[8.0] "Für mich haben Ishii und Tanahashi hier die Show gestohlen. Irgendwie scheint die Paarung eigenartig unverbraucht zu sein, auch wenn ich sicher bin, dass sie schon oft in G1s zu sehen gewesen ist. Das Main Event zwischen Okada und Naito kann für mich nicht ganz mithalten, auch weil die ersten 25 Minuten wirklich wenig Substanzielles passiert und es das typische, lange Okada-Match ist, das zu diesem Zeitpunkt doch recht schablonenhaft wirkt. Auf das BOSJ Turnier bin ich nach den Anküdigungen der Teilnehmer hier wirklich gehypt. Es ist vielleicht das erste Mal, dass ich für ein Turnier von New Japan Vorfreude empfinde, seit die Pandemieeinschränkungen die Einreise von Ausländern so schwierig gemacht haben. Karl Andersons Comeback geht in eine ähnliche Richtung. Als er die Mütze abnimmt und die Zuschauer ihn erkennen, ist eine deutliche Reaktion des Publikums hörbar. Im Grunde kann man sagen, er hatte seine erfolgreichste Zeit in Japan. In diesem Moment ist mir bewusst geworden, wie lang das alles schon wieder her ist. Zwischenzeitlich hat er einen kompletten WWE und Impact Run hinter sich gebracht. Der Moment, der mich aber wirklich erwischte, war der, als sein altes NJPW Entrance Theme spielte. Das hatte ich komplett verdrängt und es machte so viel seiner Präsentation aus. Lahm fand ich dagegen, dass sich nun Juice Robinson auch noch dem Bullet Club anschließt. Es scheint fast so zu sein, dass man jeden, für den man keine weiteren Ideen hat, in den Bullet Club wirft. Allerdings muss man auch zugeben, dass es für ihn als Babyface auf seinem Niveau nichts mehr wirklich zu tun gab. Daher ist eine neue Richtung vielleicht eine gute Idee. Wenn es dann aber wieder nur in weitere Matches mündet, in denen ohne Ende Ref Bumps und Eingriffe passieren, dann braucht man das einfach nicht mehr."
[7.0] "Insgesamt eine richtig gute Show. Gute Matches (bis auf den Opener und das Jr. Tag Match), (zu) viele Titelwechsel und einiges an Comebacks bzw. Kontroversen. So macht es Spaß. Was fehlt ist das Besondere. Kein Match wird ein Klassiker (Tanahashi vs. Ishii kommt hier m.E. viel zu gut weg) und die Ausgänge der letzten Beiden Matches standen praktisch vorher fest. Dennoch insgesamt sehenswert!"
[7.0] "Musste die Show in 2 Teile aufteilen, weshalb ich nicht mehr alles zusammen bekomme, da ich einen Teil schon vor 3 Wochen gesehen habe und den Rest erst heute. Es war insgesamt eine ordentliche Show, bei der ziemlich viel passiert ist und man einige Matches für die kommenden Wochen aufgebaut hat. Zugegebenermaßen viel Bullet Club, war insgesamt aber nicht so schlimm. Tanga Loa vs. Yujiro habe ich ausgelassen, den Rest aber gesehen. Von Yoh vs. Hiromu war ich etwas enttäuscht, das hat bei mir gar nicht gezündet. Ganz nett fand ich tatsächlich Tama Tonga vs. Evil mit einem coolen Spot am Ende und der Rückkehr von Karl Anderson. Mal sehen was er noch zeigen kann. Ishimori vs. Desperado war sehr ordentlich, hatte den Titelwechsel nicht so auf dem Schirm. Tanahashi vs. Ishii war, wie zu erwarten sehr stark und hatte einige klasse Nearfalls und Spots, wie z.B. die Slingblade von Ishii. Der Turn von Juice kam dann völlig aus dem Nichts. Der Main Event war ebenfalls stark, leidet aber darunter, dass es dieses Match hier schon zum dritten Mal in diesem Jahr gab. Danach gibt es noch die Rückkehr von Jay White und eine kleine Feier des Bullet Clubs, was ganz nett war. Insgesamt fühlte sich die Show, wie an vielen Stellen angemerkt, wieder mehr nach New Japan, wie wir es von vor Coronavirus kennen an, wenngleich die fehlenden Reaktionen der Fans einfach vieles runterziehen."
