EVIL vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi

[4.0] "EVIL has done this bit of pretending to fight fair before but the execution here couldn't have been worse. The "clean" portion of this match ends up being really bland as you don't even get any of EVIL's dominating heel work that are at least usually some of the brighter spots of his matches. And then the cheating that gives EVIL the win is so generic that it feels lazy even for House of Torture standards. I get that EVIL's a heel and his wins are supposed to feel deflating but this is Tanahashi's last G1 match man, you could've given him a little more before he went down."

[4.0] "The match before the interference was a bit above average, not either men's worst performance recently. The interference of course is unfortunate, this is Tanahashi's last G1 match and it ended just like most House of Torture matches. Not as terrible as people say, but I understand the disappointment."

[4.0] "Not as terrible as some might think but as far as a G1 farewell for Hiroshi Tanahashi, this felt a little flat. The idea of EVIL fighting clean was never going to last so there was no surprise in the appearance of Dick Togo and Don Fale late in the match. SINGLES RECORD: Hiroshi Tanahashi 5-4"

[1.0] "This was awful. The first thing is how New Japan tried to make you want Evil to win in Tanahashi's LAST G1 MATCH so Yota Tsuji, Yuya Uemura, and David Finlay could all go through. Secondly was the involvement of HoT, which is just always bad especially since Evil said he wasn't going to use them. 0.5/5."

[0.0] "This was so hilariously bad. Not only EVIL's attempt to wrestling clean was an absolute fail but the it ended up with Tana getting beaten by HoT. The last G1 Tana match ended with him getting beaten by HoT in the middle of the ring. Sad and horrible bout, nothing to save. Taichi vs EVIL is still kinda worse though. DUD"

[0.0] "Fuck what was that. It was so bad. Tanahashi looked in a horrible shape, his moves weren't good. EVIL and HoT litteraly shat on Tanahashi's last match. So Tanahashi's last G1 ends like that ? It was crap. They clearly failed Tanahashi's G1 retirement."

[5.0] "I quite liked this match. Obviously the finish takes my score down a bit. Before that however it was a decent back and forth match with a clear story. I thought Hiroshi Tanahashi did good here both selling the leg work, getting the story of the match over and getting the crowd into his comebacks."

[2.0] "It really is terrible because they were kinda cooking before the inevitable HOT involvement. It's also sad that this is how Tanahashi leaves the G1 tournament for the last time. I'm so sick of the House of Torture stuff and I think everyone else is. I don't know how much longer I can watch it and I don't know why it hasn't been thrown away yet."

"This wasn't THAT bad. People are rating it for the result and I get it. I am sick of EVIL in this tournament, also. But it was fun to seen him wrestle straight, at least to a point, and the crowd was very into this. Tanahashi will get his win back in the fall, he clearly loves this stuff. Might as well embrace the house; they clearly aren't going anywhere. A fine little *** match for the live fans."

[7.0] "Eh, I thought most of this contest with EVIL vs Hiroshi Tanahashi turned out to be really good. I do admit that the finish was anti-climactic, and that Tanahashi deserved a MUCH better farewell for his final G1 match ever in his career. Regardless of the dull & lackluster finish, I still had a good time with EVIL wrestling seriously for at least 80% of the match, and with Tanahashi being his resilient self as the lovable babyface. I give this match a 7.5 out of 10. The overall rating is understandably low due to the anti-climactic ending with EVIL winning in spectacular, dirty fashion."

[4.0] "A bad match with a really annoying booking and the fact Hiroshi Tanahashi ends his G1 Climax career on this is extremely frustrating. EVIL wrestled cleanly for the most part of the match but it was bullshit given the ending is filled with repetitive interferences, the story was predictable as hell and the match was extremely basic, nothing memorable which is sad given the circumstances - **"

[4.0] "It was bad in the pedestrian House of Torture sense, but it wasn't as abysmally bad as the low average rating would suggest. It was just a typical Evil match with an ostensible twist that should be pretty obvious if you've seen any HoT match in the last four years. At least there was some attempt at novelty."

[2.0] "Watched this just to see how bad it really is. Yep, pretty fuckin' bad. Not even the work, the action is what it is, but the pacing and structure is horrible and of course the finish is the biggest pile of dogshit NJPW has pulled off this year. Worst match of the Tanahashi retirement run pretty easily."

