[4.0] "Their other Tokyo Dome match before this was weak but I might like this one even less. The improvements in their matches between this are forgone for a 20+ minute style of match that's designed to get Nakamura over but he's such an unfinished, unlikable and unremarkable product at this point. Tana starts leg work that goes nowhere and Nakamura aggravates his taped up arm that leads into Tanahashi unashamedly targeting it, a nice idea in principal of the leg not working out and the arm opening itself up but Nakamura just cannot sell it in a convincing way. It leads to a doctor check spot of all things and it just goes absolutely nowhere. He wins with an avalanche Landslide right into another one of all things! Not offensively bad but still."
[8.0] "Good match where tanahashi as the champion and imposing figure takes control of most of the match targeting the left knee and then the taped up left shoulder of nakamura using heel antics. Nakamura played his part in showing the instant effects of the damage as soon as he got on the offence. As tanahashi was in control for most of the match, Nakamura was working off of counters to get an upperhand in this match and it finally paid of in the end getting an underdog victory."
"7.5: Going through an Old NJPW binge. This was great fun, the suplex battle was really cool as was the arm work with the dragon screw. Great bomb from the corner."
[7.0] "A huge improvement from the main event of Wrestle Kingdom 1. A young Nakamura gets his big win in a good match against Tanahashi. This match kind of sets the tone for future Tokyo Dome main events."
[7.0] "Very solid Tokyo Dome main event... Tanahashi and Nakamura aren't quite there yet in terms of the sensational main events NJPW from 2012 onwards, but we could definitely see some glimpses here of the majestic formula that would conquer the world for a period of time. The match has a slow build, with both of them calculating their steps, and in the middle of the match things escalated after a suplex battle. Nakamura had a protection on his left shoulder, which was worked by Tanahashi and during that moment he completely dominated the contest. The ending stretch was good, it was unpredictable and Nakamura won after an excellent bomb in the corner. The finish was quite 'easy', but the fact it came after the biggest move of the match is cool, made the move look impactful. An improvement from their last Jan. 4th main event, and the second IWGP Heavyweight title win for Shinsuke - {***1/2}"
[5.0] "Okay that was fine at it best, but these two just truly not mature enough for this, they both did fine but I wanted more from this even the ending felt weird I was confused a little bit, i just don't think this is as good as the rating tell u, it's just okay."
[8.0] "this match is the first truly good match from these 2 men who would go on to become forever rivals, and you can already see the amazing chemistry thst the two men share inside of that eing and it keeps you excited knowing that even better id coming between them"
[7.0] "Enjoyable match which built the pace well. Tanahashi targted the arm and leg of Nakamura which Nakamura sold pretty well. I liked whatever that finisher was from Nakamura off the top rope, good finish to the match."
[7.0] "Fantastic match to cap off a mostly forgettable show otherwise outside of Nagata VS Angle. Both men are early on in their careers and while Shinsuke clearly hasn't found his signature style yet, Tana is extremely close to hitting his stride. He works heel here and does so wonderfully. He works Shinsuke's arm throughout a large portion of this match, including some awesome Dragon Screws on his shoulder. The finish is fantastic with Nakamura landing two Landslides (the first of which being an Avalanche Landslide.) ****.5"
[8.0] "Great match and a worthy main event. Tanahashi works heel in this, which alone makes it very interesting to watch, leaving Nakamura to play the babyface in peril. It's an interesting dynamic and it makes perfect sense given Nakamura is the one entering this match with an injury. The work is obviously stellar, fast paced and high impact, that goes without saying for these two, but this also has very clear narrative through lines that make it stand out a bit from other, more traditional NJPW main events. There are two extended sequences of Tanahashi working over Nakamura's limbs and the later leads directly into the finishing sequence. The layout is great on paper, with Nakamura overcoming two injured limbs to win the title, but his selling just isn't consistent enough to really get that across. In a match that dedicates so much of its runtime to the working over of limbs, it's a shame that Nakamura just seems to shake off his injuries when it's time to go on offense and into the final stretch. Still, the reinjuring of the shoulder is a great story beat and the little touches like the cornerman and ringside doctor checking on him add a lot to the match. Very good match in terms of in-ring work with a great story on paper that unfortunately gets held back by lack of commitment to the selling"
[7.0] "Its the first match of this pairing that i see and its a perfectly good match, but thats it. Feels like they have a lot more to offer. PD: the selling of the shoulder its fne, but the leg one is pretty deficient."
