[4.0] "These two do not mesh well as singles opponents, Shingo has thrown bangers on with much better talent tbh, at least the last minute or two building to the finish was good."
[7.0] "A really smart match with Jake provoking Shingo to lose his coordination by doing silly antiques. Eventually, Shingo turns his back while in the corner and immediately gets hit with FBS to lose the match."
[4.0] "I just couldn't get into this one, Shingo Takagi did his best with this but unfortunately Jake Lee just can't be carried... At least not yet, I'm sure with the right dance partner Jake Lee can put on a decent/good performance but Shingo is not the right opponent. **"
[4.0] "**3/4 decent match, quite decent for Jake Lee's average level (thanks to Shingo), the match is somewhat intense and manages to be entertaining at times despite how slow everything is, the ending is meh, very contrived and they practically make fun of Takagi with that ending and Lee's handling of the match"
[7.0] "I really don't get the Jake Lee hate. I personally enjoy the character work, and I don't think the match quality suffered as a result. While Shingo is one of my favorites, I think the Jake Lee being insane character is a fantastic gimmick in a place where gimmicks normally aren't as well defined, and I think with a good opponent like Shingo, Lee's work was elevated as a result. The final FBS was a bit underwhelming, but I thought there were good moves throughout. I quite enjoyed it"
[5.0] "A bit better than the previous match but the match got worse while the time was passing. Jake Lee slow style really did not fit with the explosive aspect Shingo carry on his matches. Eh, whatever."
"Jake Lee continues with his goofy/crazy character work which is a good try. However, wrestling-wise it limits him to being slow and sometimes sloppy especially on the selling aspect. That match was really boring. Shingo didn't put that much effort to it. I hope Jake Lee will be able to keep developing his character as well as his style and not adopt that lazy standard heel japanese work you can see everywhere. He can be way more creative than that. *"
[5.0] "La première partie du combat ou jake lee fait le clown est vraiment trop chiante mais des qu'il s'arrête de le faire dans la deuxième partie du combat une fois qu'il son revenue de l'exterieur le mec sa se voit qu'il a un talent immense."
"First time seeing whatever this Jake Lee thing is. It is alright. The face paint is the best part. I know he is doing this for the quiet Japanese atmosphere, but he could use a little more of the dancing around and mugging for people while Shingo is selling. I would prefer Shingo do matches like this for a while, but I'm probably in the minority there."
[3.0] "Good lord Shingo tried his hardest to save this one, really tried and actually got the crowd on his side, but Jake Lee is 85% dead now and can't even be carried to decency anymore."
[5.0] "Started off as a pretty slow paced a tepid affair, some crowd work attempted in the match but didn't really land. Picked up quite a bit toward the end as Jake employs some heelish tactics to secure himself the win. Decent match but took too long to pick up."
[4.0] "Jake Lee sucks so it's no surprise that this wasnt very good. This whole Joker character he has going on is so terrible and he had absolutely no right beating Shingo here. The match itself was pretty lifeless with not much going on and a dead crowd too. **"
[8.0] "I get that Jake Lee's half-mime, half-jester act is annoying and has go-away heat with a lot of people, but it does not bother me that much as long as he gets smashed in the face. Sure, the match would have been more satisfying if he got his comeuppance by losing to Shingo, but I thought the two of them put on a strong bell-to-bell match. *** 3/4 for me."
[7.0] "Ironically my rating was too low for the opening match for me to be able not leave a comment and now I'm too high to not leave a comment on the second. Was this tithe craziest match for either of these wrestlers? Absolutely not. However I think Takagi was a perfect straight man for Jake Lee's type of humor. I actually do think he's doing a better job at delivering good wrestling and comedy than he was when he first returned. I think the good, but not great wrestling in combination with the comedy and character devotion made this a great watch for me."
[0.0] "[0.25 Stars] Honestly, Jake Lee is up there with my least favourite wrestlers going at the minute and I just find his matches - in spite of his ridiculous gimmick - to be so incresdibly boring. What makes a match like this even worse is when you have one of Japan's best wrestlers barely putting in a shift because even they are done with this shit. Just an awful match all round."