[1.0] "Right if i catch Gedo at forbidden door it is on sight. What the fuck have i just laid my eyes on the first 10 minutes were painfully fucking boring as Evil worked over Tana for most of it before Tana hit a twist and shout and missed a high fly flow. The first ten minutes exposed the big thing Evil can't wrestle an interesting fucking match to save his life and Tana tried his best but his is so shot to bits now not even he can. Then we get the most insulting part Tanahashi losing his final G1 match to a fucking inference and a bit down from Dick and Don i have never hated to people more in my whole fucking life if the match had ended with Evil winning clean and showing Tana respect it might have been a 5 out of 10 but this pissed all over Tana's last matched and has ruined it for everyone. Now onto the biggest problem this match has exposed the stuipd way this block has been booked why has Evil won it he is dog shit and has the most go away heat i have ever seen. The fact he has gone through over Uemura, Tanahashi or Boltin is a fucking joke of a booking decision it would not surprise me if Evil is winning the belt at the Dome in January at this rate. This was the first time i have seen people wanting Evil to win a match and that is only because We wanted a scenario where Tsuji, Uemura and Finlay all had a chance at going through. Think how stuipd that is due to how strong Evil has been booked Gedo has got people rooting against Tanahasi in his last ever G1. I said in my review of Tana's opening match the last ride might not be pretty but it would be emotional in the end i was wrong it was Pretty for most of it but the all emotion i felt was pure hatred to the booker who is single handily ruining this company. (3/4*)"

[6.0] "I genuinely have no problem with this match. They took a different approach to the tired House of Torture routine with EVIL pretending to give Tanahashi an honest match, before betraying that trust at the very end. Evil wanted to prove that he could outwrestled Tanahashi 1 one 1, he just chooses to do it the House of Torture way. Does Tanahashi deserve a better ending? Sure. But hey that's wrestling."

[2.0] "I generally haven't minded Evil throughout this tournament but this was dreadfully bad. I went in with some expectations as I thought that these two had a genuinely great match at Wrestle Kingdom this year but this did not recapture the magic of that match at all. For the first 10 minutes, this match is just very boring. Not much happens other than Evil lazily beating down Tana. Tana starts making a comeback but then HoT come out and interfere and then Evil just wins. It's so bizarre, like I get Evil promised a clean match but why would he wrestle cleanly for the first 10 minutes if Fale and Dick were just gonna come out and interfere anyway? It just makes the already boring first 80% of this match even more redundant. I think what makes this match even more offensive too is the fact that this is Tana's final G1 match ever. Why would they pick this match to be the last? Tana has had several matches this tournament that would be better suited to be his last than this one. He could've gone out and wrestled the exact same match that he wrestled against Tsuji a few days ago and it wouldve felt like a far more appropriate final match than whatever this was. And why does he have to put over Evil of all people? Not Yuya, not Oiwa, not Tsuji, but fucking Evil, the guy who's gonna remain near the top of the card regardless of whether he wins or loses. Such a waste of a match. This is probably my least favourite of this year's G1 which sucks because Tana has been stellar all tournament. So bizarre in so many ways and I'll never understand why they thought this would be a good way for Tana to end his tournament. *"

[0.0] "Disgrace of a match. How has Tanahashi's final year been so much about fucking EVIL and House of Torture. EVIL is EVIL, he is gonna be at this semi-main event level forever, so why not push someone who could actually use this! Theres is a right kind or heat and a wrong kind of heat , and this match was defo the wrong type of heat."

[7.0] "I know it's not the popular opinion, but personally, I quite liked this match. The first 10 minutes, Evil is doing catching, I really want Evil to catch, no cheating, no interference, and for that matter, it's been a long time since that happened, then the House of Torture routine kicks in and Evil wins by cheating. Did Tanahashi deserve a better exit? Maybe, but Tanahashi is not the 'hero' of the G1 Climax (that's more Okada or Chono), so I'm not shocked that he loses as a babyface against one of the biggest heels of the last 15-20 years. Tanahashi will have a proper exit at Wrestle Kingdom, it won't be for the title, it won't be against Zack Sabre Jr, but I hope it will be something great. Tanahashi doesn't need to win the G1 Climax to main event Wrestle Kingdom anyway. And Evil is the top heel, but his big victories date back to 2020; it would be good for him to win something this year."

