[5.0] "...Alrighty then. This had its moments, but this was a little too much for a BOSJ match, at least to me. Perhaps I would have enjoyed this better had it not been part of the tournament, but this was certainly...something, to say the least. Good lord."
[7.0] "Lovely stuff, but I wanted even more. MAO's experience working against Danshoku Dino worked out here. Taguchi is not only funny, but also still moves nicely. Miyagi might really be a home of real freaks. ***1/2"
[8.0] "I fully understand why someone would rate this a 0, especially in the context of it being a BoSJ match, but I absolutely loved this as a comedy match and it was a minor dream match of mine for this tournament. It was disgusting and terrible to watch, but the image of MAO with his whole head in Taguchi's tights, still hitting moves, had me and the group I was watching this with absolutely rolling in laughter."
[0.0] "I expected that MAO would do whatever he had to do to get reactions, which made humor below the waist the most obvious and simpliest way to achieve that goal in a match against Taguchi, but somehow he made a 8m33s match feel 5 minutes too long by running out of material in record time - those minutes were as boring as they possibly could be, kinda like a bad stand-up comedy where performer loses the crowd, but the crowd just tolerates the act until mercifully ends. I was mildly annoyed after the match was over, but really I just wanted to get those minutes of my life back - that's how much of a waste of my time it felt like."
[8.0] "Of course people melt on this one, it's not exactly something lots of people like and I get why they hated. To me, I thought that this was an incredibly fun comedy match and I even thought they kept it short and didn't go overboard like if they were in DDT. There is surely a couple of spots that you won't forget easily but they could have done something even "more" too. ****"
[5.0] "I like Taguchi. He's the one comedy wrestler who I actually sometimes find funny, but he can push it sometimes. This went a bit too far into silliness, but I've got to admit that I did laugh during the final few exchanges. I'd really like for Taguchi to have a mostly serious tournament and win the whole thing but at this point, he's leaning entirely into comedy. Mao is probably underselling himself a bit by doing the same. I was babysitting my two nieces while watching this. They like to watch wrestling for a match or two until they get tired of cheering. This was the first match I put on. Explaining it wasn't easy."
[2.0] "The fact MAO managed to wrestle with his head in Taguchi's pants was actually kind of impressive, but overall this was junk. I get this is the opener at a smaller venue but please, this is the BOSJ, can we not have this absolutely absurd nonsense every show. I'm all for a laugh but Taguchi really has taken the butt stuff too far. *1/4"
[6.0] "Seems like a lot of New Japan fans are quite the prudes! Each to their own I guess but I knew a MAO v Ryusuke Taguchi match would bring a lot of creative comedy to the show. And it delivered. Maybe people just shouldn't get so upset about what consenting adults do with each other. SINGLES RECORD: MAO 1-0"
[1.0] "[0.5*] There's no problem mixing wrestling and comedy, but this was ridiculous. The wrestling wasn't good, and the comedy was terrible. Everything involving Taguchi in this tournament has been sad, and MAO tarnished himself by embracing Taguchi's craziness. When MAO is the more serious one in the match, you know there's a problem. The sequence with MAO's head inside Taguchi's pants was dull, and there's nothing funny about seeing Taguchi's red underwear that looks like a thong."
[0.0] "1/2* a very disgusting match, I will have to talk about the same thing again, an unnecessarily long comedy, from the beginning to the end it was uncomfortable to watch because of how stupid and bad it is, the unnecessary use of Taguchi in this tournament is absurd, Mao has talent but falls into comedy and ends up being terrible, this match is a representation of the worst of this year's Best Of The Super Jr, extended comedy, in contrast to matches between interesting talents being very short, simply a disgrace and waste of time to watch this match, I do not recommend it to anyone, unless you like Taguchi's comedy"
[2.0] "The thing about 'comedy' wrestling matches is they're rarely ever funny. Add in the weird ironic homoeroticism played up for laughs from the crowd and you get a cabaret act at a wrestling show. Don't get me wrong, there are probably nightclubs in Tokyo where people pay would good money to watch MAO and Taguchi do this onstage on a nightly basis. I'd rather just watch wrestling at the wrestling show to be honest."
[1.0] "it gets a one because it was a little silly and creative and for that it escapes a zero. however, none of this was good wrestling nor very funny. for a comedy match i did not laugh once, and i just wanted to skip this. if someone catches you watching this match, just switch tabs to hentai. its easier to explain"
[2.0] "A match that was as terrible as I knew it would be and really makes me question my committment to watching every BOSJ match. I get that having some DDT shtick is part of the appeal of bringing MAO onto this tour, but he hasn't been completely lighting up the more serious opportunities he's been given either."
[7.0] "This was exactly what I expected MAO vs Taguchi to be, and it was great haha. Some people just need to accept that comedy is a big part of wrestling, MAO was committed in this one too. Never seen a Styles Clash like it before. Not sure we ever will again, but he beats the funky weapon. Up close and personal"
[4.0] "This match was...special and they pushed things far but for me it was entertaining, MAO ate Taguchi's ass in every way possible and that ending with MAO doing a Styles Clash while having his face in Taguchi's butt was hilarious. Can't rate higher but i found it fun - **1/4"
[7.0] "I very much enjoyed this. It got multiple laughs out of me. It was fun, funny, something light and not to take seriously. Giving it a 0 or a 1 is crazy, people don't like to have fun anymore smh. A good comedy match. It kept getting crazier and crazier."
[7.0] "One of the funniest matches in the Best of the Super Junior 32. Mao is really hilarious, and his match against Taguchi was very entertaining. Sure, it's not the most technical match of the tournament, but the crowd had a good laugh, and so did I in front of my TV. I give it a 7 out of 10 for the fun factor, despite the lack of technicality."
[0.0] "Pure comedy horse shit match. Hard to believe in 2025 I like a SHO match more then a MAO match. If you like Taguchi comedy matches that are horny, this is for you. if you just want wrestling, avoid this."
[7.0] "Kind of the ideal comedy match, so while the in-ring isn't particularly "impressive" the gag-per-minute ratio is off the charts. I mean let's be honest, how often have you seen a boner spot? I'm not saying this be contrarian and I really do think a comedy match without a lot of the fundamental can never go above a 7 but truly a 7 is the highest grade for a comedy match and this match delivered, I was really laughing."
[1.0] "This was such a stupid match. I get that they are trying to do comedy but it's not even funny. What made it even worse was Taguchi's bare ass hanging out for 2 minutes after the match finished."
[6.0] "This was a very fun and cool match. Pure Japanese comedy wrestling. The DDT vibes were very present. The chemistry between the two in the ring and in the comedy wrestling was perfect, despite the in-ring quality being well below usual."
[3.0] "Not really for me. The shenanigans were a bit too much, probably the first disappointing MAO match this tournament. It was to be expected though given the matchup"
[6.0] "Very silly match but it was definitely creative and MAO's used to this crazy stuff in DDT so it was cool seeing him come up with a great counter for Taguchi's funky weapon. 3 stars"
[7.0] "Great opening for the tournament. I was worried that it would devolve into comedy antics and while Ryusuke Taguchi's funky weapon made an appearance, Taguchi still had a lot of good grappling throughout the entire match. This was the perfect mix of comedy and wrestling and Mao's in-the-trunks Styles Clash was the cherry on Taguchi's cake."
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