[8.0] "So here in 2008 Shinsuke Nakamura wasn't his peak form, but he is still very good. This was a good, not great match, but it rightfully main events WK 2. The work on Nakamura's clearly bandaged left shoulder was well done, but the selling could have been better from Nak in this match. ****"
[7.0] "I so badly wanted this match to be great, because I think both guys are great but this just didn't connect with me on that level, and it just never left being good. Tanahashi was very on point with limb targeting as he usually is, and he did a great job at going after Nakamura's arm in this match, although I don't think Nakamura's selling was any good at all. They did some fun stuff towards the end, before Nak eventually won.***1/2"
[9.0] "This is the first time I've ever watched a Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Shinsuke Nakamura match, and it definitely didn't disappoint. It was a little slower than I was expecting, though that personally didn't effect my enjoyment at all. I liked how this one started with both guys feeling each other out and then Tanahashi working over the shoulder and knee of Nakamura. Nakamura fires back every so often but Tanahashi has a lot of the control here. There were some great submissions between the two of them, too. Things really heated up in the end perfectly with both guys hitting their best moves on each other. I really liked Nakamura's Landslide finisher. Fantastic work between both guys and Nakamura's victory definitely felt earned (and I was even rooting for him by the end)."
[9.0] "While this wouldn't be the last match between Nakamura and Tanahashi, it's definitely great throughout. It was actually very close to hitting that 5 star rating but wouldn't. It's still an excellent match however. (****3/4)"
[9.0] "Unfortunately I was not able to find the whole Wrestle Kingdom II on NJPW World because some copiright problems with TNA. I am happy to being able to write about this Main Event. Fantastic match, one of the most important main events in WK history when the two cornerstone of NJPW back in the end of 00s square off one against the other. In fact we have Nakamura challanging Tanahashi for the IWGP Championship in a great encounter. Personally I did not knew that much about Nakamura's past in NJPW and rewatching all this past WK is a blessing to understand everything about his style and his attitude in Japan, very different from the one in NXT or SmackDown. About Tanahashi I have seen few wrestlers so complete, like the Ace. His selling was phenomenal, his in ring psicology one of the best I have ever seen and his body and athletic ability keep up with his in ring IQ. The match its all about the in ring psicology with Tanahashi firstly working Nakamura's left leg in a meticolous and beautiful way, starting with a Dragon Screw on the second rope from the outside, and then working for nearly 10 minutes Shinsuke's Leg wonderfully with this one able to sell very well the whole plot. In the second part of the match Tanahashi begins to work Nakamura's already injured arm, in a very creative way, executing a dragon screw on Shinsuke Arm that is genious just thinking about it. In the while we have the two of them exchanging Suplexes one another in epic fashion and in the end Nakamura is first able to kick out from the High Fly Flow, secondly to apply his famous Armbar trasformed into a Triangle Choke. The match ends with Nakamura hitting for the third time Hiroshi with his Samoan Driver: from the first Tana kicked out, the second was executed from the Top Rope and the third is the end of the match with Nakamura defeating Tanahashi and winning the IWGP Championship. After the match we have a word exchange between Nakamura and Angle that on that night defeated Nagata for the IWGP third belt and wanted to challange Nakamura in the future. About the match rating I think this could easly be one of the best Main Events ever made in the Dome and it can easly be a 10/10 but two things hold me back from giving it the maximum grade: Tanahashi worked Nakamura's leg for the great part of this match, but this did not led to anything in term of storytelling. Tana did not try to apply the Texas Cloverleaf to Nakamura and the work was done only to weaken Shinsuke's ability to strike with kicks. The second thing is correlated to the first because Shinsuke's sell on his leg was really great when Tanahashi was hitting the leg itself but then with the evolution of the match, Nakamura barely sold the injury focusing only on selling his left arm that was the new point of attack from The Ace. This two elements apart this is a fantastic match, a must watch for everyone that wants to know more about NJPW and its history in The Dome. Rating: 9+"
[5.0] "This match was fine, but it was far, far from the best match that these two would have. One positive, though, was that Shinsuke was so much more enjoyable to watch in this match than in most of his later, post-character change matches. Shinsuke is so much more fun when he's working rather than performing."
