Dramatic Dream Team 3/17/2024 DDT Judgement 2024 ~ 27th Anniversary 5 Hour Special ~

Dramatic Dream Team 3/17/2024 DDT Judgement 2024 ~ 27th Anniversary 5 Hour Special ~

I haven't seen much DDT this year. I don't like comedy wrestling and with Honda, Dino and Harata around, there's potentially 3 matches sometimes on the card I don't want to see which doesn't leave a lot left. It's also just been hard to squeeze it in with all of the other stuff I watch and Takeshita not being around also made me lose some interest.

Here's what I saw:

Soma Takao vs Tsubasa Suzuki

This is the debut match of Tsubasa Suzuki

Soma takes him down and side headlock takeovers him. TS headscissors him and they get up. Soma shoulders hi mover then TS hurricanrana's him. Soma slaps him then stomps on him. Soma snapmares and legdrops him. Soma slaps him then crabs him. TS ropebreaks.

TS hits a nice dropkick then tope con hilos outside. TS springboard dropkicks him. TS running euros him for 2. Soma 2nd rope dropkicks him and kips up. Soma 2nd rope kneedrops him for 2. TS hits forearms then is forearmed down. TS roearms an running forearms him.

Soma sits on the top rope and TS jumps up to hurricanrana him in one motion. TS misses a phoenix splash and is superkicked. Soma superkicks him for 2. TS rolls him up then Soma running forearms him. Soma hits a ki krusher and wins it.

Thoughts: It went a little long for being a one-sided match. It was a good debut for Suzuki here. He's agile, young and decent looking but on the downside, he's short. It's DDT though and it won't matter.

Soma walks Suzuki to the back after and Dino tries to kiss Suzuki

Ilusion, Rukiya & To-y vs. Kazuma Sumi, Yuni & Yuya Koroku

 

Yuya and Ruki go at it. They do some amateur wrestling. Yuya side headlock takeovers him and is headscissored. Ruki side headlocks him and shoulders him over. Yuya armdrags him then 2nd rope forearms him. Ruki boots Sumi in the gut then Sumi hits a nice dropkick on him.

Ruki slams Sumi. Ill slingshot swantons Sumi then does a double underhook suplex on him. Ill then does a dragon sleeper variation on him. Toy chops Sumi then corner dropkicks him. Sumi hits chops and dropkicks on Toy. Toy suplexes him for 2. Sumi 2nd rope diving hurricanrana's Toy.

Yuni springboard dropkicks Ill and flying headscissors Ruki. Yuni rolls into a cutter on Toy then Yuni moonsaults outside. Yuni rolls Ill into a pin attempt then superkicks Ill. Yuni hits a buzzsaw kick then Ill dropkicks him.

Ruki and Yuya trade forearms. Ruki rolls him into a suplex for 2. Yuya air raid crashes Ruki. Toy comes in and flying kicks Yuya. Toy flips on an enzugiri on him then hits a half-nelson slam for 2. Sumi tornado ddt's Toy then Yuni does the same to Toy. Sumi and Yuni miss plancha's outside then Yuya misses a top rope moonsault inside. Yuya is backdropped then takes some wild spinning drop on his chest. Toy pins Yuya.

Thoughts: It was a fast paced and fun juniors match. It was absolutely what you would want in this spot and they did a good job flying around and keeping things interesting.

Gorgeous Matsuno & Toru Owashi vs. Keisuke Ishii & Shinichiro Kawamatsu

SK is wrestling in a suit. Ishii and GM go at it.GM stares down SK as he chest forearms Ishii. GM takes a big chop and is hurting. Toru won't tag in on his tag. GM flying forearms Ishii and goes up top. He takes forever and Ishii gets up. GM then gets down from the top. Toru and SK get in.

SK takes him down and runs the ropes to shoulderblock him. Toru eye rakes him. GM hits boots on SK then Ishii knees GM in the gut. GM flying shoulders SK down. Toru does a headlock takeover + headscissors takeover. Toru and SK chop each other. SK takes off his suit jacket then is facekicked. SK suplexes Toru.

GM hits chest forearms on Ishii and is hit in the chest. Toru hits a double shoulderblock on his opponents GM flying forearms Ishii and Ishii doesn't budge. GM 619's Ishii then GM hadnspring elbow drops Ishii. Ishii double knee drops GM for 2. Ishii hits a fire thunder variation on GM and wins.

Thoughts: It was all comedy here with GM being too weak and slow to do much of anything and getting beaten up by Ishii.

DAMNATION T.A (Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul) vs. Schadenfreude International (Antonio Honda, Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi)

Honda falls off the 2nd buckle while he poses and hurts his knee. He gets on the mic and talks then gets nailed. Damnation jump the faces and 4 of them go outside. DS dragon screws and figure fours Honda. DS takes a step up enzugiri then is held so Hpnda can pose on his back. Paul airplane spins Honda and bangs his feet off of CB's and MT's heads. Kanon slams and fist drops MT.