[4.0] "Although I've quite enjoyed Jake Lee since his return, this match was really too lacking in actual wrestling to satisfy me. In-ring quality: 0.75/5. Stakes: 0.75/2. Justification: 1/1. Placement on the card: 1/1. Suspense: 1/1. Bonus/penalty: none. Total: 4.5/10. Match watched on NJPW World."
[7.0] "Not sure what everyone else was watching because once the first two minutes of Lee's clown routine were over this was a good, hard hitting match. Lee gave more here than he did in his title match earlier in the year."
[5.0] "Jake Lee is a man of bits in his current era, but he actually did a little bit more wrestling in this one. Fairly average but I don't have much issue with this match other than an odd looking spot or two. Hope Jake locks in a bit in the G1 but I do enjoy his jester shenanigans"
[7.0] "This was very good, which comes as a bit of a surprise. Jake Lee had taken a totally new approach in the ring for this match, seeing him wrestle at a great level against the Dragon. Lee picks up the win against Shingo in a good match. Lee gouges at the eyes and hits the Facebreak Shot to get his two points. Rating: ***3/4"
[5.0] "Not the worst Jake Lee match at all, but that's in large part to Shingo who actually took it to Lee a bit and drew out some actual offence rather than complete nonsense. Still not good, but not awful. **3/4"
[6.0] "This was my first time really seeing jake lee doing his gimmick, and he played it up very well. This was a fine match, ill always be into shingo"
[4.0] "Initially i'm a big fan of Jake Lee, I loved his run in All Japan and then in Pro Wrestling NOAH, but since his joining in New Japan Pro Wrestling, his booking has been so weird, and his "Joker" gimmick is just terrible, yes he doesn't have the wresling style of New Japan, he's more like an old school wrestler, but that booking is not helping him at all. I fear that all of his Tournament like be like that. It wasn't really good, not mediocre but disapointing for sure."
[6.0] "this match was far too short to be anything terrible. Jake lee has a truly ridiculous and silly gimmick, but it didnt get too much in the way of a well structured match. Shingo and him had a good little sequence at the end, ending in a nice sudden victory for jake lee."
[6.0] "Huge carry job here from Shingo. Jake Lee was also somewhat over which actually made all his shenanigans far more enjoyable as there was some form of reaction. Shingo controls the majority of the action which keep the quality consistent. Jake serves to just cut off Shingo throughout and serves that purpose well. For a Jake Lee Match, this was surprisingly enjoyable. Shocked Lee went over though. (***)."
[4.0] "(Grade:D/**) Takagi really knows how to get the American's crowd amped up for a match yet in terms of match-quality this one was lackluster. I've heard amazing things regarding Jake Lee during his tenure in AJPW. However, He hasn't had a noticeable moment in his NJPW Career so far since arriving in 2024 though this new gimmick he conjure up is intriguing to say the least though I'm hoping there's a match involving him that makes me second guess him in a positive yet so gonna have to wait and see on that."
[5.0] "Since Shingo Takagi is a New Japan Pro-Wrestling wrestler who enjoys overwhelming popularity and acclaim overseas, many people may have felt that this match fell short of expectations. Since Jake Lee has an overwhelmingly tall stature and physique compared to other Japanese wrestlers, it makes sense that the match unfolded with him enduring a barrage of attacks before staging a comeback victory with a single FBS (Facebreak Shot). However, since there are many wrestlers around the world who are even taller and more physically imposing than him, the lackluster audience reaction is understandable. Please just accept that this was, after all, a match tailored for a Japanese audience."
[5.0] "This wasn't horribly bad, but it wasn't good either. The intensity of the match wasn't there, the match felt off slightly, and it just got boring at parts (at fault of Lee). Shingo was fine here, he always looks good, but this match is going to be one of the weaker one's once the tournament is all said and done."
[5.0] "[2.25*] Didn't think this was bad at all. Lee's Pennywise thing was actually... over? And the dynamic worked pretty well. Super basic yes but I didn't have a bad time at all."
[5.0] "Jake Lee wearing a skirt and a clown mask gets a pop from Illinois. Unsurprising. Jake Lee's antics in general were fairly over. He might be the only guy on the NJPW roster whose schtick works better in front of an American audience. Short, industry standard match. Lee didn't stink up the joint and the camera direction was notably better than the opener."