[0.0] "* disgusting match, when it seemed like it would be a very meh fight, they reminded us that they could do worse, Tana in this G1 tried hard and his rivals too (except Sanada and Evil) to try to do their best and managed to put on several good fights, but here we saw a terrible combination of booking by House Of Torture, Evil not being able to run Tana, and Tana with his obvious problems, nothing entertaining or remarkable, the star is only for the beginning that wasn't even that bad, just very slow and without relevance but better than you could expect, and then the lack of fluidity and the interventions of the House Of Torture began that killed the uninteresting part of the match, a very horrendous end to Tanahashi's career in the G1"

[4.0] "While not a great bout by any means, i think it wasn't as bad as people make it to be. Even with a slow Tanahashi, the technical work by him and Evil was mostly fine, albeit kinda pointless, without a clear target for neither of them. The rest was your standard HoT match with all the ref bumps and interventions. All in all, it wasn't a memorable send-off for Tana's last G1 match, but not as bad as the rating makes it to be."

[0.0] "A dreadfully glum ending to Hiroshi Tanahashi's final G1 match. EVIL is a horrendously bad wrestler and he's somehow worse once you strip the smoke and mirrors of House of Torture interference. Togo and Fale came down after a brief & boring one sided domination from EVIL and after some ref bump shenanigans, EVIL wins. Hiroshi Tanahashi will forever be synonymous with this tournament and having his last outing go down like this was just saddening."

[6.0] "I really loved how they worked this. Tanahashi as a old bashed up babyface is fun and all but lets just face it, the guy is tied together with duct tape and string and it's been increasingly clear for about a year or so now that the man cannot have a good match unless the person opposing him is doing virtually all of the physical work while Tana does a occasional slow-motion Dragon Screw or similar depressingly slow levels of offence that doesn't look convincing. I honestly did not want the idea of him trying to work a NJPW-ism 20 something minute match in the state he was in, and EVIL getting to fuck up his plans gives him a great boost in not only stature (something he has desperately needed since HoT disbanded from the original Bullet Club) and heat. EVIL wrestling without the interference was actually pretty cool, they got over how he can still be a imposing threat without the distractions....he just choses to work otherwise lol. The crowd didn't bite at first that EVIL was going to go clean but after a while they seemed to buy into EVIL going clean for one night only (especially with how long they kept it up) which made his inevitable betrayal of that promise all the more effective since it was when Tanahashi started to pick up steam after enduring the initial limb work. Building up Tanahashi's hope spots as much as possible with the heel shtick was the best way to work this since I know 2025 Tana is going to do nothing that interesting bar emote and focus on the drama around his final G1 potentially ending (though he does give us a WOAT-tier horrendous Sling Blade after waddling off the ropes) so them milking EVIL potentially forcing Tanahashi to tap out in a SDL felt appropriate. I thought they focused well onto that element and kept the suspense going until EVIL managed to get enough bullshit thrown out that he could squeak out a upset. It also acted as a pyrrhic victory; Tanahashi forcing EVIL to break his own promise to win, not stooping to his level by using the chair himself etc. He loses the match sure, however coming out of this Tanahashi keeps his dignity as a evergreen babyface while EVIL truly confirms that the man cannot ever be truly embrace the audience nor be trusted, so who really won at the end? I can admit that the action in this in terms of physicality was not especially interesting (even to say it's good, frankly, is quite inaccurate) however I did think this went BEYOND just the physical elements. It was a clear-cut look into Tanahashi's Heisei-era persona and his ultimate flaw; his belief that anyone can be redeemed, even those beyond the pale."

[4.0] "Once again, I think the reaction to a House of Torture match is far too strongly negative and not quite warranted. It was kind of nice getting to see a glimpse of pre-BC/HoT EVIL here for a little while in the pre-interference stages of the match. Yes, the Dick-to-dick contact and the ending sequence was bad, but there was a decent match in here, just not a particularly good one."

