Danshoku Dino & Kazuki Hirata vs. Toru Owashi & Yukio Naya vs. Shunma Katsumata & Yuki Iino vs. Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Keigo Nakamura – 4-Way Tag Match
This turned into a regular 8-man tag midway through the match for obscure reasons but I already forgot who ended up on which side so I am NOT changing the header. Anyway, where was I? Hello friends – I don’t have much to say about this DDT opening match where a lot of people’s heads were being forcibly entered inside Danshoku Dino’s butthole. Any match that blasts both Sandstorm and Tokyo Go can’t be entirely terrible… But this was mostly terrible. *
Yukio Sakaguchi & Kazusada Higuchi vs. Mizuki Watase & Hideki Okatani
God damn, Sakaguchi and Higuchi are the best. Two dudes that look like they could kick your ass who then proceed to actually kick your ass. I know DDT loves to swerve around all the traditional wrestling tropes but I am grumpy old man at heart and this stuff still resonates with me. Getting destroyed by these guys is a good role for Okatani right now. The kid has heart and his willingness to get into scraps with full-on bruisers is much appreciated. Meanwhile, I still don’t know what to make of Watase. Literally nothing stands out about him. He is a wrestler. **1/2
HARASHIMA & Antonio Honda vs. Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao
Hey man, this totally worked as a midcard professional wrestling match. They used Honda’s glass body shtick to put him in the Ricky Morton role and build up to the HARASHIMA hot tag while simultaneously setting up the inevitable Antonio Honda Fall comedy spot and Rambo First Blood monologue..!? Why not. HARASHIMA is the distillation of all that is pure. God bless his wholesome ace energy and sweet Chris Jericho springboard dropkick. **1/4
Chris Brookes vs. Maku Donaruto
DDT really love their rape, don’t they? This was actually my first Maku Donaruto match. All the sex pest spots were awful but I did enjoy the guy’s desire to completely kill himself on a shitty Quebrada. For those that are unaware, he is an extremely horny Ronald McDonald cosplayer/potential serial killer. There’s a weird Sabu influence on the guy, as he will randomly throw out reckless ECW high spots in between dry humping sequences. I did laugh at him waiting forever for the slingshot cutter. *3/4
Jun Akiyama & Makoto Oishi vs. Konosuke Takeshita & Akito
The All Out/Akiyama-Gun feud is the gift that keeps on giving baby. Felt a tiny step behind their last match at TV Show #8, but it still delivered in spades. The only thing holding me back here was some awkwardness between Oishi and Akito. These guys are great at selling the leg and coming up with crafty shit, but they will also flub through extremely basic sequences. Not sure if it’s the nerves of being in the ring with Uncle Jun, but I was hot and cold on them for the whole match. Takeshita has more of a major league sheen to his indie style, making him the perfect foil for Akiyama in these matches. Love to see guys actually fighting for holds in a DDT ring: that simple suplex struggle between Akiyama and Takeshita was done so well that it got more heat than any high spot on the card. The post-match bit was a delight too: while all the DDT guys are taking this feud super seriously (as they should), you could tell that deep down, Akiyama just wants to have a bit of wrasslin’ fun. ***1/4
Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura vs. Tetsuya Endo & Mad Paulie
Actually liked this more than the Nautilus tag title defense from last week. Better pacing, more creative high spots and some proper BEEF DISPLAYS between the Reggae Warrior Naomi Yoshimura and the Juggalo Juggernaut Mad Paulie. Loved every second these two were in the ring together as they rarely get the chance to match up with fellow meat enthusiasts. To the cameraman zooming in on all of Naomi’s corner lariats: I see you. Endo’s spots get a little overly cute at times but the speed/execution here were impressive enough to make it all work. Again, him and Ueno are a money pairing. Slick X-Division/athletic vibes from both, with Ueno’s personality drawing YOU into the fast-paced rope-running shenanigans. ***1/4
Meiko Satomura vs. Saki Akai
Saki’s been on quite the trajectory in the last few months, wrecking bros with Eruption on the undercard before finally winning the KO-D 6-man tag straps on TV Show #7. Facing Meiko (who was introduced as the Yokozuna of Joshi Puroresu in the show opening monologue) in a singles main event was a cool way to acknowledge her progression and I dug the match a lot. Clearly, Saki’s nowhere near Satomura’s level as a wrestler, but the talent/experience gap was used smartly to enhance the match. Meiko schooled Akai on the mat and made her fight for everything, so all of the babyface comebacks were hugely satisfying even if you knew Saki wouldn’t get the win. They worked a brilliant sequence where Saki faked her own death in order to baith Satomura into a Triangle choke, only for Meiko to counter immediately into an STF. Saki was stepping up big time by the end of the match, screaming off Meiko’s kick barrage and kicking out of some big moves. Nice showcase for her against a world class talent. ***1/2
