost him his mask. What do consider to be the difference?
He has no understanding whatsoever of the meaning of his own defeat. It’s more important than anything to understand the true meaning of a fight and its result. Dragon Dia abandoned Yuki Yoshioka, ignored him now that his head was shaved, went out into the world on his own and humiliated himself even further. He’s a contemptible brute.
One could go so far as to say that the cage match that day was a sixway fight. In a sense, Dragon Dia emerged as the victor. Those who fight have to accept whatever happens as a result of their fights, win or lose. Dragon Dia is a shameless brat that ran away from that responsibility.
In addition to your activities as part of Z-Brats, you have been expanding your international appearances lately and were even announced with an English language title at SSW Quest IV. How would you describe your current goals on an international level?
Many of the people I’d like to get in the ring with are in AEW.
Our deepest gratitude to Shun Skywalker (@ssw_skywalk), for taking the time to answer our questions once again. We would also like to thank Ho Ho Lun (@hoholun719), for his help in arranging this interview.
All translation for this interview was handled by Joe (@thefeelite). We are grateful for his excellent work.
If you enjoyed this interview with Shun Skywalker, have a look at our previous ones here and here. Those unfamiliar with his home promotion can learn more in our DRAGONGATE Beginner’s Guide, or our introduction to its greatest young stars.