[8.0] "Has the normal NJPW problem of being backloaded, but luckily we might be back to the day of the back actually being LOADED. Final three matches kick all kinds of ass, especially Tanahashi vs. Ishii which is a leading MOTYC, and it can't be ignored that the return of Jay White signals this show as a turning point for the promotion moving forward. A great jumping back on point for the lapsed fan for sure."
"This was a great show and seemed like New Japan was getting a bit of its momentum back after a rough period. As played out as the Bullet Club is, there was still some encouraging signs here."
[8.0] "Great show that was heavily carried by the final 3 matches. With the announcement of the BOSJ 29 field that includes wrestlers from CMLL, AEW, GLEAT, and Impact, as well as the shocking introduction of Juice Robinson into Bullet Club, and the return of Jay White to Japan, it seems that NJPW is returning to the greatness that they had prior to the COVID Pandemic. 8/10"
[7.0] "In typical NJPW form, the 1st half was extremely middling but the 2nd half was really good and saved the show. Opening 6-man tag was fine. Top guys were good and Koshinaka was also fun. **1/2. Hiromu vs Yoh was disappointing. They tried some traditional 'big' spots/exchanges but severely lacked intensity and physicality. Yoh looked lazy in every facet of his game. Hiromu tried to show good energy but Yoh's lack of effort made for a pretty lethargic match. **1/2. Yujiro vs Loa was a boring battle of 2 lower-carders, and then interference made it worse. **1/4. Wato & Taguchi vs Douki & Kanemaru was fine but forgettable. Some okay junior-style work, especially with the tag spots, but too short to produce anything serious. **1/2. The 3-way Tag Title match was pretty messy but still had some okay run-on spots. The BC team was lame, but the UE team and Bishamon worked well. Awful decision for the BC team to win. **1/2. Some exciting newcomers accounted for the BOSJ lineups. Evil vs Tama was alright. Too brawl-based early on but eventually some decent (if generic) exchanges with solid chemistry. The interference wasn't too excessive and it backfired on Evil anyways. **3/4. Cool to see Anderson back, even if the awful Gallows is back too now. Desperado vs Ishimori was the first properly 'good' match here -- and a really good one. It had a very cool dual limb-targeting story as Desperado targeted the leg and Ishimori the arm. Their rapid big-move trades were quite impressive, and they both had good aggression and smoothness. Even their more complex interactions were flawless. Selling could have been a bit better but was mostly really good. ***1/2. Tanahashi vs Ishii had an annoyingly generic 'epic' structure which I personally found quite forced. They still did well with it overall, though, with mostly strong technique and very good real-time selling. A shame they both abandoned the leg-targeting story, but some of the displays of reciprocal defiance and the constant oneupmanship were still pretty exciting. Very good match overall but definitely not an all-time great one. ***3/4. Juice turning heel and joining Bullet Club was surprising, and I'm interested to see how he utilises this new direction. Okada vs Naito was MOTN. It was low-level great, even if it was below their first 2 matches this year. Their chemistry was great as usual, and I liked the focus on how personal their feud was. 1st half was all good foundation-setting stuff, and then the 2nd half had a few impressive big spots and some very fun rapid bomb trades. A bit too similar to their prior matches, but the story of Naito constantly going for his flash pins and Destino was compelling, so that plus Okada's displays of defiance and of course his epically creative finishing onslaught ensured this was still great. ***3/4 - ****. Jay as Okada's next challenger is interesting, since he could realistically win to reclaim his 'top gaijin' status and go on to defend at Wrestle Kingdom."
[6.0] "This show was solid and fun to watch. However, there were only two great matches (the last 2), Tama Tonga vs EVIL had a really cool finish and it was a nice moment, Ishimori vs Desperado was fine and all the rest was skippable."