[5.0] "It was pretty boring but i don't think it was all timer bad or anything. Evil working over tana for 10 minutes in a very meandering and plotting way definitely wasn't good but i cant think of any reasons to give it a much lower rating than this. Not a good sendoff for tana in the g1 but it is what it is."

[4.0] "meh, it wasnt good but it wasnt that bad, the crowd reaction when EVIL did a clean rope break says everything in this match, and then him ruining everyting by still being a bad guy and stealing everyone's dreams to see Tanahashi in the Tokyo Dome is just great bad guy work. Still not a nice match, but not that terrible match I think."

[0.0] "First of all, the match sucked from the start. Evil was very slow, and his working over Tanahashi was bad. Still, they built it as a single match with no interference, and not having Tanahashi in the playoffs was a bad idea, horrible booking here. The way it happened was just awful, the worst match of the year, and a stain on the career of Hiroshi Tanahashi."

[0.0] "DUD. House of Torture continues to be a same shit different day faction. I guess EVIL gets heat off this result, it doesn't seem like it'll mean anything unless they really are going to send EVIL to the G1 finals which means we get the NJPW version of Cody vs Roman 2 or Page vs Moxley, massive difference when it's Dick to Dick they are fighting against. I originally rated this a 2 for one star but after finishing this show, DUD. I hope the rumors are true and the booking is getting shaken up."

[3.0] "This being Tanahashi's last G1 match aside, this was just your average EVIL G1 HoT match. 10 minutes of perfunctory, 2* level wrestling (not all that dissimilar to the prior SANADA match), followed by your clockwork HoT run in, interference, EVIL hitting his finisher and 1 2 3. I can totally see why people would rate this lower as it's mind blowing this is how they'd have a guy at the level of importance as Tanahashi just go out so unceremoniously, but rating it as objectively as I can I'd say it was probably *1/2"

"Find yourself someone who likes you as much as Gedo likes the House of Torture. And while you're at it, find a blanket and pillow, they'll be handy for EVIL's next match."

[0.0] "This was bad. It is largely self inflicted too on NJPW's part. Why pick this for Tanahashi's last G1 match? the first 10 minutes were fine I guess. A competent if lackluster match. Then Fale and Togo come down to the ring. EVIL intiailly rejects there help, wanting a clean match for Tanahashi's last which could've been a interesting story development. It was all a rouse though. Referee turns his back, and you know the rest. Like I get there in the same block so they have to wrestle but you had plenty of other nights this could've gone on if you wanted another stale HOT match. I'm not mad or anything. I long ago accepted that the HOT just wasn't for me so I just don't watch their stuff largely. I'm really just confused as to why this was Tanahashi's final G1 match if you weren't going to do anything other than the same boring and played out HOT shtick they've been doing for years? What a sad way for the greatest competitor in G1 history to out. 0 stars."

[0.0] "0 as it fails in every level. Boring, drab and the usual EVIL match he's done repeatedly this G1 instead of doing something special for Tana's last G1 match. Gedo needs to step down."

[0.0] "I think Gedo might unironically be one of the most incompetent people on planet earth, and Tanahashi allowing this match to happen and end the way it did is disgusting. I cannot think of 1 serious individual who genuinely enjoys HoT, maybe some of the wrestlers in the group, but not the group themselves. For the first bit of this match I found it somewhat enjoyable. EVIL not doing his usual schtick was entertaining, and actually most of my problems with the first bit of the match was in the fact Tanahashi would not sell his leg. But as soon as Tanahashi started getting some offense in, here comes typical HoT interference, with the ref bump, with the low blows, etc. EVIL picks up the win with his ever so creatively named finisher; EVIL. Tanahashi's final G1 match being wasted on getting pinned to this bum is gross, and the fact that EVIL could win this entire G1 is absolutely repulsive."

[0.0] "Ruining Tanahashi's last ever G1 match with the same awful, tired, House of Torture shenanigans is an unforgivable crime committed by an unforgivable booker in Gedo. What happened to this promotion."

[1.0] "I give 1 for the hopes. Missed opportunity to tell a really cool story of EVIL going clean for this match to respect Tanahashi in his farewell tour. I get what NJPW is doing with House of Torture, but if EVIL had to win by cheating in this match at least do it well, do something more subtle, this was just another bullshit HoT interference spot, lazy stuff."