MT takes shots from Paul and DS. DS neckbereakers him for 2. DS eye rakes MT then tilt-a-whirl backbreakers him. MT goes for the crossface then DS puts it on him. DS is tripped and held for a CB double stomp off the buckles. CB snapmares and sentons DS for 2. CB 2nd rope dropkivcks DS and sentons Kanon's back at the same time.

DS cradles CB and uses the ropes to try and pin him. DS low blows CB then ddt's him. Paul samoan drops CB then stf's him. CB and Paul trade chops for forearms. Paul hits bolo punches. CB jumping knees him and enzugiri's him before getting caught with a thesz press.

Honda gets in and trips on the 2nd rope. Honda armbars Kanon. Honda's team all hit stereo bionic elbows together. Honda tries to run the ropes but hurts himself then trips on an asai moonsault attempt and goes down. Honda gets on the mic and everyone just stops wrestling. He sings "happy happy happy" and then sings about his male parts. Honda eye pokes 2 opponents, a partner and himself due to Kanon. Honda takes a top rope elbow drop + dominator combo.

CB enzugiri's DS then slaps MT. Kanon dropkicks CB out then Honda rolls up Kanon by surprise. Honda gets 2 more pin attempts then takes a grounded cobra twist. Honda then taps out.

Thoughts: It was what I expected - a match that would have been fine except for Honda's comedy. I didn't like Honda stopping the match here to screw around on the mic. 

Sanshiro Takagi vs. Ken Ohka

Ken has a cool entrance here coming out with his Ganbare Pro roster cheering for him.

They tade forearms. Ken shoulders him over and is german suplexed. They go out and ST throws him into the post. ST slams Ken then chairs him. ST foot chokes Ken then chairs him. ST beats him with the chair seat then crabs him. Ken is thrown out then facekicked off the apron.

Ken is deadlift 2nd rope superplexed in. ST is on the buckles and takes headbutts and a superplex. Ken hits forearms and a rolling fireman's carry. Ken runs into a guillotine choke and ST gets a 2 count off of it. ST hits a big lariat on Ken. Yumehito Imanari comes down and gives ST the middle finger.

ST powerbombs Ken. They trade slaps and Ken suplexees him. Ken hits a stunner then they trade more slaps. Ken headbutts him then running lariats him. Ken running spears him and wins it.

Thoughts: I thought it was a decent match actually. Takagi beat up and bullied Ken. Ken the made his big comeback and won. Ken looks like a normal guy but he really performed well here and really seemed to understand the underdog face role.

Ken does a fiery crying promo after and Takagi read something off a script to him.

Shuji Ishikawa & Yoshitatsu vs. Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Naya

Naya and Yoshi go at it.  Naya chops him and Yoshi side headlocks him. They shoulder battle and Naya knocks him over. Shuji and Kh go at it. They shoulder battle and KH flying shoulders him. The four go outside and fight. KH is sent into the chairs. Shuji jumps off the rail outside and doublestomps KH. Yoshi sends Naya into the post.

Shuji and KH trade forearms for chops. Shuji hits a headbutt flurry and knees to the gut. Yoshi snapmares KH and pulls his arms back. Yoshi russian legsweeps KH then single leg crabs him. KH dropkicks Yoshi.

Naya gets in and corner splashes Yoshi. Naya elbow drops him then trades forearms with Yoshi. Yoshi step up enzugiri's him then backcrackers him. Shuji running shoulders Naya in the corner then 2nd rope double stomps him. Shuji corner lariats Naya then Naya corner splashes him. They trade forearms. Naya hits chest kicks then knees him twice.

KH 2nd rope elbow drops Shuji for 2. KH hits chops, a palm strike to the chest and a russian legsweep to Shuji. He then facelocks him with a claw. Shuji takes a running corner lariat and shoulder then is double shouldered over. Yoshi takes a double chokeslam. KH powerslams Shuji for 2. Shuji backdrops KH for 2.

Yoshi and Naya trade. Yoshi facekicks him and codebreakers him. KH and Shuji lariat battle then KH running lariats him down. KH running headbutts Shuji for 2. Shuji fire thunders KH for 2. Shuji running knees KH for 2. Shuji hits splash mountain on KH and wins.

Thoughts: It was a good heavyweight tag here. They used Yoshi well here and they kept the focus to the heavyweights beating each other up. It really was a best case scenario type of match here and I liked it.

DDT Extreme Title Painful Jungle Death Match - Shunma Katsumata (c) vs. Hideki Okatani

They have vines around the ropes and some kind of board with barbed wire and a toy snake in the grass in the middle of he ring. I believe there's gusset plates, barbed wire and skewer sticks on the buckles.

