David Finlay vs. Tama Tonga

[6.0] "One of those matches I pretty much hated but objectively it was fine. These two just don't have what it takes to go 25 odd mins, especially Finlay. They tried to put on an epic style match but it ended up just being pretty boring and heatless. The BC war stuff is just tedious at this point. I can't bring myself to rate lower as that would suggest it was bad which I didn't think it was, just very meh. ***"

[8.0] "This match really established the new David Finlay character. Decisive victory and I liked the way he kept doing more damage when it was clear he had the victory. It really felt like a heated rivalry and was very physical and intense. Surprised by the low ratings, which are probably more reflective of a Western audience who don't accept Finlay as BC leader. I think the Wrestling Observer rating is more accurate."

[7.0] "Not a typical NJPW style match that you expect from a 25 minute match. The two of them both have a good presence that they can use to elevate the match above their very average in-ring ability. There was a ton of focus on Finlay's viciousness as a singles wrestler here, but I didn't resonate with me. I don't mind the length of the match because it was an opportunity to give both men a big match to establish their current characters going into the summer"

[6.0] "This match dragged big time and made Tama Tonga look very weak in defeat. The brawling early on was very heated and all the moves were impactful and well executed. Unfoutnalty, it just went on and on with no end in sight."

[4.0] "Far too long, but a few parts were pretty good. I particularly liked the spot when Tonga threw Finlay into the guard rail multiple times in a row. Overall though, these two don't have the ability to make a match this long interesting."

[0.0] "one of the worst fights I've ever seen in wrestling. There was literally nothing here. Finlay went from cool person in the ring to shit"

[8.0] "I genuinely enjoyed this match and Im surprised it has such a low rating. Thought it did a solid job of establishing the direction of Finlay. Hes improved a ton and Ive enjoyed both matches between Finlay and Tama this year."

[6.0] "Idea was great, execution could have been better. Finlay came out of this looking like the real deal, but it took too long from bell to bell. Action was decent at least with Finlay's offense looking vicious."

[4.0] "A dull, tedious match. Neither man did anything interesting here and then yet another Tama Tonga title match drags on way too long."

[5.0] "This match was way too long, what should have been ~13 minutes at the absolute most went 25. It dragged and these men couldn't handle this match length, unfortunate because I love Finley as BC leader."

[8.0] "[Taken on its own merits, this was a great match. I highly recommend it. The storytelling was well structured and executed, the brutality shines through, I respect the violence! Tama did a tremendous job of selling Finlay's cold savagery. Finlay's job was to go out there and get heat, he damn well did that. And he's going to use it to get ELP all the way over bc that's what heels do. Addressing some criticisms- Finlay's character work is a little cringe, sure. That's well in keeping with the last couple BC leaders. Did Tama just get buried? Sure did, he can take it, the domestic crowd loves him to death. Is Bullet Club irrelevant? Yes, it's been a joke for years now. We're moving on. Look, Pro Wrestling is pretty great. Do yourself a favor and enjoy it instead of second guessing long term booking strategies, company directions, or doing whatever it is some of these other reviewers are doing ..."

[8.0] "A wonderfully brutal match. Loved the heel work from David Finlay, doing a couple of fake out pins on Tonga was hilariously dickish."

[8.0] "I say this over and over but I will say it once again, I get why Tama gets the criticism that he gets as he has good execution but a flat moveset which even I agree with to a certain extent but even with that, it isn't enough to completely discredit his matches. In this match, I don't know why but I really liked the slow paced and grueling action which is not very often but something about Finlay making a complete mess of Tama for long stretches of the bout might've been the thing I needed to buy into him being the new leader of the Bullet Club. No matter who it would've been, in any universe it would've been difficult to be the successor of Jay White, the person who probably embodied BC the most out of anyone in the entire history of the faction but I think Finlay finally solidified himself. (for the most part, just let Gedo do all the talking and it would be great)"

[9.0] "I really liked that. I don't think It was too long, the only problem is the final part. Watching Finlay smashing Tonga was enjoyable (I am not a fan of Guerrillas of Destiny) but It was too much. In the final minutes we should had to see Tonga Finding his fighting Spirit and try desperatly to get the win. Anyway I'm according with the winner and this match overcome my axpectatives. ****1/2"

[7.0] "I thought this was pretty good as a match but they were going for things other than a classic wrestling encounter. Finlay is having to find a way to step out of Jay's shadow and I think the violent approach was a good way to go about it. Tama has more to fire up against in the future now and Finlay gained credibility as a dangerous heel. I know this new Finaly role is not something everyone is on board with, and he has big shoes to fill, but I thought this was a pretty effective piece of pro wrestling."

[9.0] "I thought Finlay's moves were very attractive and correct for a villainous wrestler. Tama also gave a great performance that complemented Finley's villainy. The flow leading to the appearance of ELP is also wonderful"

[8.0] "25 minutes flew by with this match, much to my shock. I was actually entertained by this match, again, much to my shock. David Finlay is the 2023 Most Improved Wrestler in my eyes."

[8.0] "Star and match ratings are an enormously subjective thing. Here, the work was fine but not always super hot and the match was definitely a few minutes too long. However, the visceral nature of the whole contest, and the effectiveness of the rub they gave David Finlay, stuck with me and popped me in a big way. ****"

[8.0] "This match was way too long but the action was good and the storyline at the end was good. I'm glad I watched this as I was nearly put off by the rating here."

[2.0] "I fell asleep 5 minutes in, what a waste of time. I honestly didn't care about this match and I was right. Completly skippable match for whoever watch the show with a delay. I hope Finlay's reign end quick."

