Ben-K, Bokutimo Dragon & Ho Ho Lun vs R.E.D (Diamante, H・Y・O, Dia Inferno)
This was an easy, quick match. Ben-K looked strong, virtually taking no offence and steamrolling anyone he was up against. Bokutimo Dragon had his comedy spots. HYO had some decent flash pins. A solid opener. **
Ultimo Dragon & Don Fujii vs Konomama Ichikawa & Problem Dragon
They hits their notes and go home. Perfect. Ichikawa cuts a promo about always wanting to face Ultimo Dragon in a match only to get tied up and pinned almost immediately afterwards. Funny. **
Open the Brave Gate Championship Match: Keisuke Okuda (c) vs U-T
Okuda is a real awkward seller, so a match where he's selling his left foot doesn't fill me with confidence but I thought he exceeded expectations, mostly thanks to U-T persistence. U-T kept popping up with random leg submissions no matter what Okuda did. All Okuda could do is keep on kicking despite the pain. Okuda had some good kicks to the body but U-T had the strike of the match when he floored Okuda with an elbow. Okuda retained the title while U-T continues to not win anything, so we can't have it all. ***
Masato Yoshino, Naruki Doi, Eita & BxB Hulk vs Ryo Saito, Kagetora, Yasushi Kanda & Kota Minoura
A special sorta match that combines everyone Yoshino wants to face for the countdown to his retirement at the end of the year. Yoshino puts him and Doi alongside R.E.D members which was interesting. They fit the aesthetic perfectly with their red coloured robes. The match was very playful on the fact that Doi and Yoshino were teaming with Eita and Hulk. Eita and Doi attempt the patented moves that Yoshino would do and likewise with Hulk and Yoshino. They worked with each other well enough, even more so than the all face side. Of course, it didn't last long before Eita and Hulk turned against their partners and allowed their opponents to score the victory. Individually Eita stood out with some great bumping on clotheslines but this was more about the one team overall. Fun match. ***1/2
Open The Twin Gate Championship Match: Masaaki Mochizuki & Takashi Yoshida (c) vs R.E.D (Kaito Ishida & Kazma Sakamoto)
I didn't really like this. There were specific moments that I could point out that were bad or even below average. But as an overall package, it didn't leave a good impression on me. Mochizuki and Yoshida are an odd pairing that I'm not fond of and Ishida and Sakamoto didn't set the world on fire either. **1/2
Open the Triangle Gate Championship Match: Natural Vibes (Kzy, Genki Horiguchi & Susumu Yokosuka) (c) vs MASQUERADE (Jason Lee, La Estrella & Dragon Dia)
La Estrella didn't look good in this. He's young and athletic but I'm not sure it's wise to have him only ever do dives and insane spots. He's hit and miss on those spots anyway, despite his talent and potential. The rest of the action was solid though and laid a good foundation for a great match, with Jason Lee having an awesome stretch against all of Natural Vibes by himself and Dragon Dia’s shine spots. The match just didn't move on from those though and the aforementioned La Estrella spots killed the match at times. ***
Open the Dream Gate Championship Match: Shun Skywalker (c) vs HipHop Kikuta
This looked super promising with Kikuta’s potential and Shun’s wow factor but unfortunately a freak injury just minutes into the match stopped the match in its tracks. Kikuta’s arm looked seriously hurt right away and thankfully, they ended the match after a short break with an armbar /towel thrown in finish. NR
Mascara contra Cabellera Steel Cage Survival Tag Team Match: YAMATO & KAI vs Dragon Kid & SB KENTo
【Match Rules】
3 flags will be placed atop the cage. The first team to pull 2 flags will win the match. The losing team will then immediately face each other in a singles match, with the loser having to share their head or remove their mask. Due to the overwhelming numbers advantage that R・E・D has over HIGH-END, on 4/29 in Kanazawa Dragon Kid sought to enlist the help of Natural Vibes & Masquerade. Both units agreed, so a lottery was held to determine which team each unit will provide support for.
・Masquerade: Dragon Kid & SB KENTo
・Natural Vibes: YAMATO & KAI
-Dragon Gate Facebook
YAMATO and KAI had a neat story involving them working together. At first, their chemistry was a little off with a rusty team work, with YAMATO being a step ahead for a double back elbow and then KAI with a double clothesline, but then they eventually connected with double enzuigiri shots. They really captured the vibe of the match rules. Disgruntled partners forced to work together. SBK and Dragon Kid’s big portion of the match was all about their singles match once YAMATO, who was hesitant to leave, and KAI, who was more than happy to, escaped. I think it was a foregone conclusion that SBK was going to lose his hair so the drama wasn't exactly at his peak but it was still an entertaining closing stretch with R.E.D working against Dragon Kid with the ref knocked down before Dragon Kid made his comeback. ***3/4
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