Shun is hiptossed onto the barbed wire board then has his head pressed into it. Oka misses a corner charge and goes into barbed wire twice and Shun does as well. Oka is dropkicked into maybe a safety pin board in the corner. Shun stands on Oka's body, pushing it into the pins. Shun's busted open and puts a gusset plate into Oka's head.

Oka is thrown into the barbed wire board with the toy snake and is bleeding everywhere. Oka and Shun go into the barbed wire buckle. Shun is flapjacked and bulldogged onto a gusset plate buckle for 2. Oka throws a skewer stick buckle at Shun then drops Shun on it.

Oka pours tacks out then Shun backslides Oka onto tacks. Oka 2nd rope russian legsweeps Shun onto tacks. Oka northern lights suplexes Shun onto tacks. Oka then gets tacks stuck in his head. Shun is hit with a trash can covered in vines.

They trade forearms. Oka spinning back elbows him. They get on the buckles and Oka is knocked down a few times. Oka 2nd rope double underhook suplexes him. Oka comes off the top and drops the barbed wire buckle onto him. They trade forearms.

Shun gives Oka skewer sticks and they put the sticks in their own heads. They forearm each other and trade forearms. Oka single leg dropkicks him and double underhook suplexes him for 2. Shun high kicks him and does a wrist-clutch death valley driver for 2. Shun superkicks him then top rope splashes a barbed wire board into him to win.

Thoughts: They definitely did too much here and I didn't like them sticking sticks in their own heads. It just defeats the purpose of the spot and shows it doesn't hurt that match. The finish was also problematic as Shun splashed a barbed wire board into Oka but of course rammed his own body into it in the process. It was a better effort than most Freedoms matches but it failed logically.

Kenta Kobashi comes out to do commentary for the next match.

KO-D Tag Team Title Match - New Period (Ryuki Honda & Yuma Anzai) vs. Burning (Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Ino)

This should be really good. I can't wait to see what Ino and Honda can do with each other.

Ino and Honda start us off. They shoulderblock battle and knock each other over. Yuma and Endo go at it. Yuma side headlocks him. Endo blocks a flying knee and Yuma armdrags him over. Endo running back elbows him. Ino lariats Endo on a failed double team then is dropkicked out.

Honda and Endo trade forearms. Honda does his legchoke on the ropes spot and counts a long with the ref. Endo takes a double shoulder for 2. Yuma sleepers Endo. Honda gets in and Endo springboard forearms him. Ino slams Honda and Yuma when he gets tagged in.

Ino corner splashes Honda then suplexes him. Ino chops Honda. They trade forearms and lariat battle. Ino lariats him over then Honda lariats him over. Yuma hits forearms on Ino then belly to belly suplexes him. Yuma and Ino attack each other on the ropes then Ino slams Yuma. Ino misses an elbow drop on Yuma then knocks him off the apron.

Ino lariats Honda over on a double team then Endo flying space tiger drops both opponents outside. Yuma hits a nice dropkick on Endo then double underhook suplexes him. Endo superkicks Yuma, handsprings off the ropes and is caught with a german suplex. Honda corner lariats Endo then spinebusters him for 2.  Honda does a facelock on Endo.

Endo takes corner forearms and lariats. Yuma accidentally jumping knees Honda then Endo double pele kicks them both. Ino diving double clotheslines both opponents off the top. Endo handspring back corkscrew kicks Honda for 2. Honda superplexes endo and Endo no sells it. Endo exploders Honda then Yuma hits a big dropkick on Endo. Yuma flying knees Ino then takes a big spear. Honda and Ino spear each other at the same time and bang heads in a nasty spot. Honda suplexes Ino.

Honda hits a big lariat on Endo then running lariats him for 2. Endo drops down and Ino hits a big spear on Honda for 2. Endo spinning torture rack bombs Honda. Endo top rope ssp's Honda for the win.

Thoughts: One of the problems with a stacked card like this is that there is no way everything can get enough time. What we got here was a real strong 16 minutes of wrestling. We had some cool spots and a nice mix of flying and power wrestling. It was action packed and real exciting but it really needed more time to be a classic. They made about the most you could out of the time they had and I really want a rematch of this one. It was a great match and it's just a shame we didn't get a longer version of it. 

Endo has words for Honda after and Honda gives him the middle finger. Jun Akiyama is called out by Endo for something after.

DDT Universal Title Match - MAO (c) vs. Takeshi Masada

TM top rope dropkicks Mao as soon as he is introduced. He stomps on him in the corner and throws the ref to the side. TM kicks Mao in the back several times then running facekicks him. Mao cutters TM over the ref. Mao running facekicks and running shotei's Mao for 2.

