Csonka’s Dragon Gate Champion Gate in Osaka – Night 1 Review

Introduction
As a reminder, this will not be another traditional recap, but instead it will be a mash up of the Rs, Instant Analysis and my usual Twitter ramblings I would do during the shows; completely uncensored and as the ideas flow unfiltered to the old keyboard. Remember, this is a review; and I am here to review the show. As always, I encourage discussion and even disagreement, just do so in a respectful manner. I will be doing the review for Raw and most PPVs and iPPVs going forward.

Dragon Gate Champion Gate in Osaka – Night 1 Review 2.28.15

OFFICIAL RESULTS
~ Super Shisa, Shachihoko BOY{W} defeated (10:17 Red Eighteen) Jimmy Kanda{L}, Jimmy Kagetora [***]
~ Open the Dream Gate champion BxB Hulk defeated (7:45 First Flash) Mr. Quu Quu Tanizaki Naoki Toyonaka Dolphin in a non-title match [***]
~ Kotoka, Yosuke♡Santa Maria (5:10 No Contest) Gamma, Mondai Ryu [*]
~ T-Hawk, U-T, Kotoka{W}, Yosuke♡Santa Maria defeated (12:08 Caldera) YAMATO, Don Fujii, Gamma, Mondai Ryu{L} [***¼]
~ Masato Yoshino, Shingo Takagi, Uhaa Nation{W} defeated (12:11 Uhaa Combination) ~ Genki Horiguchi H.A.Gee.Mee!!{L}, Jimmy Susumu, Ryo “Jimmy” Saito [***½]
~ Open the Brave Gate Championship Match: Akira Tozawa defeated (18:45 Package German Suplex Hold) Kzy [****½]
~ Open the Triangle Gate Championship Match: Masaaki Mochizuki, Dragon Kid, Big R Shimizu{W} defeated (20:17 Shot-put Slam) Naruki Doi, CIMA{L}, Cyber Kong [***½]

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* Trying to get back into the Dragon Gate product. I’ve been a bit slack on then in the new year, due to lack of time, but will try to keep up as well as I can. Enjoy.

Super Shisa, Shachihoko BOY{W} (10:17 Red Eighteen) Jimmy Kanda{L}, Jimmy Kagetora: This was a good way to open the show, not amazing quality wise, but a well worked match with Shachihoko BOY being awesome as he was positioned to steal the show here. He was the star of the match, showing of his speed and highflying ability and I came away impressed. This was done so that he looked strong heading into his match with Yoshino as they challenge YAMATO and Cyber Kong for the Open the Twin Gate Titles on night two. I liked the action, I liked the idea behind it and we’re off to a good start.

BxB Hulk (7:45 First Flash) Mr. Quu Quu Tanizaki Naoki Toyonaka Dolphin: This was a non-title match, and was done as a way to further the feud between the Dia Hearts vs. the Jimmyz. BxB Hulk, as champion, controlled mostly and it was fine if a bit bland at times. The main story was that every time Mr. Quu Quu Tanizaki Naoki Toyonaka Dolphin looked to have things rolling, Hulk would cut him off. The home stretch was very well done, and I almost believed that Mr. Quu Quu Tanizaki Naoki Toyonaka Dolphin had a real chance of pulling off the win. This was another quality match.

Kotoka, Yosuke♡Santa Maria (5:10 No Contest) Gamma, Mondai Ryu: They worked five minutes, YAMATO, Don Fujii, T-Hawk and U-T ran in and we got a no contest. Not that good while it lasted, and I wasn’t a fan of the finish. Since the guys running in were scheduled for a tag match, they made it an eight-man tag and this basically continued…

T-Hawk, U-T, Kotoka{W}, Yosuke♡Santa Maria (12:08 Caldera) YAMATO, Don Fujii, Gamma, Mondai Ryu{L}: So we continued our Mad Blankey vs. Jimmyz feud here, and got another good match from it. I have to say, Grumpy old man Don Fuji owns your souls, the man is simply awesome. He tagged Ryu by slapping him in the face, because he could. They worked an insanely fast pace down the stretch, they used some smoke and mirrors to sell that they both wanted to win and Kotoka won with the with the Caldera on Ryu. For as much as I disliked how we got here (the previous match) we ended up with another quality match.

Masato Yoshino, Shingo Takagi, Uhaa Nation{W} (12:11 Uhaa Combination) Genki Horiguchi H.A.Gee.Mee!!{L}, Jimmy Susumu, Ryo “Jimmy” Saito: This was, again, another quality multi-man tag, focused on Uhaa Nation since he’s facing Hulk the next night for the Open the Dream Gate Title. This match simply clicked better than the previous ones, which were almost all quality bouts, but things seemed more effortless in this match and I felt they booked Nation extremely well as he heads into the title match. Uhaa scored the win with the Uhaa combination on Genki Horiguchi H.A.Gee.Mee!! (I LOVE WACKY DRAGON GATE NAMES) and then did the old “make the belt motion around the waist” gimmick to again, sell the title match. We got good work, and the goal was to get Uhaa ready and a strong opponent for the next night and they did that well. It can be so amazing what happens when you keep things simple and follow your plan.

Open the Brave Gate Championship Match: Akira Tozawa defeated (18:45 Package German Suplex Hold) Kzy to become the new champion: This ended up being not only a cool moment, but our match of the night as Akira Tozawa became the new Open the Brave Gate Champion. In his 10-years in the promotion, singles gold has escaped him including somewhere around 4 to 5 failed attempts at this very title. Tozawa was very serious, showing a change of tone here to show how important the title match was. Kzy controlled early by working the arm, which Tozawa sold well. This was a back loaded match, really feeling like a main event as they kept building and building and after numerous tries to protect the elbow, Tozawa threw all caution to the wind and sacrificed the arm to get advantages as he fought through the pain. The ending stretch of near falls was really a sight to see, and I bought into two or three of them hook line and sinker. I love getting so into a match that I “fall for stuff” like that, I was in the moment. Kzy tried to fight at the end, but Tozawa hit the package German for the win. The match is excellent, and Tozawa completely breaking down into tears to sell the emotion of his huge victory was awesome. They also booked Flamita vs. Tozawa for the March 24th event right after this. The entire package was a great piece of business. I just wish that this was the main event because it would have been a spectacular way to end the show. Stuff like this is why I love wrestling.

Open the Triangle Gate Championship Match: Masaaki Mochizuki, Dragon Kid, Big R Shimizu{W} (20:17 Shot-put Slam) Naruki Doi, CIMA{L}, Cyber Kong: The tag match to close the show was a good match, but I can’t shake the feeling that the Open the Brave Gate Championship match should have main evented the show. With that being said, I did enjoy things. The crowd took their time getting into things, but when they did they were enjoying things. They worked the traditional, chaotic, Dragon Gate trios style and again, the closing stretch was where the money is. I am enjoying the feuds between the various factions, and while not as strong as the previous match, this was a nice way to close the show.

* End scene.

* Thanks for reading.

“Byyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyye Felicia!”

7.7

The final score: review Good

The 411

Overall this was a good show. After a hiatus from the product, I felt welcomed back into the fold and got a good feeling where the product is going, which is appreciated. The show was a lot of fun, it went by quickly and Kzy vs. Akira Tozawa was a true show stealer. They also did good set up for the next show and beyond, which is a sign of good booking. Night two awaits, and this has made me excited for it.