[8.0] "This match did a very good job 'going off of the beaten path' and told a story that a lot of pro-wrestling matches tell in a fresh way that succeeded at making Finlay a bigger deal. Personally, I appreciate wrestlers re-thinking ways of doing 'classic' pro-wrestling stories that lead to matches that feel fresh, instead of doing matches that everyone has seen for long enough. In the context of this match, Finlay talked the talk and walked the walk by winning the title in a decisive fashion - looked strong when it was his time to destroy Tonga, and made Phantasmo look strong post-match. ***1/2"

[5.0] "Tama has really found his calling as a gutsy babyface. Finlay isn't there as a heel yet, but they're really trying to give him a dominant performance here. It felt...okay. There was some good hate-filled brawling on the outside, but 80% of this match was Finlay offence and he's not quite brutal enough for it to be entertaining. Also too long."

[6.0] "This went way too long and was structured kind of weirdly. I'm fine with the idea of building Finlay as a killer, especially on the 10 year BC anniversary, but this match was built as an even fight for the first 75% and then suddenly turned into a squash in the last 25. If they shaved off maybe 10 minutes or so, it would've been a lot better. Still wasn't a bad match though. Tama's aggression towards Finlay was well done and they had some good back and forth. It was just weird that it all got brought to a standstill with Finlay slowly killing Tama for 5 minutes.**3/4"

[7.0] "I enjoyed this match but would have enjoyed it more with 5-7 minutes chopped off, didn't need the spot early going into the stands though it played into Finlay using the 20 count to his advantage throughout. I love Finlays continued use of environmental offense in his matches, really using what he can find from a barricade, to seats, to the ring post to his advantage. I'm a fan of how they've been building Finlay up as an aggressive and angry killer and enjoyed the last 5 minutes or so a lot."

[5.0] "This would have been a pretty solid match if it would have lasted 10 minutes and not 173. In all seriousness, this new attitude is a big step down from the underdog David Finlay that gave such great matches against Will Ospreay just last year. Honestly, I don't care much about what happens with Finlay, Tama or Bullet Club, but I do hope this is the chance for ELP to enter the big leagues."

[4.0] "Incredibly boring and uneventful match. David Finlay might have the most "I'm not him" energy I've ever seen in a wrestler, no matter how much New Japan tries to repackage him. 2.25*"

[6.0] "With some minutes less it would have been full satisfactory. Now it's a 5.5. Disconnected spots, too slow."

[4.0] "This was not good, the ending dragged on for far too long, David Finlays character work was cringe, and it did not make Tama look good AT ALL."

[6.0] "I understand what they were going for. Have the new BC leader absolutely dominate a babyface and pretty much humiliate him. However, this was overly long and needed a stronger babyface than Tama (sorry Tama). Finlay not resorting to the recent trend of "Bullet Club uses endless interference regardless of the match taking place" is a very welcome change, however his style here was a little slow for my liking. The sweet spot is still his match with Ishii in the NJ Cup. The match is, essentially, decent but needlessly drawn out."

"This does definitely feel like Bullet Club is at its lowest point possibly ever. Like we've gone from this wrestling phenomenon with members like AJ Styles, The Young Bucks, and Kenny Omega, to a fractured bunch of nobodies who aren't even the third most popular group in New Japan anymore. I like David Finley, I do, but this definitely feels like a major step down from the leaders who came before him. Remember, when Jay White became leader, within two months he'd won the IWGP title. And what has David done in that same time frame? Won a midcard title that no one's cared about in years, failed to win the New Japan Cup, kicked out one of their only members that audiences still care about, had mediocre matches like this, and generally feel like an afterthought when this should be his coming out party. I don't know, maybe he'll have a better showing come the G1? This has just been a disappointing first few months as leader."

[8.0] "thought this was a great brawl that really set the tone for big Finlay matches. Made him look like a monster while still making Tama look decent."

[6.0] "I didnt think this was terrible, but i was wanting more from finlay. I know this was basically a squash match for the last 10 mins, but this match showed how far bullet club has fallen, when the new leader is challenging for the midcard title rather than the world title."

[4.0] "I didn't expect this to pay off, and I was sadly correct. The heat was off, most likely because Bullet Club is such a dead space to fight over. ELP's reintroduction was a pleasant surprise."

[2.0] "No. Fuck off. We're not giving David Finlay his flowers. I don't think people understand why reversals are cool. You can't just do constant reversals for no reason and have it be good. This match was twenty five minutes long and I thought about ending my life a couple of times."

[3.0] "I heard some time ago that Tama improved a lot after quiting BC. Didn't saw that this match. It just should be 12mns instead of 25. Didn't felt chemistry between those 2. Lasted to long many restholds, like 4 times they where resting with countout motive. There where like one cool sequence of moves in 25 mins. And ending was stupid, it lasted like 6 mins of Finlay powerbombing Tama."

[8.0] "David Finlay did exactly as he promised, Tama didnt leave this one on his own two feet. I really enjoyed this match and the final 5-6 minutes with David squashing Tama was unexpected and had me on the edge of my seat. This is how you effectively get over the new David Finlay character."

[9.0] "Maybe a little too long but I thought they told a good story, playing on the more savage/brutal side of both guys. Finlay showed he is still more sadistic and savage than Tama Tonga. The first part of the match was more competitive but then it became a squash, and I liked that. It makes the structure of the match standout from the usual competitive match from start to finish. It makes Finlay look good and it's a great way of showing the direction he wants to take as the leader of Bullet Club."

[6.0] "I felt like I was watching 25 minutes of squash, even though it allowed Finlay to come out strong. Wait and see with ELP"

[6.0] "I'm sorry but I don't want a 25 minute match between two of the most boring guys on the roster. The start was fastpaced with them brawling in the crowd, the final 5 minutes were great, but the middle was bloated. This match really would have benefit from being 8 minutes shorter."