Last time I saw a full Dragon Gate show, I was live in the flesh at Korakuen Hall. It was 2018: air travel was still something that could be attempted by human beings and I had the most savage hangover of my entire life (Shinjuku will fuck you up). This was the first pro-wrestling show of my trip and my first time ever in Korakuen Hall. And I was an absolute wreck. Thankfully, a bunch of cool shit happened (PAC showed up to join R.E.D. and I got to witness Shingo’s final DG Korakuen match) and I’ll cherish the experience forever – despite all the liver damage. I haven’t kept up with the company since, but with crowds coming back to Japanese professional wrestling’s post-COVID landscape: why not give it another shot?
Kagetora vs. Ho Ho Lun
Who is this Ho Ho Lun fellow? Well, the Internet tells me he is a Hong Kong native that wrestled all over the place, including NXT and one off ZERO1 shows in China. THE MORE YOU KNOW! For a guy with such an impressive resumé, he felt a bit low rent here. Meanwhile, Kagetora is always worthwhile, as he’ll throw out some clever spots even for house show opening matches. Quality Kagetora Kontent aside, this was mostly comedy and lucha basics. We did get to hear Kagetora’s tremendous Megaman X-like theme twice in quick succession though, so I’m a satisfied customer. **
Kzy, Ben-K & Strong Machine J vs. Ultimo Dragon, Dragon Kid & Ryo Saito
I will use this match to explain to you, the gentle reader, that the current faction alignment in DG is: Toryumon (all the old guys) vs. Dragon Gate (all the young guys) vs. R.E.D. (all the bad guys in red). Ultimo returning to the fold and wrestling with his students once again warms my heart, but his chemistry with Strong Machine J in this match was shockingly bad. Ben-K got fucking massive during the quarantine and looks more like a Strong BJ hoss than a Dragon Gate hunk. I dig it. Other thoughts: Dragon Kid is the only wrestler alive to include capoeira and breakdancing spots in his shtick and not make it completely cringeworthy. A true legend. The match was a pleasant mix of loud comedy and fast-paced fun. Totally fine. **1/2
BxB Hulk & Diamante vs. Dragon Dia & Punch Tominaga
Heel BxB Hulk has a real mean streak but I cannot take him seriously with THIS LOOK. Tominaga does the Honma Kokeshi shtick with 100% more mobility and 100% less domestic violence complaints. Bless him. First time seeing Dragon Dia in action and I am IMPRESSED. He’s the next gen Dragon Kid and he’s living up to the lineage with the flawless high flying he showed here. Would have taken a lot more of him and Diamante ripping shit up together and less heel beatdown. Too long but but completely okay. **1/2
Big R Shimizu vs. Kota Minoura
Shimizu’s neo-Mr. Gannosuke/90’s Japanese indie sleaze energy is SO POWERFUL. Can’t help but love this guy. The match had its moments and I came out of it a brand new Kota Minoura fan, but they didn’t have enough to fill a 15 minute draw. There was a clear storyline initially, with Minoura trying to slowdown Shimizu’s heelish scumbaggery by going after his leg, but the entire mid-section of the match consisted of aimless stomping filler. Not the most engaging professional wrestling. Still, Minoura impressed whenever he was on offense: super polished suplexes, dropkicks and feisty forearms. They ramped up the drama for the last few minutes but the rest of the match was too uneven. **3/4
YAMATO & KAI vs. Masaaki Mochizuki & Susumu Yokosuka
Another match where the mid-section dragged (in this case: never ending double leg work Keiji Muto comedy) but picked up in a big way for the ending stretch. All of these guys can really go and made sure to remind you of this fact once they got all of the Pro-Wres Love poses out of the way. I was happy to see my boy KAI back in a proper match with crowd reactions, as the last time I saw him was a sub-5 minute empty arena classic with Black Menso-re. The enzuigiri-based offense with YAMATO is on point, baby. Also, I love a sudden Frankensteiner finish and YAMATO is the king of those. ***
Keisuke Okuda & Jason Lee vs. Kaito Ishida & KAZMA SAKAMOTO
Let me get this out of the way right now: Keisuke Okuda is the spiritual successor to Chocoball KOBE. Therefore I am his #1 fan. Thank you for reading this review. I wish some sort of Dragon Agent (Don Fujii?) stepped in backstage and proclaimed ‘’Maybe not leg work in every match tonight?’’ but other than that this was solid. Jason Lee was the star here, bypassing house show mode and working at the speed of sound for YOUR viewing pleasure. Great kicky chemistry with Ishida, great kung fu combo in the corner and great babyface energy. Even if the violence level isn’t all there, my boy (as of this review) Okuda clearly watched his share of Big Mouth Loud (Murakami corner stomp!) and I appreciate the influence. **3/4
Naruki Doi, Masato Yoshino & Shuji Kondo vs. Eita, Takashi Yoshida & HYO
OH MY GOD THAT’S THE FUNKY SHIT. I would’ve loved to see the Kondo return in a packed Korakuen with no copyright restriction on his theme song, but this is the next best thing. Him and Yoshida in a battle of tassle-clad beefcakes was an awesome time. They already feel like natural rivals. In other news: Speed Muscle bringing the lightning fast double-teams never gets old. That’s about it? The Curse of the Dragon Gate Mid-Section was once again very real and it all felt more like an okay house show main event (which it was) than a proper Welcome Home Shuji Kondo banger. Not sure if I picked the wrong show, but with a large chunk of the roster landing on the wrong side of 30 and R.E.D. working like Hooligans-Lite, it feels like the Dragon Gate house style is losing some of its spark. A lot of the matches on this show felt like standard NJPW/AJPW multiman matches with occasional sped up sequence. Still, the current Toryumon revival faction tickles my fancy and I’m liking some of the new kids, so I’ll probably stick around for the next Korakuen show. **1/2
