DDT 25th Anniversary Opening Special! All Seats 3000 Yen Show - 03/01/2022
Masahiro Takanashi & Maya Yukihi vs. Saki Akai & Shunma Katsumata
This was Maya Yukihi’s first match as a freelancer in DDT, and immediately that puts her in the pov of Saki Akai, This a fun match. I'm super happy that Takanashi is back as he always brings interesting antics to his matches, same with Shunma Katsumata. I dug the sequence where Takanashi tripped Shunma onto Saki Akai’s knee; that was a cool spot. Yukihi and Akai didn't always have the smoothest moments together but Yukihi looked solid at an individual level to me. I hope Cyer gnt does sign her. She’d be a big boost to the women’s ranks in DDT (and its affiliates). ***
Chris Brookes vs. Pokotan
I found this to be hilarious. The biggest laugh of the match was the attempt to climb to the top turnbuckle. Pokotan never fails. ***
Kazusada Higuchi vs. Hideki Okatani
Okatani earns the respect of Eruption members despite taking quite a massive hiding by Kazusada Higuchi and gets to join the group at the end of the match. I believe that the moment where Okatani pushed Sakaguchi away on the outside in order to get in the ring by himself was when he was accepted. Higuchi was merciless in his approach, absolutely chopping the rookie to bits with tons of aggression and malice. It was almost chilling in how Higuchi came across. Hideki Okatani lost badly but he had the heart and mental toughness to be accepted, so did he really lose? ***1/2
Konosuke Takeshita vs. Shinya Aoki
Takeshita isn’t the mat-worker that HARASHIMA is so this wasn’t as great as the Aoki/HARA matches, as this was mostly purely mat-work but it was still a very good match with tons of good mini stories that lead to the time limit draw and then the restart. Aoki simply couldn’t figure Takeshita out and decided to switch gears in the restart much to his disadvantage, allowing Takeshita to win. Fascinating as a narrative. Great way to start the year for the best in the world, Takeshita. ***1/2
TJPW Tokyo Joshi Pro '22 - 04/01/2022
Princess Of Princess Title Match: Miyu Yamashita (c) vs Mizuki
Most of the spots almost didn't work but many of them worked out really well, mixing well with the bell to bell narrative as a whole. Mizuki is talented and athletic in many ways but I'd the underdog of the match and is reliant on the odds of something he does working or it. Mizuki can pull out a twisting cross body with ease, for example great nearfalls, but something like a springboard back elbow was cut off, allowing Miyu a way in. Miyu's kicks weren't at the tightest either. But despite its flaws, it was a compelling match. It could've been great on a another day but I'll stick with good right now. ***1/2
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