[6.0] "The first three matches were really average and the last two matches were good. It was a solid watch."

[8.0] "The first two matches did nothing for me, but the show started to improve starting with the Great-O-Khan/Tenzan and Ospreay/Kojima matches. The main event was a bonafide classic. Check it out!"

[7.0] "A good show with a lot of good and a bit of the bad . Tenzan/Khan and the opener falls in the second category . The main event was MOTN and explosive action and a great No DQ match between Kojima and Ospreay and a solid tag team match that did a great job in serving its meaning and put over Sho as a potential threat to Hirmou's IWGP junior heavyweight title. Tanahashi winning was unexpected but Tanahashi as NEVER Openweight title is a unexplored asset that could pay dividends for NJPW in a very good way unless he loses it to Khan in his first defense of all people . God forbid . Other than that , post main event was very enjoyable with Tana doing the air guitar solos."

[7.0] "The first three matches I did not care for, the Will Ospreay vs Satoshi Kojima match was pretty good at 3. 5*. The final match was really good at 4. 25*"

[7.0] "The last two matches are well worth going out of your way to watch. The main event was excellent and felt like a real battle, Shingo Takagi was great and the Ospreay match was good but the rest of the card was not good the two tags were your typical NJPW tag team matches. The Mongolian Chop match is the one that drags the card down."

[6.0] "Another Desperate Epic Main Event, love both guys and was looking forward to the match but a lot of it was a chore to sit through especially in front of a mute 2021 crowd. They'll have a better match in the future hopefully. Apart from Ospreay's usual overselling Kojima/Ospreay was good. Khan/Tenzan was.... a match i guess"

[8.0] "If you skip the first two matches, this event was really good. The main event just blew my mind. I highly recommend watching this show."

[8.0] "Good show. The opening match was a waste and although I am a huge fan of Okada, it was severely disappointing. The second and third match were solid matches but unspectacular. Ospreay and Kojima was better than expected and the main event was worth all the hype and is a top candidate for MOTY although we are just a month into the year."

[9.0] "The best pro wrestling promotion in the world produces another outstanding main event, and excellent co-main. A very entertaining and easy to watch show."

[8.0] "What seemed at first announcement like a one-match show became something much more thanks to the excellent Empire/TenCozy feud that sprang up on the tour. The first match was yet more awful CHAOS/Bullet Club filler with zero effort from all men, but the eight-man picked up the energy more and then those last three matches got better and better. Great-O-Khan is working overtime to make up for his underwhelming record so far and worked so smartly around Tenzan's broken body while Tenzan put in his best work in years for what is surely the beginning of his ride into the sunset. ***1/4 Ospreay has been unfathomably dull in his heel run but finally struck paydirt with this last tour, and for the first time since his 2019 rocket to the top he matched his athleticism with actual storytelling. Kojima was fired up as hell and this fight felt so beautifully nasty. ****1/4 Main event was always going to be great with these two guys, but this exceeded all expectations with another Tanahashi mat classic that barring that scary Last of the Dragon spot was another showcase of how intensely Tanahashi can call it in the ring while still working safer than the younger guys. Shingo not only looked great in defeat but maybe got even more over. He's the best in the world right now and it's not even close. Not even a month outside of WK they've already put on a match worthy of consideration with White/Ibushi as MOTY *****"

[8.0] "A really easy and enjoyable watch. The card order was perfect on this one, with things upping in intensity as the card progressed. Even the ratings here reflect that at the time of writing. And the main event delivered, so this was a pretty fun show."

[10.0] "Holy mother of pro wrestling. What a show! All matches were entertaining and very watchable. Everything delivered. Tenzan surprised me kicking out of the piledriver. Kojima and will was great! Lariat through the ladder, power bomb through the table, etc... I did not want it to end. And then oh geez do not get me started on the main event. This was probably the best match I have ever seen! I screamed, jumped out of my seat, and probably had a little heart attack lol. This is definitely match of the year. Over 5 stars definitely. What a match! I mean I am still speechless."

[8.0] "Very good show. The first two matches are skippable tags, but the marquee matches all delivered for me. GOK Vs Tenzan was a fun match between two similarly styled individuals, and a bit of a torch passing. Ospreay Vs Kojima was a fantastic no DQ match with some good spots and storytelling. Both men took big bumps and sold hard to put the match over. The main event was absolutely fantastic, a dream match that did not disappoint. There was a scary bump after a botched Made In Japan, but it seemed Takahashi was fine. I would have rathered Shingo retain, and he be the guy to build the NEVER up but it seems Tanahashi gets that job... Or maybe. GOKs attack clearly sets up a rematch at Castle Attack. Very interested in where that goes. Anyway, great show with a lot of story progression."

[8.0] "A solid, satisfactory event, begin fabolous thanks to the final two matches. What a fight between Tana and Shingo..."

[9.0] "A great show, which went according to the perfect scheme, when each next match is better than the previous one. Due to quarantine restrictions, there were only two filler tag team matches at the beginning of the show, and the show itself lasted only 2. 5 hours and was very easy to watch. The great O-Khan and Tenzan were a pleasant surprise, I didn't expect anything at all from their match, but it turned out to be a good one. Ospreay and Kojima had a very cool and intense match with a number of tough spots. But the whole show was stolen by the main event, a really perfect match that can already claim the "Match of the Year". The storylines for the main matches of the show were of high quality, and the results of all the matches were correct."

[9.0] "I thought this was a great show. The undercard was good, with Okada having a blast in the opening match (**1/2, ) a solid eight-main tag after that (**3/4) and then the best Tenzan match in years (***1/4. ) That was followed by the first true "gimmick" stipulation match in New Japan since probably the ladder match from 2016, and both Kojima and Ospreay killed it. That was a legitimate **** star match. Then, the main event. It's not for everybody, but I loved it. It was an old school, throwback type match with tons of legwork and leg psychology for the better part of a half hour, followed by an epic 5-minute closing stretch. Some are giving it 5 stars, but I'll go with ****1/2. All in all this was an excellent, well-paced show with nothing bad and two great matches to cap it off. A minor complaint would be the length of the main event, but long main events are a norm for both New Japan and NOAH, so it is what it is. This was an excellent show worth watching from start to finish. You won't regret doing so. 8. 5/10"

[7.0] "The show was pretty nice and fast-paced, with only three hours that looked like one. Despite the last two matches being the ones that really matters, every single one of them entertained me somehow and kept me awake through it's entirety. I'm excited for The New Beginning in Hiroshima shows, if they are at least this level of good, I'm happy."