[8.0] "Very good match, not very story-centric as one would expect considering the stipulations and ramifications of this match on the landscape of DDT. DAMNATION disbanding is without doubt a major loss for DDT. The match had loads of action which built up and the temperature kept raising from time to time. The action was well-rounded , very spotty but not too over-booked or indyriffic by any means. The bit of story here was DAMNATION isolating MAO from his unit and tagging in and out making him the central target of their offense. MAO was able to overcome this mugging by the opponents despite being beat up real bad. MAO is able tp provide good openings. Some of my favorite interactions throughout the match included Hino/Takeshita exchanges, Ueno/Sasaki with Ueno looking to exact revenge for Peter Pan a month ago and Endo's stuff was great. The synchrony and organic flow of the match helped launch it to higher levels indeed. The cohesion, chemistry , innovative offense and collective coordination between team members. The home-run sequence was fairly an enjoyable one from many angles, you had Endo diving out , Takeshita too and then Sasaki and Ueno determining the fates of their factions with Ueno having the upper-hand after connecting with a beautiful W3. ****1/4"
[7.0] "Really solid match here, even though I knew the result going in they still surprised me with Hirata being the guy who got the win. Such a huge win for one of DDT's biggest underdogs. Sets up a great main event for later. 3.75 stars"
[9.0] "My favourite match on the show. And how great Hirata and his teammates' story is. Before this match even Mr. Nice Man Harashima didn't believe in him and wasn't going to give him a tag. Disaster Box were extremely motivated, and they were the first condenders to be defeated in the tournament and disbanded. They knew that they had a weak link, and it was Kazuki, so they did everything to be Dramatic Survivors, and attacked DAMNATION instantly. Everyone worked greatly in this match, and Disaster Box showed their tag team power and ability to work together as a well-oiled machine, but the best part was showed by Hirata with his underdog hero perfomance. He was always afraid of Hino, but this time he courageously rushed into battle, and the way he fought this monster was amazing. I always liked how Kazuki works with Takao, making him interesting, and this match wasn't an exception. Their final part was really cool, and Hirata not only saved his stable and proved that he's also an important player, but also took revenge on Soma for Wakate Tsushin. Truly great and emotional match with wonderful underdog story."
[6.0] "Nice match with unexpected winners imo. Hino was certainly the best performer in my eyes, he had strong offense, his sequences with Yoshimura were good, especially their chop exchanges. Also, Hino's lariat against Hirata was so brutal, literally turned the guy inside out. The ending stretch was nice too, but it was too short so it can't influence my rating in a postive way."
[7.0] "This was a good match, although I was expecting more intensity given the stakes. Hino was the star of the match for me. Shocked to see DAMNATION lose but it was a pretty good match with good stable work"
[7.0] "To me, this was the best match of the first round of the tournament. Yuji Hino and Naomi Yoshimura had a great exchange of Chops here, this was very impactful, and I also liked when Hirata went into the ring against Hino just after Yoshimura. Some good moments between Hirata and Takao during this match, and Endo did a good work. I was very surprised by the result. ***1/2"
[8.0] "A cool match where everyone wanted to win and everyone wanted to benefit. Disaster Box were excellent underdogs who know their opponents and anticipate their actions, which is especially memorable for Yoshimura. Hirata was very expressive and this is probably his best performance in the last couple of months. The final stretch between Takao and Hirata was amazing (****)."
0x
2x
3x
3x
3x
0x
0x
0x
0x
0x
0x