[9.0] "Of the three Tokyo Dome shows these two rivals main evented, this was easily my favorite. Hell I would even go as far as to say this was the best Tokyo Dome main event New Japan had in years. Regarding the match though, this was a total bomb fest with both rivals showing off their amazing chemistry with counter after counter and the drama building. While I don't think they reached the MOTYC levels they were going for, this is still a very important and memorable match in the rivalry between these two, ****1/2."
[7.0] "Look Where We Arrived. 7. 5 Delusional match. I mean, these two, who already proved they can do big matches, put on just a very enjoyable fight in the Main Event of Wrestle Kingdom. Great ending though. Yay."
[9.0] "Interessant Hiroshi als Heel zu sehen. Den Ref hat er weggeschubst, immer wieder die Schulter von Shinsuke bearbeitet auch das Bein. Shinsuke hatte große Schmerzen kam dann doch zurück. Wieder ein großartiges Title Match zwischen den beiden (****1/2)."
[8.0] "Mir hat gefallen wie Tanahashi zu erst seine normale Beinbearbeitung zeigt, bis er merkt das Nakamura sich im Match am Ellenbogen verletzt hat und dann auf Armbearbeitung umzuschwenken. Tanahashi workt das Match auch als Heel was immer interessant ist. ****"
[4.0] "Tanahashi worked over Nakamura's leg, and also did some work on Nakamura's injured shoulder, which was awesome. Nakamura's selling was quite spotty, and while Tanahashi's work was fine & awesome, it wasn't very dramatic. The match also had a very anti-climatic ending, just ending out of nowhere. **"
[7.0] "The match didn't feel like it was built up properly. There wasn't much tension in the wrestlers' play and the crowd didn't seem fully into the match either until maybe the very last sequence. Although I knew I was witnessing some impressive wrestling sequences and moves, I just couldn't get into the match's hype. I didn't even know the result beforehand either, so that wasn't the reason. In fact the result surprised me. The match was also undercut by an improper concluding celebration. Please never do that again after the main event with your promotion's leading title. Overall a fun match, but didn't meet the emotional payoff I had desired. ***3/4"
[8.0] "Das Match beginnt als sehr glaubwürdiger Wettstreit der Beiden und entwickelt sich zu einer intensiven Schlacht. Tanahashi lässt herrlich den arroganten Sack raushängen und dominiert Nakamura über weite Strecken, bis der sich zurückkämpft. Im Mittelteil hat das Match einige kleinere Längen, dafür entschädigt, die starke Schlussphase aber."
[10.0] "Das war wirklich ein absolut geiles Match. Schnelle Konter zu Beginn, Submissions in der Mitte und am Ende richtig brutal mit vielen High Impact Moves um den Gegner zu killen. Der Landslide vom Top Rope geht ja wirklich total ab. Genau wie die ganzen letzen 5-10 Minuten. Mir bleibt nichts anderes übrig außer die volle Punktzahl zu vergeben, es gibt nichts, was noch fehlt."
[9.0] "Das war ganz großer Sport! Ich unterstreiche "Sport"! Das ganze Match, vom Einzug bis zum Finish, war umgeben von knisternder Spannung und großer Intensität. Ein würdiger Main Event für solch eine groß angelegte Show!"
[8.0] "Bis zu diesem Zeitpunkt haben es die beiden geschafft, in jedem Match gegeneinander innovativ zu sein. Das Resultat ist ein cleveres Match, das jedoch von einem heißen Sumo Hall Publikum deutlich besser gewirkt hätte."
[10.0] "Das ist einfach nur grandioser Sport! Bis dato das Puromatch of the Year! Die beiden haben eine sehr gute Ringchemie. Würde mit **** auch mitgehen."
