August 22, 2012 – Tokyo, Japan
Open the Dream Gate Champion: CIMA
Open the Triangle Gate Champions: Akira Tozawa, BxB Hulk & “Naoki Tanisakiâ€
Open the Brave Gate Champion: Dragon Kid
Open the Twin Gate Champions: Shingo Takagi & YAMATO
Open the Freedom Gate Champion: Johnny Gargano
Open the United Gate Champions: CIMA & AR Fox
Masaaki Mochizuki {Z} & Don Fujii {Z} vs. Shingo Takagi {A} & Super Shenlong {A}
Shenlong insists that he wrestle first, and though Takagi is reluctant he eventually lets him start against Fujii. This kid is going to die. Fujii smacks him. He absorbs his dropkicks and hits a shoulder tackle. He hits a chop but Shenlong kips up all fancy. Fujii responds with a lariat. Takagi trades chops for Mochizuki’s kicks. Takagi hits a shoulder tackle. Mochizuki hits the apron kick. Takagi pops up and goes for the apron DVD. Mochizuki blocks it and hits an armbreaker on the apron. He hits Shenlong with a back kick. He shoves Shenlong into the guardrail. Fujii headbutts Takagi. He chops Takagi and Mochizuki kicks him. Takagi comes back with a double suplex. Mochizuki shrugs off Shenlong’s leg lariat but gets caught with the reverse Rocker Dropper. Takagi and Fujii trade chops. Fujii hits a Rocker Dropper. Takagi blocks the chokeslam and hits one of his own. Shenlong misses a moonsault and eats Mochizuki’s missile dropkick. Fujii hits a bulldog. Mochizuki hits the chest kick for 2. Takagi hits a back suplex. He throws Shenlong into a dropkick. He hits the Pumping Bomber for 2. Shenlong finally knocks Fujii down with a dropkick of the top. Fujii smacks him but Mochizuki misses the Ikkakugeri. Shenlong smacks Mochizuki, so Mochizuki smacks his face off. Takagi hits the Pumping Bomber for 2 again. He hits the DVD. Shenlong goes for the moonsault but Fujii catches him. Mochizuki hits a NASTY buzzsaw kick and a reverse superplex for the win at 8:42. This was a lot of fun, though Shenlong might have brain damage after this. Takagi got to look strong, except for that second Pumping Bomber failing.
Rating: ***
Gamma {Z} vs. Mondai Ryu {MB} [Lumberjack Strap Match]
This is a strap match in that the lumberjacks have straps, but the participants, strapless, have to touch the turnbuckles to win. If Ryu wins, he gets Gamma’s entrance music. Ryu has a cat o’ nine tails and a mask that shows most of his face. The lumberjacks also have cats. Ryu dumps his to attack Gamma before the bell. Gamma dumps him and the lumberjacks go wild with their whips, Fujii especially. Fujii overzealously whips Kotoka by mistake. Kotoka gets the microphone and says that he liked it and asks Fujii to whip his butt. Things get weird when Fujii obliges. Ryu puts on his real mask. Gamma rips it off, leaving Ryu without a mask at all. Ryu goes to the eyes. He misses a Panic Attack. Gamma dumps him and the lumberjacks go to work. Ryu gets the tiny mask back on and hits a low blow. Gamma hits the superkick. He spits in Ryu’s face. Akira Tozawa trips Gamma and Mad Blankey get a few whips in on him. Ryu wastes everyone’s time on the microphone. Gamma emerges from under the ring wearing a full-body fishnet over purple panties and a butterfly mask. He whips Ryu in the face, hits the Gamma Special and squats on Ryu’s face for the win at 6:02. This was pretty damn boring, as the set up for all the homoerotic stuff took forever and the action in the ring lasted all of thirty seconds, total.
Rating: DUD
After the match Gamma presents Ryu with new entrance music, the sounds of the Veteran Army booing.
Naruki Doi {W1} & Masato Yoshino {W1} vs. Jimmy Susumu {J} & Kenichiro Arai {MG}
Not sure why Susumu and Arai are teaming here. Arai and Doi start. They trade shoulder tackles. Yoshino hits Susumu with a couple of armdrags. He puts on the Coumori and Doi hits a dropkick. SPEED! MUSCLE! Susumu hits a knee to Yoshino’s gut. Arai hits a bodyslam for 2. He hits a giant swing. Susumu hits a backbreaker for 2. Yoshino chops Arai to the mat. Doi hits a dropkick on Susumu. He hits a neckbreaker but misses a senton. He hits the senton on his second try. Arai hits Yoshino with a DDT for 2. He hits a headbutt. Yoshino hits the Sling Blade. He hits the elevated facebuster for 2. Arai hits the Alabamaslam on Doi. Susumu hits the Jumbo no Kachi for 2. Arai hits the Skyscraper Double Stomp and a diving headbutt for 2. Yoshino hits a swinging DDT on Susumu. Doi hits the hanging senton for 2. Arai hits Yoshino with a Tombstone Piledriver. He misses a charge and hits the post. Susumu hits exploders on both opponents. He hits a lariat. Doi lifts Susumu and Yoshino hits the shotgun dropkick to the face. Doi uses the momentum to hit the Doi 555, Yoshino hits the Torbellino and Doi hits the Bakatare Sliding Kick for the win at 13:44. The finishing sequence was awesome, but the rest of the match was about twice as long as it needed to be given the action we got.