TM hits a step up enzugiri and Mao dropkicked him in the back. TM corkscrew enzugiri's him off the buckles. Mao package piledrivers him and hits chest kicks. TM slaps him then hits a nasty kick to the eyebrow. Mao hits a slap combo then hits Kawada kicks. Mao superkicks him.

TM hits shots then is headbutted. Mao corkscrew kicks him and wins by knockout.

Thoughts: I'm not sure of the storyline going into this but these two had a beef and beat the crap out of each other. It only went 4 minutes but they really got a lot of out of it and established their hatred of each other well.

Konosuke Takeshita vs. Yuma Aoyagi

KT wristlocks him and Yuma reverses it. Yuma side headlock takeovers him and side headlocks him. KT hits a big forearm on the ropes. KT shoulders him over. Yuma back elbows him, KT runs the ropes fast and flying lariats him. KT slams him then 2nd rope sentons him.

Yuma dropkicks KT out and bangs his head off the post. Yuma is sent into the post and thye trade forearms outside. Yuma euros him down then ddt's him on the floor. Yuma chinlocks him then elbow drops him. Yuma corner forearms him then top rope crossbodies him for 2. Yuma piledrivers him for 2. They trade forearms. KT hits doi fives on him then Doi's sliding kick. KT tope con hilos him outside. KT running facekicks him then blue thunders him for 2. KT is put on the top rope and dropkicked. They fight on the apron and KT is backdropped on the apron.

Yuma suplexes him for 2. Yuma top rope elbow drops him for 2 then does a guillotine + armhold. KT flips out of a german and pumping knees Yuma. Yuma guillotines him and is caught with a brainbuster. Yuma rock bottom's him.

KT hits a big lariat. They forearm each other. KT germans him for 2. Yuma spin kicks him, gets forearmed then hits another spin kick for 2. Yuma fisherman suplexes him for 2. KT wheelbarrow germans him then spinning forearms him for 2. Yuma back rolls him into a bridge then KT flying knees him. KT pumping knees him for 2. KT spinning falcon arrows him and wins it.

Thoughts: It was dumb for KT to win this since he's barely around and it's not enough that people like Yuma are gonna do jobs in other companies. Someone like Ueno would have benefited a lot more. It was a good by the numbers type of main. They didn't do anything too wild or amazing here but they gave you enough to be satisfied and there were no issues with it.

KO-D Openweight Title Match - Yuki Ueno (c) vs. HARASHIMA

HS = Harashima

Ueno side headlocks him and they shoulder battle. Ueno knocks him over then they go into the stands. HS has his head banged off the wall. They fight in the aisle in the seats and trade forearms for chops. Ueno ddt's him on the floor. Ueno then jumps off the step structure and hits a moonsault.

They trade shots outside and go back in. Ueno corner hip attacks him and HS gets his knees up on Ueno's move from the corner. HS wraps around the post to kick him. HS stomps on him inside and does a grounded cobra twist.

HS double footpresses him down while Ueno is laying on the 2nd rope. Ueno suplexes him then hits a corner lariat. Ueno and HS fight up top. Ueno is dropped gut first on the top rope. Ueno slingshot double knee drops him then leg lariats him on the ropes. Ueno tornillo plancha's outside.

HS gets his knees up on Ueno's top rope splash then falcon arrows him. Ueno gets his knees up on HS' springboard splash. They trade forearms and HS hits chest kicks. Ueno half-nelson suplexes him then shining wizards him. Ueno top rope splashes him for 2. 

Ueno misses a double jump moonsault and takes a john woo. HS running facekicks him. HS hits a 2nd rope poisonrana. Ueno rolls out and HS throws him back in. Ueno then tope con hilos him as soon as he gets in. HS poisonrana's him on the floor. Ueno basically no sells it and shining wizards him.

HS springboard double stomps him then hits a fireman's carry gutbuster. Ueno straightjacket germans him and then running lariats him. HS hits a rolling overdrive for 2.

Ueno double jump moonsaults and is kicked in the face off of it. Ueno sleepers him. Ueno hits forearms on his knees and kicks him in the chest. They slap each other. HS spinning high kicks him and is dropkicked for 2. Ueno dropkicks him then HS pumping knees him. HS hits a running pumping knee for 2.

HS buzzsaw kicks him then is dropkicked off a springboard. Ueno does a forward rolling ddt and wins it.

Thoughts: It was the usual indy garbage with Ueno. He did way too much as he usually does and didn't sell any of it, completely ruining this one. It's not really surprising, but it's a shame.

Overall thoughts: The show was over 5 hours long and DDT filled it up with some good looking matches. The only bad thing was that because there were so many matches, not everything had the time it needed to be as great as possible. The show really had everything with comedy, cruiserweights, heavyweights, interpromotional matches, debuts and deathmatches. Whatever you could want, this had it in some form or another. It was a great show and definitely recommended.