[9.0] "A high-quality show where I did not find weak matches, everything was done in the best possible way. The upcoming junior tournament is very interesting, I've been waiting for it for a long time! The return of many top people from the USA, especially I was glad to see Jay White, who finally has to return to the mountain and become king. Good Brothers are also interesting returnees, I wonder what they should do, because the team titles are already occupied by friends. Juice Robinson is a cunning man, I really believed that he left the company, and he actually changed his worldview, it's interesting. BULLET CLUB are strengthening their positions again, it's time for other groups to take revenge. As a result, we got good matches, plots for the future, title shifts and unexpected twists, well, this is a successful show from NJPW. I advise and thank you!"
[8.0] "Very good show; Felt like New Japan of the old. There weren't any bad matches here, even the two matches involving members of the House of terror were watchable. The final two matches were standouts; The US Title match was easily the best thing on the show. Another great thing on the show was the way the Bullet Club was presented: Three members captured gold, Jay White returns, the redebut of Good brothers and addition of Juice Robinson as the newest member."
[10.0] "Excellent show! Maybe the best one of the year so far. No real bad matches all were engaging and enjoyable. Bullet Club reinstating its position in the company was welcome. NJPW is surging again and I can't be happier."
[7.0] "A lot of this before half-time was in that '5' or '6' territory. Mostly just okay. Things started stepping up in the final four matches. Okada vs Naito was quite good but I do think it was hurt by this being the third big singles match between those guys this year. I think it was my favourite of their matches this year, though. Tanahashi vs Ishii for me might be the best match of the year so far. Really liked the pacing and the spots they used. Bullet Club had a huge presence on this show and there was some pretty important angle stuff in regards to them. Although I think too much of this was just fine, this show did feel quite significant. Also, they announced the brackets for Best of the Super Juniors and it feels like the BOSJ lineup is back to looking like a fighting game roster. A few interesting surprises in there."
[8.0] "Six Man Tag Team Match: As usual, adequate tag match for the opener. Having the surprise entrance of Koshinaka, and the continuity of the rivalry between Shingo and Taichi. The action inside the ride was pretty regulat, natural stuff. [**1/2]; Hiromu Takahashi VS YOH: Fast pace, fast moves, jumps, reversals, near falls, everything you want to see in the Junior Heavyweight Division, you have it here. A bit predictable end, but still nice to watch. Pretty sad for YOH not finding his right place now he is in singles action. [***1/2]; Yujiro Takahashi VS Tanga Loa: Weakest match of the night, zero chemistry, zero wrestling, and 100% of interferences, as always. I really don't like the Tanga Loa neither Tama Tonga as babyfaces, all of their arsenal is pure heel wrestling, so when they try to so something different, it seems pretty bad. Really bad fight, really bad match. [*]; Six Or Nine VS DOUKI & Kanemaru: Really nice match, this is the caliber of defenses I want to watch from Six or Nine, comedy matches combined with style and good wrestling. DOUKI and Kanemaru played a good complement for him, making the best heel act. Pretty nice match. [***3/4]; IWGP Tag Team Title Three Way Match: Good match for the three teams. It's the first time since I see Chase Owens and Fale having a decent match, much of that thanks to Gooto and Cobb. Really nice fight. It let's the door open to a near rematch. [***1/2]; Evil VS Tama Tonga: It's been a while since we saw a decent singles match from EVIL, and this was a really good way to put an end to this rivalry, and just keeping it for the Bullet Club. Tama Tonga being one of the most underrated wrestlers of New Japan, and Evil finally having another aura, like he used to be when he was at Los Ingobernables. [***3/4]; El Desperado VS Taiji Ishimori: What a hell of a match, it's really impressive how these two wrestlers were capable of getting out of the script and make this match nothing related of the common Junior Heavyweight matches. Submission and hard hitting, the base of the match. Really impressive bout. [****1/2]; Tanahashi VS Ishii: Ishii being a World class athlete as always, getting the best of the best from Tanahashi. This really shoukd like the main event of the night. Perfect act of wrestling. Congratulations to both wrestlers. Amazing match. [*****]; Okada VS Naito: I really didn't like how they worked trough all the match, and sadly leading this to the unbeatable Okada. At least, the first 20 minutes were filler, making the same in-ring action they usually do, and then increasing the intensity, as usual. Didn't fell the energy and emotion of watch these two awesome wrestlers clashing again, so it's pretty sad. For me, very inadequate match to be the main event. [*]; Overall event was good, full of surprise title changes and good singles and tag team clashed, sadly there were some bad moments, as the main event, which doesn't let me to put a higger grade to this show. [***3/4]"
[9.0] "A really good event, with no bad matches and a MOTY candidate in Tanahashi v Ishii, lots of surprises like the returns of Gallows & Anderson, Robinson (plus Robinson joining Bullet Club), and Jay White. Several title changes, and a great Main Event (albeit one that takes too long to kick into high gear) make this an event I highly recommend."