Rating: **½
After the match Yoshino brings out Daichi Hashimoto, Shinya Hashimoto’s son, and introduces him as a World-1 ally. They will tag together at the Dangerous Gate PPV. Doi says he’s not going to join them because he wants to face the winner of tonight’s Dream Gate title match.
Dragon Kid {Z} vs. Kzy {MB} vs. Jimmy Kagetora {J} vs. Masamune {OP} [Number One Contender Match]
Presumably, if Kid wins nobody challenges him for his belt at the PPV. Kid dumps Masamune and Kzy dumps Kid. Kagetora hits Kzy with a dropkick. Masamune does the same to Kagetora. He hits Kzy with the 619. Kid misses a dropkick but Kagetora hits one. Masamune hits Kagetora and Kzy with neckbreakers. He hits a chinbreaker on Kid. He hits a leaping forearm. Kagetora hits a dropkick. He hits one on Kid for 2. He hits another in the ropes. Kzy trips him, but then eats a kick from Kid. Kid hits a head scissor takedown and the 619 on Masamune. He hits the Bermuda Triangle. Kagetora hits a leg lariat. He hits an enziguiri for 2. Kzy confounds him and hits the B-Boy for 2. He hits Kid with the Beat Bomb for 2. Masamune dumps him but falls victim to the Skyscraper Frankensteiner. Kzy hits a piledriver on Kid for 2. Kagetora hits a missile dropkick on Kzy. He hits Kid with the leaping lariat. He hits Kzy with the Hangetsu. Kid hits Kagetora with the Ultra Hurricanrana for 2 when Masamune breaks it up. Kagetora catches Masamune with the Kagenui for 2. Masamune hits a low blow and the Raikiri for the win at 7:11. There was a decent amount of standing around to figure out what to do next, which killed the match’s flow. From there it never got back on track.
Rating: *¾
Ryo “Jimmy†Saito {J}, Genki Horiguchi H.A.Gee.Mee. {J}, Jimmy Kanda {J} & Naoki Tanizaki {J} vs. Akira Tozawa {MB}, BxB Hulk {MB}, Cyber Kong {MB} & “Naoki Tanisaki†{MB} [2/3 Falls Match]
The Jimmyz attack before the bell. Everyone brawls around the ring. Tanizaki wipes off “Tanisaki’s†tattoo. Kong lays out Horiguchi and Kanda with lariats. The Jimmyz gang up on Tozawa. Tanizaki hits a kneedrop on Tozawa and the DH on “Tanisaki.†He hits the Casanova for 2. Tozawa hits a bicycle kick and Hulk hits a buzzsaw kick. “Tanisaki†hits the Night Ride to win the first fall at 2:11. “Tanisaki†hits the cross-legged suplex. Kong hits a diving elbowdrop for 2. Mad Blankey gangs up on Kanda for 2. Kanda hits Hulk with the Flapjack. Tozawa blocks the Jon Woo but Kanda gets a roll up for 2. He hits a German suplex to win the second fall at 3:38. “Tanisaki†falls victim to MARAHA! ISAPPA! Tanizaki hits a facebuster. He hits it again. He hits a legsweep. He hits the FH. Ryu trips him from the floor. Tozawa hits a chair shot. He and Hulk sandwich Tanizaki with kicks. Kong hits a shoulder tackle. Tozawa hits a senton, and then another with a couple of chairs. Hulk hits a dropkick and a senton for 2. Kong hits a shinbreaker and clubs the leg. He hits an elbowdrop to the leg and puts on the Stretch Muffler. Tozawa hits a chair-assisted running knee for 2. Tanizaki hits a DDT on Kong. Saito hits Tozawa with an overhead suplex. Horiguchi hits the topé con hilo. Hulk hits the Mouse and the axe kick. Saito blocks a senton. Horiguchi hits a swinging DDT and Saito hits the Superfly Splash for 2. Tozawa hits a back suplex for 2. Kong hits a flying elbowdrop for 2. “Tanisaki†reverses the Backslide from Heaven to the Razor’s Edge for 2. Horiguchi gets the Backslide from Heaven for 2. Saito teases the Jon Woo and Kanda hits it. Hulk hits a missile dropkick. Saito hits a German suplex. “Tanisaki†hits a Blue Thunder Bomb for 2 when Tanizaki runs in with the Casanova. Kong hits a lariat. He hits Kanda with the Cyber Driver. Kzy hits a yellow box attack. He hits one on Kong by mistake. Kanda hits the Jon Woo. He hits two flying elbowdrops for 2. He hits the Tornado de Acapulco the win at 13:18. This turned into a HELL of a little match, with fast action from start to finish and a satisfying end with the good guys going over.