[0.0] "A disgusting match honestly. God forbid NJPW do something cool in 2025 and have EVIL wrestle clean in Hiroshi goddamn Tanahashi's last G1 match EVER. I was super invested for over 10 minutes, thinking they might actually book this better than a kids cartoon where we go back to the status quo by the end, but alas. On top of everything else, the interference spot just sucked ass. A tragedy that this'll forever be the Ace's final G1 match. DUD"

[0.0] "This was the worst match of the entire G1. Tanahashi's last match didn't mean shit, and having EVIL be the one to not only beat him, but to have as shit of a match as this is horrendous. If it was a clean match all the way through, this easily could've been anywhere from 6-8, but with how it ended, its a 0. I wish we could have negative star ratings, because this is worse then a 0."

[0.0] "I am terribly angry and frustrated by this match between Hiroshi Tanahashi and EVIL. We were promised a clean match without interference from the House of Torture, which could have been beautiful for Hiroshi Tanahashi's last match in the G1 Climax, a few days after his 100th victory. Instead, we have a match ending with interference from Fale & Togo, and a completely bad finish, which does not honor the entire great career of Hiroshi Tanahashi in this legendary tournament, so disappointed by this ending and this booking..."

[1.0] "Ok man i give up. Njpw is hopeless, they are doing this to themselves. WHY, JUST WHY MAN. This is literally madness, EVIL goes through but not YUYA UEMURA. I'm so pissed right now. It wouldn't even surprise me if they had EVIL win the whole fucking thing and main event the dome and be champion. They're that stupid"

[0.0] "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly and yet expecting different results. So the locker room in New Japan must resemble an asylum by the amount of times we've been treated to the same House of Torture formula again and again and again and again and again. Sure, Evil lasts ten minutes before engaging in the standard House bullshit, but House bullshit still abounds and that look of contrition from Evil fooled absolutely nobody before the blinding spot. It's not as if the match beforehand was good either; it was plodding offense showing Evil to be more washed than Tana, despite the latter having a decade of wear on his knees more to show for it. We knew coming out of Dominion that House dominance was going to be the story going forward, just... we hoped it would be a little better than this, really. Gedo is really the terrible washed-up booker that some parts of the internet think that Tony Khan is, and the House of Torture are his Death Riders. Just... they're even less fun than the Mox ultra-dominance arc was back in January, and given how New Japan seem to have missed the boat on Uemura, I'm less than optimistic that we're gonna have a Hangman-style Ace coming out of it. Terrible match, terrible faction. Unless you're building up Yota to run a Narita/Evil gauntlet to get to his second final in two years, what's the point? What a horrible way to end the Ace's final G1 match."

[3.0] "The final Tanahashi G1 match ended up being the perfect example of everything wrong with New Japan in 2025. Just going through the motions, no feel for any particular moment, seemingly no awareness of any potential significance, and an ice-cold crowd for what in a parallel universe would be a hot one, invested in seeing one of the biggest stars in company history try to turn the clock back one last time. It's absolutely embarrassing that they thought this would be the best way to wrap up Tana's G1 career. There weren't really any botches nor many technical flaws, but the wresting was fairly boring, and the finish absolutely sucked."

[3.0] "The story of this is that EVIL promises a fair fight. Obviously, he cannot be trusted so you're just waiting for the interference. It takes about ten minutes, but it obviously does come. Before that, it's just a bad, slow match. EVIL has never been someone who has great matches straight-up, and Tanahashi might have been able to carry him in the past, but not these days. Pretty bad."

[0.0] "Oh my god. What was that? Absolutely bull**** match. They built this on knee injury. Tanahashi barely did a few move. And this "thing" from House of Torture. Every fng time EVIL is "evil". I'm sick of this. Why they did this to Hiroshi... Not recommended, don't watch this. 0/10"

[3.0] "I was very intrigued to see how far the legit wrestling EVIL would go without cheating, he and Tanahashi actually have quite fun chemistry without all the interference and HoT bullshit. Of course it did not last long, Dick Togo and Fale came out and assaulted Tanahashi and EVIL won shortly after with an Everything Is Evil. This was fine, not a bad match but not particularly good and ruined by the finish. Not worth seeking out."