[10.0] "There's no ****3/4 option so it gets the 10 here. What an outstanding show, probably NJPW's best of the year and yes I'm counting Wrestle Kingdom, which was insanely top-heavy. Here they managed to produce class up and down the card, shenanigans and all. Excellent show, if this is a taste of things to come, is gonna be helluva summer."
[9.0] "It feels like New Japan and that is something that I haven't said about one of their shows since the pandemic happened. BC is back to being interesting for the first time in a real long and difficult time for them. Juice making a return just makes me happy, EVIL losing his title to Tama makes me happy, Karl Anderson back in BC makes me happy etc. Also the last 3 matches were all great and the BOSJ announcement hyped me for the tournament. Good job New Japan, that was great."
[9.0] "This only had an OK undercard but the last three matches were all at least great with Tanahashi vs Ishii being the pick of the bunch. Based solely on the matches I would have given it 8/10 but this show is much more than the sum total of the card. It was built around moments in order to make a statement of intent; that NJPW are shaking things up creatively by dint of being able to use foreign talent more freely. This is the most excited I've been about NJPW since the pandemic hit."
[7.0] "Bis zum Junior Heavyweight Match war der Event maximal mittelmäßig mit teilweiße fragwürdigem Booking. El Desperado und Taiji Ishimori haben dann das erste wirklich sehenswerte Match der Show abgeliefert (*** 1/2). Danach lieferten Hiroshi Tanahashi und Tomohiro Ishii einen waren Knaller ab, den man unbedingt gesehen haben muss (**** 1/2). Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito war ebenfalls stark, auch wenn ich mich so langsam an der Paarung sattgesehen habe. Mit 35 Minuten war mir das auch zu lange (****). Dazu gab es einige nette Überraschungen. Leider waren die ersten zwei Stunden der Show wirklich nicht gut, was die Wertung trotz der letzten drei Matches runter zieht."
[9.0] "Best New Japan show of the year so far to me. Last three matches were all great to different extents. Tama Tonga? s win was a great moment, the returns of Jay and Juice were great too, and all in all just a great card."
[8.0] "I don't think this was a perfect show, but it was a really fun one. The start was alright, with two good matches and one bad one, but the matches consistently picked up. The big four are probably the best ones, definitely watch Tanahashi/Ishii. The BULLET CLUB push was a bit overdone, but I can understand why they did it. A good show, and a solid one to watch. Hyped for BOSJ, should be great."
[9.0] "NJPW have been on fire this year with these major shows and this was no different. Bullet Club dominated this show and we got the return of Jay and the return of Juice, now a ROCK HARD heel. Love it. Jay has so much steam heading into this match with Okada, I hope he picks up the win. Under that, we had great matches and set up a lot of things. BOSJ tour, more Shingo Vs Taichi, Tama Vs Karl and possibly House Of Torture leaving Bullet Club. Very eventful show, and very great show."
[9.0] "Today was excellent Bullet club show. Title changes we have Chase owens and fale winning Tag team titkes , Taji Ishimori winning juniour heavyweight championship. Also Karl anderson and Doc gallows attacking Tama was shocking , good to see them back in Njpw last 2 matches ?"
[9.0] "Auch wenn mich die vielen Bullet Club Siege nerven, New Japan fühlt sich nach langer Zeit wieder so an wie vor der Pandemie. Ishii/Tanahashi und Okada/Naito sind großartige Matches die man gesehen haben muss. Der Rest der Card ist durchweg gut."