Rating: ***½
After the match Mad Blankey attacks, but Gamma runs out with whips and stop the bad guys from being jerks.
CIMA {Z} © vs. YAMATO {A} [Open the Dream Gate Championship Match]
This would be the rubber match between these two, as YAMATO beat CIMA in early 2010, and then CIMA beat YAMATO in the King of Gate tournament in 2011. There was a match between them in DGUSA where YAMATO won, but that hardly counts. Every match had diminishing returns, so I’m hoping for a renaissance here so this doesn’t become another CIMA vs. Yoshino series. The typical Dream Gate mat works starts us out. CIMA hits a shoulder tackle. YAMATO misses a dropkick but catches CIMA with the anklelock. CIMA gets to the ropes. YAMATO misses a charge and falls to the floor. He crawls under the ring to hit a dropkick to the back of the knee. He puts on a half crab. Arai watches from the entrance. YAMATO hits an enziguiri. He puts on a funky leglock. CIMA gets to the ropes. He swings YAMATO arm-first into the post. Takagi tapes the arm. CIMA puts on an armbar. YAMATO gets to the ropes. CIMA works the arm. YAMATO hits a dragon screw. He misses a dropkick. CIMA hits the double knee kick but it hurts his knee too much to capitalize. YAMATO misses a spear. He hits a dropkick and a super exploder. He hits a Frog Splash to the leg. He hits it again. CIMA hits kicks to the arm so YAMATO casually kicks his leg. CIMA misses the Tokarev. YAMATO puts on the anklelock and then the sleeper hold but CIMA escapes. YAMATO reapplies the hold and hits the sleeper suplex. He hits the punt and brainbuster for 2. CIMA blocks the Galleria and puts on a sleeper hold. He hits the Nakayubi. He misses the Meteora and screws up his knee. YAMATO goes back to the sleeper and hits the Galleria for 2. He goes back to the sleeper but CIMA punches his arm to escape. YAMATO uses the other arm but CIMA grabs the weak arm and hits a capture suplex for 2. He hits the Meteora to the back. He hits the Crossfire for 2. He hits the Meteora straight on for the win at 24:35. This wasn’t as good as their 2010 epic but it blew the pants off of the subsequent rematches. The psychology was pretty sound (as sound as it can be in a CIMA match) and while YAMATO never got that close to winning the title, he looked like a competent competitor with a sound plan for victory.
Rating: ****
After the match CIMA celebrates his victory while addressing Akatsuke. Mochizuki takes the microphone and challenges Takagi and YAMATO for the Twin Gate belts at the PPV. Takagi accepts. Fujii and YAMATO have a little skirmish to seal the deal. Doi comes out and formally challenges CIMA for his title at the PPV. Kanda, “Tanisaki†and Arai rush the ring and all lay claim to the Dream Key. The natural CIMA Royale is made for right now!
Naruki Doi {W1} vs. Kenichiro Arai {MG} vs. “Naoki Tanisaki†{MB} vs. Jimmy Kanda {J} [#1 Contender Match]
Kanda attacks “Tanisaki†as Doi and Arai square off. “Tanisaki†starts to take control with chops, so everyone else dropkicks him. “Tanisaki’s†chops bring him back to control until Arai and Kanda hit a double Flapjack. Kanda hits Doi with the Jon Woo. Arai rolls Kanda up for 2. He hits the Alabamaslam. “Tanisaki†hits Arai with a superplex but Doi powerbombs him for 2. Kanda hits the leaping elbow. He goes for the Ryus but Doi blocks it and hits the Doi 555. Kanda hits an exploder. He hits another exploder and a German suplex for 2. He misses the flying elbowdrop. “Tanisaki†hits the DH. He hits the Night Ride for 2 when Arai makes the save. Arai ducks a chop and hits a headbutt. He hits the Hanshin Tiger Suplex. He hits Doi with a big boot. He hits the Hanshin Tiger Suplex for 2. He hits the Tombstone Piledriver. He misses the Firebird Splash and Doi hits a tiger suplex for 2. He hits the Doi 555 and the Bakatare Sliding Kick for the win at 5:07. This was fun, but “Tanisaki†and Kanda were only here to show how much they hate each other, as neither of them acted like they wanted the title that badly.
Rating: **¼
Doi gets on the microphone to remind CIMA that he debuted the Muscular Bomb five years ago in the same city where their Dream Gate match will take place. CIMA says the Muscular Bomb won’t connect at the Dangerous Gate. I’m not sure why Doi would bring that up anyway, he lost that match to CIMA.