[4.0] "Well this was pretty crap and i was not surprised. Gedo's obsession with Jake Lee is lost on me if i am honest. His character work is bloody awful and his in ring work is just so bang average. His control segments are fucking crap as he fills it with his terrible character work to cover up how limited he is in the ring. His selling like a mime is also fucking shockingly bad. Shingo tried his hardest to make this a somewhat decent match but he was up against it as he had to spend most of the match on the end of Lee's rubbish offence. The little stretch at the end was okay but then Lee's finisher was so bloody weak and just summed it up to be honest. (**)"
[3.0] "So, I didn't like this at all. The chemistry was there at times and the maneuvers were good, but half of the time they just didn't click with one another. Shingo was fine here, but Jake Lee? Oh my god, Jake Lee annoyed the hell outta me in this match, while Takagi wanted to have a passable match, he was at times more invested with being goofy and dancing. Sure, he did some good stuff, but half of the time it wasn't good. To make things worse, Takagi lost."
[3.0] "A bit of a mess as you might expect, Jake Lee shows off some really weak character work and Shingo Takagi cannot really overcome the lame schtick to make this work. Jake Lee gets the win with the FBS in something of an upset, not a terrible match but not a particularly enjoyable one."
[5.0] "The inexplicable Jake Lee push continues. A bit of this played out outside the ring. There was a lot of gesturing early on and time wasted between moves, all to cover for Lee's limitations in-ring. Shingo nearly carried this to a 2.75, but the finish and result brings it down to a 2.25* for me."
[6.0] "This was okay, a better Jake Lee than we have seen recently felt like he tried to wrestle a bit with his opponent instead of hamfist his clown stuff in, Takagri carried this and did a good job getting the crowd into it"
[4.0] "I mean, yeah. This is something that happened. These two have been working together for quite a few months now and I'm still yet to be moved by anything. They just went through the paces, no-sell off the German for Lee and right into the finish. Not much tension, this was just there. Eh. **1/4."
[2.0] "An awkward bout. Jake Lee just kinda beats up Shingo in the least interesting way possible. Shingo does have offense of course, but Jake Lee doesn't get affected by it much. Makes Shingo look bad. Didn't enjoy this at all really."
[6.0] "it was a pretty decent match, not an amazing one, but the block A needed a heel with heat and a win against Shingo seems logical at this view, and Jake Lee did nice in this match"
[4.0] "It sucks that Shingo got paired with one of the least popular members on the roster for this show, but he hasn't been pushed in years now. Jake Lee is never going to connect with me enough to be excited for and I don't think he could be much better if he tried. His mime faces while selling takes away from all the Shingo offense throughout and he is one of the worst offenders of staring at the ref while waiting to kick out. This match was flat throughout as they worked a basic back and forth that focused on Shingo selling the midsection before getting caught with a sudden FBS finish. Even though I don't love his work I'm interested to see how hard they push to establish Lee as a threat in the tournament. **1/4"
[5.0] "Let's be honest there was never much chance of this being the match of the night, especially with Jake Lee's current clown-esque gimmick, which just doesn't work for me at all. That said, the match isn't a complete write-off. There are a few genuinely enjoyable moments scattered throughout, and while they don't make up for the overall shortcomings, they do keep the match from being a total disappointment. It's far from a standout performance, but there's just enough good in here to make it passable. Not a great match by any means, but not the disaster I was expecting either."
[4.0] "This felt very basic. Nothing really to write home about, Shingo strikes didn't feel like the proverbial house on fire, and instead.. a toy car.. or a mouse I don't know, He didn't hit hard at all is the point I'm making. Jake Lee's joker gimmick stinks, He can be a good wrestler but he ain't shown that in New Japan, and this Joaquin Phoenix Joker stuff is just so lame. Two Stars out of Five."
[5.0] "Takagi carry job really. Jake Lee didn't do a good job as that previous sentences implies but he wasn't god awful. Lee got a couple pretty good strikes in which is impressive for how bad he is to watch nowadays. I don't love the Jake Lee win due to the fact that he's the worst wrestler in the tournament but I guess he has to have at least a win."
[5.0] "Considering how awful Jake Lee is this is actually a solid match. Shingo got a good match out of Jake Lee. Got to hit all of his classics I just think the finish was a little flat. Considering the last match I seen from Lee was that shitter with ELP this was solid. (***)"
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